Our Lady of Guadalupe of Canelones, patron of the city and of the diocese of Canelones

Marian devotion of Canelones (Canelones)

La advocación de Our Lady of Guadalupe of Canelones It is closely linked to the very origin of the city and the diocese of Canelones in Uruguay. The Marian image has been documented in the area since the mid-18th century, with a clear record of its presence in 1759 and in a document of 1779. Around this image a first chapel was erected around 1759 and, shortly thereafter, in 1775, the parish was canonically erected under the title of Our Lady of Guadalupe. The Villa of Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe de Canelones was legally founded on 10 June 1782, taking its name from this title.

Main data

Origin and history

La advocación de Our Lady of Guadalupe of Canelones It is closely linked to the very origin of the city and the diocese of Canelones in Uruguay. The Marian image has been documented in the area since the mid-18th century, with a clear record of its presence in 1759 and in a document of 1779. Around this image a first chapel was erected around 1759 and, shortly thereafter, in 1775, the parish was canonically erected under the title of Our Lady of Guadalupe. The Villa of Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe de Canelones was legally founded on 10 June 1782, taking its name from this title.

According to the tradition, the image was brought from Cuzco (Peru) by an indigenous named Santos Pérez and Llamac in the mid-18th century. This version is repeated in ecclesial sources and historical dissemination, but it is based more on the transmitted memory than on exhaustive documentation; it is therefore considered a traditional, though likely, data. What does belong to the documented history It is that, around this image, the village that, over time, would be the Villa of Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe de Canelones, and that the parish existed already in the 1770s.

The current church began to be built in 1816 and replaced the old captain-ranch. The building was later expanded, and since the beginning of the 20th century it has a mechanical organ of 1900. In 1945, the parish temple was elevated to the category of diocesan sanctuary of Our Lady of Guadalupe by the Archbishop of Montevideo, mons. Antonio Barbieri. In 1961 it was erected as Catedral, seat of the newly created diocese of Canelones, by Pope John XXIII; the first bishop, mons. Orestes Santiago Nuti Sanguinetti, assumed in 1962. In 2020, the Episcopal Conference of Uruguay declared the Cathedral of Canelones National Sanctuary of Our Lady of Guadalupeand its importance for the civil and ecclesial history of the country.

> Note: although the consultation mentions "Canelones, Department of Canelones, Colombia," all sources agree that this title corresponds to the city of Canelones, Department of Canelones, in the Eastern Republic of Uruguay.

The image and the sanctuary

The image of Our Lady of Guadalupe of Canelones is a size in wood, approximately 60 cm of height, with hands together in prayer attitude. At his feet a figure which raises the arms, an iconographic element that highlights the maternal and protective dimension of the Virgin. This is a colonial image, linked to the Cuban sphere, which has been continuously venerated in the place since the mid-18th century, with a documented presence at least since 1759.

The temple where it is venerated is the Cathedral and National Sanctuary of Our Lady of Guadalupein the city of Canelones. It is a colonial-neoclassical building, whose profile stands out next to the main square and has been declared a National Historical Monument. The first church dates back to 1775, while the current building began in 1816 and was later expanded. Within the temple stands a mechanical organ of 1900, restored in 1989. In 1945 it was proclaimed diocesan sanctuary, in 1961 it was raised to cathedral and, in 2020, the Episcopal Conference of Uruguay declared it officially National Sanctuary of Our Lady of Guadalupe.

The sanctuary is also characterized by a rich iconography of the history of salvation and a great fresco of Christ the Eternal Priest, which frame Marian devotion in a solid Christology. The architectural and devotional set makes this cathedral - sanctuary one of the most significant Marian centers in the country.

Sponsorship and coronation

Our Lady of Guadalupe is patron of the city of Canelonesbecause the city was born and grew around its image, taking its original name from "Villa de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe." The advocation is also patron of the diocese of Canelones, built in 1961, whose full title is Diocese of Canelones and whose seat is the Cathedral of Our Lady of Guadalupe. At the national level, the sanctuary was recognized by the Episcopal Conference of Uruguay as National Sanctuary of Our Lady of Guadalupe in 2020, which reinforces the national scope of this Marian devotion.

As for the coronationthe image was solemnly crowned in 1979. The local sources indicate that the coronation was performed 12 October 1979 by mons. Orestes Nuti, then Bishop of Canelones. This coronation recognizes the ancient and extended devotion of the people of Canelones to their Patron, and makes the Cathedral-Sanctuary the main temple of the country dedicated to the Virgin of Guadalupe.

Party and devotion

La main party of Our Lady of Guadalupe of Canelones is celebrated the 12 December, in tune with the liturgical memory of Our Lady of Guadalupe venerated in the Tepeyac. The celebrations include the solemn Eucharist, processions and Marian acts, and are an important moment of diocesan and national pilgrimage. The declaration of the temple as National Sanctuary in fact provided that the official celebration of this dignity would take place precisely at the feast of December 12, 2020.

Devotion is characterized by its historical root: the image is considered "the founding image of the city of Canelones," because the population was formed around the temple raised to venerate it. Around the cathedral-sanctuary are maintained religious and civic traditions, with the presence of the National Pavilion next to the image, expression of the relationship between Marian faith and Uruguayan identity. The Episcopal Conference stresses that the promotion of the worship of Saint Mary, Our Lady of Guadalupe, in Canelones, links the past and present of the nation and strengthens communion with the brotherly peoples of America, where this advocation is patron of the continent.

Although no concrete figures of influx are published, the ecclesial sources present the Sanctuary of Canelones as the main centre of Uruguaya reference point for pilgrims from the diocese and other regions of the country.

Link to the Rosary

It does not contain a specific tradition or particular privilege of this advocation of Our Lady of Guadalupe of Canelones, which is linked in a proper or exclusive way to the prayer of the Rosary (for example, historical copradies of the Rosary explicitly linked to the image, particular indulgences, etc.). There is therefore no documented peculiar link beyond general Marian practice.

However, in the context of the Marian piety of Uruguay and Latin America, the Rosary It occupies a central place in the life of the faithful, especially around the Marian shrines. In a santuari