Let’s Celebrate: el Día de la Virgen de Guadalupe

According to Catholic accounts, on December 12, 1531, a young man from Tepeyac named Juan Diego was walking on a hill when the Virgin Mary appeared to him and told him to go see the bishop to tell him to build a shrine in her honor. Juan Diego did as he was asked, but the bishop did not believe him. Soon after, the Virgin Mary again appeared to Juan Diego and told him to go to the top of the hill and pick some flowers to take to the bishop. Since it was December, Juan Diego was surprised to find roses blooming at the top of the hill. He placed them in his cape and took them to the bishop as proof. Not only was the bishop amazed to see the roses, he was astonished to see the image of the Virgin Mary on the cape. Believing that this had indeed been a miracle, he ordered the construction of the shrine. Since that time, millions of people have visited the Basílica de la Virgen de Guadalupe to see the cape and the place where the Virgin had appeared. On December 12, thousands of people make a pilgrimage to the basilica to celebrate Mexico’s most important religious holiday.