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Virgin De Guadalupe

December 12, 2011 by · Comments Off on Virgin De Guadalupe 

Virgin De Guadalupe, Who is “Our Lady” and why is she important?

The Blessed Mother is a sacred force. She is known throughout the world by thousands of names. In the West, we may know her as Holy Mother, Seat of Wisdom, She Who is Clothed with the Sun, Virgo Maria.

The story of the Virgin of Guadalupe showcases one of the most stunning visitations by Our Lady in the world.The story, as it has been passed down, is that she appeared nearly 500 years ago to a beaten down, poor, enslaved Nahua (Aztec) Indian. His indigenous name was Cuauhtlatoatzin, Speaking Eagle, and he was one of the surviving medicine people. In his culture, the eagle sees into two worlds as messenger between holy sky people and people of earth.

After the Conquest of Mejico, during ongoing cultural upheavals and wars, Cuauhtlatoatzin’s name became Juan Diego. One day he, then an old man, passed the ancient hill sacred to Nahua peoples- where the temple to Tonanzin, the Goddess of the Nahua had been torn down by forced labor of the native people. Suddenly on the hill appeared an arresting woman in a gown of roses and mantle of stars. She spoke these heartening words that we, as Guadalupa?os/as hold close in our hearts as La esperanza, ultimate hope for all things: “Have you forgotten? I am your mother. You are under my protection.”

Cuauhtlatoatzin and his people needed protection, they craved their Holy Mother. But, as the elders in our families remind us, La Se?ora de Guadalupe is also known by many names, including most prominently by the beloved name La Conquista. This means, Our Lady Who Conquers all Hearts. She is also patroness of those who have been hurt, Our Lady of the Conquered. Although to many she represents the Virgin Mary of Christianity, to others, she represents the feminine divine in all, the female incarnation of holiness.

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