The
Virgin in Ensenada
text
by connie ellig; photos by connie ellig & david hopps
 The
seaport of Ensenada, Mexico was the recent focus of world news when it
was reported that an image of the Virgin of Guadalupe had been appearing
nightly on the outdoor wall of a local hospital. The three-foot-high shadowy
green icon is visible in the light cast from an overhead patio lamp at
the courtyard entrance to the federal Social Security clinic on Av. Blancarte
between Calles 2 & 3 in downtown Ensenada.
The phenomenon was first noticed and reported to hospital personnel
on April 19, 2004. On May 10, Mexico’s Catholic Church ruled out any divine
origin for the image, but hundreds of people continue to gather nightly
in the courtyard that has been transformed into a shrine with devotional
candles, printed prayer offerings, and colorful flower arrangements.
According to Roman Catholic belief, the Virgin
of Guadalupe first appeared in December 1531 to Juan Diego, a Nahuatl
Indian, on the hills of Tepeyac just north of Mexico City. The Virgin of
Guadalupe is considered the patron of Mexico. Her feast day on December
12 is a religious holiday that is celebrated with processions and special
masses throughout the republic.
Shrine
in the clinic courtyard
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