30 years after her death, Gilda embodies Argentina’s enduring faith in folk saints

CEIBAS, Argentina (AP) — Thirty years ago this Monday, Argentina was left stunned when a tour bus carrying a beloved cumbia singer, known by her stage name Gilda, collided with a truck. Miriam Alejandra Bianchi died at age 34, but she lives on in legend as a miracle-working folk saint.

At a chapel near the site of the accident, some fans knelt in prayer, emotion welling in their eyes. Others sang and danced raucously to her greatest hits.

During her life, Gilda was a nationally beloved singer of cumbia, a fusion of Latin pop and dance music that's hugely popular in Argentina.

Her fame only grew after her death. A posthumous album went double platinum as her propulsive songs reverberated beyond the heaving dance halls where she first captivated crowds, becoming national anthems of heartbreak and desire. Her fans, dressed in T-shirts that showed her in a shimmering blue dress and flower crown, began making pilgrimages to the crash site every year, sharing stories of Gilda appearing in their dreams and answering their prayers.

Like other Argentine folk saints, Gilda isn't formally recognized by the Catholic Church. But devotees ask her to carry their prayers to God much as Catholics invoke the church’s recognized saints, seeking healing, protection and help overcoming hardships.

On Monday, scores of Gilda’s devotees flocked to pay homage to her at the rusted wreckage of the tour bus, now preserved as a memorial off the national highway that skirts Argentina’s muddy Paranacito River. The bus overflows with flowers, stuffed animals, votive candles and handwritten appeals for help. A nearby chapel is crammed with the wedding gowns of women whose wish to marry was fulfilled after a visit, trophies and jerseys offered by champions whose athletic dreams became a reality, crutches discarded by those who could walk again, and police uniforms left by officers who earned promotions after praying to her.

“For me, it’s about faith — putting everything in God’s hands and asking Gilda to intercede,” said Julia Domínguez, 63, who credits Gilda with curing growths on her vocal cords nearly two decades ago, sparing her from a risky surgery and inspiring her to become a singer. “That was a miracle. Today, I sing thanks to her.”

The shrine, about a two-hour drive into the grasslands north of the capital, Buenos Aires, offered a glimpse of a centuries-old tradition of folk saints that runs deep in Argentina even as the influence of the Catholic Church wanes.

That erosion is one of the biggest challenges facing Pope Leo XIV as he plans his first tour as pontiff of South America — home to more than a quarter of the world’s Catholics. He's set to visit Argentina, Uruguay and Peru in November.

Travel the roads of Argentina and shrines to a growing pantheon of unofficial saints are everywhere: Red flags mark altars to Gauchito Gil, a 19th-century outlaw revered as an Argentine Robin Hood. Plastic water bottles pile up at shrines to Difunta Correa, who legend says miraculously nursed her infant son after dying of thirst in the desert. Even Argentine soccer great Diego Maradona has become an object of quasi-religious devotion.

“One of the most common things devotees tell us is that these saints accompany them every day of their lives,” said Cleopatra Barrios, an scholar of popular religion at Conicet, Argentina’s national scientific research body. “Miracles aren’t understood as they are from the institutional Catholic point of view, as something extraordinary. Here, they’re things that happen every day.”

As with other saints — folk and otherwise — part of Gilda’s appeal seems to stem from how relatable she remained even as her fame grew while she was still alive, singing cumbia in prisons and exchanging intimate, handwritten letters with fans.

“With everything that happens, I always ask her, ‘Accompany me,’” said Paola Martini, 46, who organizes trips to Gilda’s shrine from all over Argentina. “Then, like magic, I feel her.”

Catholic clergy haven’t directly discouraged devotion to folk saints, but have sought to steer followers' worship toward God. Two priests on Monday celebrated Mass at Gilda’s shrine, but made no mention of her status as a popular saint and urged devotees to keep God at the center of their faith.

As growing secularism and rival branches of Christianity siphon off Catholic faithful across the region, Leo has embraced the efforts of his Argentine predecessor, Pope Francis, to bring the church closer to ordinary people, particularly the poor.

A member of the Augustinian order, whose teachings emphasize service and community, Leo is expected to visit a Buenos Aires prison and a center for people with disabilities during his November trip, Argentine church officials told local media on Monday. There was no immediate confirmation of the pope’s itinerary from the Vatican.

“We’re waiting for Leo, we're preparing for him,” Domínguez said, insisting she saw no contradiction with her Roman Catholic faith in invoking Gilda to protect her. “In the end, sainthood isn’t always decided by the church. Sometimes, the people recognize it first.”

