Bishop Earl Fernandes designated Columbus Our Lady of Guadalupe, Star of the New Evangelization as a diocesan shrine for pilgrimage and prayer in a decree issued in November and published in this issue of The Catholic Times.
According to the decree (see Page 8), a diocesan shrine decided to the Blessed Virgin Mary serves as a tangible reminder of the love of God the Father in the hearts of the Christian faithful and that the faithful are a people continually on pilgrimage.
The decree further describes the new Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Star of the New Evangelization at Holy Name as a place of special devotion for the Christian faithful because of its beauty and the robust sacramental and devotional life already present and active in the parish church.
In the decree, Bishop Fernandes encourages the Christian faithful to make frequent pilgrimages to the newly established shrine to ask for the protection of Our Lady of Guadalupe and honor the Holy Name of Jesus.
Bishop Fernandes was scheduled to celebrate Mass on Thursday, Sept. 12, the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, at the parish.
Our Lady of Guadalupe, Star of the New Evangelization Parish was formed last year as a merger at the former Holy Name Church, 154 E. Patterson Ave., with Santa Cruz Parish for Spanish-speaking Catholics. The church is located north of the Ohio State University campus.
Father Antonio Carvalho serves as the pastor at the parish, which includes a large number of Latino Catholics.
Bishop Fernandes explained his decision to make the church a diocesan shrine.
“Holy Name Church is one of the most beautiful in the Diocese of Columbus,” he said. “When Holy Name and Santa Cruz came together as Our Lady of Guadalupe, Star of the New Evangelization Parish, it proved to be a remarkable success. People came together and began a beautiful new endeavor.
“In my visits there, I see the faith and devotion to the Virgin of Guadalupe and to Eucharistic Adoration. Many people drive from all over the city to worship there.
“Father Antonio Carvalho is completely dedicated to his ministry there, spending hours in the confessional and forming the people with a clear Marian spirituality. All of this led to me to issue a decree erecting the church as a diocesan shrine, a place of pilgrimage, a place which can serve as the spiritual oasis in the city of Columbus.”
Holy Name Church was established in 1905 and the current church was dedicated in 1927.
The personal parish of Santa Cruz was established in 1993 for Spanish-speaking Catholics, who worshiped at Holy Cross Church until 2001 when the worship site for Santa Cruz moved to Holy Name Church.
The former Holy Name School was used as the center of the Latino Community in Columbus before the personal parish of Santa Cruz was united with Holy Name Parish on Sept. 1, 2023, and the new territorial parish was given the name Our Lady of Guadalupe, Star of the New Evangelization.
