Virgin of Candelaria -- Cathedral Basilica of San Fernando de Bexar, San Antonio TX
N 29° 25.493 W 098° 29.658
14R E 549052 N 3255166
The statue of Our Lady of Candelaria, patroness of the Canary Islands, at the Cathedral Basilica of San Fernando de Bexar, San Antonio TX
Waymark Code: WMXMTW
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 01/30/2018
Views: 1
This statue of the Virgen of Candelaria, Patroness of the Canary Islands, stands as part of a beautiful Retablo in the Cathedral Basilica of San Fernando de Bexar, San Antonio TX. She is a treasured gift to the Cathedral from the government of the Canary Islands, in honor and recognition of the 56 Canary Islanders who arrived in 1731 and founded San Fernando de Bexar Catholic church and a village that in time developed into the Cathedral Basilica of San Fernando de Bexar and the City of San Antonio, respectively.
Our Lady of Candelaria is also known as Our Lady of the Candles, the Virgin of Candelaria, and The Black Madonna.
Two plaques beside the Retablo of Our Lady of Candelaria read as follows:
"The rich tableau of our Lady of Candelaria, gift of the government of the Canary Islands, Cabildo de Tenerife,, and the Descendants of the Canary Islands"
"OUR LADY OF CANDELARIA,
PATRONESSS OF THE CANARY ISLANDS
Donated 1984 by the city of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Canary Islands, in memory of 56 Canary Islands immigrants who came to San Antonio in 1731 and founded San Fernando."
From Wikipedia: (
visit link)
"VIRGIN OF CANDELARIA
The Virgin of Candelaria or Our Lady of Candelaria (Spanish: Virgen de Candelaria or Nuestra Señora de la Candelaria), popularly called La Morenita, celebrates the Virgin Mary on the island of Tenerife, one of the Canary Islands (Spain). The center of worship is located in the city of Candelaria in Tenerife. She is depicted as a Black Madonna. The "Royal Basilica Marian Shrine of Our Lady of Candelaria" (Basilica of Candelaria), is considered the main church dedicated to the Virgin Mary in the Canary Islands. She is the patron saint of the Canary Islands.[1] Her feast is celebrated on February 2 (Fiesta de la Candelaria) and August 15, the patronal feast of the Canary Islands. She is also the patroness of Western Visayas region enshrined in Jaro Cathedral or the National Shrine of Our Lady of Candles under the Archdiocese of Jaro (with feast day every 2nd of February) in the Philippines, and Tatala, one of the barangays in Binangonan, Rizal (also in the Philippines) which celebrate her feast day every First Saturday of February. The Municipality of Silang in the province of Cavite, Philippines also celebrates her feast day from February 1 to 3 being February 2 as the main feast day.
....
In the Americas and Philippines
The cult of the Virgin of Candelaria swept America due to the emigration of Canaries. They brought the devotion as a symbol of their culture, somewhat similar to the diffusion of the cult of St. Patrick by Irish emigrants. On the other hand, the Candelaria image brought to the Philippines is a white image version with a child.
She is widely venerated in South America and the Caribbean, where she is the patroness of Oruro and La Paz (Bolivia), Medellín (Colombia) (which was founded as Villa de Nuestra Señora de La Candelaria de Medellín), Mayagüez (Puerto Rico) (which was founded as Nuestra Señora de la Candelaria de Mayagüez), and Manatí (Puerto Rico) (which was founded as Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la Candelaria y San Matías).
In the Cathedral of San Fernando of Texas (the oldest Catholic cathedral in the United States) is a replica of the Virgin of Candelaria, which is accurate to the venerated in the Canary Islands. This is because the city of San Antonio was founded by Canarians . . ."