Thread: Mexican icon blossoms in US

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Mexican icon blossoms in U.S.
Immigrant faithful's devotion to the Virgin of Guadalupe has inspired interest in her beyond her Catholic roots
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By Margaret Ramirez
Tribune religion reporter

December 10, 2006

For Catalina Andrade, devotion to the Virgin of Guadalupe means waking before sunrise for the first 12 days of December to attend the 5 a.m. mass known as Las Mananitas. At St. Agnes of Bohemia Church in Little Village, she crosses herself and kneels each morning before the brown-skinned image of Mary that hangs above the altar.

"For me and all Mexicans, she is our mother. Ever since I was a young girl, she has taken care of me. When my children became sick, I prayed to her," Andrade said. "Talk to her. She listens."

Esperanza Gama also was raised to see the Virgin as a maternal figure, but the Mexican-born artist now takes a different view. A single mother, Gama sees Guadalupe as a feminist icon, a woman who refused to give up on her goal to have a church built in her honor.

"I know her now better than before," said Gama, who recently completed a multimedia exhibition on Guadalupe. "She represents strength, a strong woman who knows what she wants. A strong mother who takes care of her children."

As Roman Catholics mark the 475th anniversary Tuesday of Guadalupe's appearance to a Mexican Indian named Juan Diego, the Virgin's image and the immense devotion surrounding her continues to fascinate and expand into new areas.

Mexican immigrants long have carried their extraordinary devotion to the Virgin with them as they came to the U.S. and settled in new homes. She is a common sight in Mexican-American neighborhoods, a protector painted on street murals and tattooed on the arms of young Latino men.

In recent years, though, Guadalupe's ubiquitous image, her recognition by the late Pope John Paul II as Mother of the Americas and the canonization of Juan Diego in 2002 have brought her many new followers.

Like few other Catholic figures, Guadalupe has spread beyond her ethnic and religious origins, attracting non-Latino Catholics as well as Protestants and even some Jewish women who find her empowering. Earlier this year, she emerged as a symbol of justice for immigrants as her image dominated nationwide protests over immigration.

Artists are depicting different aspects of Guadalupe in exhibitions, music, theater and film, including a new movie called "Guadalupe," which opened Friday in Mexico and parts of the U.S., including Chicago. In Los Angeles, huge billboards advertise a new Spanish-language Catholic radio station called Guadalupe Radio.



A growing field of study

Academically, "there has been this explosion of Guadalupe studies in art, literature, theology and history," said Timothy Matovina, professor of theology at the University of Notre Dame. Last month, dozens of Guadalupe experts, including theologians, historians, anthropologists and artists, gathered at the university to explore her significance.

Religious scholars say her following has spread partly as a result of her mysterious story, which can be embraced at many different levels. For women, Guadalupe is seen as the female face of God and a source of empowerment. Men may see her as a mother figure but also relate to Juan Diego, inspired by the Virgin choosing a poor man to hear her message.

Some see in her an evangelizing instrument helping to spread God's word. Others view the Virgin as a force that can unite different people and classes, noting that the dialogue between Juan Diego and the bishop who initially doubted him brought together oppressed Indians and conquering Europeans.

Rev. Virgilio Elizondo, an internationally renowned Guadalupe expert and theology professor at Notre Dame, said he has spoken to Canadians who view Guadalupe as a unifying figure for the country.

For the devout, the core reason for her endurance is profound faith that she comforts and heals.

"You have millions and millions of testimonies of people handing down stories ... from mother to daughter, grandmother to grandson and so on, saying, `This is what Guadalupe did for me,'" Matovina said. "It's a massive network of relationships or testimonials that's been going on for almost five centuries now."

Rev. Matthew Foley, pastor of St. Agnes of Bohemia, said the immense faith surrounding Guadalupe has transformed the Catholic Church in the United States. Foley's is one of the only parishes in Chicago that adheres to the Mexican religious tradition of holding the Mananitas services for 12 consecutive days.

"She's part of the Mexican identity, and she keeps getting stronger with the constant influx of new immigrants," Foley said. "Just look at how huge her feast has grown. All Catholic churches celebrate it now. I even know some Irish and German churches that celebrate the day because they're just so attracted to her story."

The appearance of the Virgin is recorded in a poem written in the Indian language of Nahuatl. According to the story, on Dec. 9, 1531, the Virgin Mary appeared to Juan Diego at Tepeyac, a hill outside Mexico City, and asked him to build a church for her.



First look at a lasting image

Three days later, the Virgin told Juan Diego to gather roses from the top of the barren, cactus-covered hill and bring them to the bishop as a sign. When he presented them wrapped in his tilma, or cloak, the roses fell to the floor, revealing an image of the Virgin on the fabric. The cloak, with the stunning image of the dark-skinned Virgin wearing a turquoise veil studded with gold stars, is preserved at the Basilica of Guadalupe in Mexico City.

For many believers, the most touching part of the story comes as Juan Diego, in search of a priest to administer last rites to his dying uncle, tries to avoid the Virgin by walking around the hill. She tells him not to fear sickness and says, "No estoy yo aqui, que soy tu madre?"--"Am I not here, your mother?"

The image on the cloak has become so popular that it is printed on everything from key chains to calling cards, drawing objections that it is being commercialized. Elizondo said he thinks more people ultimately learn her story as a result.

"People see it in so many places. Then they start asking, what's going on?" he said.

"That's the power of the symbol. Just like the crucifix. You can read all the books about the crucifixion, but just the sight of it is still more powerful than all the knowledge of it. Yet, the knowledge opens up behind the symbol. I see all this as something beautiful."



Fears of commercialization

Not everyone is thrilled about the Guadalupe mania. As Guadalupe statues and shrines secure spaces in Catholic churches, other immigrant groups argue that their patron saints should receive similar treatment. Some churches have begun to mark other Latin American celebrations, including those for Puerto Rico's Virgin of Divine Providence, Cuba's Virgin de la Caridad del Cobre and Dominican Republic's Altagracia.

Some Protestant churches also have frowned on "La Lupe." In Chicago, a Methodist church welcomed Guadalupe into its sanctuary to see many of its founding members leave in protest.

But in Catholic churches, the Dec. 12 celebrations still draw the largest turnout of any of the Virgin holy days. In the Chicago area, the grandest celebration occurs at Our Lady of Guadalupe Chapel in Des Plaines, where services begin at midnight and continue throughout the next day.

After the celebrations are over, devotees of Guadalupe continue praying to her daily, seeking guidance and consolation in their lives. Gama, the artist, said she wants to use her art as a vehicle to teach her 8-year-old son, Alan, about the power of Guadalupe.

"I learned about her in Mexico, where you find Guadalupe shrines in the corner of markets in the subways. Over there, it is very deep," she said. "But here in the States, it's different."

Gama said she learned from Guadalupe that people need to persevere to achieve their dreams.

"My grandmother taught me one way, and I'm teaching him another way," she said. "It doesn't matter how we teach Guadalupe; it's just a message that has to be carried on."

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maramirez@tribune.com
Copyright © 2006, Chicago Tribune

Yep. My paper served up a heaping helping of "Our Lady" yesterday in it's dedicated and ongoing effort to teach us about "immigrant" culture. It even listed a bunch of churches that would be holding OLOG services Dec. 12 and urged us to join our "immigrant" brothers and sisters in worship.

Um, no thanks......

It is not right to change our existing culture and beliefs to accomodate a new influx of people. Since I have to live with the change for now, I am just grateful that they are Christian changes and not Muslim. It seems like both snuck up on us and will only get worse.