Our Lady of Zapopan: The Pilgrim Image of Jalisco

When I was studying in Guadalajara I was able to experience the procession of Our Lady of Zapopan 2 years in a row. This was a truly amazing site. Two to three million people process with the little statue of the Virgin of Zapopan from the Cathedral of Guadalajara to her Basilica in Zapopan. It is an amazing site! The people dress in the native costumes and many of them dance in honor of Our Lady. The entire city of Guadalajara shuts down for this procession/parade. Here is some more information on this miraculous image of Our Lady:

October 12th means Columbus Day to Americans, but to the good citizens of Mexico, October 12th is also the day the "Traveling Lady of Zapopan" comes "home" to spend the Autumn and Winter months in her stately basilica.

South of the border, this crisp Autumn day is actually "The Dia de la Raza", an important national holiday, since it marks for these people the new flood of human blood which rose in New Spain as one of the major effects of Columbus' voyage. As a result of the conquest, Mexico became predominately populated by "mestizos", or Spanish-Indians. To foretell the physical characteristics of the mestizo came the apparition of Our Lady of Guadalupe in 1531, when the portrait of the Blessed Virgin Mary as a Spanish-Indian woman appeared on the tilma of Juan Diego.

The ancient Franciscan Convent at Zapopan, Guadalajara, first home of the Madonna, capital and jewel of the state of Jalisco, celebrates "The Day of the Mestizo" by rendering ecstatic homage to "The Little Virgin" as Our Lady of Zapopan. She is Spanish in origin, but completely Mexican in the tradition of more than four hundred years that surround her cult. She was brought to Zapopan by Father Antonio de Segovia in 1541, the "Little Virgin", less than fourteen inches high, found herself in the heart of a territory, then called New Galicia, still under the conquest of Nuñe de Guzman. The precious statue, which the warm heart of the Mexican personifies, was the instrument by which Heaven vouchsafed to turn the fears and animosities of the natives into a confidence and love which enabled the zealous Franciscan to gather them into the fold of the Good Shepherd. The story is told that, as he preached, the little statue of Our Lady that he always carried with him, emitted rays of light. The miraculous radiance seemed to penetrate the souls of the Indians and convert them into vessels ready for the waters of grace.

The Cathedral of Guadaljara, the Madonna's Home"The Little Virgin" was at once installed in a place of honor at the Zapopan Church of the Franciscans which was replaced by the present stately basilica. If the "Day of the Mestizo" is one of jubilation in Guadalajara, it is more than that in Zapopan, for on that day their cherished Lady comes home! For four months she has been in Jalisco, where she has traveled from parish to parish, amid memorable scenes of piety and rejoicing. Zapopan's history notes the fact that when its beloved Queen started on her first trip to the neighboring city in 1734, the townsfolk witnessed her departure with consternation, fearing that the proud "Sultana of the West", as the Jaliscan capital has been called, would hold her captive.

But the Franciscans who had a Friary at Zapopan since the sixteenth century, have kept faith with their parishioners, and each year the Great Lady has been brought home in triumph, an instrument of special graces for her faithful Mestizos.

When he defeated the Tochos Indians that had rebelled against the Spanish power, Francisco de Bobadilla, a conquistador, founded Tzapopa in the midst of Indian territory in 1541, twenty years after the fall of Mexico. Franciscan friars soon came to evangelize the peopulation. A statue of Mary Immaculate was brought by Fray Antonio of Segovia on that occasion. The story says that this friar had offered his mediation in order to prevent more bloodshed. He came before the Indians holding a crucifix in one hand, and a small statue of Mary in the other. The Indians watched celestial twinklings around that statue. That made them lay down their arms.

The shrine passed on to the diocesan clergy in 1641. During the following years, after an official enquiry on the miracles ascribed to the intercession of Our Lady of Zapopan, the local ordinary transferred her feast from December 9 to December 18, one week (an octave) before Christmas. He also changed her original name to Nuestra Señora de la Expectacíon, but the original name has been kept by the people. Our Lady of Zapopan has been venerated fervently not only in Zapopan, but throughout the entire State of Jalisco. Countless miracles have continued to happen. People used to transport her to Guadalajara whenever this large city was in danger, as in 1721, in order to protect the city from plague. In 1734, she was proclaimed Patroness against storms and lightning. Even now, the statue stays in Guadalajara from June 13 to October 5. After Mexico became independent in 1821, the Virgin of Zapopan was proclaimed Patroness of the State of Jalisco and its army. She was canonically crowned on January 18, 1921. Below is the arrival of the Virgin to one of the local parishes in Guadalajara. (She visits each parish of the Archdiocese between June and October every year).


The current shrine (the first ones were adobe constructions) was inaugurated by the bishop of Guadalajara on September 8, 1730. Since that time, it has been enriched and made more beautiful.

The statue of Mary is made of light wood and is 34 centimeters high. Mary wears a read carmine tunic and a blue mantel. There are traces of an earlier golden color. Her feet stand on a crescent moon; and her hands are clasped in prayer. The statue is usually placed in a silver vase that covers her from her hips downward. The vase is placed on a pedestal.

The statue is clothed with rich garments and adorned with an abundant wig and an imperial crown surrounded by a halo made of gold and adorned with gems. She is girded with a blue scarf like a general.

Below her hands there is a precious circular reliquary containing a golden child Jesus. The golden staff hanging from her right arm (possibly a commander's baton) complements the scepter she carries in her hands.

Below is a video of the procession from the Cathedral of Guadalaja to the Basilica of Zapopan. The procession begins early in the morning and is a citywide expression of the faith of the people. Enjoy!