Vatican City, Oct 13, 2011 / 16:15 pm
Pope Benedict XVI will commemorate the bicentennials of countries in Latin America with a special Mass at the St. Peter’s Basilica on December 12, the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, patroness of Latin America.
In a statement the Pontifical Council for Latin America announced that the Pope “joyfully accepted” a proposal by the dicastery to join in the celebrations “on a very significant date, December 12, the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Patroness of Latin America teacher of the enculturation of the faith, mother and protector of her nations, and whose image has been very present in the patriotic armies.”
The council noted that the bishops’ conferences of Latin America and the Latin American Bishops’ Council will be involved in the bicentennial celebrations. “Numerous documents and statements of the bishops’ conferences and of individual bishops have been published, and there have been various ecclesial celebrations in the liturgy, academia and the press.”
All of the commemorations fall between 2010 and 2014 with the exception of Peru and Brazil, which will commemorate the bicentennials of their independence between 2020 and 2022.