Our Lady of Guadalupe Church, New Orleans

If you happen to find yourself in New Orleans on a Saturday afternoon or Sunday morning and want to experience the city like a true local, attending at the oldest church in New Orleans is a must. In 1826, this church was constructed as a mortuary chapel for burying those who succumbed to yellow fever. At the time, there was a belief that the disease could spread from the bodies of the deceased, so funeral services at Saint Louis Cathedral were prohibited. Thus, the Mortuary Chapel was built on Rampart Street, near the cemeteries in use. Access to it was restricted, limited to priests, altar boys, and pallbearers carrying coffins. It lacked pews, and families would participate in the service by observing through the church's open doors.

By 1921, the chapel underwent restoration and became a place of worship for a Spanish-speaking Catholic congregation, now named Our Lady of Guadalupe. Over time, statues adorned the interior, and devotees came to pray to their favorite saints. In 1935, devotion to Saint Jude Thaddeus, the patron saint of impossible cases, began. A verified relic of Saint Jude was donated to the church, and a small statue of the saint was placed in a side niche. For the past half-century, Our Lady of Guadalupe has been recognized as a shrine dedicated to Saint Jude.

New Orleans has a saint for virtually every cause, and Saint Expedite, known for urgent matters and swift solutions, has gained popularity among computer tech enthusiasts, despite his unofficial status as a saint. Legend has it that the Chapel of Our Lady of Guadalupe ordered a statue of the Virgin Mary from France, but when the ship arrived, it carried two crates: the first contained the eagerly awaited Mary statue, while the second crate bore the word "EXPEDITE" and held a nearly 200-year-old statue of a Roman centurion. While the reason for sending this statue to New Orleans remains a mystery, local residents can often be seen rubbing its feet and beseeching it for miracles.

Tip:
The church is known for hosting "jazz" masses. If you have not been to a "jazz" mass before, it is well worth checking it out.