Divina Pastora

Historical introduction: where it comes from

The worship of this picture was born in Seville in the early eighteenth century, when a Franciscan friar of the Order of Capuchin, Fray Isidoro de Sevilla claims to have a vision in which the Virgin dressed as a shepherdess appears to him, ordering imminently creating a painting Alonso Miguel de Tovar following the indications of friar.
This image was created for the rosary, very fashionable in Seville early SXVIII, the friar himself wanted to attract a large number of people with an image that moved to all kinds of people, being the main economic activity in agriculture and livestock at that time he thought of the virgin dressed as a shepherdess, as a shepherdess who guides and cares for his faithful, keeping the meaning of the image of his son.
Although he had a great initial success, emerged some critical voices against the new image within the Capuchin Order itself, since, feared that the new image replaced the immaculate conception, these critical voices were silenced and the image was broadcast throughout the peninsula, reaching even to America.
Those responsible for the spread were mainly monks and friars, thus came the image of the divine shepherdess Barx, territory under the dominion of the monastery of Santa Maria de la Valldigna, where there was a small oratory that was later expanded to accommodate the current church.

The image of the Divina Pastora Barx

From 1895 they begin to emerge testimony in which the image already had its own altar, although not the only image in the church, in the adjoining altar, the altar dedicated to St. Joseph was, in this there was a sculpture inside an urn representing the Pastora, this was small and shabby probably due to their age.
All the bells are a significant name of the place where they are installed, in the case of Barx, installed in 1898, the largest is called Maria Micaela in honor of San Miguel and the smallest Maria Pastora, demonstrating that by that time it was the divine shepherdess the patron saint of Barx.

Cult image in Barx

From 1889 the Cuban party, an important party that thanks to the Divine Shepherdess the return of the living barx people during the colonial wars of Cuba and the Philippines is made. Giving rise to the ritual of the procession that is celebrated today, launching rockets from the images and escorting soldiers who at that time did military service becomes the responsibility of the villagers what is for them a great honor.

Major events of the Divina Pastora in history

During the Spanish civil war was hidden in the house of a villager, to protect her from her burning, breakage or destruction, they did not have the same fate other church figures such as the altar of the Divine Shepherdess who finished burned itself. After the war the image returned to the church, but not until the 50s was completed the new altar.

Influence of Divina Pastora in the village of Barx

In 1955 the name of the street Ramon Laporta was replaced by that of the Divina Pastora
In 1987 the picture is included in the official emblem of the village with the emblem included "you are the honor of our people" in Latin.
In 2000 the brotherhood of the Divina Pastora is created, which is brought into contact with one of the most important brotherhoods engaged in Cantillana (Sevilla) image, and improvements are made in equity as are the restoration of the altar and the image and the acquisition of a new processional throne.