Guadalupe.....

According to tradition, Juan Diego, a simple indigenous peasant, saw a vision of a young woman on December 9, 1531, while he was on the hill of Tepeyac near Mexico City,Mexico. He told the local bishop, who asked for some proof. Three days later, the image of Mary appeared miraculously on his cloak when he was showing it to the bishop. Today the cloak is displayed in the Basilica of Guadalupe nearby, one of the most visited Catholic shrines in the world.^[1] The Virgin of Guadalupe is Mexico's most popular religious and cultural image, with the titles "Queen of Mexico",^[2] "Empress of the Americas",^[3] and "Patroness of the Americas";^[4] both Miguel Hidalgo (in the Mexican War of Independence) and Emiliano Zapata (during the Mexican Revolution) carried flagsbearing the Our Lady of Guadalupe, and Guadalupe Victoria, the first Mexican presidentchanged his name in honor of the icon.

Dec. 12 is tomorrow, so the church is ready, there are Guadalupe statues all over town, and tonight a little group of dedicated followers came through town led by a wee girl with a flame. They got to the church, ready to go in, but alas, there was a wedding just ending, so they had to wait outside for the wedding party to move off.