The Mother of God told St. James not to worry, that the people to whom he preached would not only be converted, but they would one day have faith as strong as the pillar on which she stood.

She gave the pillar and the statue to St. James and asked that a church be built on the spot in her honor, using the two items for the altar.

“This place is to be my house, and this image and column shall be the title and altar of the temple that you shall build… and the people of this land will honor greatly my Son Jesus.”

​

After asking for her church to be built, she gave another promise 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.”

​

St. James built a small chapel as Our Lady requested, by the Ebro river in Zaragoza, Spain, the first known Marian shrine in history. It became known as Our Lady of the Pillar, or Nuestra Senora del Pilar.  The chapel was replaced by larger churches over the centuries, the present stunning basilica being erected in the 17th century.

​

The statue and pillar have been preserved in the basilica just as they were given to St. James almost 2000 years ago. Amazing! The pillar is now covered in an embossed metal covering, but behind the altar a portion of the pillar is exposed for veneration. 

​

In the same vision Our Lady also recalled St. James to Jerusalem, where he met his martyrdom in 44 AD. His remains were taken by his followers back to Compostela, Spain, where a chapel was built in his honor. The chapel was later replaced by the famous Santiago de Compostela Cathedral, the most visited Catholic pilgrimage destination outside of Rome and the Holy Land.

​

Connection to Columbus Day
 

Christopher Columbus, the Italian Catholic explorer, sailed the Atlantic under the banner of the Catholic King and Queen of Spain on his three ships, the Nina (“Little Girl”), the Pinta (“Painted One”), and the Santa Maria (“Holy Mary”), which in hindsight can be seen as a foreshadowing of Our Lady of Guadalupe.

Interestingly, the flagship of Christopher Columbus, the Santa Maria, had a full name of Santa Maria de la Inmaculada Concepcion (Holy Mary of the Immaculate Conception). The U.S. bishops declared Mary under her title of the Immaculate Conception as the patroness of America in 1846.

After going a long time without seeing land, Columbus promised his anxious crewman that if they did not have landfall in their sight by the October 12th feast of Our Lady of the Pillar, so dear to the Spanish people, they would turn course and sail back to Spain.

On October 12th they sighted land, and claimed the New World first for Jesus Christ, and next for the Spanish crown. Read The Catholic Venture of Christopher Columbus. Yes, America belongs to Our Lady!

​

​

Our Lady of the Pillar Fast Facts

 

• Our Lay of the Pillar is the first known apparition of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

• It is also the only known apparition of Our Lady prior to her Assumption into heaven.

• The Basilica of Our Lady of the Pillar in Zaragosa, Spain, is the first church dedicated to the Virgin Mary.

• Our Lady of the Pillar is the patroness of Spain and all Hispanic People.

• The first known apparition of Our Lady, and her first church, were entrusted to the Spanish people.

• The church has remained in the same location after fires, wars, and disasters over the centuries. Three bombs were dropped on the basilica during the Spanish Civil War of 1936-1939; miraculously, none of them exploded.

• A nine-day festival, Fiestas del Pilar, is celebrated in Zaragoza every year in her honor. It is a national holiday in Spain that coincides with the commemoration of the arrival of Christopher Columbus in the Americas in 1492, i.e. Columbus Day.

• Christopher Columbus found and claimed the New World for Spain on October 12, 1492, the feast of Our Lady of the Pillar.
  https://www.catholiccompany.com/getfed/first-marian-apparition-our-lady-pillar/