Feastday: October 12

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​In the year AD 39, according to tradition, the Virgin Mary appeared to Saint James the Great, in Zaragoza, Spain. The vision is now called Our Lady of the Pillar and is the only reported Marian apparition before her Assumption. The Basilica of Our Lady of the Pillar was built in Zaragoza, Spain and a key piece of Roman Catholic Marian art, the statue of Our Lady of the Pillar, refers to this apparition.

http://www.marypages.com/OLVvandePilaarEng.htm





Our Lady of the Pillar (Spanish: Nuestra Señora del Pilar) is the name given to the Blessed Virgin Mary for her claimed appearance during the start of Christianity in Spain. She is the Patroness of the Spanish Civil Guard and the Hispanic world (but the Patroness of Spain is the Inmaculate Conception). Her shrine is in the Basilica of Our Lady of the Pillar in Zaragoza, by the river Ebro.



Apparition

A painting by Goya depicting the Marian apparition to St. James the Greater
According to an ancient tradition, the Apostle James the Greater was instructed by Mary to build a chapel where he was praying by the banks of the Ebro at Saragossa.[2] It is generally believed that Mary appeared to James through bilocation. However, it is unlikely that Mary was alive when she appeared to James, since she died in the presence of all the Apostles,[3] yet James died in 44 AD - only four years after the date of Mary's appearance to him.[4]
Because public revelation ended with the death of the last Apostle,[5] Our Lady of the Pillar is not a private revelation. However, it is also not public revelation, since it is not Scriptures, Tradition or Jesus Christ. Neither is it Catholic dogma, since it is not connected to public revelation. The apparition is instead a local tradition.



The Shrine to Our Lady of the Pillar

The pillar, now presently enshrined by the larger Basilica of Our Lady of the Pillar, is believed to be the same one given and promised by Mary, in spite of numerous disasters that beset the church. A fire burned down the church previous to the basilica in 1434. During the Spanish Civil War, two bombs hit and damaged the basilica but none exploded. The event was attributed as a miracle, and the deactivated bombs have been on display at the basilica premises since.[7]

Our Lady of the Pillar with the pillar draped with a special manto made with paper origami

A closer look of the manto made with 1,536 paper origami pieces by an origami enthusiast group from Zaragoza
The image of the Blessed Virgin Mary may or may not be the original. Some report that the original wooden image was destroyed when the church burned down in 1434, contradicting the report that it is still the original statue. The statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary is made of wood and stands 39 centimetres (15 in) tall while the 6 feet (1.8 m) pillar is made of Jasper.> The statue depicts Mother Mary with the baby Jesus on her left arm, who has a dove sitting on his left palm. Since the 16th century, the pillar is usually draped by a skirt-like cover called manto (in English: mantle).



Feast day

Our Lady of the Pillar is celebrated on 12 October and is the Patroness of the Hispanic peoples and the Spanish Civil Guard. A grand nine-day festival known as Fiestas del Pilar is celebrated in Zaragoza every year in her honor.



Veneration to Our Lady of the Pillar around the world

[edit]Philippines
Ruled by Spain for over three hundred years, in the predominantly Catholic country of the Philippines, Our Lady of the Pillar is honored as the patroness in a number parishes and municipalities in the country; seven are named Pilar in her honor. There is a town named Pilar in the provinces of Abra, Bataan, Bohol, Capiz, Cebu, Surigao del Norte and Sorsogon. As in Spain, her feast day is celebrated every October 12.
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. Her bas relief atop the eastern gate of the 17th century Spanish military fort dedicated to Lady, 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 has also a street named after her - Pilar Street.[8]
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.[9][10]
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 had brought along with them 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 on the 3rd week of October.[11]
In Imus City, Our Lady of the Pillar is the patroness of the Diocese and City of Imus. The city celebrates its fiesta every October with its popular Karakol, a ritual dance-procession performed in all fiestas around the Province of Cavite.