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One of the many Catholic traditions is the Marian devotion. We, the Filipinos, especially the Bicolanos, have that extraordinary, exceptional, and devoted love for Mother Mary ¡ª the Mother of Jesus and our Mother, too. We believe that she will intercede for us and will lift our prayers up to God. Thus, there is strong belief and unshakable faith that our prayers are answered through the intercession of the Blessed Mother.
She has been called many names in different regions of the Philippines. Some of them are the following: Nuestra Se0Š9ora de Caridad to Ilocanos; Our Lady of Manaoag to the people of Pangasinan; Lady of Piat to Cagayanos; Nuestra Se0Š9ora del Rosario de la Naval or Nuestra Se0Š9ora de Antipolo to the Tagalogs and many others. Perhaps, one of her most notable names is Our Lady of Pe0Š9afrancia, more warmly called INA or Mother, to the Bicolanos. This intense devotion to Mother Mary by the Bicolanos can be traced back in Spain.
Near Salamanca, Spain, there is a village called San Martin de Casta0Š9ar located at the foot of Pe0Š9a de Francia hill. A man named Simon Vela and his companions found on May 19, 1434 an image of Mary, now fondly called Our Lady of Pe0Š9afrancia. Details of this event are still contained in an official document duly notarized and kept in the archives of the village.
Around 1700, the Covarruibias family of San Martin de Casta0Š9ar migrated to the Philippines, and settled in Cavite. One of their sons was named Miguel who became sickly while studying in the University of Sto Tomas in Manila. Miguel was a great devotee of Our Lady of Pe0Š9afrancia. He found a painting of the image found by Simon Vela, and would place the painting on whatever part of his body that greatly pained him. This gave him relief from his suffering. ¡°So many are the miracles that have happened that I cannot count them. All I could say is that I am the miracle of her miracles.¡± Miguel said.
Miguel de Covarruibias came to Naga upon the invitation of Bishop Andres Gonzales (1685-1709) to join him in his diocese of Nueva Caceres. There, Miguel became an ordained diocesan priest and later on, the Vicar General of the Diocese.
A lot of miraculous events happened in Naga during this period. One of the most prominent story is about a dog killed, its neck slashed and its blood used to coat or paint the newly carved replica of the statue of Our Lady of Pe0Š9afrancia in Spain made by a local artisan. The dead dog was dumped into the river, but it swam alive once again, as witnessed by hundreds of people. Many other miracles that happened were attributed to Our Lady, and its news spread like wildfire. Thus, the devotees also increased in number. She became more popular not only to the natives, but also to the Chinese community. These were all documented in Father Miguel¡¯s letters of 1710 and 1711. His letter to the Dominican Fathers of Salamanca, Spain in 1712 reported many miracles through the intercession of Our Lady. As the devotees grew in number, the devotion also spread outside the Diocese of Nueva Caceres, which before comprised not only the Bicol region, but also includes Tayabas (now Quezon), Marinduque, Laguna up to Palanan, Isabela along the Cordillera ranges.
Succeeding Bishops of Nueva Caceres also contributed in propagating this devotion. Bishop Isidro Arrival (1740-1751) built the initial stone church, later called ¡°Sanctuaries de Pe0Š9afrancia¡±, on the banks of the Bicol River. Bishop Francisco Gainza (1862-1879) enlarged the sanctuary, wrote the history of Pe0Š9afrancia, and edited the Novena of Our Lady in Spanish, and in the Bicol dialect. Almost a century later, the English translation was done by Monseigneur Florencio Yllana in 1945.
Like the biblical ¡°mustard seed¡± , the Pe0Š9afrancia devotion today is like a ¡°giant tree¡±, whose branches extend to other parts of the world like America, Europe, Australia, and Asia. The love story between our Lady of Pe0Š9afrancia, whom we lovingly call ¡°Ina¡±, and us, her children, is never ending.
