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The Theotokos of Guadalupe

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December 12 is the feast of the Theotokos of Guadalupe. Under this title, the Mother of God is invoked as the patroness of the Americas, as well as of Mexico, and as such is included in our liturgical calendar with all honor. In our day, she is invoked as the protectress of the unborn against abortion, as she is revealed in the miraculous image as being pregnant.

The image of Our Lady of Guadalupe was imprinted on the tilma, or poncho, of Saint Juan Diego on December 12, 1531. Juan Diego was a Nahua freeman, born in 1474 in a district north of Mexico City. He was born with name “Talking Eagle”, Cuauhtlatoatzin, in the Nahua town of Tlayac, fourteen miles north of Mexico City. When he was four years old, this territory was conquered by the Aztecs. He came from the lowest class of freemen in Aztec society, and in fact when Our Lady first appeared to him on December 9, he said to her “I am a nothing, the end of the tail.” He was a farmer and had a happy marriage. Sometime after 1524, he and his wife were among the few natives who converted to Catholicism and were baptized by Franciscan missionaries as Juan Diego and Maria Lucia.

The Spanish missionaries had great difficulty preaching to the various tribes of central Mexico after the Conquest, and there were not many Catholics among them. According to testimony recorded in 1666, Juan Diego was a quiet fellow, given to contemplation and penance. At age 57, he was considered a very old man as the average lifespan was only 40, yet he faithfully walked to church every Saturday and Sunday. Like other poor Mexicans, he was barefoot and wearing a tilma made of cactus cloth, as cotton was used only by the rich.

The Mother of God appeared to him on December 9, 1531, addressing him as “my dear, the most humble of my sons” while he was crossing the Tepeyac hill to attend Mass. In this vision, Mary revealed herself as Mother of the Creator of all things. But, she went on to say: I am your merciful mother, to you, and to all the inhabitants on this land and all the rest who love me, invoke and confide in me; listen there to their lamentations, and remedy all their miseries, afflictions and sorrows. And to accomplish what my clemency pretends, go to the palace of the bishop of Mexico, and you will say to him that I manifest my great desire, that here on this plain a temple be built to me; you will accurately relate all you have seen and admired, and what you have heard. Behold, you have heard my mandate, my humble son; go and put forth all your effort.”

Despite Our Lady’s confidence, the Franciscan bishop did not believe Juan Diego. The next day was a Sunday, and having seen the “Lady, most beautiful Child” again, he went to Mass and catechism class, then hurried to the bishop where he repeated his message. The bishop asked for a sign, and his servants followed Juan Diego into the hills. There they lost him, and decided to prevent him from bothering the bishop anymore. Juan Diego reported to the lady, who told him to return the next day for a sign.

On December 12, Juan Diego’s uncle, Bernardo, who was also a convert, was very sick and asked for a priest to come to him. Juan Diego thus tried to evade the beautiful lady, so that he would not be delayed, but she came down the hill to him. When she heard of the sick uncle, she told him not to be afraid: Am I not here, who is your Mother? Are you not under my protection? Am I not your health? Are you not happily within my fold? What else do you wish? Do not grieve nor be disturbed by anything. Do not be afflicted by the illness of your uncle, who will not die now of it. Be assured that he is now cured.” With these words, she sent him to the hilltop to collect flowers for the bishop. This he did, gathering roses into his tilma, and he headed down to Mexico City. Once there, the servants tried to pull open his tilma, and treated him very badly, especially when one realizes that he was an old man in a society which respected great age. Finally, he saw the bishop.

Unsuspecting, he told the bishop that “holy Mary, the Mother of God” desired a temple to be built, and that he had the sign. Upon opening his tilma, the roses fell down to the floor but to the astonishment of all, our Lady’s marvelous image was imprinted on the humble cactus cloth. It is this image which has been praised repeatedly as the “most perfect icon” since it depicts the Virgin pregnant with the Eternal Word. Despite a spill of ammonia in 1791, and a bombing in 1921, and the high humidity and heat, this is the only undamaged cactus-cloth tilma from the 16^th century: all others have rotted away. No one has been able to detect brush strokes: it is as if the whole image was imprinted simultaneously in one moment.