The Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe at St. Bernard on West 14th Street in Manhattan has hosted a five-night webinar on the history and significance of Our Lady of Guadalupe – from Monday May 6 to Friday, May 10.

Each of the 90-minute gatherings was among several events within the Archdiocese of New York honoring the Mother of God during May, the Month of Mary.      

Organizers said the Guadalupe Manhattan parish sponsored the webinars in conjunction with the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico – conducted in Spanish and led from Mexico by Monsignor Eduardo Chavez, a canon at the basilica in Mexico. Monsignor Chavez is also the executive director of the Instituto Superior de Estudios Guadalupanos (Superior Institute on Guadalupan Studies) in Mexico City.                    

The sessions were viewed by the faithful gathered at the Manhattan shrine during the designated nights, and at other participating parishes in the archdiocese. In all, 14 Archdiocese of New York parishes participated, along with two more in Brooklyn.

“We have been learning a lot more with the webinar sessions. Monsignor Chavez was here last year and gave talks about Our Lady of Guadalupe,” Maria Coyotl, a Manhattan Guadalupe shrine parishioner told The Good Newsroom in a May 10 telephone interview. “I have always been devoted to Our Lady of Guadalupe. I have a lot of faith in her, and that’s why I wanted to learn more about her apparitions (to St. Juan Diego).” 

Monsignor Chavez visited the Archdiocese of New York in late April and early May, 2023, and gave Guadalupe talks at the Manhattan Guadalupe shrine and several other parishes.

At St. Mary-Our Lady of Mt. Carmel parish in Mount Vernon, Angel Bastida, a longtime parishioner, said, “Yes, tonight is the last night of the webinar; it is a privilege to learn more about our (spiritual and cultural) roots, the history, and why Our Lady of Guadalupe appeared in Mexico. The history is more than just December 12. It is important to know these things as Gualdalupanos, as Catholics. Many people converted to Catholicism after the Virgin appeared.” 

December 12 is the feast day of Our Lady of Guadalupe. The Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe at St. Bernard has planned additional Marian gatherings, all in Spanish: 

A concluding Mass on May 10 will be offered before the last Guadalupe webinar session occurs; 

A 6 p.m. Mass on May 11, in honor of Our Lady of Guadalupe. It is a parish monthly Mass celebrated on the 12th, but offered the day before or after when the 12th falls on a Sunday;

A special Mass will be celebrated on Monday, May 13, in honor of Our Lady of Fatima, starting at 6 p.m.