Our Lady of Guadalupe Pray for Us

Today we celebrate the 485th anniversary of The Virgin Mary appearing to Juan Diego outside of Mexico City.  Mary so often appears to humble and soft spoken hearts.  Juan Diego is no exception to this.  He was a newly converted Aztec Indian who was startled and a bit perplexed when Mary appeared to him in December of 1531.  Mary's messages were quite clear, and the impact they had on his heart became evident immediately.  Our Lady wanted Juan Diego to take a message to the bishop asking for there to be a chapel erected in her honor.  The bishop asks for proof of the vision.  If you have been Catholic long enough, you know how the rest of the story goes.  Mary instructs Juan Diego to go to the top of the hill in Tepeyac and asks him to gather roses in his tilma.  Upon seeing the bishop again, Juan Diego opens his tilma and the roses fall out revealing the beautiful image that has beguiled all who study it today.  The bishop falls down on his knees, and Mary gets her chapel.

In 485 years the image has not deteriorated in color and has not shown any signs of wear or aging.  The miracles contained in this image have been studied by theologians, historians, and even scientists, all trying to discover how this is possible.  Simply put, as Catholics, we know it is possible because of Mary and our belief in The Holy Trinity.   It is a miracle, which by definition, is something that defies natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of Divine nature.

The impact of Mary appearing to Juan Diego was epic concerning the effect it had upon the spread of Catholicism in Mexico.  Because of this beautiful and miraculous event, Catholicism is now intrinsically woven into the culture and spirit of the Mexican people.  Bishop Robert Barron states the following in a recent article regarding the impact that this appearance had regarding the mass conversion to Christianity that followed:

"But within ten years of the appearance of Our Lady of Guadalupe, practically the entire Mexican people, nine million strong, converted to Christianity. La Morena had proved a more effective evangelist than Peter, Paul, St. Patrick, and St. Francis Xavier combined! And with that great national conversion, human sacrifice came to an end. She had done battle with fallen spirits and had won a culture-changing victory for the God of love."

I will leave you with a translation of the words that Mary spoke to Juan Diego on the occasions they met during those four days in December of 1531.  These words were shared with me by a friend today, and they brought a great deal of comfort.

"Hear and let it penetrate into your heart ...  Are you not under my shadow and protection?  Am I not your fountain of life?  Are you not in the folds of my mantle, in the crossing of my arms?  Is there anything else you need?" 

Listen to the words of our Blessed Mother and let her hold you under her shadow and protection.   Pray to her.  She understands your heart.

Our Lady of Guadalupe, Pray for Us

Lay Down Your Burdens

Our burdens can be so heavy at times.  We are faced with so many challenges in our day to day lives.  The older I get, the heavier the burdens seem to be in my life and those around me.  Aging parents, cancer, death, divorce, the list goes on and on.  We struggle as Godly men and women to make sense of these burdens.  Why are we given these crosses to carry?  I wish I knew the answer to this question.  I've asked it many times myself.  It's hard to figure out the will of our God when it doesn't match up with the plans we had and have for our lives.  We have to remember that it is His will, and we must believe and trust that He will give us the strength to handle our crosses, survive the pain, and come alive again with happiness.  We are a resurrected people who are given the gift of Eternal Life.  His love and grace is ever-present in life and in death.

My students will often ask, "Why do bad things happen to good people?" I wish I had a simple answer for them.  There are some things we cannot understand in the moment they are happening.  The pain is too much to bear.  God loves us, and he holds us close in these moments.  We have to be open to being held.  We have to be faithful in our prayers.  We have to be faithful in the good times and the bad.

"Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves.  For my yoke is easy, and my burden light" - Matthew 11: 28-30

If you were to reach out to your family and close friends and ask them how you can pray for them what would you hear?   Let me share with you what I heard today, "Please pray for my family my mother passed last night, my brother is facing a cancer diagnosis, please pray that I can carry my child to full term,  I'm having surgery soon please pray, my friend lost her twin to a tragic car accident, my significant other is still without a job after a year of searching, this is our first Christmas without my brother please pray for us, and for his children."   These are just a few of the prayer requests I received.

If you are struggling, I'm going to challenge you to pray.  Get on your knees, lay down before God and call out for his help.  If you are Catholic, go back to church and receive the Eucharist.  Christ will strengthen you.  Ask people to pray for you, pray for others, pray without ceasing.  God calls us to pray in Thanksgiving, and he desperately wants us to call out to him in times of despair.  Lay down your burdens; He will carry you.  His yoke is easy, and His burden is light.