Our Lady of Miracles of Caacupé

Patroness of Paraguay

Our Lady of Miracles of Caacupé is a variant of the Marian devotion to the Immaculate Conception, venerated in the Paraguayan town of Caacupé, where there rises a basilica that has become a place of pilgrimage for countless believers. Also known as the «Little Blue Virgin» (Virgencita Azul), she is the Patroness of Paraguay, and her shrine is regarded as the spiritual capital of the country. Her feast is celebrated on 8 December.

Key facts

Central message: in a small carving saved by the promise of a grateful native, the Guaraní people recognize the Tupãsy, the Mother of God, who protects them from every danger and leads them to her Son.

Tradition and history: a necessary distinction

Around Caacupé two levels coexist that it is well not to confuse.

Tradition tells that in the town of Tobatí there lived a Guaraní sculptor named José, a convert of the Franciscan mission. Returning one day from the forests of the Ytú valley, he came upon Mbayá natives, feared for their hostility; he ran to hide behind a thick tree trunk and promised that, if he came out alive, he would carve from that wood an image of the Virgin. The Mbayá passed by without noticing him, and José, grateful, fulfilled his vow: from the trunk came two carvings, the larger one for the church of Tobatí and the smaller one for his personal devotion. Tradition adds that at the place of the promise water sprang up that helped the Guaraní survive the heat. These are venerable accounts of popular piety in which —as the source itself notes— there are no apparitions or visions, but two «miracles of salvation»: from the enemies and from the flood.

The documented history rests on preserved archives. A document of 1769 from the National Archive states that Father Roque Melgarejo, missionary of the doctrine of Tobatí, donated to the inhabitants of Caacupé an image of the Immaculate Conception and a plot of land on which to build a church in her honour. The 4th of April 1770 is taken as the reference for the founding of the town, already known then as the Valley of Caacupé. The devotion, real and verifiable, does not depend on the legendary details, but on the continuous growth of the cult.

Origin of the name

The name «Caacupé» comes from the Guaraní expression ka’a kupé, which means «behind the herb» or «behind the forest of herb.» Because it has the largest shrine in the country, Caacupé is said to be the spiritual capital of Paraguay.

History of the shrine

From the native José’s carving to the shrine

According to tradition, the smaller image carved by the native José remained in his possession for his devotion. Years later, a great flood —the one that formed Lake Ypacaraí— threatened to destroy the settlements of the region. The Franciscan friars, together with the inhabitants, organized rogations asking for the calming of the waters, which Father Luis de Bolaños blessed, and these receded to their limits. Then the image appeared floating in a wooden box, which the priests identified as the one from the mission of Tobatí, the very one that José had carved. From that time the people called her the Virgin of Miracles of Caacupé.

The humble José, figure of the Guaraní people

The humble and «unknown» José —of whom only the given name is preserved, without surnames or nicknames— represents each and every one of the Guaraní Christians. The account speaks of his pilgrimages, of the mortal dangers he endured, and of his devotion to the Immaculate, the Tupãsy (Mother of God), who came to take the place of the mythical Ñandesy of their ancestors. Thus the smaller image, Our Lady of Miracles of Caacupé, «became greater through the abundance of her gifts and of her faithful.» Of the large carving, destined for Tobatí, it is supposed that it was plundered by the Mbayá.

The basilica and its recognition

The Basilica of Caacupé was inaugurated on 8 December 1765. In 1912 a processional litter of chiseled and embossed silver was made for the image, the work of the Félix Granda Art Workshops, and it is still used today in her feasts. During his visit to Paraguay, Pope Francis raised the shrine to the rank of minor basilica; the corresponding decree was read at the end of Mass on 11 July 2015, making it the second church in the country with that status.

Devotion and feast

The popularity of the Virgin of Caacupé is the most important within the Paraguayan Catholic devotional tradition. For this reason, this devotion is consecrated as Patroness and Protecting Lady of the Republic of Paraguay, a title equivalent to that of the Virgin of Luján in Argentina or Our Lady Aparecida in Brazil. Paraguayans who live far from their homeland remember the feast by taking part in the Mass, especially the opening Mass and the central one.

The Paraguayan diaspora has carried the devotion to the Little Blue Virgin to several countries. In Spain, the Association of Paraguayans in Málaga donated a replica to the church of San Juan Bautista, enthroned on 4 December 2016; earlier, in January 2012, another had been enthroned in the parish of San Juan Bautista in Vélez-Málaga. In Argentina, Paraguayan immigrants founded the parish of the Virgin of Caacupé in Berazategui.

The spiritual message of Caacupé

Devotion to Our Lady of Miracles of Caacupé still speaks to us today with simplicity:

🪵 Mary draws near to the little ones. She did not come upon a throne, but in a carving saved by the promise of a grateful native.
🙏 Faithfulness to a promise opens the way to grace. José fulfilled his vow, and from that wood a shrine was born.
🇵🇾 Mary is Mother of a whole people. In the Tupãsy, the Guaraní heart recognizes the Mother of God.
✝️ Mary always leads to her Son. As the Immaculate, she teaches us to live pure of heart and turned toward God.

Prayer to Our Lady of Caacupé

A sober Marian prayer, gathered in our section of Marian prayers.