The annual celebration of the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe will be celebrated at the Diocese of Dallas cathedral in a much different way this year due to COVID safety protocols.
The celebration at the Cathedral Shrine of the Virgin of Guadalupe will be primarily a virtual experience with the Serenade to the Virgin, the Matachines dances to our Lady, Midnight Mass and Mañanitas are all being offered online only. None of these events are open for in-person attendance, according to Diocese of Dallas officials.
The faithful are asked not to gather at the Cathedral on Friday night, December 11th to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 virus.
Four in-person Masses will be celebrated in Spanish in observance of the Feast day on Dec. 12 at 7 a.m., 9 a.m., 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. Please note that in-person Mass attendance will be limited to 50 percent of the cathedral’s occupancy. Worshippers will be allowed in on a first-come basis. Pews are roped off and once capacity is reached, ushers will ask people to either return for the next Mass or go home to watch the livestream of the Mass.
Visit https://cathdal.org/guadalupe2020 for the full slate of events.
Matachines, also called the soldiers of the Virgin, dress in elaborate Aztec-inspired costumes and dance in honor of the Virgin of Guadalupe. Five Matachines groups will be featured in the virtual event. The group from the cathedral, Danza Catedral Santuario de Guadalupe, will perform in the virtual presentation of Midnight Mass. The other groups are: Danza Guerreros Chichimecas, Chichimecas San Miguel Arcángel, Danza Santa Cruz and Danza Nativos de San Miguel Allende.
The annual observance of the feast day recalls the miraculous apparitions of the Virgin Mary to Saint Juan Diego at Tepeyac, Mexico, in December 1531. Because she appeared to a humble, indigenous man and left her image on his “tilma” or cloak, the Virgin of Guadalupe has been a symbol of compassion and hope for people around the world.
The Virgin of Guadalupe is the official patroness of the Americas and the event is always an important observance for the more than 400,000 Hispanic Catholics in the Diocese of Dallas. The Cathedral Shrine of the Virgin of Guadalupe is located at 2215 Ross Avenue.
