Those in the vicinity of St. Catherine’s Church on Faulkner Springs Road might have noticed a curious yet solemn procession this past Sunday. Parishioners celebrating the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe gathered over 200 strong to celebrate a time-honored religious cultural festival called “Our Lady of Guadalupe.”
Singing songs and reciting prayers in both Spanish and English, the groups of peaceful people walked patiently behind one another dressed in colorful layers in the bright winter sunshine. The procession made its way along at least two miles of streets. Some participants played guitars in the back of moving trucks while other generations of families strolled arm in arm celebrating the 500-year old tradition.
Judy Davis, liturgy committee head of St. Catherine’s, has been a member of McMinnville’s only Roman Catholic Church since 1963. She explained the importance of the celebration to their church community.
“The story of the Lady of Guadalupe is important to Catholics, especially to the people of the Hispanic community,” explained Davis. “This yearly tradition praises God for the gift of his mother. This mother appeared in the form of a lady to an Aztec peasant, Juan Diego over 500 years ago. She is responsible for eventually bringing Christianity to millions in Mexico.”
This was in the face of “Convert to Christianity or Die” pressure from Spain. The apparitions appeared on Dec. 9 and 12 in 1539 to Diego on Tepeyac Hill, now part of suburban Mexico City. The apparition appeared as an Aztec woman and not as a European. The church honors Dec. 12 as her feast day worldwide. Thousands of people from all over Mexico make a pilgrimage to the Basilica of Mexico City annually.
The Hispanic community of St. Catherine’s has held the procession for the last five years in McMinnville and celebrated the feast for the last 15 years according to Davis. St. Catherine’s has been a fixture of McMinnville’s bountiful Christian culture since 1958.
The morning of the procession, the church held a 5 a.m. “mañanitas,” an early morning serenade in honor of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Parishioners then followed with a rosary prayer session. The church celebrated a bilingual outdoor mass after the procession and later with authentic Mexican food and traditional dance.
