A Day of Devotion Downtown

By MARGARET RAMIREZ

Sept. 15, 1999 12 AM PT

TIMES RELIGION WRITER

In an overwhelming display of devotion Tuesday, thousands of Catholics flocked to Olvera Street to behold and praise a reproduction of the image of the Virgin of Guadalupe.

They came wearing Guadalupe T-shirts and raising red roses to the heavens in homage. Others clutched rosary beads and held signs saying “Welcome! Bienvenida!”

Many, like Lupe Reyes, wept as the Virgin’s image passed by them, touched by the countless miracles that are believed to have been performed by Guadalupe.

“It is difficult to describe what you feel when you see her,” Reyes said, brushing away tears. “She soothes us. She brings us peace. I have never felt so much joy.”

The Virgin of Guadalupe is a sacred and powerful image, especially for Mexicans, based on a series of apparitions of the Virgin Mary as believers say she appeared in 1531 to Juan Diego, an Aztec convert to Christianity in the hills outside Mexico City. After appearing to him as a dark-skinned Virgin, it is believed that Guadalupe left her image on Juan Diego’s mantle or cloak. That original image lies inside the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City, which was built on the site where the original appearance was reported.

On his visit to Mexico earlier this year, Pope John Paul II commissioned the reproduction of the image and elevated Guadalupe’s feast day, Dec. 12, to a holy day for the Catholic Church in America.

The replica was transported by train from the Mexican border and arrived Tuesday afternoon at Union Station in downtown Los Angeles. The movement of the replica was carried live on some Spanish-language television stations.

The holy image will make a three-month pilgrimage to more than 50 parishes throughout the Los Angeles Archdiocese, culminating with a celebration at the Los Angeles Sports Arena in December.

Hundreds gathered near the train tracks at Union Station to witness the arrival of the reproduction. The image, protected by a massive frame, was hoisted onto the back of a white pickup truck that drove from Union Station to Olvera Street.

As the image moved to Olvera Street, hundreds of police were alerted to control the unexpectedly large crowd.

Upon catching sight of the holy image, many latched onto the back of the pickup truck and tossed flowers at the Virgin’s feet. As he threw confetti, Roland Rebollo of South El Monte said he credits the Virgin of Guadalupe with restoring his sight. As a child in Mexico, he said, he had become blind, but regained his vision after his mother prayed to Guadalupe.

“For me, she’s my mother. She listens to the prayers we offer her. Now she has come here to heal the suffering here,” he said.

Jeannine Solis waved as the image was driven away for its first stop at Mother of Sorrows Church in South-Central Los Angeles.

“As a mother, she has special significance for me,” Solis said. “There have been times when I had a genuine need and I cried out to her. If you look at all the faces here, you can see what she means to us. It goes that deep.”

Besides the story of Jesus of Nazareth, few other Christian narratives have fascinated people more than that of Our Lady of Guadalupe.

Devotion to Guadalupe has spread throughout Latin America and to Latinos across the United States. The dark-skinned Virgin emerged as a powerful icon for indigenous peoples, then evolved as a protector and liberator of immigrants and the poor in urban areas.

With the arrival of the reproduction, church officials hope to expand the realm of Guadalupe devotion and attract people of all races and religions.

“This is a Virgin for everyone. Not just for Mexicans, not just for Latinos. She is a Virgin for all of us,” said Bishop Gabino Zavala at a liturgy service held at Olvera Street. “She is here to unite all cultures together.”

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Our Lady of Guadalupe Schedule

The replica of the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe will be displayed at the following locations in the Los Angeles Archdiocese through next week. Some dates overlap because the icon will be moved during the day from one church to another.

Through Thursday

Mother of Sorrows Church

114 W. 87th St., Los Angeles

Thursday-Saturday

St. Monica Church

725 California Ave.,

Santa Monica

Saturday-Monday

Mary Star of the Sea Church

463 W. Pleasant Valley Road, Oxnard

Monday-Sept. 22

St. Joseph Church