Nuestra Señora la Conchita de Granada
http://forosdelavirgen.org/398/nuestra-senora-de-concepcion-de-granada-nicaragua-23-de-noviembre/
Country
Nicaragua
Description
The story of La Conchita begins on December 7, 1721. In the early morning of that day, women who were washing clothes on the shores of Lake Cocibolca noticed a large object floating in the water. They tried to retrieve the wooden box but it remained out of their reach. They fetched a few Franciscan friars toward which the box floated when they waded into the water. The box bore an inscription that said “For the City of Granada.”
Once they took it out of the water, the box opened without much difficulty. Inside they found a wooden sculpture of Mary with a smile on her face, the Child Jesus in her left arm and a spear in her right hand. Believing that the discovery of this image was a miracle, the friars and the women took the image back into the town to show others what they just discovered. They declared the image the city’s patroness and held a procession to officially place the image in the chapel.
The annual celebration of La Conchita is celebrated on November 28, and lasts for nine days. During the novena, the image will be taken into all the neighborhoods, where those individuals will pray the rosary before it. It is a way to show gratitude towards La Conchita. In 1856, there was a devastating fire in the city of Granada that had completely damaged the church that the Conchita had been kept in. While the church was burned to ashes, La Conchita remained completely intact. This is taken as further evidence of her miraculous nature.
Reference:
Grassiano, Domenica. Con María toda para todos como Don Bosco: Se llama María Romero Meneses de Nicaragua. Roma: Instituto Hijas de María Auxiliadora, 1987.
Researched by Samuel D. White
Popular Devotions
A celebration starts on November 28 where family members will come together to celebrate and pay its respects to La Conchita. They pray the rosary and ride on floats.
Hail Mary
Dios te salve, María. Llena eres de gracia: El Señor es contigo.
Bendita tú eres entre todas las mujeres.
Y bendito es el fruto de tu vientre: Jesús.
Santa María, Madre de Dios, ruega por nosotros pecadores,
ahora y en la hora de nuestra muerte.
Amen.
All content is used with permission
of the Marian Library at the