GUADALUPE, 1531 A.D.
There were temples everywhere, ranging from modest size shrines to mammoth twin pyramids. It was in the environs of this now-bustling metropolis that a humble man belonging to a class of people known as the Mazehuales, Juan Diego, spent 51 years of his life as a citizen of this flourishing pagan civilization. In this class just below that of the nobles of the city, they had power to vote and own property, and Juan Diego held considerable property in Tolpetlac. This man was not a "poor, uneducated Indian" as we have been led to believe. He was to later become a convert to Catholicism, was a deeply religious man in both his faiths, and was of impeccable character.
A comet used to visit Mexico every 52 years. It created such havoc each time it appeared, that the Mexicans associated each cycle of 52 years as perhaps the end of the world. 13 principal deities were recognized, the chief one being QUETZACOATL, or winged serpent. Quetzacoatl was the deity associated with this returning comet. It was taught that he demanded human sacrifices in order to minimize the destruction he would havoc during his visits.
(Editor's Note: When the Spanish conquistadores landed in Mexico, their indescriminate pillaging and looting unfortunately IRREPLACEABLY DESTROYED most of the treasures of this civilization that would have been extremely useful to today's archaeologists to provide our modern world with crucial information that may have a direct bearing on the future of our human race, and of the planet.)
Bishop Zumarraga was in charge of the parish of Mexico City at the time the Virgin Mary appeared. The bishop was deeply devoted to Her, and begged Her for help in stopping the human sacrifices, and pagan worship of the Serpent-god Quetzacoatl. As a sign that She heard him, the Bishop secretly asked Her to provide him with Castillian roses, which at that time did not grow in Mexico, but were native to Spain.
On Saturday morning, December 9, 1531, Juan Diego, newly converted to Catholicism, was on his way to morning Mass when he heard unusual music, and then before him saw a beautiful young Lady radiant with light. He instinctively knelt down, and the Lady asked him where he was going, and he told her.
Then She said to him: "You must know, and be certain in your heart my little son, that I am truly the perpetual and perfect Virgin Mary, Holy Mother of the True God through Whom everything lives, the Creator and Master of Heaven and Earth. I wish and intensely desire a sanctuary in this place. Here, I will demonstrate My Compassion, My Help, and My Protection to the people. I am your merciful Mother, the merciful Mother of all who love Me, and those who have confidence in Me. Here I will see all their tears and sorrows, and I will console them, and their burdens will be eased. Go now to the Bishop in Tenochtitlan (Mexico City) and tell him all that you have seen and heard."
Juan Diego went to Bishop Zumarraga directly, but the prelate didn't believe him. The sun was setting when the seer, returning home, approached the hill of Tepeyac where he had seen the Lady. He took a different route, so as not to run into Her again, but She was waiting for him on his new path. "My dearest child and my Lady and Queen," he said with a sorrowful heart, "I told the Bishop everything You have said, but I could see he did not believe, nor how a sanctuary would be built in this wasteful place. He kindly gave me permission to come back, but I am afraid I have failed you, my Lady, and that you should find someone more worthy than I to do your bidding." "Listen, my littlest son," the Blessed Virgin answered, "There are many I could send, but I have chosen you for this task. Tomorrow morning, return to the Bishp, and tell him that it is the Virgin Mary Who sends you, and repeat to him My great desire to have a sanctuary built here in My Honor."
After Mass the next day, Juan Diego went back to the Bishop. He was thoroughly cross-examined by those in the court with the Bishop, but could not be contradicted in any part of his story. Bishop Zumarraga was not sure what to believe by the end of the day, but decided to put this man's "Virgin Mary" to the test. Zumarraga instructed Juan Diego to ask the Lady to give him a sign. If it was truly Our Lady, She would know his heart, and what kind of sign he was requesting. He also privately ordered two of his assistants to follow Juan Diego all the way home, to see what he did, if he stopped, and who he spoke to. Juan Diego headed back home, the spies following him without his knowledge. When they approached Tepeyac Hill, Juan Diego reached the foot of the hill, and simply vanished. They scoured the entire area, but could not find him. At the top of the hill, which on any other occasion he would clearly be seen from the ground, Juan found the Blessed Virgin waiting for him. "Littlest of my sons, what is the matter?" Juan Diego told Her what happened, with great disappointment. Instead of being sorrowful, She actually seemed pleased. "Very well. Return here tomorrow at daybreak. I will give him the sign he asks for. You have taken much trouble on my account, and I will reward you for it. Go in peace, now, and rest." Instead, Juan Diego hurried to the home of his Uncle Bernardino who was from a dangerous and contagious fever. He brought with him some herbs and made medicines for his uncle, and stayed by his uncle's side the entire night. The next morning, he did not go to meet the Lady, but stayed to care for his dying uncle.
On Tuesday, December 12, when it was clear to Juan that his uncle was taking a turn for the worst, Juan Diego ran to Mexico City to find a priest to administer the final Sacaraments for the man. When he approached Tepeyac hill, Juan Diego passed around it on the east side, and not the west, so he wouldn't be interrupted by the Lady as he hurried to Mexico City. He saw Her up on the hill, but hurried his pace. She glided down the hill and intercepted him on the path. "Littlest of my sons, what is the matter?"
