For Faithful Catholics throughout the world, December 12th is a very special day indeed,  especially to those of us here in the Americas. Our lady of Guadalupe is the first image of our Blessed Mother to be given to the Church in the New World. It is the first image to be venerated and honored  in the Americas.  It was a vital instrument in the conversion of a pagan land. The beautiful image alone, without any other religious instruction, is responsible for the conversion of millions of native people….just by gazing upon the holy and miraculous image… people’s hearts were moved into conversion. There is a simple recognizable Truth that cannot be denied when one contemplates the miraculous details contained within the image. So True are these details, that they could be understood by millions of pagan natives…proving that Our Blessed Mother is a wonder worker in the hearts of man…

Yesterday we read about how the Blessed Mother appeared to a humble Indian, St. Juan Diego during a period of time when so many innocent people were being sacrificed to pagan gods. During the four days that the apparitions occurred, the Blessed Mother left Her image on the cloak or tilma, of the pious saint, so that a Catholic Church would be built in the small town in Mexico.

The image is truly miraculous! It has been studied for hundreds of years… by those who are religious and those who are secular minded. All who study it have been amazed at what they found…it is truly a beautiful work…it has been said that this is the only self portrait of the Blessed Mother...as it was painted by her own hand! There are many wonderful sites out there that go into the great detail about everything that is represented in the image, but below is an overview of the image with several of the more notable facts detailed. Our Lady of Guadalupe….Mother of the Americas…pray for us.