Dec. 12, 2017: Our Lady of Guadalupe
Dec. 12, 2017: Our Lady of Guadalupe
Written by Katie Cassady
Truth be told, I am still getting to know Mary. I grew up in Protestant circles that revered Mary in the manger and then moved quickly on to her son. We landed on the common ground that was our shared faith in Jesus and I didn’t question it much. However, the more I learn about Mary the more I like her.
The story of the Angel Gabriel’s visit to Mary from today’s Gospel reading is well-known. It is both simple and profound. Mary is approached by an angel and a conversation of utmost importance takes place. Gabriel delivers God’s message, Mary is troubled and asks questions, Gabriel responds to her questions and Mary responds with her fiat regarding the mystery that is to come. (There is a very similar conversation between Elizabeth’s spouse, Zechariah, and an angel, though in his case, his disbelief caused him to be struck dumb until the birth of John the Baptist.)
It is clear from the beginning that Mary is set apart and that she is going to have an active role in our Savior’s life.
I am inspired by her strength, humility, vulnerability and her trust in the mysterious movement of God in her life and her body for that matter. So often she is depicted as this serene, contemplative and beautiful woman we have come to recognize and honor. I cannot help but feel like that is only a portion of her identity. As I begin to teach my children about who Mary is, it feels remiss to leave out the details of the variety of ways she worked and works in the world.
Case in point, today’s feast day.
The apparition of the Our Lady of Guadalupe to Juan Diego at Tepeyac was a bit baffling to Juan Diego himself. He felt someone more esteemed than he might be fit for the role of relaying Our Lady’s message to the bishop. Yet she chose a humble and faith-filled individual to be the bearer of her important request. The details of her apparition are significant. She is depicted simultaneously as a woman of the people, and of royalty, sending a message that she is for us all. “Am I not here, who am your Mother?”
Mary was instrumental in Jesus’ first miracle. She seems to have a deep awareness of Jesus’ ministry. And I think that can be said for us, too. Mary meets all of us exactly where we are—unwed mothers, young mothers, surprised mothers, overwhelmed mothers, grieving mothers, worried mothers, compassionate mothers, widowed mothers, Spirit-filled mothers, wise mothers, strong mothers, kind mothers, humble mothers, loving mothers.
“Am I not here, who am your Mother?”
So as I continue to learn from and about the Blessed Mother, I want to honor and pass on both the peaceful, contemplative Mary depicted in statues and nativities, along with the side of her that she communicated by her apparition to Juan Diego—familiar, maternal, humble, royal, persistent, active, loving and always pointing toward the love of her son, Jesus.
https://www.catholicmommyblogs.com/feast-lady-guadalupe/
(Link) Live video feed from Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City
