our lady of guadalupe

Today we celebrate the memorial of Our Lady of Guadalupe.  She is the Patroness of Mexico, and because we were part of the Archdiocese of Mexico then and because of our trade links with Mexico also known as the Manila Acapulco Route, Our Lady of Guadalupe became the patroness of the Philippines also.  This was later changed to the Immaculate Conception and our Lady of Guadalupe was relegated to the second patron.  Anyway it is the same Blessed Virgin Mary.  But this shows our close historical link with Mexico.

It all started in the morning of Dec. 9 1531 when Juan Diego, an Indian, saw on the hill of Tepeyac and young woman surrounded by light.  Speaking to him the woman asked that he tell the authorities to build a church in her honor in the site where Juan Diego was standing.  Recognizing that it was the Blessed Virgin Mary, Juan Diego hurried to the Archbishop Juan de Zummaraga, the Archbishop of Mexico City, who was himself a protector of the Indians. The archbishop sent Juan Diego back telling him to ask the lady she saw for a sign.  So Juan Diego went back and saw once more the Blessed Virgin Mary.  He asked her for a sign as instructed by the Archbishop and the Blessed Mother directed him to go on top of the Tepeyac hill were he gathered roses, that kind which could not be found in that region and on the dead of winter.  He gathered this on his cloak, also known as a tilma in Indian language, and brought these to the Archbishop. When the archbishop opened the cloak, our fell this unique castillian roses and on the tilma itself is found the image of the Blessed Virgin.  This tilma, this cloak now hangs in the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City where it is venerated even today.  It is now known as the Lady of Guadalupe.  Guadalupe is not actually the name of a place but something which sounds like the description of the place where Juan Diego found the woman - tecuatlanopeuh - it sounds like Guadalupe.  Tecuatlanopeuh means “she whose origins were the rocky summit”.  So that is why it is called today Our Lady of Guadalupe.

This is a popular devotion in Mexico and it is common sight that during her feast day, today, artist and popular singers in mexico would serenade her in the basilica.  If you have time during vacation look for it in you tube - popular artistas singing, serenading the virgen de guadalupe.

This became popular because of the Native Mexicans who saw in the Virgin a true protector who gave this unique apparition to a native Mexican, Juan Diego.  For the Native Mexicans that was something.  It shows that the Blessed Mother loves them and cares for them despite the different color of their skin. In fact the image of the virgin in the Tilma of Juan Diego has also a brown skin.

Today let me remind you again that a seminarian must have a real devotion to the Blessed Mother.  He must pray every day the rosary.  If he misses his rosary something is wrong and something will go wrong later with his vocation.  Pray always the rosary.