Our Lady of
Guadalupe of Los Angeles
Los
Angeles, California
Millions know about and are devoted
to the miraculous image of Our Lady which she left imprinted on St.
Juan Diegoís cloak in Mexico in 1531. Less well known, there is
another image of Our Lady in Los Angeles, California, which contains
a relic of Juan Diegoís tilma. The relic, the only known segment
ever detached from the original tilma, is draped over a 17th century
statue of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
Monsignor Francis Weber, the
archivist for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, received the statue
from Father Brian Kane in 1964. Carved from wood and coated with
gesso, the 21: tall image is painted in traditional colors and
finished with gold and silver highlights.
 In mid-1941, the Apostolic Delegate to Mexico
invited Archbishop John J. Cantwell to make a pilgrimage to the
Shrine of Guadalupe near Mexico City. The visit would be a
compliment to the Catholics of a country that had sent so many of
its children to California, especially during the then-recent
persecutions of the Church in Mexico.
The Archbishop
and his party were welcomed by a military delegation representing
the President of Mexico, and the entire diplomatic corps. A solemn
pontifical mass was celebrated at the shrine on October 12,
1941.
Archbishop Cantwell observed that ìthe missions built
in California are our title deeds to show to the newcomers that we
of the Old Church are in California by right of inheritance,î and
concluded his speech by praying that the ìtraditions that made
Mexico distinguished and honorable in the past may be perpetuated in
a fuller measure in years to come, and that the glory of the days
gone by may be surpassed by the pledge of the future. The
Archbishopís speech was broadcast over the National Broadcasting
System from Mexico. And his visit marked a thawing in the delicate
relations then existing between the Church and state in
Mexico.
After Cantwell returned to Los Angeles, Archbishop
Luis Maria Martinez of Mexico City proposed to the canons of the
Basilica in Mexico that an appropriate way to commemorate the Los
Angeles Archbishopís visit would be to present him a relic of the
tilma. At the time, Los Angeles had a larger Mexican population than
any city in the world outside of Mexico City. The canons agreed and
a small rectangular piece of the tilma was encased in a silver
reliquary and taken to Los Angeles. Archbishop Cantwell received the
relic with great devotion.
The relic of the tilma forms a tie
to Californiaís Catholic history. Fray Francisco Garcia Diego y
Moreno, the first bishop of Ambas Californias, was ordained in
Mexico in 1840, under the miraculous portrait of Our
Lady.
The Archbishop entrusted the relic to Father
Fidencia Esparza, a Mexican-born priest from Guadalajara who was
active among the Hispanic community in the Los Angeles area. Late in
1981, Cardinal Timothy Manning headed a pilgrimage to Mexicoís
Basilica of Guadalupe. On his return, then Monsignor Esparza
confided the relic to the Cardinal. It was placed on display in the
historical museum attached to the Los Angeles Archival Center. The
statue of Our Lady seemed to be a match with the reliquary, which
was draped around her neck.
In 2003, a non-profit
apostolate organized a tour of the Los Angeles image and relic which
traveled to 21 venues across the United States. The image, holding
around its neck the precious relic, was publicly venerated by over
150,000 of the faithful, including twenty five Bishops, and six
Cardinals. Today, the lovely little image of Our Lady and her
precious relic of St. Juan Diegoís tilma are on permanent display in
the new Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in Los Angeles,
California.
The
Mother of the Americas is a perfect description of this
representation of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Although the likeness
is particular to the Indigenous of Mexico she stands as a
Mother to all and for all. This became very apparent during
the ìTilma of Tepeyacî tour of 2003. I will always remember
that this statue and relic seemed to create a renaissance
within the Catholic Church across America.
- Tom
Serafin ñ
Tom Serafin is a professional photographer
in Los Angeles, California, and is the president of a lay
apostolate to promote the proper veneration of relics. Serafin
is the author of the book Relics, the Forgotten
Sacramental.
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