OLG & St. Juan Diego images continue annual pilgrimage

The annual pilgrimage of the images of Our Lady of Guadalupe and St. Juan Diego kicked off in mid-September visiting about 15 parishes in Los Angeles and the San Gabriel Valley and will continue through December 7. This year’s pilgrimage is visiting more parishes than ever before — 51 in total, including cemeteries and a convents in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles comprised of Los Angeles, Ventura and Santa Barbara counties.

Angelus News, the multimedia news platform of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, reported in a recent story that after a summer of widespread fear caused by increased immigration enforcement, this year’s pilgrimage has taken on a much deeper meaning than usual for Catholics in immigrant communities. The story notes that the pilgrimage’s success reflects the resilience of immigrant Catholics clinging to the sacraments while praying for an end to the raids and deportations, and for political action that will lead to comprehensive immigration reform. The full story is available at https://angelusnews.com/local/la-catholics/guadalupe-ice/.

Today, the pilgrimage continues to Sacred Heart Church in Altadena on Monday, October 13, which had caught fire and was saved by Deacon José Luis Díaz during the wildfires early this year, then will head to Our Lady Help of Christians and All Saints parishes in Los Angeles. Over the weekend the images will visit the Lancaster and Palmdale areas visiting Good Shepherd Cemetery, St. Mary’s Church and St. Clare of Assisi Church.

On October 23-24 the images will visit the newly built Guardian Angel Church which was dedicated this Spring. The route will continue to Santa Clarita and then visit Franciscan Missionary Sisters in San Fernando on October 31.

The annual pilgrimage of the images serves as spiritual preparation for the 94th Annual Procession and Mass in honor of Our Lady of Guadalupe on December 7 in East Los Angeles. The Guadalupe Procession is the oldest religious procession in Los Angeles, and this year’s theme is “Our Lady of Guadalupe: Cause of Our Joy and Hope.” The annual celebration, started by Mexican Catholics who fled persecution by the Mexican government during the Cristero War, commemorates the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, which recalls the miraculous apparitions of the Virgin Mary to Saint Juan Diego at Cerro del Tepeyac (Tepeyac Hill), Mexico City, in December 1531, when she left her image on his “tilma” or cloak. Her image has been a symbol of unity, peace, compassion, and hope for people around the world.

La Peregrina, a pilgrim image of the Virgin of Guadalupe, is an exact digital reproduction of the original image in Mexico City’s Basilica, which was blessed and touched to the original image. The image of the Virgin and one of St. Juan Diego were gifts hand-delivered to the Archdiocese of Los Angeles in 2024 by Monsignor Diego Monroy, former Rector of the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City.

For more information, visit https://lacatholics.org/guadalupe/.

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