fiesta of the Lady of the Abandoned

Our Lady of the Abandoned, also known as Nuestra Señora de los Desamparados, Marikina City, is a Roman Catholic church and the home of an image of the Virgin Mary venerated locally, which has received Papal recognition.There is also another parish in Manila.

Patroness Aside from Marikina, the title of Our Lady of the Abandoned is venerated as patroness in the following places in the Philippines: Santa Ana in Manila, where the image of the Virgin is enshrined; Muntinlupa City; Mandaluyong City; Valencia (Negros Oriental), and a small barrio in the Bicol region. Santa Ana (Manila) and Marikina City have the oldest traditions of venerating the image of Our Lady of the Abandoned in the country.

The devotion to Our Lady of the Abandoned in Marikina City has developed quite slowly because the feast of the patron saints of the different barrios in Marikina has been celebrated more joyously. It is an interesting fact that although the parish has had the Our Lady of the Abandoned as its patroness for more than two hundred years already, there has been little tradition of feasts attributed to this title. But in the past two decades, a bloossoming of devotion to this Marian title have ensued. Now, more people from Marikina have devotion to the Our Lady of the Abandoned and countless other devotees from different parts of Metro Manila and nearby provinces have actually made pilgrimages to this Marian shrine. Because of this reality, and the many accounts and testimonies attributed to the image, the petition for canonical coronation was sent to the Holy Father. The Papal Bull granting the said petition was received with great joy by the people. Elevating the parish church into a diocesan shrine in the Diocese of Antipolo also highlighted the deep devotion that has grown for Our Lady of the Abandoned. It has also been said that the image in Marikina is considered to be one of the most beautiful Marian image in the whole Philippines. The feast of Our Lady of the Abandoned in Marikina was originally celebrated every second Sunday of May. But due to liturgical reforms and in consonance to the feast (of the first image of "Madre delos Desamparados") being celebrated in Valencia, Spain, the parish now celebrates her feast annually on May 12. Last May 2010, the celebration of the feast was moved again to its original date, which is every second Sunday of May.