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Pope Declares Jubilee Year for Guadalupe Basilica Anniversary
Confirmed
In Short: Pope Leo XIV has granted a jubilee year to mark the 50th anniversary of the dedication of the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City, beginning on October 12, 2020, and extending until October 12, 2027.
The jubilee year, which will begin on October 12, 2020, and extend until October 12, 2027, marks the 50th anniversary of the dedication of the new Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City and the transfer of the image of the Virgin to the current shrine on October 12, 1976.
Cardinal Carlos Aguiar Retes, primate archbishop of Mexico City, invited the faithful to attend the Mass officially marking the start of this 'time of jubilee grace,' which will take place on October 12 at noon at the Basilica of Guadalupe.
Cardinal Aguiar encouraged Catholics to use this period as an opportunity for 'spiritual renewal and conversion' under the protection of the Virgin of Guadalupe, and those who visit the basilica 'with a contrite spirit' during the Jubilee Year may obtain a plenary indulgence for themselves or apply it to the souls in Purgatory.
On Monday, October 12, activities will start at 8:30 a.m. with morning prayer and the celebration of Mass, coinciding with the 131st anniversary of the pontifical coronation of the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe, which was declared in 1887 by Pope Leo XIII.
What's confirmed
- “May St. Mary of Guadalupe, mother of the true God through whom we live, help us to make the most of this jubilee and accompany us on this journey of spiritual renewal and conversion,” he said.
What's still developing
- The tilma remained there until 1709, when it was moved to what is now called the Expiatory Temple of Christ the King — also known as the Old Basilica of Guadalupe.
- Expiatory Temple of Christ the King, also known as the Old Basilica. | Credit: Diego Grandi/Shutterstock Construction of the new basilica began in 1974, and on Oct. 12, 1976, the image of the Virgin was transferred to its new home.
- By the 20th century — as Father Guillermo Schulenburg Prado, the former abbot of the Basilica of Guadalupe who championed the construction of the new church, explains in his memoirs — the “inadequacy of the old temple to meet liturgical, pastoral, and administrative needs” was evident.
- In a statement published by the archdiocese Sept. 9, Cardinal Carlos Aguiar Retes of Mexico City expressed his “joy and gratitude” for the jubilee celebration, which he said was granted through the Apostolic Penitentiary, a Vatican tribunal that deals with matters of conscience.
- Built in 1976, the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe is located near Tepeyac Hill, the site of Mary’s apparitions to St.