Group 1

B1 - Brent Francis N. Artadi

B4 - Christian Delbert M. Ayque
G3 - Prences Euniz P. Dela Cruz
G14 - Samantha Mari A. Perez

Nuestra señora del Pilar (Birhen del Pilar)

A. DESCRIPTION
Our Lady of the Pillar ​(Spanish: Nuestra Señora del Pilar)​ is the name given to
the Blessed Virgin Mary associated with the claim of Marian apparition to Apostle
James the Greater as he was praying by the banks of the Ebro at Caesaraugusta
(Zaragoza), Hispania, in AD 40. The celebrated wooden image is enshrined at
the Basilica of Our Lady of the Pillar in Saragossa (Zaragoza).
B. MIRACLES
When an earthquake struck during 1805, the church of our Lady of the Pillar was
crumbled down and destroyed. When the townsfolk went to gather up the
remains of the Pillars statue, they were shocked to see that the statue was still
intact, miraculously only getting scratches.
​C. CANONIZATION
Our Lady of the Pillar was canonized on December 7, 2017 at Santa Cruz
Parish, Manila.
​D. SHRINES
In the Philippines, ruled by Spain for over three hundred years, Our Lady of the
Pillar is honored as the patroness of a number parishes and municipalities; seven
are named Pilar in her honor. There are towns named Pilar in the provinces of
Abra, Bataan, Bohol, Capiz, Cebu, Surigao del Norte and Sorsogon. Shrines can
be found in places like:
1. Zamboanga City
2. Davao City
3. Cavite Province
​E. FEAST DAY
As in Spain and the Philippines, her feast day is celebrated every October 12.
F. LEGEND
According to legend, in the early days of the Church, the Apostle James the
Greater was evangelizing the Gospel in Caesaraugusta, but his mission was
making little progress until miraculously, he saw Mary committing him to
Jerusalem. In his vision, she was atop a column or pillar, which was being carried
 by angels. That pillar is believed to be the same one venerated in Zaragoza
today. Miraculous healings have been reported at the scene.
G. HISTORY
Tradition dates the origin of the Our Lady of Pilar shrine to the year 40 A.D.,
when St. James the Apostle was sitting here on the bank of the Ebro River,
discouraged and heartsick at his lack of success in bringing Christianity to the
region. The Virgin Mary appeared to him and reassured him that his efforts would
not be in vain. She also asked him to consecrate a church in her name, and left
behind a pillar of jasper to mark the spot where she had made her appearance.
As Mary promised, St. James was indeed successful in bringing Christianity to
Spain, and the place of his encounter with the Virgin became a holy place.
Through the centuries, including years when Zaragoza was under Muslim
control, when it suffered from plague and famine, and through years of civil war
and unrest, this site has continued to draw the faithful. Holy men and women
such as St. John of the Cross, St. Teresa of Avila, and St. Ignatius of Loyola
have all made the journey here to show their devotion to Our Lady of Pilar, who
is the patroness of Spain.
The most prominent miracle associated with the shrine happened in the
seventeenth century to a poor beggar named Miguel Juan Pellicer from the town
of Calanda. Unable to work because of an amputated leg, he had a great
devotion to the shrine and frequently prayed there for help. The Virgin Mary
answered his prayers by restoring his missing leg, and after word spread of the
miracle, the number of pilgrims to the church greatly increased.
Multiple church structures have occupied the site, each one larger than the one it
replaced. Today the Basilica de Nuestra Senora del Pilar, as it is formally known,
includes 11 brightly colored tiled domes and is the second biggest church in
Spain (only the cathedral in Seville is larger). Its construction was begun in 1681
under the direction of King Charles II. Parts of its interior date back even farther,
including a magnificent main altar of alabaster designed by Damian Forment in
the fifteenth century. Two of the frescos that line its domes were painted by
Goya, the famous eighteenth-century Spanish artist who was born in the nearby
village of Fuendetodos.
Our Lady of Pilar came to international prominence when in 1492 Christopher
Columbus landed in the New World on her feast day of October 12. She was
subsequently named patroness of the New World. In the early twentieth century,
the shrine also played an important role in the founding of the Opus Dei
movement. As a young seminarian in Zaragoza, St. Josemaria Escriva, the
 founder of Opus Dei, made daily visits to Our Lady of Pilar to pray for guidance.
Opus Dei members continue to honor her feast day each year.
H. TRADITION
According to tradition, she had promised Saint James that when he needed it
most in his difficult mission to the pagans in today's Spain, she would appear to
him to encourage him.
I. Veneration of Our Lady of the Pillar in the Philippines
● In Zamboanga City, the Virgin of the Pillar has been venerated for almost four
