Our Lady of Guadalupe and St. Luke

It is reported that St. Luke the Evangelist carved the statue. Pope Gregory I then gave it to Saint Leander, then archbishop of Seville. Local legend attests that Seville was taken by the Moors in 712, and a group of priests buried the statue in the hills near the Guadalupe River in Extremadura. In the early 14th century, Gil Cordero, a humble man and cowboy was visited by the Virgin Mary while he was searching for a missing animal in the mountains. Cordero claimed that in the apparition, the Virgin Mary directed him to ask priests to dig where she appeared. The priests rediscovered the statue which has been buried for 600 some years. In time a small shrine was built on the spot which became the great Guadalupe monastery. The statue of Guadalupe is carved out of cedar and is just over two feet in height. It is a Black Madonna, in the style known as "Sedes Sapientiae" or "Throne of Wisdom", with the Christ Child seated on Mary's lap. The wooden statue has been clothed in gold brocaded robes since the second half of the 14th century, allowing only her face and hands to be seen. The ornate dress she wears is meant to highlight the wisdom and power of her humble origins.  “God has looked with favor on the lowliness of His servant.”

Our Lady of Guadalupe crosses time and space with the goal of bringing all peoples to Her Son. She is a bridge builder between and among all races, languages and cultures, reminding us of the common dignity of all. This origin story of Our Lady in Spain in no way diminishes the importance and singular grace of the events of 1531 on the hill of Tepeyac. History will always echo the words of Pope Benedict XIV  “To no other nation has such a wonder been done.” Witnessed by the conversion of 10 million souls in 10 years and remains the largest evangelizing event in human history. Further, “The appearance of Mary to the native Juan Diego on the hill of Tepeyac in 1531 had a decisive effect on evangelization. Its influence greatly overflows the boundaries of Mexico, spreading to the whole continent. America, which historically has been, and still is, a melting pot of peoples, has recognized in the mestiza face of the Virgin of Tepeyac, ‘in Blessed Mary of Guadalupe, an impressive example of a perfectly inculturated evangelization.” (Pope John Paul II, 1999). Given human history and our nation’s history, a devotion to Our Lady of Guadalupe is need by all. We must free the devotion of Our Lady of Guadalupe to a single nation. The power this devotion this lives in our eyes. Like the eyes on the image on the Tilma, we must see learn to Christ in all.