The Virgen of Guadalupe and the Saints

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after his death.

To continue the story after Juan failed to get the bishops approval he returned home soon after Juan’s uncle was gravely ill so Juan goes back into the city but this time avoids tepeyac, Mary appears to him anyway and assures Juan of his uncle and orders him to pick up some roses in his tilma which miraculously bloom in the middle of December. He then goes to the bishop once more, Juan Diego then releases the roses at the bishop’s feet and undenounced to him the image of the virgin de Guadalupe is painted on the tilma and the bishop adheres to the virgins wishes and builds the basilica.

He explains how significant this image is too many people both at the time, during the birth of Mexico and even today. He explains that being from Spain bishop Zumarraga was no stranger to oddly pigmented virgin marys, noting the virgin in Catalonia la Madonna mornita, he also explained how the virgin de Guadalupe was seen as a symbol for the Indian to follow into Christianity, but no such record of mass religious conversion was seen at the time of the event but later on it would. Dr. Nava went on to explain that the symbol would most famously be used as a call to arms for the mestizos and creoles to turn and fight the peninsulas’ in the Mexican war of independence. He emphasized that even though sometimes symbols and religious text are used as weapons of destruction some are used for good as the glue to unite a people or to teach a lesson of humility.

All in all it was a great lecture and I was glad to attend it to greater understand the religious and secular significance of these symbols especially around Christmas time.