Holy Mary Mother of Guayaquil, Marian advocation of the Archdiocese of Guayaquil

Marian vocation of Guayaquil (Guayas)

Santa Maria Madre de Guayaquil is a Marian advocation of the Archdiocese of Guayaquil and linked to the religious identity of the city; its spread was consolidated in the twenty-first century, although its original momentum is in the 2010's. According to the information disseminated by the sanctuary itself and by the Catholic press, the advocation was promoted by Monsignor Antonio Arregui In 2011, when an image of the Virgin with features of a woman of Guayaquitela was presented and made known in the diocese in May of that year.

Main data

Origin and history

Santa Maria Madre de Guayaquil is a Marian advocation of the Archdiocese of Guayaquil and linked to the religious identity of the city; its spread was consolidated in the twenty-first century, although its original momentum is in the 2010's. According to the information disseminated by the sanctuary itself and by the Catholic press, the advocation was promoted by Monsignor Antonio Arregui In 2011, when an image of the Virgin with features of a woman of Guayaquitela was presented and made known in the diocese in May of that year.

La devotional tradition presented by the sanctuary interprets this image as a response to the need for Guayaquil to recognize Mary as a mother close to her people, reflected in local features and the colors of the city. The documented history available in the sources consulted places the concrete origin of the advocation in 2011 and its subsequent consolidation as a devotion with its own sanctuary.

The image and the sanctuary

The image of Santa Maria Madre de Guayaquil represents the Virgin with features of a woman of Guayaquiteladressed in colors associated with the city, and with the Child Jesus in his arms; in the description spread by the sanctuary, the Child offers a rosa And they both look forward. The sources consulted do not need the original image material or other complete technical data with safety, so that aspect no consta clearly in the revised documentation.

The advocation is venerated in the Holy Mary Mother of Guayaquil Sanctuary, located in the Via a la Costa, within the urban area of Guayaquil. The available sources present it as sanctuarywithout record in the sources consulted that it has the category of a minor basilica or national sanctuary; it is also described as a place of pilgrimage and pastoral life with periodic celebrations.

Sponsorship and coronation

Santa Maria Madre de Guayaquil is presented as patron of Guayaquil in the sources of the sanctuary and in divulgative materials related to the advocation. There is no formal national patronage in the sources consulted; there is no documented diocesan patronage other than the direct link with the Archdiocese of Guayaquil.

On the canonical coronation, does not contain a documented canonical coronation in the revised sources.

Party and devotion

The main party is held August 15in relation to the solemnity of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, a date that the sources of devotion point to for this advocation. In addition, the Archbishop Luis Cabrera by decree an annual pilgrimage third Saturday of Julyin order to promote the devotion of the faithful and love for the Virgin Mary.

Devotion includes pilgrimages, masses and other pastoral initiatives in the sanctuary. Among the practices mentioned by the sanctuary itself are monthly pilgrimages, healing Mass, pregnant Mass and the blessing of vientres, as well as regular celebrations during the week. The sources consulted do not provide reliable flow figures; therefore, this data no consta.

Link to the Rosary

The sources consulted do not document a specific and exclusive historical link between this advocation and a particular practice of the Rosary. However, as in every authentic Marian devotion, the Rosary naturally accompanies this piety by contemplating with Mary the mysteries of Christ; in an advocation that underlines the Mother's closeness to the Guayaquilean people, the Rosary is integrated in a coherent way as a prayer of contemplation, petition and Marian trust.