Events

Saint Martha was the aggressive middle sister to her siblings Lazarus and Mary.  She was a friend of Jesus’. In the bible she is known for being witness to Jesus’ resurrection of her brother, Lazarus.  Jesus also shocks her out of her anxious fretting about meal preparation (she is now the …

Ignatius of Loyola was a Spanish knight from a noble family who following injury in battle during the early 1500s had visions of Mary, becoming a hermit and priest who founded the Jesuits. Jesuits had a profound impact on San Miguel de Allende, and around the world, forming numerous Jesuit …

A small town near Assisi, Our Lady of the Angels, is home to St. Francis’ first monastery.    Here St. Francis of Assisi lived, started the Franciscan order and died.  Our Lady of the Angels was founded by hermits who declared here is where Mary …

Saint Dominic was a Spanish priest in the late twelfth century and founder of the Dominican Order of teachers. The spread of the rosary is attributed to the preaching of St. Dominic.   The rosary has for centuries been at the heart of the Dominican Order.  Dominicans have been instrumental in spreading …

The Assumption of the Virgin Mary into Heaven, informally known as The Assumption, was the Virgin Mary ascending into Heaven at the end of her earthly life. The Assumption is Mary’s heavenly birthday.  Her acceptance into the glory of Heaven is seen as the symbol of the promise made by Jesus to …

On August 17th the Virgin of the Three Hail Marys is a popular San Miguel festival continuing to celebrate Mary’s ascent into Heaven. It is said that in 1960 Father Benjamin Grimaldi Balderas built the chapel to the right of the main altar in the Templo …

Beatrice was a Portuguese lady-in-waiting to the Queen in the 1400s.  Having good looks that raised the jealousy of the Queen, Beatrice left courtly life to become a nun and was the founder of the monastic Order of the Immaculate Conception of Our Lady.  A small cloister of this …

If you dare to look up while walking in San Miguel, you will often find a cross with a smaller crossbar placed above the main one, near the top. This is called the Patriarchal Cross thought to have been given to Saint (then King) Stephen by the pope as the …

August 27th is the feast day of Saint Monica.  She is remembered for her suffering caused by her prayerful life dedicated to the reformation of her son, Augustine.  Augustine led an immoral life until in his thirties when he embraced the Catholic religion becoming a philosopher …

Fire trucks and ambulances approach centro with sirens blaring to receive a special blessing while parked around the jardin.  It is a festive occasion and fascinates children.

During the war for Independence from Spain the insurgents from San Miguel chose the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe (that Fr. Hidalgo plucked from Atotonilco) to show how God’s mother was on their side. Did you know the Spanish side had their own Mary supporting them too? …

Most are familiar with devotion to the Baby Jesus at Christmas but fewer know about devotion to the Virgin Mary.  Devotion to “little Mary” is strong here in San Miguel, and Mexico as a whole. On 6 January 1840, the Feast of the Three Kings, Sister Magdalena knelt …