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Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe
Zechariah 2:14-17 or Revelation 11:19A; 12:1-6A, 10AB
Judith 13:18BCDE, 19
Luke 1:26-38 or 1:39-47
Summary
While the Gospel includes the beginning of the very beautiful Magnificat, “My
soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord…,” it is the first reading from Zechariah
that, to me, proclaims the essence of this feast day,“
Sing and rejoice, O daughter
Zion! See, I am coming to dwell among you, says the LORD. Many nations shall
join themselves to the LORD on that day, and they shall be his people, and he
will dwell among you, and you shall know that the LORD of hosts has sent me
to you.”
Reflection
It is a curiosity for many first-time visitors
to our home to find images of Our Lady
of Guadalupe. (After all, our roots are Ital-
ian and Irish.) The images were gifts from
people whose friendships we hold dear,
and my favorite is displayed prominently
by the fireplace in our living room. For
me, this simple plaster garden statue is a
reminder of the message of theVirgin of
Guadalupe that has resonated with me
since I first learned her story 25 years ago.
That message has little to do with bishops
or roses or basilicas although I respect
those whose faith is enriched by these as-
pects of the story. For me, it is about the
young Aztec princess wearing a symbol of
her pregnancy who spoke to Juan Diego in
his native
language,
Nahuatl,
forbidden
by the Spanish conquerors. She said to him,“I
am your mother.” Clearly, this was the mother
of Jesus, but instead of the young Middle East-
ern Jewish girl from Nazareth, she was anAztec.