Juan Diego Cuāuhtlahtoātzin | |
|---|---|
 Saint Juan Diego by Miguel Cabrera, 1752 | |
| Born | Juan Diego Cuāuhtlahtoātzin 1474 Cuauhtitlán, Tenochtitlan, Aztec Empire (located in modern Mexico) |
| Died | 1548 (aged 73–74) Tepeyac, Mexico City, New Spain (located in modern Mexico) |
| Venerated in | Roman Catholic Church |
| Beatified | May 6, 1990, Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Mexico City by Pope John Paul II |
| Canonized | July 31, 2002, Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Mexico City by Pope John Paul II |
| Major shrine | Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe |
| Feast | December 9 |
| Attributes | Tilma with the impressed image of the Virgin Mary, roses |
| Patronage | Indigenous peoples |
Juan Diego Cuauhtlatoatzin,[a] also known simply as Juan Diego (Spanish pronunciation: [ˌxwanˈdjeɣo]; 1474–1548), was a Nahua peasant and Marian visionary. He is said to have been granted apparitions of Our Lady of Guadalupe on four occasions in December 1531: three at the hill of Tepeyac and a fourth before don Juan de Zumárraga, then the first bishop of Mexico. The Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe, located at the foot of Tepeyac, houses the cloak (tilmahtli) that is traditionally said to be Juan Diego's, and upon which the image of the Virgin is said to have been miraculously impressed as proof of the authenticity of the apparitions.
Juan Diego's visions and the imparting of the miraculous image, as recounted in oral and written colonial sources such as the Huei tlamahuiçoltica, are together known as the Guadalupe event (Spanish: el acontecimiento Guadalupano), and are the basis of the veneration of Our Lady of Guadalupe. This veneration is ubiquitous in Mexico, prevalent throughout the Spanish-speaking Americas, and increasingly widespread beyond.[b] As a result, the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe is now one of the world's major Christian pilgrimage destinations, receiving 22 million visitors in 2010.[4][c]
Juan Diego is the first Catholic saint indigenous to the Americas.[d] He was beatified in 1990 and canonized in 2002[8] by Pope John Paul II, who on both occasions traveled to Mexico City to preside over the ceremonies.
- ^ Biographical Note Vatican Information Service, July 31, 2002.
- ^ John Paul II, homily at the canonization Mass, 31 July 2002.
- ^ Archdiocesan Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe declared National Shrine, website of Archdiocese of Manila.
- ^ Guadalupe Shrine Hosts 6M for Feastday Weekend Archived 2012-09-27 at the Wayback Machine, Zenit news agency, December 13, 2010.
- ^ Pilgrims to Rome Break Records in Year 2000, Zenit news agency, January 1, 2001
- ^ Vatican puts a squeeze on visitors, The Times online, January 6, 2007.
- ^ Benedict XVI to Join Celebrations at Lourdes, Zenit news agency, November 13, 2007.
- ^ Saragoza, Alex (2012). Mexico Today: An Encyclopedia of Life in the Republic. ABC-CLIO. p. 95. ISBN 978-0-313-34948-5.
Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).