  MECA Press Release: Greetings! On Friday, December 12, 2003, MECA will celebrate the Feast Day of Our Lady of Guadalupe with Fiesta Guadalupana. The Virgin de Guadalupe is fondly thought of as the Roman Catholic patroness of the Americas. The historical basis of this holiday is the belief that in 1531, on Tepeyac hill, the Virgin Mary appeared to Juan Diego, a poor Native Mexican. Her shrine in México City is the second most-visited Catholic Church in the world with approximately 10 million visitors a year. Pope John Paul II visited Our Lady of Guadalupe three times, most recently in 2002, for the canonization of Juan Diego, who convinced the bishop to build a Marian shrine on Tepeyac. MECA will celebrate this Latin American holiday with song and dance. Mariachi MECA will lead participants in a procession around the Old Sixth Ward while singing Las Mañanitas.
The procession will conclude at MECA's statue of the Virgin de Guadalupe, where MECA's Ballet Folklórico students will perform a traditional Aztec dance, Sun God's Adoration. Mariachi MECA will perform liturgical music, as a student representing Juan Diego lays flowers before the statue of Our Lady. Hot chocolate, pan dulce, and other refreshments will be available for purchase. Free Admission Clarissa Valdez MECA -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- email: cernosek@ev1.net voice: 713-802-9370 web: http://www.meca-houston.org 
