Our Lady of Guadalupe

During the recent celebration of the 500^th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation, my thoughts drifted to other noteworthy events that occurred at about that time 500 years ago.  They are especially on my mind this week when the Catholic Church once again celebrated the apparitions of Our Lady of Guadalupe to a Native Mexican by the name of Juan Diego in what has become the Villa de Guadalupe near Mexico City.  Here is a listing of the year and the corresponding event:   

1474 – Juan Diego was born.

1483 – Martin Luther was born.

1492 – Columbus discovered America.

1517 – Luther’s wrote his 95 theses.

1524 – Catholic missionaries from Spain arrived in Mexico and Juan Diego was baptized.

1531 – The Virgin Mary (Our Lady of Guadalupe) appeared to Juan Diego.

So Juan Diego was a contemporary of Martin Luther, though living thousands of miles apart on different continents.  Some of my readers may not be familiar with the story of Our Lady of Guadalupe and Juan Diego.  So, I briefly summarize here. 

Juan had been a Catholic for about seven years.  He was very devoted to his new-found faith, walking daily several miles to attend Mass.  On the way, he would pass Tepeyac Hill.  On one occasion, December 9, 1531, the Blessed Mother appeared to him on this hill.  She gave him a message to be delivered to his bishop in Mexico City.  The message was that he was to have a church built on the site to serve the indigenous people living in the area and in all of North America.  He delivered the message, but the bishop didn’t believe him.  In subsequent apparitions, the Blessed Mother was insistent.  The bishop, however, was not believing.  He asked Juan to bring him some sort of sign or proof that the apparition was authentic. 

At the third apparition, on December 12, 1531, Our Lady asked Juan to climb the hill and collect a large bouquet of roses to be given to the bishop.  Roses in December?  He had been hurrying on his way to visit his gravely ill uncle and was reluctant at first, but Our Lady convinced him to collect the roses.  When Juan climbed the hill he found roses, just as Our Lady said he would.  He collected them in his tilma (cloak) and proceeded once again to the bishop to show them to him.  When he arrived, and in the presence of the bishop, he opened his cloak and the large bouquet spilled onto the floor.  Simultaneously, the bishop noticed that a clear image of Our Lady of Guadalupe had formed on the inside of the tilma … a true miracle.  At the same time, Juan’s uncle, who was gravely ill, miraculously recovered from his illness.

A magnificent church was subsequently built at the foot of Teyeyac Hill and dedicated to Our Lady of Guadalupe.  Today, Juan’s tilma is framed and on full display for all to see in this Basilica of our Lady of Guadalupe and has been for nearly 500 years.  It shows no sign of deterioration despite the passage of so many years.  The basilica has become a popular pilgrimage site.  My wife spent time in Mexico before we met and has viewed the miracle first-hand. 

So December 12, this past Tuesday this year, has become the date that the Catholic Church celebrates Our Lady of Guadalupe each year.  Here in Rochester, my wife and I attended Mass in the Chapel of St. Mary’s Hospital, part of the Mayo Clinic.  The sanctuary was decorated with a copy of the image (see accompanying photograph) and other colorful items.  Father Jose, a chaplain at the Mayo Clinic, was the celebrant.  A mariachi band supplied the music. 

Juan Diego is now a declared saint in the Catholic Church.  His feast day is celebrated on December 11 each year.  My prayer for today:  Our Lady of Guadalupe, pray of us.