The Virgin of the Rosary of Lora

Prof.  Hernán Cartes G.

Taken from the work: "History of Licantén".

About the name LORA, some researchers estimate that it should be due to an ancient Encomienda called La Hora , and others, based on oral tradition in the sector, it would be Lovragh : place or community of clay in Mapungun . The Incas, in their attempt to invade, identified it as a Promaucae locality and, after the Spanish invasion, it stood out for its four hundred-year-old evangelization, given by its religiosity. But what most characterizes it is its picturesque adobe Church , declared a national monument in 2004, where every third Sunday in October the festival of the Virgin of the Rosary of Lora is celebrated. In this celebration, for generations, the Bailecito de los Negros is revived, a festival also known as La Virgen del Rosario , Festividad de Lora and Baile de los Empellejados .

The story tells of an image of a Virgin Mary, found by a missionary among the aborigines, who, upon being taken to a chapel, disappeared again and again, until it was realized that she did not want to be where she was being taken. After being moved by the same aborigines, along with the criollos—or mestizos—with dances and ceremonies, the latter, to prevent her from fleeing the altars, performed sacred activities on that day. And so, this image remained permanently in the church of Lora, a building more than two hundred years old. There are some stories, however, that relate that attempts have been made to move this Virgin Mary again, but she always disappears again from wherever she was taken. Legend and tradition say that on each occasion, the indigenous people and criollos would bring her back, dancing and singing, in disguise, to please their Holy Mother as loving children, preventing her from disappearing again. Therefore, the people must continue dancing and singing like their ancestors to commemorate "today" these "returns" of the Virgin to the place where she always wanted to be.

At each celebration, the image is carried on "angarillas," carried on the shoulders of elderly men, who transport it to a small square prepared to receive it. There, it is placed on a cart filled with floral arrangements, and upon arrival at the church door, the people line up in lines of four, led by those in charge, to form a procession. The column typically stretches for more than six blocks, where the faithful pray with shouts of glory and sing beautiful praises, accompanied by folk instruments. There are also mothers, fathers, young people, and even children who have made vows, and to "pay their respects," children under twelve dress up as little angels and sit next to the Virgin during the procession. Adults pay tribute with money and candles and march on their knees to the altar of the church. The column is solemnly guided by the chaplain or a priest, accompanied by twelve huasos on foot and twelve indigenous people, who wave the Chilean flag in the air along with the flags of the group. Furthermore, the column is always accompanied by two pifaneros , one on each side (these are in charge of playing the pifilcas , a type of Mapuche Picunche recorder). The procession ends when they return to the church and the mass begins, which includes the dance of the compadritos or "empellejados" and the black women to the beat of the pifaneros and folk instruments. The women wear appropriate attire and a tricolor sash slung over their chest.

The compadritos are the leaders of the dance. They dress in sheepskins, wear rabbit-skin masks, and carry a wooden sword with rattles, plus a huasca (a type of sling). On their heads, they wear a cardboard cap about a meter high, adorned with colorful fringes. They lead the procession of dancing penitents. Everyone who commits to a manda sacredly fulfills it, but at the same time, everyone participates in its procession by dancing and singing. Upon reaching the church pews, they must be moved to the sides. At that moment, everyone, in a very orderly fashion, performs a single dance that lasts twenty minutes and takes place inside the church. This choreography is repeated four times during the mass and consists of small steps back and forth. There are approximately twelve pifaneros ( guitar players) who, in a procession, maintain a pre-established melody during rehearsals. Some play one tone and others play different ones, in a reproduction of folk music with Mapuche pifílcas and trutrucas, and these artists dressed as indigenous people.

As the years go by, the church becomes more prominent every day. Initially, a Mapuche indigenous village was built around it, converted to Catholicism, but governed by a Picunche lonko , already mentioned as Maripangui . However, a century has passed since 1695 when it was granted as an encomienda to a Basque whose name has been forgotten by history, because his stay was short given the Mapuche discontent. The main Lonkos of times of peace, thanks to the missionary work, were   Francisco, Milla, Diego de Lora, José de Lora, Miguel de Lora, Pedro de Lora, Pascual de Lora, and Domingo de Lora. The indigenous community, in addition to having converted to Christianity alongside Licantén, quickly lost its indigenous character, given the high level of interbreeding. This is the reason why we find this area inclined toward a tendency toward independence in our country. The Church or Temple offered them divine protection, which is why it was the place from which guerrilla operations departed during the Reconquista, in pursuit of patriotic ideals. In later times, it was a refuge for revolutionary troops marching from the south toward Santiago, such as those led by Generals Freire and Prieto. 

Once peace had arrived in the territory, Lora was known for its highly spiritual character and for its presence of great artists, both in pottery and wool weaving, just as it had been in the past, during times of war, in the making of spears and bladed weapons. Today, its warriors focus on spiritual themes every third Sunday in October, when the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary of Lora is celebrated.