La Virgen de las Mercedes

Description

Though the Virgin de las Mercedes is venerated worldwide, she has a special connection to the Dominican Republic, of which she is also patroness alongside the Virgen de la Altagracia.  A large fleet under the command of Cristopher Columbus set sail on September 25, 1493, carrying an image of the Virgin of Mercy that Queen Isabella had gifted them.  It was the first image of the Mother of God that arrived in the Americas.  Juan Infante, one of the Mercedarians that travelled with Columbus (and his Confessor), while exploring the environs of the fort La Concepción de la Vega that the Spanish erected upon their arrival on the island in January of 1494, spied a valley in the distance.

Overwhelmed by the beauty of the place he named La Vega Real, he trekked out and placed a gigantic cross on the top of the highest hill and built a small chapel beside it to house the Queen’s image of the Virgen.  Over the centuries the hill, now known as the Santo Cerro, became a place of pilgrimage not only for Dominicans, but for all Latin Americans.  Following a devastating earthquake on the 8th of September 1615, her feast day was moved to the 24th of September, and has been celebrated on that day ever since. 

Her cult has spread beyond the Dominican Republic, especially among the Native population of Quíbor, Venezuela. In the 1500s the first people of Quíbor kept an image of the Virgin in a small chapel and they looked to her as the patroness of their city and their protectress. In the 1800s, the chapel was destroyed but was later restored by 1810. Our Lady of Altagracia remains the patroness of Quíbor and the Natives celebrate her feast day on both January 21, when the men offer devotions, and January 22, when it’s the women’s turn to do so.  It is also a time when faithful put more effort into performing acts of mercy. She is also patroness of Chile and Cuba, where her cult is quite large.

References:

1. Alson, Javier and Antonio Larocca. “Las Advocaciones Marianas.” University of Dayton. Accessed April 12, 2024.

2. Keys, Janette. “Virgin Altagracia and Las Mercedes of Dominican Republic.” Dominican Republic Religious Beliefs and Patron Saints. Accessed 2016.

3. “Our Lady of Mercy Day in the Dominican Republic.” AnydayGuide. Accessed September 24, 2018. 

Researched by Anne E. Keefe