Hundreds welcome Torch of Guadalupe with fanfare, revelry

Hundreds of people welcomed Antorcha Guadalupana – the Torch of Guadalupe – for its annual visit to Gonzales Sunday night along its 3,133-mile journey from Mexico City to New York City.

Runners from Nixon arrived at Sarah DeWitt Drive and Water Street (Highway 183) at dusk Sunday, where they were joined by a throng of revelers, many dressed in brightly-colored costumes commemorating the torch’s origin at the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City and recalling the Aztec heritage dating back to the 16th century.

The Matachines, or costumed dancers, provided an atmosphere of festival as the revelers proceeded east along Sarah DeWitt Drive to College, then south to St. James Catholic Church, where the Nixon torchbearers passed the torch to Gonzales runners who carried along St. Lawrence Street to Sacred Heart Catholic Church.

“Dancing is one of the most ancient forms of prayer. It is also one of the simplest,” said Father Paul Raaz, explaining the colorful and musical gyrations of the Matachines as the made the trek along the streets of Gonzales. “King David danced before the Ark of God. Miriam and Judith danced God’s victory over slavery and oppression. Some pray in song, some in silence, some with beautiful and moving words, some with sacred ritual, some with dance.

“Here, we dance,” he said.

Once at Sacred Heart, the fanfare reached a crescendo with the torch changing hands many times, as clergy and parishioners alike took turns holding the flame leading up to and during an outdoor mass.

“It felt light in my hand, and sacred,” said Raaz, who carried the torch just a few feet. “The blessing that this torch carried was not so much that of the beautiful words and the holy water with which it was undoubtedly sprinkled before its departure from the Cathedral in Mexico City, but the thousands of hands that carried it to this point.

“I felt a profound sense of unity with all who carried this torch to Gonzales, and a great flood of privilege and of humility to have a part in this unfolding drama,” he said.

At dawn Monday morning, the torch continued its journey east to its next destination: Rosenberg, near Houston. The torch is expected to cross the Texas state line into Louisiana Thursday, Nov. 10, along I-10.

The annual relay, the International Run Carrera Antorcha Guadalupana Mexico-New York Torch Race connecting Mexico and the United States, left the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City on Oct. 3, and is scheduled to arrive at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City for Our Lady’s feast day on Dec. 12.

The run, which has its beginnings in 1998, represents the fervor and faith Hispanics have for Our Lady of Guadalupe, arguably the premier national symbol of Mexico and its culture. The relay seeks to promote friendship and solidarity among Mexican-American community groups all along its path, and provide a symbolic link for those families divided by the international border. More than 25,000 people take part in the relay, and an audience of more than 22 million in Mexico and the United States monitors its progress.

At the conclusion of the journey, the torch will have traveled through nine Mexican states and 13 U.S. states, while passing through more than 60 cities and covering more than 3,133 miles.