Today, we have Bicol and Tagalog novena translations. Devotees from all over the world are enjoying the fruits of this Marian devotion, and the aid of Our Lady of Pe0Š9afrancia. On her feast day, pilgrims gather once more at her shrine to pay her homage for favors received.
She has been called many names in different regions of the Philippines. Some of them are the following: Nuestra Se0Š9ora de Caridad to Ilocanos; Our Lady of Manaoag to the people of Pangasinan; Lady of Piat to Cagayanos; Nuestra Se0Š9ora del Rosario de la Naval or Nuestra Se0Š9ora de Antipolo to the Tagalogs and many others. Perhaps, one of her most notable names is Our Lady of Pe0Š9afrancia, more warmly called INA or Mother, to the Bicolanos. This intense devotion to Mother Mary by the Bicolanos can be traced back in Spain.
Near Salamanca, Spain, there is a village called San Martin de Casta0Š9ar located at the foot of Pe0Š9a de Francia hill. A man named Simon Vela and his companions found on May 19, 1434 an image of Mary, now fondly called Our Lady of Pe0Š9afrancia. Details of this event are still contained in an official document duly notarized and kept in the archives of the village.
Around 1700, the Covarruibias family of San Martin de Casta0Š9ar migrated to the Philippines, and settled in Cavite. One of their sons was named Miguel who became sickly while studying in the University of Sto Tomas in Manila. Miguel was a great devotee of Our Lady of Pe0Š9afrancia. He found a painting of the image found by Simon Vela, and would place the painting on whatever part of his body that greatly pained him. This gave him relief from his suffering. ¡°So many are the miracles that have happened that I cannot count them. All I could say is that I am the miracle of her miracles.¡± Miguel said.
Miguel de Covarruibias came to Naga upon the invitation of Bishop Andres Gonzales (1685-1709) to join him in his diocese of Nueva Caceres. There, Miguel became an ordained diocesan priest and later on, the Vicar General of the Diocese.
A lot of miraculous events happened in Naga during this period. One of the most prominent story is about a dog killed, its neck slashed and its blood used to coat or paint the newly carved replica of the statue of Our Lady of Pe0Š9afrancia in Spain made by a local artisan. The dead dog was dumped into the river, but it swam alive once again, as witnessed by hundreds of people. Many other miracles that happened were attributed to Our Lady, and its news spread like wildfire. Thus, the devotees also increased in number. She became more popular not only to the natives, but also to the Chinese community. These were all documented in Father Miguel¡¯s letters of 1710 and 1711. His letter to the Dominican Fathers of Salamanca, Spain in 1712 reported many miracles through the intercession of Our Lady. As the devotees grew in number, the devotion also spread outside the Diocese of Nueva Caceres, which before comprised not only the Bicol region, but also includes Tayabas (now Quezon), Marinduque, Laguna up to Palanan, Isabela along the Cordillera ranges.
Succeeding Bishops of Nueva Caceres also contributed in propagating this devotion. Bishop Isidro Arrival (1740-1751) built the initial stone church, later called ¡°Sanctuaries de Pe0Š9afrancia¡±, on the banks of the Bicol River. Bishop Francisco Gainza (1862-1879) enlarged the sanctuary, wrote the history of Pe0Š9afrancia, and edited the Novena of Our Lady in Spanish, and in the Bicol dialect. Almost a century later, the English translation was done by Monseigneur Florencio Yllana in 1945.
Like the biblical ¡°mustard seed¡± , the Pe0Š9afrancia devotion today is like a ¡°giant tree¡±, whose branches extend to other parts of the world like America, Europe, Australia, and Asia. The love story between our Lady of Pe0Š9afrancia, whom we lovingly call ¡°Ina¡±, and us, her children, is never ending.
Today, we have Bicol and Tagalog novena translations. Devotees from all over the world are enjoying the fruits of this Marian devotion, and the aid of Our Lady of Pe0Š9afrancia. On her feast day, pilgrims gather once more at her shrine to pay her homage for favors received.