Our Lady of Guadalupe and the Aztec Influence
Dec 2, 2010 Michael Streich
Tepeyac is a hill near Mexico City, identified with the Catholic shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe, the patron saint of the Americas. It was here, in the early hours of December 9, 1531, that a simple Mexican peasant Juan Diego first encountered an apparition that was later confirmed by the Catholic Church to be the Virgin Mary. But Tepeyac was also dedicated to the Mesoamerican mother goddess Tonantzin, and these pre-Christian Aztec associations parallel the Catholic version.
The Catholic Church in New Spain and the Desire to Convert Indians
Historians often use the phrase “God, gold, and glory” to characterize the motives of early Spanish conquistadors in the Americas. Surviving documents of officially sanctioned excursions into the hinterlands include precise listings of the numbers of priests and friars that were to accompany such adventures in order to convert native peoples.
In the process, particularly in Central and South America, the Church built upon already existing beliefs, much like Catholic missionaries during the Middle Ages in their efforts to convert Europeans following Pagan cultures.
In Europe, communities accepted the new faith but clung to their ancient superstitions, many of which made their way into such Christian holidays as Christmas, Halloween, and Easter.
In the Americas, the association with the ancient beliefs, including gods and goddesses, was deeper and frequently practiced underground. This was one cause of the 1680 Pueblo Revolt, led by an Indian shaman named Popé.
Juan Diego and the Marian Apparition of 1531
It's believed that Juan Diego, a simple peasant in his fifties, was drawn to the Tepeyac hill on the morning of December 9, 1531 by the sounds of a chant or singing. Secular sources indicate a chant while Church sources speak of singing. Diego was met by a teenage girl dressed as an Indian, claiming to be the Virgin Mary.
Diego was unable to convince the local Catholic bishop, Don Fray Zumarraga.
The apparition appeared to Diego on several other occasions and even appeared to his dying uncle Juan Bernardino, healing him. During the last encounter, the apparition tied a cloak around Diego’s neck which contained roses (not in season) as well as her image on the cloth. This finally convinced the bishop.
There is no written account from Bishop Zumarraga about these events. The earliest written records of the 1531 events date to 1648. No historical evidence exists attesting to the existence of Juan Diego.
Our Lady of Guadalupe Linked to Estremadura in Spain
Hernan Cortes, the conquistador who conquered the Aztecs in Mexico, was born near the Spanish shrine known as Our Lady of Guadalupe in Estremadura, Spain. Several other New World conquistadors came from the same region. The shrine, one of the most popular in Spain, is associated with a Marian apparition very similar to the one at Tepeyac in Mexico.
According to a study by Jacques LaFaye (Quetzalcoatl and Guadalupe: The Formation of National Consciousness, Chicago University Press, 1976), several distinct parallels exist between the two apparitions.
Both took place on a hill and both involved a poor peasant who had a close relative or family member cured. In both cases, the apparition referred to herself as the Virgin Mary, requesting that a shrine be built at the hill.
The shrine at Tepeyac was built over the ruins of a temple or pyramid dedicated to Cihuacoatl, personified by Tonantzin, the Aztec mother goddess. Originally, according to written accounts, it housed a statue of Mary encrusted with gold and silver. This was later replaced with the cloth bearing the image Juan Diego had shown his bishop.
Secular Versus Devotional Interpretations of Our Lady of Guadalupe
The devotional interpretation speaks for itself and draws nearly fifteen million visitors to the shrine every year. The shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe has been called the “Lourdes” of the Americas.
From a secular and an historical perspective, however, Guadalupe represents an attempt to fuse ancient pre-Christian religious structures with Catholicism. Although the evidence is somewhat speculative, it is compelling, even to strict believers.
Shrines to Our Lady of Guadalupe, popularized by the Estremadura shrine in Spain, were constructed throughout New Spain. In Mexico, it was well known that Aztec artists were gifted at painting images on cloth. The tying of the cloak around Diego’s neck was a part of traditional Aztec marriage ceremonies.
Historian Jonathan Norton Leonard argues that, “Providing a quasi-religion for the Indians was easier than devising an efficient government for them.” This fits the historical pattern utilized by the Catholic Church in Europe as well as later Catholic missions in Asia.
The Feast Day of Our Lady of Guadalupe on December 12
In 1476, the Catholic Church universalized the important feast day of the Immaculate Conception. In the New World, according to Sociology Professor Michael P. Carroll, the Immaculate Conception was celebrated from December 8th through the 17th.
The December 8th day, one day before Diego’s first encounter, was proclaimed as the official feast day of the Immaculate Conception in 1854 by Pope Pius IX, although church tradition had celebrated this day for centuries.
Juan Diego’s experiences at Tepeyac provided a further basis for fusion of ancient beliefs with Catholic practices. Out of that endeavor, a Marian cult emerged around the hill outside of Mexico City.
Sources:
- Michael P. Carroll, The Cult of the Virgin Mary: Psychological Origins (Princeton University Press, 1986).
- Jonathan Norton Leonard, Ancient America (Time Inc., 1967).
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