Home » Destinations » Argentina » Argentina, Lujan: Basilica of Our Lady of Lujan

 

Lujan, Argentina: Our Lady of Lujan

 

The story of Our Lady of Lujan:

 

Argentina is a country that is predominantly Catholic, with a rich tradition in the faith. In May of 1630, an image of the Blessed Virgin Mary was being transported from the port to the city of Santiago del Estero. The people transporting the image stopped at the home of a local man, Don Rosendo in the town of Zelaya. When they got ready to leave the next day, they found that the oxen refused to move. Once they took the statue out of the cart the oxen readily began to pull the cart.

 

About the Shrine of Our Lady of Lujan:

Statue of the Virgin of Lujan, Patroness of Argentina
Photo-Monique / CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)

The statue almost immediately began an object of adoration and a small chapel was built here. About 40 years later the statue was moved to Lujan where it is now kept in the magnificent Basilica. Our Lady of Lujan is the patroness of Argentina. The Shrine reports over six million visitors each year.

You can approach the statue, which is now encrusted with jewels.

There is an annual pilgrimage to Lujan on the Feast Day of May 8th is joined by thousands who walk to the Shrine from Buenos Aires as well as other cities.

In recent years, Archbishop Jorge Mario Bergoglio, now our Holy Father, Pope Francis, usually led this procession as Archbishop of Buenos Aires. The week of the feast is attended by crowds over 100,000.

Pope John Paul II celebrated Mass here on Sunday June 11, 1982 during his Pastoral Visit to Argentina and consecrated Argentina to Our Lady of Lujan. Click here for a copy of the consecration.

You can find a video of the history of Our Lady of Lujan here.

 

Traveling to Lujan:

Lujan is about 30 miles west of Buenos Aires. Those walking in procession obviously will have no trouble getting there, but that leaves most other days to find ways of transportation.

There is train service from Buenos Aires but unfortunately it is not direct and rather difficult. So we suggest a taxi as the most convenient way to reach the Basilica. There are few Catholic tours here, but it is certainly worth the effort to get there.

Address: San Martín 51, B6700APA Luján, Buenos Aires

GPS coordinates: 34° 33′ 50.1516” S, 59° 7′ 16.3776” W

Tel: (+54) (02323) 420058 / 421070 / 421768

Tel: +54 (02323) 420058 Click to call

email: pastoral.basilicadelujan@gmail.com

Click here for hotels and B&B’s in Lujan, compare prices, and read what other travelers have to say at TripAdvisor

⇐ Back to Catholic shrines and places of interest in Argentina

Leave a Comment