ELGIN—The apparitions of Our Lady of Guadalupe are coming up on their 500-year jubilee in 2031. To start the celebration and to promote the Catholic faith, pilgrim images including a photo of the tilma, a statue of Our Lady and an image of St. Juan Diego have departed the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico. They are traveling the US and will continue the tour to other countries.
St. Joseph Parish in Elgin is one of the pilgrim images’ first stops, and it’s the first in the Diocese of Rockford.
At St. Joseph’s Nov. 10 welcome Mass, Father Ezequiel Sanchez, rector of the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Des Plaines, said of the visit: “If we cannot go to her, she comes to us, and you will see the difference she makes in people’s hearts.”
The rector is familiar with both Our Lady of Guadalupe pilgrims and pilgrim images. According to Chicago Catholic, the newspaper of the Archdiocese of Chicago, the Des Plaines shrine is recognized by the Mexico basilica as a site for pilgrims to fulfill promises if they cannot travel to Mexico.
After assisting at the opening Mass, Felicitas Juarez said, “It was a beautiful experience. Everything that brings us to sanctity, to the Virgin, is something that you cannot explain.” She added that she grew up praying the rosary with her mother and, today, continues praying this devotion to Mary.
The visit drew members of the faithful — many of them Mexican — from different cities and states to pray to our Lady, take photos of the images, go to confession, and attend Mass.
The pilgrims also had the opportunity to learn more about Our Lady. Throughout the visit, videos were telling the story of the Guadalupe apparitions, along with presentations held daily from morning until nighttime.
At one of these presentations the night of Nov. 22, Father César Rodriguez, parochial vicar at St. Joseph, spoke via video about the images. He said they had touched the original tilma in Mexico and that “the images were blessed by more than 10 bishops.”
The visit concludes with Mass at St. Joseph on Nov. 28, 6:30 p.m.
Donations received during the pilgrimage will go toward three purposes, explained Father Rodriguez:
1 Further construction of St. Joseph Church;
2 “The rescue of the old Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico, which is sinking and deteriorating, and needs reinforcement;”
3 “To help the Blessed Virgin Mary travel throughout the United States and the world to continue evangelizing and leading all her children to her son Jesus Christ.”
Father Rodriguez hopes that “she may return in October 2031 with each of us, in the celebration of her 500th anniversary.”
After this visit — the pilgrim images’ third stop since leaving Mexico — plans include New York and sites in other countries.
Organizers are “waiting for [the] green light for the capital, Washington, D.C., and other routes, said Father Sanchez.
The pilgrimage will last until December 12, 2031.
