Our Lady of Guadalupe

Young Person:  Never heard of this.  What is Guadalupe?

NARRATOR 1:   Our Lady of Guadalupe is the name given to Mary.  In the story, Mary, a Nahuatl woman and Mother of God, came to a poor, dignified person of the Nahuatl Tribe in Mexico, named Juan Diego.  She healed his uncle and converted their new bishop Fray Juan de Zumárraga.  It happened near Mexico City, on a hill called Tepayac, which became known as Guadalupe. 

Young Person 1:  Who wrote this story? 

NARRATOR 1:   This ancient story is called the Nican Mopohua.  A scholar of the Nahuatl  Tribe tells the events in their Nahuatl language for the Nahuatl people.  

Young Person 2:  How ancient?  Was it before World War II?

NARRATOR 1:   We go back to 1492. 

Young Person 1:  Christopher Columbus, right? 

NARRATOR 1:   You connected the date correctly with him.  But our story is tragic because the explorers brought deadly diseases and massacred the Indigenous on their own land.  Sadly, it became a genocide, the destruction of Indigenous life in the Americas. The Indigenous were condemned to hard labour, humiliation, destruction, sickness, enslavement and massive death.  Even the sacred religious traditions of their ancestors were considered nothing by the invading conquistadores.  People, animals, plants and all their values were regarded as nothing. 

Young Person 2: I don’t know anything about this nattle tribe.

NARRATOR 2:   Nahuatl Tribe.  Some explanation will help us to understand.  The Nahuatl world vision was deep and extensive.  They believed that being human meant that they were one with all creation.  They respected cosmic signs, rituals, omens, dreams and myths.  By 1531, however, the explorers defeated the friendly Aztec - Nahuatl Empire and all the native peoples.  Their entire world was destroyed in suffering and death. 

NARRATOR 3:  Their long poem touched their minds and hearts. For example, darkness and night meant chaos, confusion, death, defeat and tears.  Flowers symbolized truth and beauty revealed authenticity. 

NARRATOR 1:   ‘Dawn’ is new creation, after eras of devastation. The mountain of Tepayac was the sacred site of their goddess Tonantzin; it gradually became known as Guadalupe.  Juan Diego was a very poor peasant farmer; his name means John of God.

Youngs Person 1 & 2:  What are we waiting for? Let’s hear this story!

NARRATOR 2:   When it was still night, a poor peasant, Juan Diego was going in search of the things of God and of God's messages. When he got to the side of Tepeyac hill, day was already beginning to dawn.  Precious birds were singing and as if they were coming from different hills. 

Juan Diego:  This is more beautiful than I have ever heard. What is happening? Maybe I'm just dreaming. Or maybe I have died.  Maybe I'm in the land of the flowers.

NARRATOR 3:   He looked up where the sun rises.  The beautiful, celestial song came from there.  When this song finally stopped, everything was calm.

Mary:  Dignified Juan, dignified Juan Diego.

NARRATOR 3:  With no fear at all,  Juan Diego dared to climb the hill.  On the contrary he felt really good and really happy.  When he got to the top, he saw a lady who called him to come closer to her side.  He marveled at her perfect beauty. Her clothing appeared like the sun.  

NARRATOR 1:   At the place where she stood, arrows of light appeared like precious emeralds like jewels.  The earth glowed like a rainbow and all the weeds appeared like feathers of the brightly coloured birds. The stems were turquoise. The branches, leaves and even the thorns sparkled like gold.

(Juan Diego bowed before her.)  Mary:  Listen, my most abandoned son, dignified Juan Diego.  Where are you going?

Juan Diego:  My owner, my queen, I am going to your House in Mexico City to follow the divine things that our priests give us.

Mary:  Know and be certain in your heart, my most abandoned son, that I am the Ever- Virgin, Holy Mary, Mother of the God of great truth, Téotl, Mother of the one through whom we live, the Creator of persons, the Lord and of heaven and earth.

 I really want my home to be built in this place. In it I will show, and give to all people, all my love, my compassion, my help and my protection, because I am your merciful mother and the mother of all nations that live on this earth, of all who love me and speak with me, of all who search for me and trust me.  There I will hear their laments.  I will heal and cure all their miseries, misfortunes and sorrows.

Go to the home of the Bishop and tell him I send you as my messenger.  I really want him to build me a home right here on the plain.  I will make you joyful and happy.  My son, the most abandoned one, now go and do it. 

(Juan Diego bowed before her) Juan Diego:  My queen, I am already on the way.  I am your poor servant.

 NARRATOR 2:   Juan Diego went directly to Mexico City to the House of the Bishop Don Fray Juan de Zumárraga.  He had to wait and wait and wait.  When the Bishop finally listened, he didn’t believe him. 

Bishop:  My son, you will have to come another time. I will calmly listen to you then. I still have to examine carefully from the beginning the reason you have come and what you want.

NARRATOR 3:   Juan Diego was very sad because in no way whatsoever had her message been accomplished. When he returned to the hill of Tepeyac, the lady from heaven was waiting for him.

