OUR LADY OF GUADALUPE AND ST. JUAN DIEGO IMAGES CONTINUE ANNUAL PILGRIMAGE THROUGHOUT L.A. ARCHDIOCESE
October 26, 2023  |  By:   |  Press Releases  |  

—After visiting St. Catherine of Alexandria Parish in Catalina Island, the pilgrim images will visit nine parishes and one cemetery throughout Los Angeles County—

The annual pilgrimage of the images of Our Lady of Guadalupe and St. Juan Diego kicked off with a packed visit from mainland parishioners to St. Catherine of Alexandria Parish in Catalina Island, and in November the images were hosted at Santa Clara Cemetery in Oxnard Nov. 4th, during the celebration of Día de los Muertos. Then the images will visit nine parishes in six cities in Los Angeles and Ventura counties, where the faithful, including parochial school students, will have the opportunity to venerate the images, pray the Rosary and attend Masses featuring Mariachis or Aztec and folkloric dancers.

The pilgrimage continues this week at St. Mel Parish in Woodland Hills (20870 Ventura Blvd., Woodland Hills, CA 91367), where it will be received by the faithful today, Tuesday, November 7 at 8 a.m. with a Mass, followed by Rosary Prayer at 9 a.m., time for veneration from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Adoration from 3-5 p.m., Rosary at 5 p.m. and Mass at 5:30 p.m. On Wednesday, November 8, all school students (more than 530 students) will attend a Mass featuring the images at 8:15 a.m.

Cristo Rey Parish in Los Angeles (4343 Perlita Avenue, L,A,, CA 90039) will welcome the images on Thursday, November 9 with a 12 p.m. (noon) Mass, followed by a 3 p.m. Rosary, guided and sung by the parish’s Guadalupanos, or devotees to the Virgin of Guadalupe. At 5p.m. all the Religious Education Program students will gather to pray and sing the Rosary, and the day will end with a Mass at 6:30 p.m. Activities will continue on Friday, November 10 with a 7 a.m. and a noon Mass, a 3 p.m. Rosary and a farewell Mass at 6 p.m.

The faithful of St. Dominic Parish in Los Angeles (2002 Merton Ave., LA, CA 90041) will receive the traveling images on Saturday, November 11 with a welcome Mass in English at 8 a.m. The images will remain at the parish until Sunday, November 12, where parishioners will be able to attend a farewell Mass in Spanish at 1 p.m. The pilgrimage will then make its way to St. Elisabeth of Hungary Parish in Altadena, where it will be welcomed with Matachines dances, music and flower offerings on Sunday, November 12 evening (6 p.m.) followed by altar servers prayer service from 7-8 p.m.

On Monday, November 13 and Tuesday, November 14 there will be prayer and worship throughout the day, and a farewell Rosary with school children at 1:30 p.m. St. Benedict in Montebello will welcome the pilgrim images on Wednesday, November 15 with a Mass for school students at 8 a.m., followed by a Rosary prayer by the Guadalupanos Parish Group, The day will feature prayers by several groups, including the parish youth group. Thursday, November 16 will start with a Mass with music by the parish’s Filipino choir, and prayer and worship all day long until the farewell Mass in Spanish at 7 p.m. Our Lady of Victory Parish in L.A. (1317 S. Herbert Ave., LA, CA 90023) will host the images Nov. 17-18, Our Lady Help of Christians (512 S. Ave. 20, LA, CA 90031) will welcome them Nov. 19-20. Please see a complete November Schedule in English and Spanish.

The annual pilgrimage of the images serves as spiritual preparation for the 92nd Annual Procession and Mass in honor of Our Lady of Guadalupe on December 3 in East Los Angeles. The Guadalupe Procession is the oldest religious procession in Los Angeles, and this year’s theme is “Holy Mother of Guadalupe: Path of the light and hope.” The annual celebration, started by Mexican Catholics who fled persecution by the Mexican government during the Cristero War, commemorates the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, which recalls the miraculous apparitions of the Virgin Mary to Saint Juan Diego at Cerro del Tepeyac (Tepeyac Hill), Mexico City, in December 1531, when she left her image on his “tilma” or cloak. Her image has been a symbol of unity, peace, compassion, and hope for people around the world.

La Peregrina, a pilgrim image of the Virgin of Guadalupe, is an exact digital reproduction of the original image in Mexico City’s Basilica, which has been blessed and touched to the original image. The gift was hand-delivered to the Archdiocese of Los Angeles in 2000 by Monsignor Diego Monroy, then Rector of Our Lady of Guadalupe Basilica in Mexico City.

For more information, visit https://lacatholics.org/guadalupe/.

####