El Pilar and Spanish Identity
The feast of Our Lady of the Pillar, celebrating the first apparition of Mary to Hispanic people, is on October 12. This coincides with the Día de la Raza and the date of Columbus' discovery of the New World. Every Latin-American nation has donated national vestments for the fifteenth century statue of the Virgin, which is housed in the chapel. Pope John Paul II praised El Pilar as Mother of the Hispanic Peoples during both his visits to the Basilica.
Read more about this topic: Basilica Of Our Lady Of The Pillar
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