VIVA... NUESTRA! | FIESTA GRAND PROCESSION 2022 | NUESTRA SEÑORA DE LA MERCED - Candaba, Pampanga

Nuestra Señora de la Merced Parish
Bahay Pare, Candaba, Pampanga
Nuestra Señora de la Merced de Candaba - Candaba's Merciful Lady
In the thriving town of Candaba, Pampanga, which is known for its famous swamp for it is the resting place of migratory birds that attracted bird watchers and tourist over the years, it is also one of Pampanga's historic towns. It is also in Candaba where a the Parish of Nuestra Señora de la Merced is enshrined and became a focal point of pilgrimage for years.
The Image
The miraculous image of Nuestra Señora de la Merced of Candaba, Pampanga is a sculpted de tallado image of the Madonna and Child. The image is vested in White, a diagnostic color of the Virgin of Mercy of the Mercedarian Order. Oftentimes, the image wears a metal plancha. The Mother and Child wears splendid crowns, a doce estrellas for the Virgin and holds the White scapular of the Mercedarian Order.
The unique feature of this image is that the Virgin holds a sword, which somehow shows her power, or most probably, as observed, she is in the position of knighting, where the Queen (or King) appoints a person for a special mission or elevating the person's status to the royal court. In the case of the image, she might be knighting the three visionaries of Our Lady of Mercy: St. Pedro Nolasco, St. Raymond of Peñafort and King James of Aragon.
The arrival of devotion to Candaba
The image of Nuestra Senora de la Merced was said to have brought a priest, Rev. Fr. Aniceto dela Merced in the 18th century. It is said that the image was first brought by the Hospitalier Brothers or St. John of God, because Hacienda Bahay Pare was originally owned by San Juan de Dios Hospital na was used for the care of the sick. They were taken care of by this congregation and brought to the church of Our Lady of Mercy and were healed.
Oral tradition has it that when the image was brought to Bahay Pare, Candaba, Pampanga, it was initially placed in a makeshift chapel made of wood and thatch rood made from palm leaves. However, one day, it is said that Our Lady, together with St. Lucy and St. Catherine of Alexandria reportedly took human form, and went to the house of a well-known skilled carpenter in Plaridel, Bulacan. There, she asked the carpenter to have her house built. Then upon the arrival of the carpenter to the place that he have never been before, he saw the makeshift chapel and the when looking on the three images, he realized that the three women were the holy patrons of Candaba that a more fitting chapel for the Virgin was built. As the years passed by, in the 1970's, during the time of Rev. Fr. Lope Hernandez, he led the construction of a concreted church that can now be seen today.
Miracles
Several miracles that were attributed to Apung dela Merced were reported and collated over the years and here are some of the most well known.
When there was a time that Apung dela Merced was honored on her feast day through a fluvial procession in the stretch of Maasim River. There, the devotees would bathe in the water, with firm beliefs that it had been blessed by the Virgin and cures does occur. On one occasion, during a fluvial procession, the Child Jesus fell to the river, but to everyone's surprise, witnesses recalled that He moved from one place in the boat to another, much to the awe and amazement of those who witnessed this phenomenon.
Another noticeable characteristic of Apung dela Merced is her change of facial expressions when someone is asking for a favor that can be immediately granted, and if the image seemed to frown, it is a sign that it would take sometime to be granted.
A devotee recounts that when her mother was hospitalized due to severe stomach pains and she cannot move, she immediately went to Apung Dela Merced for her help and the following morning, all were dumbfounded when they saw her mother get up from her sickbed as if nothing happened.
Myrna Culala, a public school teacher of Candaba recounts when she was hospitalized with 50/50 chance to survive, one night, a nurse came to her room to attend her medical needs and was immediately cured. She noticed that the nameplate of the nurse read "Dela Merced" and asked her if she is from Candaba, the nurse replied yes and that her house is in the front of the Church. She later found out that there was no one in the town with the family name "Dela Merced" and a house where the nurse is staying does not exist. She then realized that it was the Virgin who cured her.
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Viva Nuestra!