Pascua Guadalupana

Pascua Guadalupana is a Mexican Catholic devotional tradition honoring the Virgin Mary, Our Lady of Guadalupe, that lasts 46 days from late October through December 12th, her feast day. The origins of the tradition are obscure, but like Mary who appeared to an Aztec peasant in 1531 and addressed him in his own Nahuatl language, the devotion reflects an indigenized Catholicism. Our Lady of Guadalupe is considered to be the Patroness of the Americas and is an extremely important national symbol of Mexico, where the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City is the world's third most-visited sacred site. According to a guide to the tradition published in Mexico in 1995, it "probably was a form of evangelization and devotion in past centuries that a good missionary or devotee of the Virgin had invented to praise her" in the weeks before the feast in her honor.¹

For members of the Sagrado Corazón community, it is a time to deepen their faith and reinvigorate their devotion to Mary. It is also a time to connect with one another, to invite extended families and fellow parishioners into homes, celebrate, and pray together in the presence of their heavenly Mother.

For the 46 days of Pascua Guadalupana, an image of Our Lady of Guadalupe moves from one house or apartment to another, receiving hospitality and blessing the homes and the families in them. "The statue of Our Lady of Guadalupe is taken from one house to another and it's a great honor to have this sacred image in the home during the night."² Sagrado Corazón's statue of the Virgin serves as the focus of guided prayers, songs, readings, and reflections, often sitting on home altars and bedecked with fresh flowers.