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The Virgin of Guadalupe is undoubtedly the virgin icon with the largest following in the Catholic and non-Catholic world, and she comes from a fascinating history. First seen by Juan Diego in 1531, she appeared at a particular time when the Spaniards were historically ready for an inroad into the spiritual lives of their newly converted faithful.
The original story is found in the closely transcribed Nican Mopohua (“Here it is told…”), a collection of historical notes written in the Nahua language of the Aztecs of Central Mexico. In the Nican Mopohua, Juan Diego’s story is recounted to include the very quotes of the virgin in her first appearance and each subsequent one, as well as the entire conversations surrounding her requests and his responses.
The story in brief form:
Juan Diego, a widower already converted to Catholicism, is walking in a wilderness area called Tepeyac near what is now Mexico City. The date is December 9, 1531, and the time is ten years after the Spanish takeover of the city and the establishment in Tlatelolco of the first bishopric of Mexico.
Hearing beautiful sounds of a chorus of birds from the hill, Juan Diego asks himself, “How am I so honoured to hear such glorious music? Perhaps I am in the celestial places of which our ancestors spoke?”
When the music stops, he hears a soft voice calling, “My Juanito, my Juan Diegito.” Gathering courage, he creeps up the wooded hill to investigate. To his amazement, a maiden standing on a stone outcropping signals him to approach. Once in her presence, he prostrates himself, noting the splendour of her garments while rays of light emanate from her very being, bathing everything in colours of the rainbow. “Listen closely, smallest of my children, my Juanito.”
The glowing Lady proceeds to tell him, “Have the virtue to understand within your heart, my smallest and most beloved child, that I am the perfect Virgin Mary, who has the privilege of being the Mother of the true eternal God. My undying wish is that a temple be built on this hill where I can attend to the needs, the suffering and the pain of those who love me.”
When she asks Juan Diego to present her case before Bishop Don Fray Juan de Zumárraga, he quickly accepts, begging his leave to continue on his way. Taking the direct path, he arrives at the bishop’s palace to ask for an audience. The servants look askance at the improbability of admitting such a humble subject, but eventually the bishop accedes. Juan Diego then tells his story from the beginning, ending with the request of the Lady to build her temple.
The story continues with a second visit to convince the church leader, in which Juan Diego is asked for some token of proof. The self-effacing old man then asks the shimmering apparition to please send someone more dignified, more apt, more believable, because he can see from the bishop’s unimpressed reaction that the request is considered a fabrication. 
Upon awakening the following day, Juan Diego discovers that his uncle, Juan Bernardino, has fallen sick and is on his deathbed. The entire day passes looking for a doctor. And only with night falling, does he realize that his important mission has been forgotten. He begs his uncle to hold on through the night so that in the morning he can get to Tlatelolco in time for a priest to hear his last confession. Leaving under cover of darkness, Juan Diego circumvents the hill of Tepeyac to bring back the priest more quickly, without being detained by the Maiden who will certainly be waiting for him. Imagine his surprise when the Lady appears as he passes along the path at the base of the hill. Upon her questioning, he defends himself, “Oh, please my Lady, understand that I am not trying to play tricks on you, but my uncle is very ill and will certainly die; please give me another day. Tomorrow without fail I’ll be here to carry out your every wish.”
She reminds him that she is able to cure all ills and tells him that his uncle in fact will not die, but that she has a special mission for him this very day. (It’s now the 12th of December.) If he climbs the same hill on which he first set eyes on her, he will see flowers blooming. Once again he is astounded to see unseasonal flowers with the most amazing aroma growing in profusion in the clearing. He gathers as many as he can carry in a pouch created with his cloak. When he returns to her presence, she advises him, “These flowers are your proof. Once you are in the audience of the bishop, open your cloak to present them. When he sees, he will believe.”
As the story goes, this third time he can hardly get in to see the bishop, as by now the servants are tired of this “bothersome” old man. When the bishop finally agrees to see what proof he might have, Juan Diego explains how he collected the flowers he found there on the hilltop. At that moment, he opens his cloak, allowing the flowers to fall. Lo and behold, the bishop and his followers are stunned to see an image on the very fabric of the cloak itself.
This image is what we recognize today as the Virgin of Guadalupe. It appears in many forms, colors and sizes on T-shirts, stamps, notebooks, cups, saucers, gear-shift knobs, mirrors, and almost anything one can think of to grace with the Virgin. While this may seem like profanation of a sacred image, consider that it brings the experience of the Virgin of Guadalupe into the ordinary lives of ordinary human beings.
Studies of the image have ranged from scientific to historical to archaeological to religious, as well as digital analysis and IBM scans. As early as 1929, Alfonso Marcue was told to keep silent about images he discovered in black and white photographs, which purportedly revealed a bearded man in the reflection of the right eye. During each of the following decades, additional studies reflected a similar effect. In 1979 Dr. José Aste Tonsmann, a graduate of Cornell University, used high resolution images to produce a study wherein he identified additional images within the reflection of the eyes of the Virgin. His book, “El Secreto de sus Ojos” (the secret of the eyes) provides detailed descriptions and image captures. (www.sancta.org/videos.html)
Even more fascinating explanations relate to the image itself as interpreted within the iconography of the indigenous peoples and beliefs of that time period. Some of those elements include:
- The fact that the Virgin’s hair is worn loose indicates that, according to the customs of that time, the Maiden is pregnant. The sash tied above the waist is an indication of the same condition.
- The symbol of the flower with four petals (Nahui Ollin) is the principal image representing the presence of God in all plenitude at the center of space and time.
- The Virgin stands on the moon. Linguists point to Mexico, a word with Nahua origins (“Metz-xic-co”) meaning “at the center of the moon.”
- Astrological and religious events are related to the first viewing of the image on the cloak of Juan Diego (now San Juan Diego) on December 12, 1531:
- This day was the only day during the year in which the sun could be observed in its re-birth during the winter solstice.
- This day marked the eight-year reappearance of Venus, interpreted as the return of Quetzalcoatl for the Aztecs.
- The conjunction of the sun with Venus indicated plenitude of the presence of God.
- This day marked the arrival of Haley’s Comet.
- On a final note, the stars on the cloak of the Virgin are not as casually placed as they may seem. Studies show that the constellations identified are precisely those visible on December 12, 1531.
Retractors present themselves each century. “Our Lady of Guadalupe” by Stafford Poole (1995) challenges common conjectures and theories of both lay and religious believers, emphatically stating that the account of the appearance was not written until 1648, over a century after the purported event. In Puerto Vallarta, the image can be viewed at the Church of Our Lady of Guadalupe (Hidalgo #370, Centro, (322) 222-1326). Ever since the main church was dedicated to the Virgin of Guadalupe as patron saint in 1921, the church has been the destination of peregrinaciones (pilgrimages) to honour the Virgin. While fervour experiences highs and lows over time, it was the enthusiasm and dedication of Father Parra that instilled the commitment of the people of Puerto Vallarta to involve the entire community. Every year visitors and residents join in honoring Our Lady of Guadalupe by going through downtown to the main church, where ofrendas are left for the needy from December 2 to December 12. Making the pilgrimage are employees and staff from hotels, restaurants and other businesses on lavishly-decorated allegorical cars, members of the surrounding parishes and colonias, runners with torches from other Virgins in the country, the elderly and the young, families and friends, and those who simply wish to honour a great Lady.
