For the second year and under the spiritual leadership of Archbishop José H. Gomez, 140 faithful of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles will begin a pilgrimage to the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Patroness of the Americas, in Mexico City on Thursday July 5, 2018.
The Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe houses the original tilma (or cloak) of Juan Diego, which holds the miraculous image of Our Lady of Guadalupe that appeared in 1531.
Archbishop Gomez and pilgrims will be joined by Auxiliary Bishop Edward Clark for Our Lady of the Angels Pastoral Region, Auxiliary Bishop David O’Connell for San Gabriel Pastoral Region, Fr. Brian Nunes, priest-secretary to Archbishop Gomez, Fr. David Gallardo, pastor of the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels and Fr. Paul Sustayta, pastor of St. Andrew Parish in Pasadena.
“We need this pilgrimage right now. It has been a year of heartaches and sorrows for many of our brothers and sisters,” said Archbishop Gomez. “But we know the joy that comes from being children of God who loves us as his own. So, we go in love and with confidence as one family to present our cares and hopes to the Virgin of Guadalupe. We go to seek her maternal intercession and inspiration as we continue to follow Jesus and spread the good news of his mercy and love.”
During the Mass, Archbishop Gomez will present handwritten prayers for the intercession of Our Lady Guadalupe from faithful across Southern California collected at Masses celebrating the Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church Memorial and recognizing the contributions of all immigrants in the U.S. at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in downtown Los Angeles.
The Cathedral in downtown Los Angeles is home to the only relic of the tilma outside of Mexico City. In the 1940s, a relic of the tilma was presented to the Archdiocese of Los Angeles — from the Archbishop of Mexico City in appreciation and friendship — after Los Angeles Archbishop John J. Cantwell led an important pilgrimage to the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City in 1941 during the persecution of the Catholic Church in Mexico, known as Cristero War.
Full story at Angelus News.
Always about illegal immigrants. Enough.
Exactly right, Anonymous at 5:24pm. Jose Gomez has rendered himself just another single issue politician. He uses his position within the Church to give more credence to his opinions than they actually have. As Archbishop, his responsibilities are much broader than he has chosen to embrace.
Paid for by your contributions. Is this a good use of Catholics’ money?
I guess it is part of the function of the Catholic Church to take part in these ceremonies but I think our Cardinals, Bishops, pastors, and priests should spend 98.6 % of their time on EDUCATION. Our young people know zero about their religion. They Do not even know how, or why, to say the rosary. Don’t know any of the prayers. No wonder they say “I don’t go to Mass” because I don’t get anything out of it. The Bishops should be building schools not closing them
But he won’t fix what’s wrong with the Religious Education Congress.
The article does not specify. I strongly suspect the 140 faithful are paying their own way in full. The Archbishop and company are most likely on the Church’s account, although there may be a contributor.
Group leaders go for free.
https://www.gocatholictravel.com/plan-your-trip/
I don’t think the Blessed Virgin is pleased that Archbishop Gomez uses her under the title of Our Lady of Guadalupe for a political stunt. I don’t think this is what she had in mind when she appeared to Saint Juan Diego.