Local Catholics invited to celebrate feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe

By Andrew Junker, The Catholic Sun
November 16, 2006

Catholics from throughout the state are invited to celebrate the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe in downtown Phoenix next month.

The Dec. 10 event promises to draw thousands of Catholic faithful with a procession, outdoor Mass and musical performances to celebrate the Virgin Mary as she appeared to Juan Diego in 1531 in what is now Mexico City.

The courtyard between St. Mary’s Basilica and the Diocesan Pastoral Center, located on Monroe Street between Third and Fifth streets, will be the setting for the prayer-filled event.

“The goal is to unify the diocese in our Catholic faith under our Lady’s mantle,” said Mike Phelan, diocesan director of the Respect Life and Human Dignity Office.

Our Lady of Guadalupe is the patroness of the Americas and the Phoenix Diocese.

The procession will begin at 10 a.m., followed by Mass at 11 a.m. The eucharistic procession begins at 12:30 p.m. and the music portion of the day will run from 1:30 to 7 p.m. Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament and an address from the bishop will close out the day.

“We could stand to learn more about the appearance of Our Lady of Guadalupe in the Anglo community,” Phelan said, noting that Bishop Thomas J. Olmsted will celebrate Mass in English and Spanish as a sign of unity.

Catholic music

With its eight stages, organizers are placing great emphasis on the musical aspect of the event. Half of the stages will feature entertainment and evangelization in English while the other half will be presented in Spanish.

Organizers hope to have 32 bands in total.

Family Spirit, a Christian band that provides liturgical music for Most Holy Trinity Parish’s Life Teen Mass, is one of the many groups hoping to spread the Gospel message at the event.

“Our music is a form of evangelization,” said John Gonzales, a singer with the group. “Our message is that we’re all brothers and sisters in Christ. It doesn’t matter what skin color you are or what financial bracket you belong to.”

He said that being able to perform outside of Mass allows for more musical options.

“When we do concerts, the sky’s the limit. We can do a lot of the things you can’t do in Church,” he said, describing the high-energy percussion and guitar work featured in the band’s concerts.

“As long as you’re focusing on the Holy Spirit and Christ, it doesn’t matter if you’re doing rock music or contemporary or Spanish. The message is the same: It’s all in the Spirit,” he said.

By offering such a diverse collection of musicians, organizers hope to attract a varied crowd, said Tommy Espinoza, a planner of the event.

“Our Lady can unite our Church and its various beautiful people in respecting each other’s dignity as Catholics,” he said.

Fr. Robert Gonzalez, a priest from the Diocese of Tucson and an expert on Our Lady of Guadalupe, will deliver the homily.

“We’re hoping for a moment of grace, where Our Lady will be present and praying for us, and Catholics will get to know each other at the celebration,” Phelan said.