Today is the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Happy Feast Day! t was in December 1531 that the Virgin Mary first appeared before an indigenous Mexican peasant, Saint Juan Diego, at Hill of Tepeyac, which would later become part of Villa de Guadalupe, in a suburb of Mexico City. It began a chain of events that would lead to the rapid conversion of the peoples of Mexico to Christianity. The Diocese of Lansing’s Coordinator of the Hispanic Ministry, Susana Chapa Vargas, herself a native of Mexico, now explains what Our Lady of Guadalupe means to her. Susana says:
“My life and that of Mexicans would be completely different if Our Lady of Guadalupe had not appeared to St. Juan Diego in December 1531. I have always said that I am very grateful that the Spanish conquered my country - Mexico - since the conquest brought with it the work of evangelization that resulted in me having the opportunity to be born and grow up in a country where 98% of the people are Catholic.”
“Actually, my thanks go to the Virgin of Guadalupe, without whose appearance such evangelization work would have been completely impossible. Before the appearance of the virgin, the Aztecs practiced human sacrifice and even cannibalism, such practices, which were part of polytheism, would have been impossible to eradicate if the virgin had not come, dressed in her turquoise mantle indicating that she was an empress and her pink tunic with nine golden flowers that the Aztecs could easily recognize as a message from God, which caused nine million Aztecs to be converted to Christ in a few years thanks to the message of the Virgin of Guadalupe and human sacrifice was abolished.”
“It is she who gives deep hope to me, I have a great love for her and total confidence that she is my mother who loves me and will ensure that all is well, even if I go through difficult trials. Thanks to the Virgin of Guadalupe, I was born a Catholic and not a polytheist. Jesus is the center of my life, I can´t imagine not having had the opportunity I have had, because of her.”
• En español:
“Mi vida y la de los mexicanos sería completamente diferente si Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe no hubiera aparecido a San Juan Diego en diciembre de 1531. Siempre he dicho que estoy muy agradecida de que los españoles hayan conquistado mi país – México- dado que la conquista trajo consigo la labor de evangelización que tuvo como resultado que yo hubiera tenido la oportunidad de nacer y crecer en un país en que el 98% de las personas son católicas.”
“En realidad, mi agradecimiento es para la virgen de Guadalupe, sin cuya aparición dicha labor de evangelización hubiera sido completamente imposible. Antes de la aparición de la virgen, los Aztecas practicaban el sacrificio humano e inclusive el canibalismo, dichas prácticas, que eran parte del politeísmo hubieran sido imposibles de erradicar si la virgen no hubiera venido, vestida con su manto de color turquesa que indica que quién lo portaba era una emperatriz y su túnica rosa con 9 flores doradas que los Aztecas pudieron reconocer fácilmente como un mensaje de Dios, lo que provocó que nueve millones de aztecas fueran convertidos a Cristo en pocos años gracias al mensaje de la virgen de Guadalupe y el sacrificio humano fuera abolido.”
“Es ella quién me da una profunda esperanza, tengo un gran amor por ella y una confianza total en que ella es mi madre que me ama y asegurará que todo esté bien, aunque pase por pruebas difíciles. Gracias a la virgen de Guadalupe nací católica y no politeísta. Jesús es el centro de mi vida, no puedo imaginar no haber tenido la oportunidad que he tenido gracias a ella.”