In 1531, a Lady from heaven appeared to the poor and humble
Juan Diego on Tepeyac hill, just northwest of present-day Mexico City. She identified herself as the Blessed Virgin
Mary, the Mother of God. She requested
that a church be built on that site, but the bishop asked Juan to bring him a
sign that this was really the Blessed Mother.
Mary sent Juan Diego to the top of the hill to collect roses to give to
the bishop as his sign, since roses wouldn't normally grow there in winter. Juan collected the roses in his tilma, a type
of poncho made from cactus fibers. When
Juan unfurled his tilma to give the roses to the bishop, an image of Our Lady
was revealed, miraculously printed on the tilma, an image that still appears on
the tilma today in the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico, even though
the tilma should have normally decayed in a short period of time.
Even our advanced modern technology cannot explain the image
and apparition of Our Lady of Guadalupe that appeared so long ago. Over the centuries, Our Lady of Guadalupe has
appealed to the hearts of the faithful throughout the world. Many miracles & cures are attributed to
her healing power. 18 to 20 million
pilgrims visit the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico each year. Pope
John Paul II visited her shrine on 4 different occasions. On his visit there in 1999, he declared
December 12 to be a liturgical feast for the Americas in our Church's calendar.
The Mexican writer Carlos Fuentes wrote: “You cannot
consider yourself a true Mexican and not believe in Our Lady of
Guadalupe.” Her image is everywhere in
Mexican American communities here in the United States, as she is a symbol not
only of the Virgin Mary among us and of our Catholic identity, but she's also a
symbol of social justice and the liberation of the poor. Along with the solemnity of the Immaculate
Conception that we celebrated earlier this week, this feast shows how important
the Mother of our Savior is in the history of salvation. Just as Elizabeth called Mary blessed among
women, we proclaim Mary blessed as well as we honor her in a special way on
this feast day.
Mary has appeared throughout the centuries in different
historical periods & in different cultural settings. Today, in Mississippi and in our nation, we
have a much greater Hispanic presence, and we are able to appreciate the gifts
that the Hispanic community brings to our Church & to our parish. Some of us here today have been down to the
diocesan mission in Saltillo, Mexico; many of our youth study the Spanish
language and Spanish culture in school, and our Catholic faith has been touched
in a special way by these visits. May
the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe, the image of a poor native woman who will
bear a child, speak to us today, especially as we prepare a place in our hearts
for the upcoming birth of Christ into our world. May Our Lady of Guadalupe inspire us to work
for justice in our community and in our world.
May she be a symbol of unity for all of us who live in the
Americas.
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