Guatemalan devotion: Virgen de Dolores receives episcopal consecration
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Devotees and brotherhoods in La Antigua Guatemala, Guatemala, celebrated the 70th anniversary of the blessing of the Virgen de Dolores with an episcopal consecration and coronation on September 19th.
In 1955, worshippers of the Santuario de San Francisco el Grande requested a statue of the Virgen de Dolores to accompany Jesús Nazareno del Perdón during the Holy Week procession. The Hermandad commissioned sculptor Trinidad Rivera to create the image, basing it on an older statue in the Santa Clara church.
Fray Miguel Ángel Murcia blessed the completed statue in 1956, and its creation relied on funding from families like the Ríos family and women who sold goods at the Central Market of Guatemala City. Since then, the Virgen de Dolores has become a central figure in the religious traditions of La Antigua Guatemala. To mark the 70th anniversary, the Hermandad organised religious, cultural, and historical events, including a candlelit procession and a concert.
In August, the statue visited Guatemala City, travelling through the historic centre before returning to La Antigua Guatemala. During the September 19th ceremony, the Virgen de Dolores received new jewels and ornaments donated by families and worshippers. The statue was carried in a procession on the original platform created in 1996 for Jesús Nazareno del Perdón, which has 68 supports.
