Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe

Today, we celebrate the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. On December 12, 1531, the Blessed Mother appeared on a hill in Mexico to Juan Diego, an Indian convert to the faith. She left an image of herself on his cloak, which is preserved and on display at the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe, built on the site of the visitation in Mexico. She is the patron saint of the Americas.

We hear again in today’s Gospel the story of the Annunciation, which was also read on the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception. In a sense, this gives us another opportunity in Advent to really consider the significance of the event and dig into more ways we can emulate Mary’s abandonment to God’s will and her complete trust in his plan for her life.

She was trusting enough to ask the question, “How can this be?” And she was brave enough after hearing the answer to say: “May it be done unto me according to your word.”

Can we believe, as Mary did, that even if we are faced with big life changes, challenges, or difficulties, God loves us completely? Can we abandon ourselves to God’s will as she did– come what may?

Try this: Gather the family and celebrate with a Mexican feast to honor Our Lady of Guadalupe! Find hundreds of recipes on Pinterest or other sites online.

In honor of Our Lady of Guadalupe

O our Lady of Guadalupe, mystical rose, make intercession for Holy Church, protect the Pope, help all those who invoke you in their necessities, and since you are the ever-Virgin Mary and Mother of the true God, obtain for us from thy most holy Son the grace of keeping our faith, sweet hope in the midst of the bitterness of life, burning charity and the precious gift of final perseverance. Amen