Our Lady of Guadalupe

The legendary creation story is one of the most widely known examples of the divine selection narrative in South America. The Virgins appearance before a native man and his subsequent struggle to enact her will despite the obstacles of his uncle’s ill health and a skeptical bishop are only overcome by the miraculous gift of her image. This example of Nativeization uses a common trope of European cults of Mary, that of an otherwise unimportant local person being selected to act as a holy representative. The image of Lady of Guadalupe’s legendary origin is a nativized retelling of a classic Catholic tale. The basilica where the image is held has since become the most visited site of Catholic pilgrimage in the world and a world-renowned symbol of Mexican Catholicism.

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Our Mother of Guadalupe

Saint Juan Diego

December 12th 1531

Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Tepeyac Hill, Mexico City, Mexico