An Unlikely Choice

Today's saint, by his on admonition, was not the person for the task that was set before him.  However, God does not always see us the way that we see ourselves.  Furthermore, Mary chose him because of his humility for the task at hand.

These little saints were painted by other moms
during our Lenten saint exchange

St. Juan Diego

Feast day: December 9
Birth: 1474
Death: 1548
Patron of Mexico

Juan was a faithful convert from the pagan faith of the region in Mexico.  He was devoted to daily Mass and was on his way to Mass when he was greeted by a beautiful lady who asked a favor of him.  I will speak of this experience in further detail on the feast this weekend.  However, it is easy to see from this story why the Church looks to Juan Diego as a person who can inspire us in our own journey.

Juan lived a humble life with few extras and he was given the gift of humility as he lived this life.  In the story we will see that he did not consider himself worthy to take the message of the Lady to the bishop.  He told the Lady, "I am a nobody, I am a small rope, a tiny ladder, the tail end, a leaf."

We will also see that he was patient as he tried to convince the bishop of her message.

Later in the story we will see that he was also kind and loving.  He would go around the needs of the Lady to help his uncle who was dying.  However, once he knew that his uncle would be healed, he continued with her plan out of obedience to her.

Juan Diego deeply loved the Holy Eucharist, and by special permission of the Bishop he received Holy Communion three times a week, a highly unusual occurrence in those times.

With the Bishop's permission, Juan Diego lived the rest of his life as a hermit in a small hut near the chapel where the miraculous image was placed for veneration. Here he cared for the church and the first pilgrims who came to pray to the Mother of Jesus.

He died in 1548 and was buried in the first chapel dedicated to the Virgin of Guadalupe.