December 18, let it snow!

Word for the day:  snow: water vapor frozen into crystals.  Crystal: clear and transparent.  4th Sunday of Advent.  The birth of Jesus in a week!  Today, Dave and I shoveled snow at the lake.  Who needs a gym when you have snow shovels?   

                  Here I am in the winter wonderland at Diamond Lake

      Look in upstairs window.  Do you see an owl?

Reading from the Gospel of Luke today was the story of the immaculate conception from Humble and loving Joseph’s perspective. And Isaiah 7:14:
Lord will give you a sign in any case: It is this: the young woman is with child and will give birth to a son whom she will call Immanuel.
On this day of the pilgrimage, we spent the day in Zaragoza.  We were blessed to view the blessed Virgin, at the Basilica of Our Lady of Pillar.  According to Wikepedia:
The Cathedral-Basilica of Our Lady of the Pillar (Spanish: Catedral-Basílica de Nuestra Señora del Pilar) is a Roman Catholic church in the city of Zaragoza, Aragon (Spain). The basilica venerates Blessed Virgin Mary, under her title Our Lady of the Pillar[1] praised as "Mother of the Hispanic Peoples" by Pope John Paul II.[2] It is reputed to be the first church dedicated to Mary in history.[3]

Local traditions take the history of this basilica to the spread of Christianity in Roman Spain attributing to an apparition to Saint James the Great, the apostle who is believed by tradition to have brought Christianity to the country.[4] This is the only reported apparition of Mary to have occurred before her believed Assumption.[2]
 According to ancient local tradition, soon after the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus, Saint James was preaching the Gospel in Spain, but was disheartened because of the failure of his mission.[4] Tradition holds that on 2 January 40 AD,[3] while he was deep in prayer by the banks of the Ebro,[6] the Mother of God appeared to him and gave a column of jasper and instructed him to build a church in her honor:[4] 
According to hx, this inner oval is part of the jasper pillar that was presented to St James.

First chapel[edit]

About a year after the apparition, James is believed to have had a small chapel built in Mary's honor, the first church ever dedicated to her. After James returned to Jerusalem, he was executed by Herod Agrippa in about 44 AD, the first apostle to be martyred for his faith. Several of his disciples took his body and returned it for final burial in Spain.[4] This first chapel was eventually destroyed with various other Christian shrines, but the statue and the pillar stayed intact under the protection of the people of Zaragoza.[5]


The main altar in Basilica 

                The beautiful altars
The chandeliers and domed ceilings.  Throughout the trip, I tried to reconcile the riches bestowed upon these structures with the simple message of Jesus, born in a stable!   Following our tour, we had a free afternoon. I took a “city tour” where I was given directions and clues  to explore different sites in the city.  It was a fun way to learn new facts and I’d highly recommend it!  


Shepherd with eagle, and don’t forget the lamb 

     
               A barefoot boy staring at the heavens
            We’ve got the whole world in our hands!
A baroque church, honoring St Elizabeth of Portugal
A peasant girl with adult drummer
Pillar Square.  The folks of Aragon celebrate Our Lady of Pillar on October 12, with flowers and fireworks.  They were still adorning the square on our visit!

Acrobatic scaffold disassembly.  The workers graced the scaffolds like ballet dancers while dismantling the structures that had held the flowers!
the old stone bridge, dating to 15th century. original bridge was part of Roman Empire!  
Zaragoza was founded in 15 BC and takes its name from Caesar Augustus (above). 
The City Market, founded in Middle Ages,  it this structure was built in the 19th century. 
      Remnants of the original Roman wall.

Pilgrims listening intently to Father Josep! He had incredible knowledge of the history of the regions 
We visited throughout the trip. 
2 horsemen greeting each other. Sculptures were created for the 1929 world exhibition in Barcelona.

And always, Mom and butterflies joined me everyday of the walk. I never thought she would be a support in death.  She was the greatest cheerleader for her children when alive!  
Jeez Louise!

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