Our Lady of Guadalupe, the Virgin Mary in her appearance
before St. Juan Diego in four visions in 1531. Our Lady of Guadalupe holds a special place in the religious life of Mexico and
is one of the most popular religious devotions.
of the most popular religious devotions.
Mary appeared to Juan Diego, who was an Aztec convert to Christianity, on four occasions between December 9
and December 12, 1531. During her first apparition she requested that a shrine to her be built on the spot where she
appeared, Tepeyac Hill. However, the local bishop hesitated
to act on this request. Mary appeared to Juan Diego a second
time on December 9 after his meeting that day with the bishop
and told him to return and try again.
On December 10 Juan Diego met with the bishop, who
this time demanded a sign before he would approve construction of a church. Mary appeared a third time to Juan Diego,
who told her of the bishop’s demand for a sign. On December
12, she made her fourth appearance, ordering Juan Diego to
collect roses from the hill and bring them to the bishop. Miraculously, there were roses blooming on the hill, despite it being
winter. The roses were native to Castile, a region in Spain that
was the homeland of the bishop. In his audience with the bishop on that day, Juan Diego opened his cloak, letting dozens of
roses fall to the floor and revealing the image of Mary imprinted on the inside of the cloak the image that is now venerated in the Basilica of Guadalupe.
Our Lady of Guadalupe’s continuing significance as a
religious and national symbol is attested by the hundreds of
thousands of pilgrims who visit her shrine in Mexico City every
year. Additionally, the image of her that appears on St. Juan
Diego’s tilma has been interpreted by some scholars as containing elements that hold particular meaning to Mexican and
Indigenous people.
Face: Our Lady of Guadalupe’s skin color and features are
those of a mestiza, a woman of mixed Indigenous and European heritage.
Mantle: Mary’s mantle, is turquoise-colored instead of the
bright blue. In Aztec tradition, turquoise was a color reserved
for royalty thus signifying Mary’s queenly status. The stars on
her mantle are said to represent heaven. The rose color tunic,
signifies the dawn of a new era.
Sunburst: The sunburst behind Mary is believed to represent
the Aztec sun god. The Virgin appears to be emerging from
the Sun but does not extinguish its rays, signifying that she is
greater than the Sun or any Indigenous sun gods.
Moon: The Virgin stands on a crescent moon, which some
scholars believe represents the Aztec moon god. The moon is
also a Christian symbol of Mary’s perpetual virginity.
Angel: Below the moon is an angel, which is said to represent
a new age. Notably, the angel’s wings are that of an eagle. The
eagle’s wings are red, green, and white, the official colors of
Mexico and those of the Mexican flag.
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