Our Lady of the Undocumented

In the Lavapies neighborhood of Madrid, which has become home to immigrants from several continents, the church of San Lorenzo has taken in immigrants especially from Latin America. Catholics who came from the Americas to Spain seeking political refuge or simply better economic conditions brought with them their own pious traditions that reflect the centuries-old Catholicism of the New World.

Catholics in general revere the Virgin Mary as the Mother of God but have special affection for local devotions or apparitions. Our Lady of Guadalupe is indeed the Virgin Mary herself and, while she was named Patroness of the Americas by Pope John Paul II, she has especially devoted adherents in Mexico – the country where she appeared to an Aztec peasant some 500 years ago. Of course, the Virgin of Guadalupe accompanies Mexican immigrants to the United States and she is increasingly found in Catholic parishes even where Latino parishioners are few. Pro-life Catholics have adopted her image - that of a pregnant Mexican woman - as their patroness and symbol.

At the parish of San Lorenzo in Madrid, it is Ecuadorans who have pride of place since it was members of their community who first brought an image of the Virgin Mary much revered in their home country. At first, the Virgen del Cisne (Our Lady of the Swan) found her home at a bar in the Lavapies neighborhood. She also made a pilgrimage from one home to another in the Ecuadoran community of Lavapies, but now has a permanent home at the parish church. There her vestments are changed on a regular basis and she is taken out on processions much as she is in her home country.

At San Lorenzo, Bolivians, Colombians, Ecuadorans, Peruvians, and other Latin Americans feel at home despite being considered “undocumented” by the Spanish government and the EU. As the priest explained in an interview, they are all considered “brothers and sisters” by Catholics regardless of their legal status. Lavapies is considered the most multi-cultural neighborhood in the Spanish capital. Once a stronghold of political sentiments favoring Republican Spain, it has since segued from a low-rent area to a magnet for bohemians and now a revitalized inter-ethnic community. Incidently, Lavapies was once a Jewish community and had a synagogue.

On the right side of the altar at San Lorenzo, Latin Americans display images of the Virgin del Cisne from Ecuador, the Divine Child from Colombia, the Virgin of Caacupé of Paraguay, and the Virgin of Urkupiña and Cotoca of Bolivia. Some refer to the Virgin del Cisne as the "Virgin Without Papers" since she came to Spain without permission and in someone’s luggage. Images such as hers came to Spain perhaps wrapped in clothes as insulation or even in the arms of the devotees as they crossed the Atlantic to find better fortune.

It is Father Juan José, the pastor at San Lorenzo, who has encouraged the variety of devotions to the Virgin Mary. The priest crosses the Atlantic himself each year to bring home images of the Virgin and the saints and to learn first-hand the customs of his multi-national congregation who are filling the seats in his church. “Often I visit sick relatives they have over there, or pray at the cemetery for relatives who have died. I bring news from mothers who have left behind their children or from children who have parents there in order to assure them that everything is okay,” said the priest who has become an unofficial courier between Spain and Latin America.

Father Juan José explained his reasoning for celebrating the feast days and devotions of his Latin American parishioners, “We do this for four basic reasons: it is a way to dust off the faith, so that everyone is seen as equals, to create a sense of belonging to a community – which is very important when one is away – and to try to keep people on the right road.” After all, said the priest, “we are all equal in the sight of God.” The result for San Lorenzo has been a full-house on Sundays and holy days.