A man takes a picture at a sanctuary dedicated to Argentine singer Gilda on the 30th anniversary of her death in a bus crash, in Entre Rios, Argentina, Monday, Sept. 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)

Priest Carlos Baigorria waits to offer a mass at a sanctuary dedicated to Argentine singer Gilda on the 30th anniversary of her death in a bus crash, in Entre Rios, Argentina, Monday, Sept. 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)

A man prays at a sanctuary dedicated to late Argentine singer Gilda on the 30th anniversary of her death in a bus crash, in Entre Rios, Argentina, Monday, Sept. 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)

A woman sings at a sanctuary dedicated to late Argentine singer Gilda on the 30th anniversary of her death in a bus crash, in Entre Rios, Argentina, Monday, Sept. 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)

A person prays at a sanctuary dedicated to late Argentine singer Gilda on the 30th anniversary of her death in a bus crash, in Entre Rios, Argentina, Monday, Sept. 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)

NEW YORK (AP) — After missing more than three months, Aaron Judge is ready to return to the New York Yankees.

The three-time MVP was reinstated from the 60-day injured list Monday night, an off day for the Yankees. They open a three-game series at home Tuesday night against the Colorado Rockies.

Judge hasn't played since May 31 because of a broken right rib, but the slugger traveled with the Yankees on their recent trip to the West Coast. He took batting practice on the field multiple times last weekend in San Diego and ran the bases as he worked toward his return.

The 34-year-old outfielder will rejoin New York's active roster without going on a minor league rehab assignment first. Throughout his absence, Judge said he wouldn't need a stint in the minors to get ready.

“If I tell them I’m ready to go play, I think we’re ready to go play,” Judge said on Aug. 27. “I’m not a pitcher. I’m a position player. I can get my reps down here in the cage. I’m in every game. I’m sitting there in the dugout watching every game, feeling the environment, feeling the energy, so I don’t think there’s going to be much of a difference.”

With 19 games remaining in the regular season, the Yankees (81-62) trail first-place Tampa Bay by four games in the AL East. They are two games ahead of rival Boston (80-65) for the top American League wild card and hold a potential tiebreaker between the teams after winning the season series.

The higher seed plays at home throughout every best-of-three Wild Card Series.

New York was 36-23 after Judge last played on May 31 and went 45-39 in the 84 games he missed since.

The offense, however, was obviously affected. The Yankees batted .243 with 86 homers in 59 games through May 31 but hit only .227 with 107 homers in 84 games while Judge was out.

Their batting average during that stretch ranked 29th among the 30 major league teams, ahead of only Seattle (.225).

New York had a .770 OPS through May 31, but it was .681 in his absence.

Judge is hitting .248 with 17 homers and 38 RBIs. He was initially injured attempting to avoid second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. on a diving catch in Houston on April 26 and batted .263 with seven homers and 20 RBIs in 31 games before being sidelined.

The captain's only homer in the final 18 games before he went on the injured list was a game-ending, two-run shot to beat Tampa Bay 2-0 on May 24 that snapped an 11-game drought without an RBI, the longest of his career.

Judge won a batting title last season when he hit a career-high .331 with 53 homers and 114 RBIs in 152 games. He missed 10 games from July 26 to Aug. 4 with a flexor strain in his right elbow that he sustained on a throw to home plate July 22 in Toronto. He underwent a plasma-rich platelet injection and did not require offseason surgery.

Judge skipped a rehab assignment in 2023 when he missed 42 games with a fractured right big toe after crashing into the right-field fence at Dodger Stadium. In 2019, he appeared in five minor league games for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre when he missed two months with a strained left oblique.

To make room on the 40-man roster for Judge, right-hander Chase Hampton was designated for assignment Monday night.

New York optioned right-hander Elmer Rodríguez to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre after Sunday's loss in San Diego.

This story has been corrected to show Judge is 34 years old, not 35.

AP Baseball Writer Ronald Blum contributed to this report.

See AP’s full MLB coverage here

New York Yankees' Aaron Judge, right, gives autographs to fans before a baseball game against the Los Angeles Angels, Monday}, Aug. 31, 2026, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Wally Skalij)

New York Yankees' Aaron Judge talks to third base/outfield coach Luis Rojas before a baseball game against the Houston Astros Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

New York Yankees' Ben Rice, left, Spencer Jones, center, and Aaron Judge, right, lean on the dugout rail in the first inning during a baseball game against the Boston Red Sox, Sunday, Aug. 30, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Corey Sipkin)

New York Yankees' Aaron Judge smiles towards fans during a baseball game against the Houston Astros, Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Ryan Murphy)