How can the story of the Virgin Guadalupe be interpreted?

Answer 1

Roman Catholic AnswerAt the time of the apparitions (of Our Lady to Juan Diego), Our Lady also appeared to Juan Diego's uncle, Juan Bernardino, curing him and giving her name as "Holy Mary, ever Virgin of Guadalupe." She spoke in the native Indian language, and the name means "She who crushes the stone serpent." To Spanish ears, the name sounded like Guadalupe, the name of one of the favorite images of Our Lady in Spain. The primary god of the pagan religion of the area was a stone serpent; the religion practiced human sacrifice. At the time of the apparition, the Indian people were on the verge of revolt. The Mother of the true God reconciled and united peoples and cultures, and through this miraculous image the Catholic faith took hold. Mary of Guadalupe is the greatest evangelizer of all time. No one else has ever brought so many millions to the Catholic faith in so short a time.

In the image, Mary is depicted as a young mestiza maiden, one who is both Native American and European background. Thus, she is often called La Morenita, "The Little Brown One." She is pictured as a pregnant woman, about age fifteen. the image is recognized as a version of the Immaculate Conception. Under this title she is also involved as Help of the Sick.

At Tepeyac, there are no new devotions, no special instructions, no warnings. Here there is only the pure and simple love of a mother; she appeals to those who have a simple faith in God and a strong love for his mother. Pope Pius XII declared Our Lady of Guadalupe patroness of all the Americas, and her celebration on December 12 was raised to the rank of feast for all countries of the Americas in 1999.

from Encyclopedia of Catholic Devotions and Practices, by Ann Ball, c 2003, Our Sunday Visitor

Answer 2

The story of Our Lady of Guadalupe was recorded in 1648 by a priest named Miguel Sanchez, who must be credited with making the story so well known, after more than a century of apparent obscurity. Scholars do not have a consensus as to how the name 'Guadalupe' was ascribed to the image. We do know that in 1556, the Franciscan provincial in Mexico criticised the local archbishop for preaching a sermon in which he had commended devotion to Our Lady of Guadalupe, a painting of the Virgin Mary venerated in a chapel in Tepeyac. Although this was some twenty five years after the supposed apparition to Juan Diego, there is no mention of a local apparition of Our Lady, but this painting and the veneration that surrounded it may explain the origin of the name for the Mexican apparition, Our Lady of Guadalupe. There was already a Lady of Guadalupe in Spain, so the painting was probably inspired by that version of the legend.

Some historians consider that the Virgin Mary and the ancient Mexican mother goddess Tonantzin are associated. They say that the 16th century Spaniards created the legend of Our Lady of Guadalupe as a Christianised Tonantzin, through an image said to have appeared on a simple peasant's cloak. The supposed purpose was to encourage the conversion of the indigenous population of early Mexico. Others believe the virgin, Our Lady of Guadalupe was based on Coatlicue, the Aztec mother goddess.

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