In the summer of 2014 I made a Genealogy Trip that included a few different states: Texas, New Mexico, Colorado and Arizona. During one of the visits in Texas I made a stop to my father’s 86-year-old first cousin, Tia Martha. I call her Tia (Aunt) out of respect for her being my elder. As we spoke about family history, she informed me of how her family would go to Mass on the Thursday before Easter morning. But then they would visit seven churches after the main morning Mass. Visita Iglesia is an occasion to pray before the Blessed Sacrament within each of the different churches. During Holy Week, the last three days are denoted to as the Easter or Sacred Triduum (Triduum Sacrum), the three-part performance of Christ's redemption: Holy Thursday, Good Friday and Holy Saturday. Holy Thursday is also known as Maundy Thursday. Maundy is derived from the Latin word mandatum (commandment) which is in the word of the Gospel praise: Mandátum novum do vobis dicit Dóminus, ut diligátis ínvicem, sicut diléxi vos: "I give you a new commandment: Love one another as I have loved you." (John 13:34) Visita Iglesia is believed to have begun by the pilgrims of Rome as they visited the basilicas for penance. It is now one of the most common traditions throughout Latin America. During these visits the prayers within each of the churches represents the escort of the faithful to Jesus in each of his journeys from the night he was apprehended until his crucifixion. Baptisms are considered a rebirth into a new life, a spiritual resurrection. It becomes fitting for a child to be baptized during the season or on Easter. Genealogist consider Baptismal records a gold mine. Within these records, they contain the child’s name, birth and baptismal dates, parent’s names (which can include the mother’s maiden name) and the name of the Godparents / sponsors. Many times, these Godparents / sponsors are relatives, which should not be ignored. And on rare occasions the place of birth and the number of children within the family is mentioned. In some countries, a baptismal record will also provide you with the names of the grandparents. When looking for baptismal records the best thing to do is first determine the area in which you believe the family lived at the time of birth. Call the local church in that area and check to see if they have copies of the baptismal records. If they don’t then ask who you would need to contact. You can check on FamilySearch for baptismal records for children baptized in different countries. Just remember if your relative was born in a different country be familiar with the town / village and or county / parish that they were from. A lot of times that information can be found on their marriage records if married in the U.S. In order to married in the Catholic Church they had to prove that they were baptized in the Catholic Churches and the church would denote that on the marriage records.
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Penny Alvarez-KellerGraduated from Arkansas Tech University with a degree in Management / Marketing and a degree in Economics / Finance Archives
February 2023
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