Church to Display Venerated Image

A digital laser replica of Our Lady of Guadalupe, patroness of the Americas, arrives today at St. Paschal Baylon Catholic Church.

The replica has attracted throngs who believe Our Lady of Guadalupe is best suited to understand and comfort them, according to event coordinator Betty Reyes.

But Reyes points out that the church does not attach significance to the image itself, adding that it is through the act of prayer that blessings are received.

“A devotion to Our Blessed Mother, the patron of the disenfranchised and unborn, leads people to Jesus,” Reyes said.

The replica arrived in the Southland on Sept. 14 and will visit more than 50 churches before a final event at the Los Angeles Coliseum on Dec. 11.

The original image is on a framed piece of fabric in the Basilica of Guadalupe in Mexico City. The material, a cloak, was said to be worn by Juan Diego, a poor Indian who lived in what is now Mexico City in 1531. Diego claimed that he saw the Virgin Mary, who told him to build a church and name it after her.

He told the bishop, who wanted proof of the encounter. It was December when Diego next saw the woman he believed to be the Virgin Mary. She is said to have told him to go up to the mountaintop in Tepeyac and pick roses. Diego did so, then brought the roses to the bishop, believing that finding roses in December was proof enough of a miracle.

When he took the roses out of his cloak, a colorful image of the Virgin Mary was imprinted on the fabric. This cloth is what is enshrined in Mexico City, and one of the duplicates blessed by the Pope is touring the Southland.

Thousands of people have visited the image, with huge crowds filling churches at every stop.

“There is a group of about 1,000 people following the image as a pilgrimage,” Reyes said.

“They come because of the devotion they have to the Virgin Mary. Others come to see what all the hoopla is about,” said Les Rangel-Santos, director of liturgy at St. Elizabeth Church in Van Nuys.

St. Elizabeth hosted the image in October, and Rangel-Santos said he was surprised by the large crowds. Rangel-Santos is helping with the preparations for the event at St. Paschal’s.

“We are both excited and nervous,” Reyes said. “Our chapel only holds 800.”

There will be large crowds, parking problems and other logistical concerns, he said. But he believes it will all be worth it.

“My feeling came out of looking at the people’s emotionally charged faces. They were crying and praying for miracles. They brought pictures of terminally ill loved ones and children who had died,” Rangel-Santos said.

The 125-pound, 3-by-5-foot image is framed in gold and silver. It will be placed where viewers can also touch it. The original image in Mexico City cannot be touched.

When the pilgrim image arrives at St. Paschal Baylon Catholic Church it will be honored at a special 2 p.m. celebration led by Msgr. Joseph George, the pastor.

A 3 p.m. procession will move the image to the church, where visitors can see it until the 5:30 p.m. liturgy. Visits will resume after Mass and continue until the church closes at 11 p.m.

A reception featuring Irish, Aztec and Folklorico dancers and other special presentations will be held in Thomas Aquinas hall from 7 to 10 p.m. today. Refreshments will be served.

The regular Mass will be celebrated Sunday, with visits to the image continuing until 3 p.m. when it will depart for the San Gabriel Mission. There will be a reception in Parish Hall immediately after the departure.

The church is at Janss and Moorpark roads. Additional parking is available at La Reina High School on Janss Road.