Mexicans host a cherished annual visitor

The Record (Hackensack N.J.) (MCT) - She arrived at the modest corner home on Lexington Avenue to a reception fit for a queen.

Here, at last, was the Virgin of Guadalupe: a framed print, bedecked in multicolored silk flowers, and more than a dozen Mexican immigrants gathered inside clasped hands in prayer, made the sign of the cross, and serenaded her with songs from their native land.

The home of Rosy Valle was the latest stop in this month-long ritual, in which the image of the virgin is taken by a group of volunteers from Holy Trinity Church to a different home every night through this weekend.

It is one of several rituals, being repeated in Mexican communities throughout the world, that lead up to the feast day of the Virgin of Guadalupe on Dec. 12.

Mexicans who are chosen to host Guadalupe _ a depiction of the Virgin Mary, Mexico's patron religious figure _ describe it as one of life's greatest honors.

"I am thrilled _ this is a special moment," said Valle, who took a day off from work to prepare for the arrival. "She is the mother of our community."

Valle had invited about 50 people, and expected they would all show up, many with others, throughout the evening to pay tribute to the image.

"It's like a VIP is coming," Valle said. "I wanted everything to be perfect for her. This is an experience of a lifetime. I couldn't believe I had been picked to host her."

Legend has it that in 1531, a vision of the Virgin Mary appeared to a peasant named Juan Diego in Mexico. But she was unlike more traditional, European images of the mother of Christ: She was brown-skinned and with indigenous features.

"Many Mexicans, especially the poor, saw her as their true Virgin Mary," said David Abalos, visiting professor of politics at Princeton University and author of various books about Mexicans. "She looked a lot like them, not from the upper class or European Catholicism."

No figure is more revered in the Mexican community than the Virgin of Guadalupe, whose image graces pendants, calendars, and prints, and after whom many baby girls are named.

On the actual feast day of the Virgin of Guadalupe, more than 2,000 devotees are expected to stop by Holy Trinity Church, beginning as early as 3 a.m.

In a practice common in churches with large Mexican congregations, the parishioners of Holy Trinity Church, in early fall, put their names on a list of those wishing to act as host to the Virgin of Guadalupe for about 24 hours in November or December.

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Thirty names were chosen from the list for each of the seven framed images, bringing the number of hosts to more than 200.

Holy Trinity volunteers _ called "Guadalupe missionaries" by the pastor, Antonio Rodriguez _ transport the images from home to home each night. They say the rosary soon after arriving with the virgin.

Typically, the host families greet the Virgin of Guadalupe with food and flowers and place her in shrines that sometimes are quite elaborate.

Some, like the Valles, hire musicians and invite neighbors, friends and relatives to drop in throughout the evening.

Miryam Matos, a volunteer from Fair Lawn, N.J., said transporting the image nightly for an entire month is a huge commitment, but one that she plans to honor until the day she can no longer drive.

"It's a beautiful experience, both for the family receiving the virgin and for those of us who bring her to someone's door," Matos said. "People are overcome with emotion when she arrives, as if it were the real Virgin of Guadalupe coming through their door. Some people cry and drop to their knees when they see her coming."

The Virgin of Guadalupe carries with her "a powerful place in the Mexican identity," said Abalos, of Princeton University. "To be Mexican is to be a child of the Virgin of Guadalupe, even for non-Catholic Mexicans.

"The devotion to her helps to create a sense of community, a source of strength and consolation, especially for the poor and the people who are struggling," Abalos said.

That sense of community was palpable at the Valle gathering Thursday night. After songs and prayer, those gathered there feasted on tamales and spoke about their jobs and children.

Mexicans who have been host to the image in the past speak of feeling a loss when she is taken to the next home.

But Miguel Valle, Rosy's husband, said there would be no such void in his family's home.

"She is always present in our home," Valle said, pointing to a life-size statue of the virgin at their shrine. "She is always here. We always feel her."

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