Juan Diego:  Oh my most abandoned of daughters, my child. I went where you sent me to deliver your message. With great difficulty, I entered the Bishop’s place.  I told him what you said. He received me well and listened carefully.  But I know he did not believe it.  He told me to come another time.

 I beg very much that you send one of your noble people, a well-known person who is respected and esteemed to take your message so that he may be believed. In reality, I am one of those poor farmers. I am nothing. I am nothing and, my most abandoned daughter, my child, my lady, my queen, you send me to a place where I do not belong.  Forgive me. I cause you pain in your heart.

Mary:  Listen, my most abandoned son, know well in your heart that there are many servants and messengers whom I could send.  But it is absolutely necessary that you personally go and speak about this and that precisely through your help my wish and desire will be realized.  I beg you very much, my most abandoned son, with all my energy to go tomorrow to see the Bishop. In my name you will make him know and listen so that he may build my temple. Tell him again that I, personally, the ever Virgin Mary, the mother of God, Téotl, am the one who is sending you.

Juan Diego:  My lady, my child, I will not pain your heart. I am ready to go to tell him truthfully your desire.  But he may not listen to me or believe me.  Now I leave you, my most abandoned daughter, my lady.  Now you rest a bit.

Narrator 2:   And Juan went to his house to rest.

The next Sunday when it was still night, when it was still dark, he left his home, went directly to learn about things divine and to answer row call so that afterwards he could see the Bishop.  Again, he had great difficulty getting in. When he eventually saw the Bishop, he knelt before him and cried. He was very sad.  He communicated the message of the lady from heaven and hoped to be accepted as her messenger.  The Bishop asked him so many questions.  Juan Diego told the Bishop everything yet still the Bishop did not believe him. He said he needed a sign from her to believe that she had sent him. 

Juan Diego:  Lord Bishop, what sign do you want?  When I know, I will go and ask the lady from heaven who sent me here.

 Narrator 1:   The Bishop was impressed that Juan was so firm in the truth that he did not doubt anything or hesitate in any way. He dismissed him. But when Juan left, the Bishop sent some people the household to follow him, to see where he was going and what he was doing. 

Narrator 2:   Juan Diego went down the road.  But close to the bridge of Tepeyac in the hillside, they lost sight of him. They kept looking for him everywhere, but they could not find him. They were furiously anger at him because he frustrated their intentions. They agreed among themselves that, if he came again, they would grab him and punish him harshly so that he would not lie again or deceive the people.

Narrator 3:   On the next day Monday, when Juan Diego was supposed to take something to be the sign for the Bishop, he couldn't return, because when he got home one of his uncles named Juan Bernardino had caught the smallpox and was dying. (Thousands of people were dying from smallpox which the explorers brought from Europe.)  First Juan went to call the doctor for help. But the doctor couldn’t help because Juan Bernardino was already dying. It was too late.  Through the night, his uncle begged him that while it was still dark, he should go to call a priest to come and prepare him to die. 

Narrator 2:   On Tuesday when it was still night, Juan Diego left his home to get a priest. When he got to the side of Mount Tepeyac, he thought:

Juan Diego:  If I take this road, probably the lady will come and see me as before . . . and hold me back so that I may take a sign to the Lord Bishop.  But first I have to quickly call the priest.  My uncle is agonizing and is waiting for him.   I will go around the other side of the hill to the side of the sunrise so to arrive quickly in Mexico City.  This way, I can avoid the lady from heaven who might delay me. The one who cares for everyone will not see me.

 Narrator 2:   But Juan saw Mary coming down from the top of the hill. She had been watching him. She stood in front of him to block his way.

Mary:   My most abandoned son, where are you going?  In what direction are you going?

(Juan bows before her). Juan Diego:  My child, my most abandoned daughter, I hope you are happy.  How did the dawn come upon you?  Does your body feel alright? I am going to give great pain to your heart.  You must know, my child, that my uncle, a poor servant of yours, is in his final agony.   A great illness has fallen on him and because of it he will die.  So I am in a hurry to get to your house in Mexico to call one of the priests to prepare him to die.  When I am finished, I will return here quickly.  Please forgive me.  Have a little patience with me. I do not want to deceive you my most abandoned daughter.  Tomorrow I will come quickly.

Mary:  Listen and hear well in your heart, my most abandoned son, what scares and troubles you is nothing.   Do not let your heart be troubled.  Do not fear that sickness or any other sadness or anxiety.  Am I not here, your mother?  Are you not under my shadow, in my protection?  Am I not your source of life? Are you not in the hollow of my mantle where I cross my arms?  What else do you need?  Let nothing trouble you or cause you sorrow.  Do not worry because of your uncle’s sickness.  He will not die of his present illness.  Be assured in your heart that he is already healed.

Narrator 1:  When Juan Diego heard this, he was very consoled.  His heart became peaceful. (He learned later that his uncle was healed at that precise moment. 

Juan Diego:  Send me immediately to take the Bishop a sign so that he will believe me.

Mary:   Climb, my most abandoned son, to the top of the hill and there you will see many diverse flowers.   Cut and gather them.  Then bring them down to me. 

