The Sunday Traveler ~ Our Lady of Guadalupe, Tapalpa, Mexico

Tapalpa, Mexico; a roughly estimated population of approximately 20,000. Sitting high up in the Sierra Madre, it is seemingly the most typical of little Mexican towns; modest in its make up, but the charm is in the simplicity and color. The Sunday Traveler walked up a little hill on a set of cement stairs used throughout the town to get up the hills from  one plaza to another. My breath was taken away as I entered the church, not from the walk up the hill, but from the incredibly simple beauty of this church. Sun streaming in from all sides, and shadows to offset the light.

Mexicans seem to pull out all the stops for their town’s churches. No matter how small the town. Tapalpa’s Our Lady of Guadalupe’s construction was orchestrated by Father Cipriano Gonzalez Jimenez from 1949-1987. The work I’m sure was done by local workers, and the thought of the labor involved in a church like this is mind-boggling. The love of the work can be seen and felt.

From the wood floors to the arches to the stained glass windows there are details perfect in giving glory.

 

A little side chapel was so simple in its loveliness

There are so many churches in Mexico, so many labors of love and faith by the people. Our Lady of Guadalupe here in Tapalpa is extraordinary.