Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Catholic News

Home

Home
Catholic
Religion News
After nearly 500 years, Our Lady of Guadalupe still has something to tell us

After nearly 500 years, Our Lady of Guadalupe still has something to tell us

Last updated on: November 6, 2015 at 7:24 am by CNA Daily News

After nearly 500 years, Our Lady of Guadalupe still has something to tell us 2015-11-06T07:24:00+00:00 CNA Daily News

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Los Angeles, Calif., Nov 6, 2015 / 12:24 am (CNA).- The miraculous image of Our Lady of Guadalupe is centuries old and her message to St. Juan Diego has been translated into numerous languages over the years. Countless books have been written about the apparition, and the tilma itself has been intensely scrutinized by scientists.

So what more can we learn about Our Lady of Guadalupe and her message?

Plenty, says Supreme Knight Carl Anderson, who along with postulator for St. Juan Diego’s cause for canonization, Msgr. Eduardo Chávez Sánchez, has produced the new documentary, “Guadalupe: The Miracle and the Message.”

“I think most people have very little understanding of the codex within the image itself, and the documentary helps explain exactly why the symbols contained within the image are so important and had such resonance,” Anderson told CNA.

What many people don’t realize, he said, is that the miraculous image on the tilma is actually a kind of map full of symbols that the Aztec people would have readily recognized.

The new film is based on Anderson and Msgr. Chavez’s New York Times bestseller, “Our Lady of Guadalupe: Mother of the Civilization of Love.” Narrated by actor Jim Caviezel, the documentary brings the story behind one of the most easily recognized religious images to life with 3D animation, live action reenactments, and expert commentary.

“I think anyone who watches this film will learn things they didn't know, and will come to a greater appreciation of Our Lady of Guadalupe,” Anderson said.

The documentary shows that while Spanish conquistador Hernan Cortez had outlawed the practice of human sacrifice, the Aztecs were witnessing the collapse of their empire, the enslavement of their people by the Spaniards, and catastrophic loss of life due to virulent disease ripping through their population.

“At the time of her apparition, the indigenous people of Mexico were anticipating the end of the world,” Anderson said.

“To understand the impact that Our Lady of Guadalupe has on the native population, you really have to put yourself in the position of these people at the collapse of the Aztec Empire and what their understanding of religion really was,” he explained in the documentary. “We have to remember the horrific face of the Aztec deities that were there to receive the human sacrifices.”

Spanish missionaries also recognized the dire situation in Mexico City. Bishop Juan de Zumarraga was so disgusted with the abuses carried out on the native population by the new Spanish government, that he felt that unless a miracle occurred, Mexico City would be lost. He even went to so far as to order all the priests to abandon the city until the government changed its ways.

Thankfully, a miracle did come by the way of the Virgin Mary appearing to the humble peasant, Juan Diego, telling him to have Bishop Zumarraga build a shrine for her on the top of Tepeyac Hill.

In the years that followed, even in the midst of ongoing strife with the Spanish government, one of the largest conversions in the history of the Church took place with 9 million natives being baptized.

“Her apparition, her message, and the codex on her tilma – the images within the image that would have been so clearly read by the indigenous people – introduced Christianity in a way that invited the people of Mexico to a new hope in the Gospel of Jesus Christ, presented by his mother,” Anderson said.

For example, the blue-green cape that Mary wears in the image would have immediately indicated to the native people that she was someone important, since that was a color only an emperor could wear. Having her hair down was a style that only virgins would wear, while the black ribbon around her waist indicated she was pregnant.

“I think her message of love, her apparition as a pregnant woman, and her model of a civilization of love are all things that have at their heart the call to build a culture of life,” Anderson said.

“Not only in her image, but in her choice of Juan Diego as her messenger, she showed a profound love for every person, even the smallest, the most humble, those some saw as inconvenient. Combined with her apparition as an expecting mother, with an unborn child, her message is unmistakable.”

Although she is often associated with Mexican culture, Anderson said that Our Lady of Guadalupe was and continues to be a model of evangelization for the world.

“She not only transformed America into the Christian hemisphere, but she remains a model of inculturation, of dialogue between cultures, of healing, and above all of love,” he said. “She lovingly calls us to the Gospel message of her son. It is no accident that her image is the most recognizable religious icon in this hemisphere and that she is revered from Alaska to Argentina.”

As a part of ABC’s Visions and Values Series, the documentary will air on ABC affiliate stations nationwide between Oct. 11 and Dec. 10, right around the respective feast days of St. Juan Diego and Our Lady of Guadalupe.

“(This) means that millions of Americans will have the ability to see it on network television, and I think the fact that ABC is airing it speaks to the fundamental importance of Our Lady of Guadalupe in our country – an importance that is understood not only within the Catholic world, or the Hispanic world, but the media world as well,” Anderson said.

Previous Post

November 5, 2015

New survey finds some Americans more devout, others more adrift

Next Post

November 6, 2015 Pope Francis is going to Kenya - and here's what people are talking about

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Americas Asia - Pacific Europe Middle East - Africa Uncategorized US Vatican

Select a Month November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Who insulted and opposed David, then died after Abigail pleaded his case?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Joab Ahithophel Amasa Nabal