La Virgen De Guadalupe Essay

On December 8th 1531, La Virgen de Guadalupe appeared to Juan Diego at the top of the Tepeyac hill. Using Nahuatl, Juan Diego’s native language, she asked that a church be erected in her honor. Juan Diego attempted twice to convince Archbishop Juan de Zumarraga (Archbishop of Mexico from 1530-1548) of the apparition of the virgin; as well he attempted to convince the archbishop to build a church to Honor La Virgen de Guadalupe. Unfortunately, his first two attempts were unsuccessful. As a result La Virgen de Guadalupe appeared to Juan Diego Again and made colorful roses blossom in a spot where typically only desert plant grow. Juan Diego proceeded to collect the flowers and place them in his tilma (a type of garment, similar to a cloak, worn …show more content…
For example, La Virgen de Guadalupe is identified as a symbol of Mexican independence. Miguel Hidalgo, used La Virgen as what can be considered to be the first Mexican flag. Prior to his departure from Atotonilco, a church located near present day San Miguel de Allednde, Guanajuato, Miguel Hidalgo took an image of La Virgen and unified the troops through the chant “Viva la Virgen de Guadalupe.” As well, Miguel Hidalgo created what can be considered the first Mexican flag. This flag is known as Estandarte de a Virgen de Guadalupe (The Banner of Our Lady of Guadalupe.) The estandarte was made of linen and it depicts la virgin in the middle surrounded by the words “Viva Maria Sma. De Guadaluple.” Hidalgos’ decision to select La Virgen a central image of the independence movement caused great enthusiasm and unity among the insurgent troops. In addition, in 1813, Jose Maria Morelos wrote in Sentiments of a Nation, a document written with the purpose of manifesting Morelos’ principles for ending the war, as well as with the intent of laying the bases for a future national constitution. In this document, under article nineteen Morelos calls for the establishment of a national holiday to celebrate the patron saint of Mexican liberty. As a result, since 1813, December 12 is celebrated in Mexico as the Day of La Virgen de …show more content…
For instance, during the independence movement, Miguel Hidalgo knew he needed a symbol that unified the very diverse populous of Mexico (indigenous people, mestizos, and criollos.) As a result, Hidalgo chose La Virgen de Guadalupe as the symbol of the independence movement. This is further evidence that the Virgin of Guadalupe has been used throughout history as a symbol of unity for Mexican through turbulent times. However, 18010 was not the last time La Virgen de Guadalupe was used in an attempt to unite citizens for political reasons. Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador founded the MORENA political party in 2012 in an attempt to unify the masses, similar to Hidalgo. There is a unique undertone to the choice of name for the political party, La Virgen de Guadalupe is often referred to as “La Morena” or “La Morenita” (terms often used to refer to a woman with a dark skin complexion.) One can draw a comparison between Miguel Hidalgo using La Virgen as a unifying symbol during the independence movement and Andres Manuel, both used La Virgen, a religious symbols, with the intention of political victory. La Virgen de Guadalupe is also important to the Mexico’s national identity. A popular saying holds that while not all Mexicans are not Catholic, all are guadalupanos (adherents to the Virgin of Guadalupe.) According to a bulletin published by the Universidad Nacional