Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Copacabana (Agenzia Fides) - The cause of beatification of Tito Yupanqui, a sculptor of the famous statue of the Virgin of Copacabana has officially begun. The official act happened on May 21, during the Mass of the beginning of the Marian missionary, celebrated in the Basilica of Copacabana, 158 km east of La Paz. The decree of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints and letter of the Bolivian Episcopal Conference was read, and therefore members of the Committee for the beatification swore to faithfully fulfill their duties to carry out research on the life, virtues and the works of the sculptor .
According to the note sent to Fides by the Episcopal Conference of Bolivia, the first phase of investigation of the process of beatification and canonization of the Servant of God Francisco Tito Yupanqui begins, who would be the first Blessed Bolivian. The event caused great joy among those present at the opening of the process, expressed by a prolonged applause.
The Aymara Francisco Tito Yupanqui was probably born between 1540 and 1550 in the town of Copacabana and died in Cuzco (Peru) in 1616. He and his family, descendants of the Inca Huayna Capac, were evangelized by Catholic Dominican missionaries. Tito created the image of the Virgin Mary in maguey wood, typical of those places. The local Catholic tradition says that Tito Yupanqui had a night vision of a woman with a baby in her arms. Then he reproduced the shape of her face with native features and the image of the Virgin is in copper color. For this reason it is also called the "dark-skinned Virgin" (Virgen Morena). The image has been preserved since 1583 and this makes the Marian Shrine of Copacabana one of the oldest in America. (EC) (Agenzia Fides 05/24/2011)