centuries as the patroness of the city and in the Archdiocese of Zamboanga.
The bas relief of her atop the eastern gate of the 17th-century Spanish
military fort dedicated to the Virgin, Fort Pilar (Full name: Royal Fort of our
Virgin Lady of the Pillar of Zaragoza, El Fuerte Real de Nuestra Señora
Virgen del Pilar de Zaragoza), is now a Catholic Marian shrine. The city also
has a street named after her – Pilar Street.
● In Davao City, a shrine in honor of Nuestra Señora del Pilar in Magsaysay
Park was built through the collaborative efforts of Circulo Zamboangueño de
Davao, a local group of transposed from Zamboanga City.
● Our Lady of the Pillar is also the patroness of Santa Cruz parish church in the
district of the same name, in the city of Manila. The Jesuits brought the
patroness when they administered the church during the Spanish era. Her
feast day is also celebrated every 12 October in the district. However, the
church has its Marian procession in the 3rd week of October. The image was
canonically crowned on 7 December 2017.
● Our Lady of the Pillar is the patroness of the City and Diocese of Imus,
enshrined at the Imus Cathedral in Cavite province. The city celebrates its
fiesta every October with the Karakol, a ritual dance-procession performed in
fiestas around the province of Cavite. The image was canonically crowned on
3 December 2012.
● Our Lady of the Pillar is also the patroness, with 12 October as the feast day,
in the following places:
○ City of Cauayan, Isabela.
○ Town of Morong, Bataan.
○ Don Rufino Alonzo Sr. Street Cotabato City, Maguindanao.
○ Town of Baleno, Masbate.
○ Town of Pilar, Bataan.
○ Town of Pilar, Bohol.
○ Town of Pilar, Capiz
○ Town of Pilar, Sorsogon.
 ○ Town of San Simon, Pampanga.
○ Town of Sibonga, Cebu.
○ Town of Alaminos, Laguna.
○ Town of Mamburao, Occidental Mindoro.
○ Town & Diocese of Libmanan, Camarines Sur
○ Brgy.​ Kalubkob, Silang, Cavite
○ Brgy.​ Guinsay, Danao City, Cebu
○ Brgy. New Guinlo, Taytay, Palawan
○ Brgy. Del Pilar, Zaragoza, Nueva Ecija
○ Brgy. Lumbangan, Nasugbu, Batangas
J. The Church of Our Lady of the Pilar in Zaragoza, Spain
The church of Our Lady of the Pillar in Zaragoza, is the first church dedicated to
Mary in history and it remains standing to this day, having survived invasions and
wars - in the Spanish Civil War of 1936-1939 three bombs were dropped on the
church and none of them exploded. Our Lady is also said to have given the small
wooden statue of the apparition to Saint James which now stands on a pillar in
the church.
K. IMAGE
A fire in 1434 burned down the church that preceded the present basilica. The
construction of the present Basilica of Our Lady of the Pillar, Saragossa
(Zaragoza) was started in 1681 and ended in 1711.
The wooden statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary is in the Late Gothic style. It
stands 39 centimetres (15 in) tall, on a pillar of jasper with a height of 1.8 metres
(5.9 ft). The statue depicts Mary with the Child Jesus on her left arm, who has a
dove sitting on his left palm.
Some reports state that an earlier wooden image was destroyed when the church
burned down in 1434, consistent with an attribution of the current image to Juan
de la Huerta (d. 1462) or his school.
It appears that folk belief in some cases may be inclined to regard the Saragossa
image as miraculous, sculptured by the angels as they transported Mary from
Jerusalem to Saragossa (Zaragoza); this mystical tradition goes back to María de
Ágreda (d. 1665), herself the object of frequent "mystical bilocation" (i.e. she
reported that she was often "transported by the aid of the angels" ), who gave an
account to this effect in her Mystical City of God; however, unlike the tradition of
the Marian apparition itself, the miraculous origin of the image is not part of the
tradition recognized by the Holy See as canonical.
 Since the 16th century, the pillar is usually draped in a skirt-like cover called
manto "mantle". ​ ​As a whole, it is protected by a bronze case and then another
case of silver. The image was canonically crowned in 1905 during the reign of
Pope Pius X. The crown was designed by the Marquis of Griñi, valued at 450,000
pesetas (c. USD 2.6 million as of 2017).
L. OTHER
The first Marian apparition in history appeared to Saint James the Apostle, the
brother of Saint John the Evangelist, on the bank of the river Ebro in Saragossa,
Spain. Unlike every other recorded apparition, this one took place during the
earthly life of the Mother of God.
In the year 40 A.D., while praying one night on the tobrt bank, the Virgin
appeared with the Child Jesus standing on a pillar and asked Saint James and
his eight disciples to build a church on the site, promising that “it will stand from
that moment until the end of time in order that God may work miracles and
wonders through my intercession for all those who place themselves under my
patronage.”