"My dear child, my Lady! Please forgive me! My uncle is dying of cocolistl and wants me to bring a priest right away to give him the Last Sacraments!"
The Blessed Virgin Mary broadened Her beautiful smile. "Littlest of all my sons, do not be anxious, or afraid. Am I not here, your Mother? Are you not under My shadow, and My protection? Your uncle will not die at this time, for at this very moment I have cured him. Now go to the top of the hill, cut the flowers that you will see there, and bring them to me."
This time of the year, the weather was so cold, and Tepeyac hill so frozen, that flowers of any kind could not grow there. As he went up, Juan Diego wondered what flowers he was going to find, as he never saw anything there the days before. When he reached the summit, however, he saw a blanket of blooming rose bushes, not rimed with frost like the scrub brush, but dripping with the dew of a fresh spring morning. He opened his tilma, a special Aztec cloak made from cactus fiber, which could be folded upward and tied around the neck as a carryall. He worked quickly to pick as many of the fragrant roses he could fit in the tilma, and hurried back down the hill. Juan Diego opened his cloak a little to show the Virgin the roses thrown helter-skelter inside the apron. Smiling, Our Lady rearranged the roses with Her own holy hands, and, when she was satisfied with the arrangement, She took the strings of the cloak from Juan Diego's hands, and tied them behind his neck, securing the flowers in this pouch.
"My littlest son," She said warmly, "Here is the sign for the Bishop. Tell him not to delay any longer, and to build the sanctuary I wish in this place. Do not let anyone see what you are carrying. Tell the Bishop about your dying uncle, that you came to find a priest to deliver the Last Sacraments to him, how you tried to avoid me, and how I interrupted you and told you I completely healed him. Tell him I sent you to the top of the hill to cut these roses for him, and how I touched and arranged them all myself with My own hands. Do not open the tilma for anyone but the Bishop. This time he will believe all that you tell him."
When he arrived at the Bishop's house, his tilma bulging with the flowers, the servants and courtisans tried to prevent Juan Diego's entrance without first seeing what he was concealing in the cloak. When he was finally admitted inside, the Indian went directly to the Bishop sitting in his chair, and told him word for word everything that had happened since the last time he had spoken to him. When he was finished, Juan Diego untied the tilma from his neck, and let the bottom drop down, spilling the roses on the floor.
The first thing Bishop Zumarraga and his staff saw were the roses: large, beautiful, powerfully fragant castillian roses. Then, completely ignoring the flowers, the Bishop, and all those in the room, fell on their knees in wonder in front of Juan Diego. Juan Diego couldn't understand why they ignored the roses, which were the sign from Our Lady to the Bishop. But when he looked down, he saw the apparition of the Virgin he beheld that first time on December 9th, miraculously imprinted in full color on his tilma. The tilma was removed and carried to the chapel where it was hung on the wall and could be venerated by all.
Juan, completely convinced of the Virgin's promise of having cured his uncle, stayed at the Bishop's house for two nights. When he finally returned, his Uncle Bernardino told him how the Blessed Virgin Mary had appeared to him beside his deathbed, and told him She was curing him. His detailed description of the apparition perfectly matched all the details of the apparitions Juan Diego had seen.
The tilma, made of cactus fiber, would otherwise have disintegrated totally in 25 years. Yet it remains to this very day, over 500 years later, completely intact, and the Image of Our Lady on the cloak is just as fresh and colorful as the day it appeared. All the information on this enduring, material Miracle is covered in our article, THE TILMA OF GUADALUPE.
The story of Juan Diego and the Lady of Guadalupe is an integral part of the national identity of Mexico. Guadalupe and Catholicism united the often-warring tribes through a common faith, said the Rev. Jesus Garza, a former Mexico City seminary teacher now based in Monterrey. "It was born as a nation through evangelization and with the appearance of the Blessed Mother," Garza said. "Before, we were (numerous) Indian nations and not organized." The report and image of the Virgin Mary transformed into a native Indian led to mass conversions to Catholicism, an estimated 8 million in the six years after 1532. In 1895, the Sacred Image of Our Lady of Guadalupe was crowned by order of Pope Leo XIII. On October 12, 1945, Pope Pius XII declared Our Lady of Guadalupe PATRONESS OF ALL THE AMERICAS. The date of the final Apparition and the Miracle, December 12, is a Holy Day of Obligation in Mexico. On July 31, 2002, Pope John Paul II officially declared Juan Diego a Saint in a canonization Mass in Mexico City that brought millions to attendance.
The story of Juan Diego and the Lady of Guadalupe is an integral part of the national identity of Mexico. Guadalupe and Catholicism united the often-warring tribes through a common faith, said the Rev. Jesus Garza, a former Mexico City seminary teacher now based in Monterrey. "It was born as a nation through evangelization and with the appearance of the Blessed Mother," Garza said. "Before, we were (numerous) Indian nations and not organized."
The report and image of the Virgin Mary led to mass conversions to Catholicism, an estimated 8 million in the six years after 1532.
