Happy New Year From Our Lady of Guadalupe, Mexico city

Our Lady of Guadalupe has deep roots in the pre-Christian history of Mesoamerica. Her story begins in 1531, when a devout, poor Indian man named Juan Diego (an Aztec convert to Christianity) received a vision of the Virgin Mary on Tepeyac Hill near what is now Mexico City. This was the same hillside that had formerly been a worship site for the Aztec goddess Tonantzin. Mary told him that she wanted to have a church built in her honor on that spot. Juan reported the vision to his bishop, who asked for a sign of its truth. Juan returned to the spot where he’d seen Mary and asked for her help in proving his claim to the bishop. Mary filled his apron (a garment known as a tilma) with Castilian roses, which were miraculously blooming despite the fact that such flowers did not grow in Mexico during that period. “Show them only to the bishop,” she said. When Juan did so, another miracle occurred: the image of Mary was imprinted upon Juan’s tilma. (This is the picture that’s been reprinted countless times.) The story of Juan Diego became a powerful sign of God’s grace being given to the native peoples of the New World. Not only did Mary appear to a poor Indian, but the image of her on his tilma had brown skin. Devotion to her quickly spread throughout Mesoamerica. Today the Virgin of Guadalupe is the patroness of the Americas. She’s especially well-loved in Mexico, where even those who aren’t religious appreciate her symbolic power. Mexico’s Most Beloved Shrine This shrine, which draws millions of pilgrims each year, is one of the world’s most famous holy sites. The most popular day to visit is December 12, the feast day of the Virgin of Guadalupe, which is held on the anniversary of Juan Diego’s first vision.