Nuestra Señora del Pilar is the patron of Spain and all Hispanic peoples. October
12, 1492, the feast of the Virgin of the Pillar, is the day Christopher Colombus
first sighted American land, and when the first Mass in the Americas was
celebrated.
History of the Virgin of Pilar
Knowing the history of the Virgen del Pilar will help us to understand the cultural
concept that has been created around it, its scope and how it has become one of
the references as a religious destination of pilgrimage and symbol in Aragon.
What is the origin of the Virgen del Pilar?
The origin of the Virgen del Pilar is an exciting story full of nuances and unique
events that are detailed below. Focusing on the historical context where the
apparition takes place, this happened in AD 40, the age at which the city of
Zaragoza was known as Cesaraugusta, named after the Roman emperor Cesar
Augustus in 14 BC.
The present history goes back to the time immediately following the Ascension of
Jesus Christ, when the apostles, endowed with the power of the Holy Spirit,
began to preach the Gospel.
The apostle James or James the Greater, born in Bethsaida, Galilee in 5 BC,
brother of John and Son of Zebedee, was entrusted with the mission of
Evangelizing the Celtiberian peoples of Hispania, then divided into the following
regions, Lusitania, Tarraconesis, and Betica.
As St. Gregory the Great records in his Magna Moraria, a document of which we
shall speak later, the apostle James, before departing to pagan lands, kissed the
Virgin’s hands and asked for his blessing, to which she replied with the following
words:
“Go, son, fulfill the command of the Master, and for him, I pray that in that city of
Spain, where more people turn to the faith, you will build a Church in my
memory, as I will show you”
Thus James proceeded to what he had known as Iberia, by his Greek
nomenclature, and having preached in the lands of the Astures and the
Galicians, he crossed the spartan plains until arriving at the city of
Caesaraugusta, where his preaching got the conversion from many pagans to
the True Faith. Finding great resistance in the conversion of souls to the Lord,
the apostle was saddened for having made only one man in the lands of the
Astures, and eight in Caesaraugusta. Without being overcome by the temptation
of unhappiness, Santiago continued to preach, seeking moments of prayer in the
company of the eight new Christians, who retired at night on the banks of the
river Ebro to rest and talk about Our Lord.
When did the appearance of the Virgen del Pilar take place?
As reflected in this copy of the Magna Moralia of St. Gregory the Great (Moralia,
sive Expositio in Job, written between the years 578 and 595, consists of about
35 volumes), dating to the thirteenth century currently preserved in the cathedral
Zaragoza, and whose original documents date from the sixth century, on the
night of January 2, 40 AD, Santiago met his disciples by the river Ebro when he
heard voices of angels singing Ave Maria, full gratia and saw the Virgin Mother of
Christ appear, standing on a jasper pillar.
The Blessed Virgin, who still lived in mortal flesh, asked the Apostle to build a
church there, with the altar around the pillar where he stood and promised that
“this place will remain until the end of time for the virtue of God work miracles
and wonders through my intercession with those who in their needs implore my
patronage. ”
This appearance has 3 fundamental distinctions with respect to any other in the
world:
The Blessed Virgin appears when she was still in mortal life in Palestine, under
the protection of the Apostle St. John: “With no nation did any such thing.”
The column or pillar was brought by the Virgin Mary herself so that the first
chapel was built on it, which would become the first Marian temple of all
Christendom.
The linking of pillar tradition with the Jacobean tradition (of the Sanctuary of
Santiago de Compostela).
This is why the Basilica of the Pillar of Saragossa and the Cathedral of Santiago
de Compostela, has constituted two fundamental axes around which has turned
for centuries the spirituality of Spain.
After the appearance disappeared the Virgin and remained there the pillar. The
Apostle James and the eight witnesses of the prodigy began to build in that
Celtiberian city called Caesaraugusta, today known as Saragossa, the first
Marian temple of Christianity, and the first in the world dedicated to the Virgin.
The original temple is said to have been built in adobe, one of the oldest and
most used building materials at that time composed of sand, straw, and clay.
Before the Church was finished, James ordained one of his disciples to the
service of the priest, consecrated it and gave it the title of Santa Maria del Pilar
before returning to Judea.
After preaching in Spain, Santiago returned to Jerusalem, where Herod Agrippa
sent him to execute around AD 44 being thus the first martyr, after which his
disciples, took his body and took it to Spain, more concretely to Iria Flavia for his
funeral.
Summary of the history of the Virgen del Pilar
On the night of January 2nd of AD 40, as quoted in Magna Moralia of St. Gregory
the Great, the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared before the Apostle James in the city
of Saragossa on a pillar or column while it still existed in mortal flesh.