Narrator 3:   When Juan got to the top, he was deeply surprised.  All over the place, there were all kinds of exquisite flowers from Castile in Spain, open and flowering.  It was not a place for flowers and likewise it was the time when the ice hardens on the earth.  They were very fragrant and seemed to be filled with fine pearls.  He gathered them and placed them in his cloak. The top of the hill was certainly not a place where flowers grow; there were only rocks, thistles, thorns and cacti,  especially during the month of December when they were all wilted by the ice.

Narrator 2:   Immediately he went down to take to the queen of heaven the various flowers he had cut. She took them in her small hands and then placed them in his cloak.

Mary:  My most abandoned son, these different flowers are the proof, the sign that you will take to the Bishop. In my name, tell him that he is to see in them what I want.  He should carry out my wish.  You are my ambassador.  In you I place all my trust.   With all my strength, I command you that only in the presence of the Bishop are you to open your cloak.  Reveal to him what you were carrying.  Tell him everything you saw and heard to change his heart, so that he will build my temple.

Narrator 2:   Juan hurried to Mexico City.  His heart was very happy, very sure and secure. He carried the flowers with great care knowing they would bring a good result.  He enjoyed their fragrance.  

Narrator 1:  But the door keepers didn't pay any attention to him because they knew how others had lost track of him before.  They made him wait and wait.  When they saw that he was sad and that he seemed to be carrying something in his mantle, they tried to see what it was.  When Juan saw it was impossible to hide from them what he was carrying and that they would throw him out or mistreat him, he showed them just a little bit of the flowers.  

Narrator 2:  When they saw all different flowers from Castile in Spain, when it was not the season for flowers, they were very astonished.  The flowers were in full bloom, so fresh, so fragrant and very beautiful.  Three times, they tried to take them from him but they couldn’t do so because, when they were about to grab them, there were only painted or embroidered ones sown in his cloak.  

Narrator 3:  Immediately they went to tell the Bishop what they had seen, how this poor little Indian had already come many times and had been waiting for a very long time. When the Bishop realized this meant that Juan was bringing him the sign he was asking for, he immediately ordered them to bring Juan in.  

(Juan kneels before the Bishop)   Juan Diego:  My Lord Bishop, I have accomplished what you asked for. Holy Mary the precious mother of Téotl accepted willingly and complied immediately.  She sent me to get the flowers which she took with her precious little hands and arranged them in the hollow of my mantle so that I might deliver them to you personally. Even though I knew well that the top of the hill was not a place where flowers grow, that only stones, thistles and cacti abound there, I was not surprised and I did not doubt.  I saw  the flowering earth, covered with all kinds of flowers from Castile, full of dew and shining brilliantly. She told me to deliver them to you so that you might see the sign you requested and believe.

Narrator 1:   When Juan unfolded his white mantle, the different flowers from Castile fell to the ground.  In that very moment, the most precious image of the ever virgin holy Mary mother of God, Téotl, appeared suddenly on his cloak.  

Narrator 2:   When the Bishop saw her, he and all who accompanied him fell to their knees. They were greatly astonished.  With tears and sadness, the Bishop prayed to her and begged her to forgive him for not having believed Juan and his message from her.  He stood and took Juan’s mantle in which had appeared and was painted the lady of heaven, to place her in his prayer room. Juan spent one more day in the home of the Bishop who then asked to go to see where the lady from heaven wanted her temple to be built.  Immediately people were invited to build it.

Narrator 3:  Juan wanted to go home to see his uncle Juan Bernardino whom the lady from heaven had said was healed.  But they did not let him go alone. Some accompanied him to his house where they saw his uncle who was well and with no pains. They took Juan Bernardino to the Bishop so that he might speak and witness before him. Together he and his nephew Juan Diego stayed with the Bishop in his home until they had built the temple at Tepeyac where Juan Diego had seen her. The Bishop transferred to the major church the precious image of the lady from heaven so that all might see and honour her image.  The entire city was deeply moved.  They came to pray to her and admired her very much.  The  Bishop named the precious image the holy Mary of Guadalupe.

Young Person:  So Mary, an Indigenous woman of the Nahuatl Tribe, had befriended, trusted, chosen and sent one of the poorest, Indigenous farmers to bring the Bishop to conversion.  And this happened during the worst massacres of Indigenous in history.  Mary was Indigenous. By recognizing the dignity of all the Indigenous, she healed and brought new life and hope. 

Young People Together:  No wonder she is the Mother of the Americas.  She brings dignity and honour to Indigenous and she brings the oppressors to their knees as she converts their hearts.  She is mother of us all, and she brings compassion, mercy, healing and hope to everyone.

Mary:  I really want my home to be built in this place. In it I will show, and give to all people, all my love, my compassion, my help and my protection, because I am your merciful mother and the mother of all nations that live on this earth, of all who love me and speak with me, of all who search for me and trust me.  There I will hear their laments.  I will heal and cure all their miseries, misfortunes and sorrows.

Young People Together:  Truly Mary, Our Lady of Guadalupe, is the Mother of the New Creation.