Procession, mass celebrate Virgin Mary’s appearance near Mexico
City
Led by two parishioners mounted on Andalusian stallions and clad
in white and light-green charra outfits, members of Morgan Hill’s
St. Catherine’s parish turned out Sunday for a procession marking
the first half of an annual observation to honor Our Lady of
Guadalupe, known as the Patroness of the Americas in the
Spanish-speaking world.
Procession, mass celebrate Virgin Mary’s appearance near Mexico City
Led by two parishioners mounted on Andalusian stallions and clad in white and light-green charra outfits, members of Morgan Hill’s St. Catherine’s parish turned out Sunday for a procession marking the first half of an annual observation to honor Our Lady of Guadalupe, known as the Patroness of the Americas in the Spanish-speaking world.
The second part of the observation occurred Thursday, the actual feast day of Our Lady of Guadalupe, which for the faithful marked the 471st anniversary of the appearance of the Virgin Mary to a poor Nahua India on the outskirts of Mexico City.
The result of that encounter was the construction of the world-renowned BasÃlica de Guadalupe there.
“There are basilicas dedicated to Our Lady of Guadalupe throughout Latin America. At home, when I was a girl I dressed as an Indian during the observances,” said MarÃa del Carmen Alvarenga, a transplant from El Salvador.
Alvarenga arrived with her nation’s flag, one of many Latin American flags in the procession. Feeling a little under the weather, Alvarenga passed the banner to compatriot Etelvina Funes to carry.
Unlike last year when parishioners stepped off from Third and Depot streets chilled by a sharp wind and pelted by raindrops, this year’s procession was blessed with almost shirtsleeve weather.
The horsewomen leading the procession were Marivel Vázquez-MacÃas and Honeyda Rivera, members of Escaramuza Charra Las Valentinas, an equestrian group whose members attend St. Catherine’s Church. They rode with Márgaro Macias, the husband of Vázquez-MacÃas.
The procession wound through downtown and ended up at the parish church where marchers heard Mass by co-celebrants, fathers Oscar Morales, Gene O’Donnell and Gil Abesimas. Music was provided by the young San Jose mariachi group, Sol Azteca.
On Thursday, some 800 people attended a 5 a.m. Mass highlighted by the music of Mariachi Regional de Los Altos. The faithful started arriving at 4:30 a.m., bundled against the cold in jackets and, a handful, in colorful sarapes.
In the sanctuary, an image of Our Lady of Guadalupe rested to the left of the altar. A cluster of flags of Latin American nations stood in one corner, while other Hemisphere flags hung from walls. Numerous arrivals brought red roses to place at the foot of the altar.
Celebrants came and went, unable to stay for the full program because of work commitments. The ceremony was followed by a breakfast of coffee, hot chocolate and Mexican-style rolls in the adjoining parish hall.
In the evening, a parish youth group, La Amistad, was scheduled to present its interpretation of the 1531 Guadalupe drama, followed by a rosary prayer.
According to belief, the Virgin Mary appeared to Juan Diego, a 57-year-old converted Nahua on Dec. 9, 1531 on a knoll north of Mexico City. She told the astonished laborer that she wanted Bishop Juan de Zumárraga to build a temple there in her honor. It wasn’t until three days later that the incredulous bishop acceded.
What convinced the bishop was a cluster of out-of-season Castilla roses from the knoll delivered by Juan Diego and the imprinted image of the virgin on the cloak in which the messenger had carried the flowers.
One explanation of why the virgin used a name known in Spain when dealing with a Nahua was the confusion between Guadalupe and the Nahuatl word coatlaxopeuh, which sounds very similar and means “the one who crushed the serpent.” Some historians say the designation refers to the conversion of thousands of natives to Christianity.
Juan Diego, beatified by Pope John Paul II at the Mexico City shrine in 1990 and canonized earlier this year by the Pope in the same place, is personified in the Morgan Hill observance.
A participant in the procession for the fourth year was 22-year Morgan Hill resident Pedro Corona, a dead ringer for Juan Diego, right down to the tilma bearing the image of the virgin.
“I like to demonstrate that, like Juan Diego, one can be from the working class and still be a good Christian,” Corona said.
Members of Danza Liturgica Juvenil, a young people’s dance group from St. Catherine’s that performs in area churches, was close behind the leaders. The group is led by Betty Landeros, a 2000 graduate from Live Oak High School.
This year, the youngest member of the 20-dancer troupe is seven-year-old Chayito Castillo.
“She picked up on the routines so quickly she was able to join her sister (19-year-old Mireya) in the group,” said her mother, MarÃa Elena Castillo.
Bringing up the rear was Las Herraduras de San Martin, an all-female sidesaddle drill team that performs throughout the state and country in Mexican-style rodeos.
