Leo Xiv was the first pope of the United States and he was also claimed by the Peruvian people that he served as a member of himself for twenty years.
Then known as Robert Francis Prevost, who lived and worked in the cities of Trujillo and Chiclayo in northern Peru. At Chiclayo, he served as bishop from 2015-2023. Trujillo is located a few hours south of Chiclayo, where the Pope lived for ten years.
His ministry was particularly exciting for me as I also lived in Northern Peru during the middle of my service with the Marianist Family, between my undergraduate experience at the University of Dayton and my first year of full-time ministry. The Marianist family was established based on the specific needs of French post-French society. It consists of laymen and oath religious sisters, brothers and priests, emphasizing dedication to Mary and the public way of life, and is a unique way of life.
The bus about two hours from Trujillo is the mountain town of Otuzco, where I live with other members of the Marianist family - which later became the focus of my research as an uninitiated Marianist and oceanographer. The image of Mary-La Virgen de la Puerta is now housed in a shrine church and has been respected and respected in the community for more than 300 years.
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Most people who maintain this image with local or surrounding villages are part of the Peruvian Catholic religious majority. But some other Peruvians, including non-Catholics, some members of the LGBTQ+ community, and other marginalized people, such as former prisoners and immigrants, also honor her. Many devotees do not live near Otusco but maintain a spiritual relationship with La Virgen de la Puerta.
The establishment of Otuzco
The Augustinians (Leo XIV was a religious congregation of brothers and priests) settled in Outusco in 1560.
As part of the town’s establishment, Augustine’s father placed the town under the protection of Jesus’ mother Mary. They obtained the image of Spain, a statue of Mary, made mainly of wood, and selected locally to celebrate her on December 15. Since 1664, this tradition has continued until about 100 years after Augustine's father settled in Opusco.
The people of Otusco were often threatened by pirates and other dangers, and prayed enthusiastically for this image of Mary.
During a special threat to their safety, around 1670, they brought this image to the parade streets to protect their towns. They placed an image of Mary above the church door in the center of the town and called it "Nuestra Señorade la Puerta" - translated into English: "Our door god."
Otuzco
In modern times, the carnival of la virgen de la Puerta is celebrated in the town of Otusco, where thousands of faithful landed in the mountain community to participate in the multi-day carnival patrons, a festival celebration that commemorates a patron saint who dedicated or imposes a spot.
The Carnival patrons of La Virgen de la Puerta start each year on December 14, observe the principal's day on December 15, and end on December 16.
During the Carnival era, the road between Trujillo and Otuzco was transformed into a pilgrimage route. The purpose of the journey may vary from pilgrimage to pilgrimage, but it usually reflects a profound act of personal devotion.
Some pilgrims arrive from Otusco, Trujillo and neighboring villages, while others travel long distances in Peru or abroad in honor of Lavelgen de la Plata. Some pilgrims walk about 50 miles (over 80 km) between Trujillo and Otuzco.
I personally spent this journey with a group of pilgrims whom I was with during my service in Peru. My pilgrimage involved a backpack that provided the group with basic medical supplies. After an overnight walk to camping pants, a T-shirt, hat and sneakers, I reached the image of Mary with a quarter-sized blisters on my feet.
Unlike me, some pilgrims marked the last few kilometers of their journey, kneeling on the streets and heading towards the shrine.
Dedication outside of Otusco
In addition to the thousands of celebrations that land in the town of Otusco every year, there are some who are deeply committed to La Virgen de la Puerta, but have no or no journey to the shrine. Their celebrations are sometimes far from Otuzco.
These include members of the LGBTQ+ community, who to this day remain marginalized in the wider Peruvian and Catholic culture. Although members of the LGBTQ+ community live throughout Peru, the Cerro El Pino community in Lima has traditionally been the home of festival celebrations held in honor of La Virgen de la Puerta, which many community members have observed.
Different communities have different needs. In this particular community, the LGBTQ+ community believes that she has protected them throughout history. In the early days of the AIDS epidemic in the 1990s, when more than 10% of men in Lima were infected with HIV, members of the community sought to protect La Virgen de la Puerta's health. Although some died of AIDS, others continued to attend the carnival ceremony in honor of her protection, even in their misery. They wore special costumes, sang and performed dances as part of the Carnival patrons for more than 300 years.
Francisco Rodríguez Torres is a Peruvian photographer who lives in the capital of Lima but is rooted in the northern region, which is the image of La Virgen de la Puerta. He is one of the people who documented the Carnival patron activities in the text La Mamita de Otuzco in Otuzco and Lima.
He wrote about local believers and those who respect image from afar. In his Spanish writings, he documented that La Virgen de la Puerta was considered to be mothers in the group that was considered to be on the margins of society. These groups include those who belong to the LGBTQ+ community, the poor, former prisoners and immigrants. They explained that they “hope to find comfort in her eyes.”
Devotees bring their special petition to Puerta before: they ask her to support decisions and daily needs. Some even pray for miraculous recovery.
On his apostle's journey to Peru, he searched for the view of hope with La Virgen de la Puerta of Pope Francis and crowned her the title of Mercy and Hope's mother. During a special prayer service held in Trujillo on January 20, 2018, Francis said in his speech that La Virgen de la Puerta has defended and protected all her children throughout history.
Leo takes Francis as an example and focuses on the importance of dialogue and peace. In announcing the Pope, his first message on the balcony, he said that members of the Catholic Church must build “bridges, dialogues, always open, open arms like this square, all those who need our charity, our presence, dialogues and love.”
I think La Virgen de la Puerta is a source of mercy and hope for all her devotees, whether they are historically marginalized or excluded) providing an example for Leo Xiv's world community to seek priority.