The Apparition of Our Lady of Guadalupe
By Bob and Penny Lord,
Morrilton, AR, U.S.A.
joseph at bobandpennylord com
http://www.bobandpennylord.com/
Copyright В© 2010 Bob and Penny Lord's Site
She
asked him to climb up the hill to the place where they had met previously.
"There you will see many flowers; gather them carefully and
place them together in your tilma; then bring them down and show
them to me."
Juan Diego mumbled under his breath as he climbed the hill. Simple
he might be, but not stupid. Flowers never grew up in that place,
much less at this time of the year. There was frost covering the
ground. How could anything grow up there now? But he was wise enough
not to question the beautiful Lady, so he followed her instructions.
His eyes grew wide as he reached the appointed place. In an area
where previously there had only been thistles, thorny plants, cactus
and mesquite, he saw the most beautiful Castillian roses of assorted
varieties and colors. They were out of season for the most fertile
ground, much less for this barren soil.
He gathered them carefully, and placed them in his tilma (poncho),
being sure not to crush any of them. Then he retraced his steps
to the other side of the hill, where She was waiting for him. The
world's greatest decorator took the flowers from him, and rearranged
them in his tilma. How must Juan Diego have felt having this exquisite
child/woman standing so close to him, actually touching him? There
was a fragrance about her, so much richer than that of the beautiful
roses. It filled his nostrils. He became heady from it. After she
had arranged the flowers to her satisfaction, she instructed him
to close his tilma, so that they could not be seen.
"My little son, these various roses are the sign and proof
that you must take to the bishop. Tell him in my name that they
will make him understand my wish, and he must carry it out. You
are my ambassador. You are most worthy of my confidence. Now, most
important, do not unfold your outer garment or reveal the contents
to ANYONE until you are in the bishop's presence. Tell him everything
I've said to you. You can do it, Juan. I will be with you."
Juan held the flowers close to his chest, being careful not to
bruise them, as he walked towards the city and the bishop's palace.
He repeated the Lady's message over and over as he neared his destination.
He wanted to be sure he didn't forget one word she had said, even
her slightest inflection. He was confident now. He had the sign.
The bishop had to realize that nowhere in the country could he find
roses like these at this time of the year. There was no place they
could have come from, other than Heaven. He would believe that Our
Lady was speaking to him, and everything would be fine.
What he didn't take into consideration was that there would be
two forces working at the bishop's palace that day. Our Lady would
be there, but the evil one would also be in attendance. Satan had
been in control of Mexico for the last ten years. He had good reason
for not wanting this sign to come to the attention of the bishop.
He knew what would happen. So he put all his forces to work around
the residence of the bishop. When Juan arrived at the palace, the
guard refused to let him pass. The servants who had lost him the
other day, came out and began berating him. He just stood there,
his head drooping, not knowing what to do. A long time passed.
The servants realized that Juan was carrying something inside his
tilma. Their curiosity got the best of them. They asked what he
had there. He did not answer them. They crowded around him, demanding
to see what he had inside the cloak. He knew what his instructions
were, but he also knew that this crowd would not be satisfied until
they saw something. So he opened his tilma slightly to show the
roses inside. They marvelled at what they saw. They knew how impossible
it was to have Castillian roses at this time of the year. They wanted
them. They began to grab at the roses. But as they grabbed a rose,
it disappeared, and turned into a painting on the tilma. This shocked
the servants.
They ran to the bishop to tell him what was happening, that Juan
Diego was here with the sign from the Lady. The bishop, believing
that this was important, allowed Juan into his office. The Indian
knelt as before, and repeated the entire story over again. He told
him about the Castillian roses on the hill, and how Our Lady had
arranged them, admonishing Juan that no one should see them before
the bishop. Juan ended his report with the words "RECEIVE THEM".
With that, he opened his tilma, whereupon all the roses cascaded
to the floor.
Juan looked for an expression of surprise and joy from the bishop
as the roses came into his sight. Juan's eyes followed the roses
to the floor, and then looked up at the bishop. He was surprised
to see that the bishop was not looking at the precious roses at
all. Neither was the interpreter, who was standing next to the bishop.
They were both staring intently at Juan Diego's chest.
He watched incredulously as their expressions changed from surprise
to fearsome awe, to exalted reverence. Both men fell to their knees;
tears of joy streamed down their cheeks. Juan looked at the tilma,
to see what the reason was for their bliss. Before their eyes, the
three men saw the image we call Our Lady of Guadalupe take form.
It was not there as the roses first fell out of the tilma. It was
only beginning. In a short period of time, the entire image was
complete, the only true picture we have of the Blessed Virgin, designed
by the Master Designer, and painted with joy by the Angels. In this
glorious moment in time, the destiny of Mexico was altered. Our
Lady had come to the Americas, to change the course of history.
Bob and Penny Lord are renowned Catholic
authors and television hosts on EWTN, Global Catholic television.
They are prolific writers about the Catholic faith, especially the
Saints for which they have been dubbed "experts on the Saints."
For more information about the Apparition of Our Lady of Guadalupe
go to http://www.bobandpennylord.com/yg46.htm
Source: http://www.submityourarticle.com
Permalink: http://www.submityourarticle.com/a.php?a=73476
Re-published from TrueChristianity.info
in October 2012
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