Késsinnimek - Roots - Racines

OUR LADY OF GUADALUPE
Patroness of the Americas

by Louise Dubrule

Long before Pope John Paul II graced Our Lady of Guadalupe with a new title, the people of Mexico held a great devotion to her.

The story begins in 1531 when a humble Indian named Juan Diego was making his way to Mexico City. As he approached a hill called Tepayacac, he heard singing and then a voice that called him by name. He was startled to see a Lady of great grandeur with garments shining like jewels. She identified herself as the ever virgin Holy Mary, and instructed him to tell the bishop that she wished to have a temple built in her honor there on the plain.

Juan Diego obeyed without question but he was rebuffed by the clergy. He returned to the hill and again saw the magnificent apparition who listened as he explained that the prelate had not believed him. She instructed him to return to Mexico City and to try again to convince the bishop of her wishes, and he promised to comply. When he was granted an audience with the bishop and repeated the Lady’s request, the bishop questioned him at great length as to exactly what he had seen and where. He was still reluctant to believe Juan Diego and asked that the Lady provide a sign that he might accept the story.

Juan Diego returned to the hill and a third time he spoke with the Lady. She promised to give a sign. Before he could go back to Mexico City, his uncle became very ill and Juan Diego left to get the priest. Along with the way, he was visited a fourth time by the Lady who consoled him in his grief. Later, he learned that his uncle had been cured at that moment. Meanwhile, the Lady told Juan Diego to go the hill where they had first met and look for flowers. He was to cut a quantity of them and take them to the bishop as a sign.

Accordingly, Juan Diego climbed the hill, not knowing what to expect, for this was early December with freezing weather, and the area was home to various thistles and other thorny plants of the high desert. Cresting the hill, he was amazed to find a wide variety of roses in full bloom. He cut a great many of them and filled his tilma (a very crude mantle or cloak made of cactus fibers) with the fragrant flowers. He retraced his steps to the Lady who examined the flowers and replaced them in his tilma. He then made his way to the bishop’s residence once again and was made to wait a long time. When he was at last in the bishop’s presence, he opened his cloak and the out-of-season roses tumbled to the floor and the bishop and other clergy realized that here was the sign they had wanted.

As wondrous as the flowers were, the tilma was a true miracle; for on its surface was the glorious image of the Lady, which has become known as Our Lady of Guadalupe. The bishop accepted Juan Diego’s story as truth and in time had a church built where the Lady had indicated. The tilma, rude garment that it was, should have deteriorated in a few years; however, even today it is enshrined in the Church and it is unblemished by the years.

Juan Diego was 57 at the time of the apparitions and was considered an old man in those times. Already a devout man who had converted to Catholicism, he devoted the rest of his life to spreading the news of the Lady and her message. He died in 1548 at the age of 74. Pope John Paul II declared Juan Diego “Blessed” in 1990, and sainthood was officially announced in 2002.

By this time, we are all quite familiar with the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe: a regal woman with bowed head, clad in a gold gown and blue mantle over her head and shoulders. But there is more to the picture, for the image had to hold elements that would be recognizable to all of the people of that time and region.

The eyes are downcast, indicating humility, showing that she was not a god. By contrast, Indian gods looked straight ahead. The face displays compassion, reflecting the goodness of the person; her skin is dusky and her hair dark, like those the local people. The hands are in the Indian position of offering, hinting that something is to come from her. The stars on the mantle are a sign that a new era is starting. The Lady is greater than the sun rays surrounding her, for she was more important than the sun god who played such a role in their lives. The color of her mantle, a blue green, was a color reserved for the great god Omechcihuatl, revealing that she was royalty. The Lady is standing on the moon, showing that she was greater than the god of night. The angel at the bottom is seen as a messenger carrying in a new era.

The element that fascinates me the most is one that goes almost unnoticed until it is explained. Directly below the folded hands, you can see the ends of a tie or belt, usually shown in brown or black. This indicates that she is with child. The Spanish word for belt is cinduron, and the word for pregnant is encinta, translating to “with the belt” or “under the belt.” It was the custom of the time for a pregnant woman to wear a belt that had been blessed over her belly as a means of protection for her unborn child. Given the origin of languages, it comes as no surprise that the French words for belt (ceinture) and pregnant (enceinte) are very similar. As a further similarity in customs, my own mother in law, whose family came from Quebec, talked about wearing such a protective belt during her pregnancies. Hers was made from itchy brown wool. I can’t imagine where her family’s use of the ceinture originated. Maybe a wandering missionary introduced the idea?

The military chapel where we attend Mass is adorned with a large portrait of Our Lady of Guadalupe on the right side of the sanctuary. Her presence is comforting, especially now that we know the story and the significance of her appearance.

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