Coronadas: Pontifically Crowned Marian Images in the Philippines, 1907-2021

Being a Pueblo Amante de Maria is one of the characteristics that describe Filipino Catholics, in as much as one thing outstanding in our spirituality is our approach to Christ through Mary. Indeed, the devotion to Our Blessed Mother is among the strongest factors that have helped nourish and maintain our Catholic faith. A living testimony of this fervent Marian piety is the abundant number of shrines and churches dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary spread out all over the archipelago. In many cases, the various religious orders introduced the devotion and brought the centuries-old images of the different Marian advocations in the parishes and mission areas where they ministered. Over time, these devotions grew and bore fruits that made particular images of Our Lady become specially revered by the Christian people, such that their churches and shrines have become pilgrimage sites, and have become truly significant for the local church, a region, or even the whole nation. A number of these venerated images of the Blessed Virgin Mary have become CORONADAS, crowned nomine et auctoritate Summi Pontificis (in the name and by the authority of the Supreme Pontiff). A brief history of these images, and the accounts of the coronations since 1907 are gathered in this book, as an offering for the Quincentennial of Christianity in the Philippines. Such crowning has always been seen and recognized as the most authoritative, since "the crown conferred by Rome gave an official seal of approval to the miraculous and sacred character of the Marian image which receive the honor, and constitute a visible link between the highest authority of the Catholic Church and the local church or religious institution."

About the Author :
Michael delos Reyes is a Filipino author and educator. He is best known for his books on Catholic popular piety. Prusisyon: Paghahanda at Pagdiriwang (2006 and 2018) and Morena Graciosa: The Devotion to the Virgin of Antipolo through the Centuries (2016), both won Best Book in Liturgy in the Cardinal Sin Catholic Book Awards. Salve Regina: On Crowning Images of the Virgin Mary was a finalist in 2016. A recent one is Inmaculada Peregrina: Kasaysayan at Debosyon (2020). Some of his formative years were spent at San Carlos Seminary. He later joined the academe serving in various capacities at Xavier School, from Christian Life Education teacher and eventually Department Chair, to High School Assistant Principle for Formation. Currently he is Xavier's Human Resouces Director and has been affilated with the school for almost 30 years. Allan Jay Quesada is a photographer, a painter and an architect. He has the eye, the hand and the technical background that produced the inspired illustrations of Coronadas. He did the watercolor paintings of 'Simbahán: An Illustrated Guide to 50 of the Philippines' Must-Visit Catholic Churches' which was published in December 2020. He used holy water from the churches to mix his colors.