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📅 holiday

Lady of Guadalupe Day *

Saturday, December 12, 2026

— days to go

Mexico observes the Roman Catholic religious festival of Our Lady of Guadalupe as a national public holiday every 12 December. Lady of Guadalupe Day commemorates the alleged appearance of the Virgin Mary, Mexico’s patron saint, in Mexico City on 12 December of 1531. In 2026, Lady of Guadalupe Day falls on Saturday 12 December. The holiday will be on Sunday 12 December in 2027. Note: Lady of Guadalupe Day is not an official national holiday, but is widely observed throughout Mexico. It is believed that Juan Diego saw Mary on both 9 December and 12 December in 1531. Mary, the legend goes, told Juan Diego to make a request to the local bishop to build a church to commemorate the sightings of the Virgin Mary. The bishop demanded a miracle to prove Mary had actually appeared to Juan. The miracle that convinced him was the unexplained growth of a rose bush where cactuses had previously grown. Also, the image of Mary is said to have appeared on Juan’s coat. Since Mary is believed to have spoken to Juan in his native Nahuatl tongue, this fact and the church built on the site led to massive conversions of natives to Roman Catholicism. The main events of Lady of Guadalupe Day are pilgrimages of the devout to view Mary’s image in the Basilica of Guadalupe. Many go to other churches as well to spend time in prayer to Mary. And children dress up in cultural garb to be blessed by priests at church.

History

Lady of Guadalupe Day commemorates the alleged appearance of the Virgin Mary, Mexico’s patron saint, in Mexico City on 12 December of 1531. The bishop demanded a miracle to prove Mary had actually appeared to Juan. The miracle that convinced him was the unexplained growth of a rose bush where cactuses had previously grown. Since Mary is believed to have spoken to Juan in his native Nahuatl tongue, this fact and the church built on the site led to massive conversions of natives to Roman Catholici

How It's Celebrated

Mexico observes the Roman Catholic religious festival of Our Lady of Guadalupe as a national public holiday every 12 December. Lady of Guadalupe Day commemorates the alleged appearance of the Virgin Mary, Mexico’s patron saint, in Mexico City on 12 December of 1531. The holiday will be on Sunday 12

Other Years

2026 Sat
12 Dec
2027 Sun
12 Dec
2028 Tue
12 Dec
2025 Fri
12 Dec
2024 Thu
12 Dec

Countries

🇲🇽 MX

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Feast of St Paul's Shipwreck

The Feast of Saint Paul’s Shipwreck is a holiday unique to Malta because it was on Malta that the Apostle Paul was shipwrecked around the year A.D. 60. In 2027, Feast of St Paul's Shipwreck falls on Wednesday 10 February. The holiday will be on Thursday 10 February in 2028. The feast is kept on February 10th each year, and as Paul is the patron saint of Malta, it is a much-anticipated event. Out of dozens of “saint days” on the church calendar in Malta, the Feast of Saint Paul is one of only a handful that have the status of a national holiday. The account of Paul’s shipwreck and three-month, wintertime stay on Malta is found in the Bible’s Acts 27:27 through 28:11. He was being taken to Rome as a prisoner to eventually stand trial before Caesar. God let him know in advance he would be shipwrecked but would spare the lives of all on board, which promise was later kept and in answer to Paul’s prayers for their lives. The Bible says the storm was in the Adriatic Sea, though Malta borders the Ionian Sea, because in ancient times, the Adriatic’s boundaries were considered to extend much farther south. The ship broke up on the rocks near the shores of Malta, and all swam ashore. The local population greeted them, but thought he might be a murderer whom the “goddess of justice” had finally caught up with after he was bitten by a poisonous snake. After he lived, however, they supposed him to be, perhaps, a god. Paul, however, soon showed them it was God’s power at work in a mere man by healing the governor of the island, Publius, and many others who were sick or disabled among the island’s population. No doubt, Paul preached the Gospel to them as well, and when he left Malta, the inhabitants gave him all necessary supplies out of gratitude. The Feast of Saint Paul’s Shipwreck is kept at the “Parish Church of Saint Paul Shipwrecked” in Malta’s capital city of Valletta. It is also a day of processions and family get-togethers. Three things to do should you visit Malta, though hopefully not be shipwrecked there, on February 10th are:

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