Origin and history

The parish of Our Lady of Guadalupe of Toronto, located in the Parkdale district (694 Lansdowne Avenue), is the main spiritual center of the Hispanic Catholic community of Toronto. It belongs to the Archdiocese of Toronto and celebrates its masses in Spanish, being a meeting point for Latin American immigrants from Mexico, Colombia, El Salvador, the Dominican Republic and other Spanish-speaking countries.

The advocation of Guadalupe is particularly significant in the context of the Latin diaspora: the Virgin of Guadalupe, who appeared to the Indian Juan Diego in the Cerro del Tepeyac (Mexico) in December 1531, is the most venerated Marian image of Latin America and Patron of the Americas. His image - the fasting with the portrait of the Lady - is reproduced in the homes and businesses of the Hispanic community of Parkdale, a neighborhood that experienced a significant demographic transformation throughout the second half of the 20th century with the massive arrival of Latin American immigrants.

The parish and its community

The parish integrates the sacramental and cultural life of its Spanish-speaking parishioners: the Sunday masses in Spanish bring together hundreds of faithful, and the celebrations of December 12 include the traditional morning to the Virgin, the Aztec dances and the procession of the guadalupan image in the neighborhood. The festival is one of the largest Marian events of the Hispanic-speaking Catholic community in the Toronto metropolitan area.

The parish is dependent on the Archdiocese of Toronto. Its official website is olguadalupeto.archtoronto.org and also maintains pastoral activity through iglesiaguadalupetoronto.com.

Link to the Rosary

The Guadalupana devotion and the Rosary are deeply intertwined in Latin popular piety: Our Lady of Guadalupe appears on a growing moon, surrounded by rays of light, with her hands united in prayer - a position that popular devotion interprets as the Mother who intercede without ceasing. In the Torontese parish, the month of October is celebrated with community rosaries according to the tradition of many Latin American parishes.