Media Release  |  Friday May 14 2021

Showgrounds to host major religious festival for first time

Thousands of Catholics from parishes and multicultural groups throughout the Archdiocese of Adelaide will converge on the Adelaide Showgrounds this Sunday for the annual Marian Procession and Peace Rally.

It is the first time the event – the State’s longest continuously run religious festival - has been held at the Wayville location.

Plans for the procession to take place on the main arena have been changed due to inclement weather and the proceedings will now take place in the Jubilee Pavilion where there is seating for 2200 people.

With COVID restrictions now eased, organisers are hoping large numbers of Catholics will take the opportunity to gather for the first time with Archbishop Patrick O’Regan and show their devotion to Mary.

Unprecedented events have resulted in the procession and peace rally being presented in a different way over the past two years.

Last year the faithful participated remotely through a Mass live streamed from St Francis Xavier’s Cathedral and in 2019 forecast inclement weather saw the event moved from the South Parklands to a smaller celebration in the Cathedral.

Established in 1949, the first procession was held at St Francis Xavier Seminary, Rostrevor, under the guidance of Archbishop Matthew Beovich. At the time he said the event served to provide an opportunity for Catholics to thank Mary for her protection of Australia during the war and to ask for her intercession in the future.

A hallmark of the procession throughout the years has been the diversity of those who attend, becoming an important date on the calendar for Catholic migrants and refugees to express their cultural heritage.

The colourful Marian Procession and Peace Rally will be held at 2pm on Sunday May 16 at the Adelaide Showgrounds, Wayville.