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Santa Catarina Juquila,Oaxaca
Photography by Bill Bell
This town is on the road from Puerto Escondido to
Oaxaca and is famous for its Virgen of Juquila. People come from all
over for una promesa. They promise to make a certain number of visits
over the next few years. In return,
 they ask a miracle: that a sickness be
cured, that a broken limb be repaired, that a dying relative be brought to
life again, that a child be made well. They also ask for prosperity: a
bounty of sheep, or goats, or maiz.
The town is known for the Santuario (Sanctuary) de Juquila which houses a 30
cm statue of the Virgin Mary, which has been venerated since the 16th
century. In 1633, it survived, completely intact, a fire that destroyed the
village in which it was originally located. At the beginning of the 18th
century, it was moved to its current location where the sanctuary was built
for it. Thousands visit this Virgin from across the state of Oaxaca, other
parts of Mexico and abroad .
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