December 12th is the Feast Day of Our Lady of Guadalupe (the “Virgin of Guadalupe”). It commemorates the 16th century vision of Mary that came to the native American man Cuauhtlatohuac (whose baptismal name was Juan Diego) on a hill in Mexico named Tepeyac. He claimed Mary visited him and when he appeared to the bishop who had asked for a sign he opened his cape and rose petals fell out forming the image of the Virgin.

This appearance and its validation is extremely important to the Mexican people in particular. It validated that God was the God of all people, including the native people of Mexico. In the face of Spanish colonization this affirmation of their humanness in the eyes of God was critical. As a result the festival of the Virgin of Guadalupe is a vital festival in the piety of Mexican and Mexican-American people and many of our Latinx congregations as well.

Several of our congregations commemorated this festival this past weekend. In particular I have attached flyers from Adviento, Arlington and San Gabriel, Alvarado. Last year I was honored to lead the San Gabriel procession on horseback. I am sure all our congregations celebrating this festival would welcome you to participate in this and also as we begin the season of Posadas. A wonderful way to combine our shared faith and learn about the cultures of our diverse NT-NL Synod, ELCA communities. #NTNL #AdvientoArlington #SanGabrielAlvarado #InMissionTogether