Saint Joseph School students in grades kindergarten through eight celebrated the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe on Dec. 12.
Costumed eighth-graders re-enacted the story of Saint Juan Diego, a peasant to whom the Blessed Mother Mary appeared in 1531 in a remote region of Mexico. She appeared as Our Lady of Guadalupe, an Aztec princess with dark skin and native clothing, expectant with Jesus, and requested that Juan Diego go to the archbishop and request that a church be built in her honor on Tepeyac Hill, near Mexico City.
The archbishop did not believe that Mary appeared to a poor man and requested a sign of the Blessed Mother. The saint returned to Tepeyac Hill, where Our Lady of Guadalupe appeared
again, this time instructing him to gather the roses that were miraculously blooming nearby and present them to the archbishop. Juan returned to the archbishop with the roses tucked in the
folds of his cloak. As the roses fell to the ground at the feet of the archbishop, an image of Our Lady of Guadalupe was revealed on the surface of the garment. The archbishop accepted that
as a sign and gave permission to begin building the church.
Today, the basilica is among the most-visited Catholic shrines in the world.
The SJS students sang a traditional folk song titled “La Guadalupana,” and the eighth-graders led students in grades kindergarten through five on mini retreats that included saints bingo,
recitation of the rosary, crafts about Mary and stories about her appearances around the world.
