Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe nears

Last updated on: December 10, 2016 at 2:29 pm by Father Pablo Migone

Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe nears 2016-12-10T14:29:29-05:00 Father Pablo Migone

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The Virgin Mary appeared four times to Saint Juan Diego on December 1531, only ten years after the defeat of the Aztec empire in Mexico. This time period marked the integration of Spanish and native cultures which ultimately gave rise to a unique people and culture which continues to flourish today throughout Latin America.

In the next two days, I will visit with Bishop Hartmayer two different parishes to celebrate this important feast. Tomorrow we will be at Saint Paul in Douglas, Georgia and Monday at Saint Anthony of Padua in Ray City, Georgia.

Mary’s words to Juan Diego were soon recorded in the work called Nican Mopohua written in Nahuatl, the language of the natives. Her words for this new mestizo society that was forming in Latin America were of maternal care and encouragement. In the first apparition she said to Juan Diego, “Know and understand well, you the most humble of my son, that I am the ever virgin Holy Mary, Mother of the True God for whom we live, of the Creator of all things, Lord of heaven and the earth. I wish that a temple be erected here quickly, so I may therein exhibit and give all my love, compassion, help, and protection, because 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.”

During the fourth apparition she said, “Hear me and understand well, my son the least, that nothing should frighten or grieve you. Let not your heart be disturbed. Do not fear that sickness, nor any other sickness or anguish. 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.”

The Virgin Mary’s maternal words to Juan Diego continue to echo throughout the hearts of the twenty million pilgrims who visit the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe every year and in the hearts of every faithful devotee. Millions of immigrants in our country (mostly from Mexico) and their children continue fostering strong ties with Our Lady of Guadalupe, making this feast day a great opportunity to reach out, be hospitable and evangelize. May Our Lady, Queen of the Americas, defend us from all evil and pray for us now and at the hour of our death.

Site of the fourth and final apparition of Our Lady to Juan Diego

Original chapel where the apparitions occurred and where Juan Diego lived from after the apparitions until his death.

The original image of Our Lady that appeared on Saint Juan Diego’s tilma, or cloak.

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