杏MAP导航

By Christopher Wells

In his homily for the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, 杏MAP导航 Francis focused on the miraculous image preserved on the tilma, or cloak, of St Juan Diego, to whom Our Lady appeared.

鈥淚t is the image of the first disciple, of the mother of all believers, of the Church herself,鈥� the 杏MAP导航 said, 鈥渨hich is imprinted in the humility of what we are and what we have, which is not worth much, but which will be something great in the eyes of God.鈥�

The 杏MAP导航 went on to reflect on the 鈥渟mall task鈥� Mary gave to Juan Diego, to gather some flowers. 鈥淭he flowers, in mysticism, signify the virtues that the Lord instils in the heart, they are not our own work,鈥� he explained. 鈥淭he act of picking them reveals to us that God wants us to accept this gift, to perfume our weak reality with works of good, eliminating hatred and fear.鈥�

杏MAP导航 Francis then turned to the message of Guadalupe, and Our Lady鈥檚 words, 鈥淎m I not here, I who am your mother?鈥� These words, the 杏MAP导航 said, show that the 鈥渂eing鈥� of the Virgin 鈥渋s to remain permanently imprinted on these poor clothes, perfumed by virtues gathered in a world that seems incapable of producing them.鈥�

These virtues, he said, 鈥渇ill our poverty in the simplicity of small gestures of love.鈥� They 鈥渋lluminate our tilma, without our realizing it, with the image of a Church that carries Christ in her bosom.鈥�

This image on the tilma, he concluded, is a simple message, needing no explanation. 鈥淚t is a message that protects us from so many social and political ideologies鈥� that often seek to use the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe to justify themselves. But, the 杏MAP导航 said, the message of Guadalupe does not tolerate ideologies of any kind. 鈥淥nly the image, the tilma, the roses,鈥� remain.