We have become used to seeing the image of Guadalupe everywhere, from a forgotten corner in a drawer to presiding at the most important place in our homes and offices. How many of her sons and daughters carry her always, hanging from a chain around the neck or in a pocket, feeling her special protection. Mary of Guadalupe is part of our daily lives, foundation of our culture, and mother of all who invoke her. This is very important, especially during the past months when we have found ourselves in the midst of different opinions, political parties and concerns, all of which have separated us.

We cannot lose our unity, we are all brothers and sisters, one cloak protect us all, we have her own skin, the one she took for the reconciliation of all men. Mary is the mother of the true God for whom we live, according to the words expressed in the Nican Mopohua, when she came to give us her Son, and with Him hope, love and forgiveness. Mary of Guadalupe came to Earth at a time of violence, injustice, profound sadness and hopelessness. Her message was not one of hate, insurrection, revolt. What is it then that the Virgin came to bring us? What was the first thing the Indians saw in the tilma? They were taken aback by that new image because of its great light, by the sun that tries to shine among the clouds. For the Mexicans, the Náhuatl expression Mixtitlan Ayautitlan means “among the clouds, in the fog” which signified “The arrival of God.” What kind of God? For the Aztecs, Huitzilopochtli was the god of the sun, born virginally from Coatlicue. Upon contemplating the image of the Lady from Heaven in front of them, they observed a different sun, new, that was shining in the picture from behind and in the womb of this young woman who was “in a state of good hope,” the expression used by the Mexicans to denote a pregnant woman. This sun is God himself who is about to be born.

God chooses a mother to be born in a new land in need of hope. The Virgin is standing in the middle of the moon. Mexico in Náhuatl means “the middle point of the moon.”

When? It is expressed by the stars in the mantle which represent the constellations in Mexico, precisely on the day of the winter solstice which in 1531 was on December 12. This was the most important date in the Aztec religious calendar, the day the sun conquers darkness and is victorious. This is precisely why on this day Mary of Guadalupe presented her Son Jesus to the indigenous peoples in order that they might understand that Mary was carrying in her womb the true God.

Therefore we could translate this message as God comes to Mexico through Mary who comes to give him to us on the Winter solstice. Why? For reconciliation of all men, to bring peace. The night sky is represented in Mary’s mantle and the tunic represents the Earth. The sun gives light to everything so that the stars in the mantle, the flowers in the tunic, the moon on which the young maiden stands, which according to Aztec cosmology were in constant conflict, appear now in harmony.

With Mary of Guadalupe, violence, differences, resentments, etc. have been left behind. She comes to be the mother of all: the poor, the rich, the sick, the sinners, those who suffer in body and soul. Guadalupe brings men a message of reconciliation. Let us recall her words to Juan Diego, the seer: “Because I am truly your compassionate mother, and of all the other people of different ancestries, those who love me, those who cry to me, those who seek me, those who trust in me, because there I will listen to their weeping, their sadness, to remedy, to cleanse and nurse all their different troubles, their miseries, their suffering” (Nican Mopohua).

Let us listen to these words that Mary of Guadalupe says to us and let us work together for unity, peace, the good of each and everyone. Let us embrace each other as brothers and sisters to build a great nation, reconciling with each other; let love and truth reign in our families, in our society, in our country, all over the world, and let the message of the Virgin of Guadalupe be one of hope and universal respect.

Margarita Iturbide (PQF translation from  Spanish original.)

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