Pope Francis: The image of Our Lady of Guadalupe points us to God

The Virgin Mary teaches us the gift, abundance and blessing of God, Pope Francis said on Saturday on the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe.

“Looking at the image of the Virgin of Guadalupe, we in some way also have a reflection of these three realities: abundance, blessing and gift,” he said in a homily on 12 December.

Pope Francis offered mass in Spanish for a limited number of people in St. Peter's Basilica on the occasion of the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, patroness of the Americas and the unborn.

Mary is "blessed" among women, the pope noted, and the vase that brought us the gift of Jesus.

God is "Blessed by nature" and she is "Blessed by grace," she said. "The gift of God was presented to us as a blessing, in the Blessed by nature and in the Blessed by grace."

"This is the gift that God presents to us and that he has always wanted to underline, to awaken throughout the Apocalypse", the pope continued. "'Blessed are you among women', because you brought us the Blessed One."

The Virgin of Guadalupe appeared in San Juan Diego on Tepeyac Hill in Mexico City in 1531, during a period of conflict between the Spaniards and indigenous peoples.

Mary assumed the guise of a pregnant native woman, wore clothes in the style of the indigenous community, and spoke with Juan Diego in a native language, Nahuatl.

“Looking at the image of our Mother, waiting for the Blessed, full of grace waiting for the Blessed, we understand a little of abundance, of speaking of goodness, of blessing,” Pope Francis said. "We understand the gift."

Our Lady asked Juan Diego to appeal to the bishop to build a church on the site of the apparition, stating that he wanted a place where he could reveal his son's compassion to the people. Initially rejected by the bishop, Diego returned to the site asking the Madonna for a sign to prove the authenticity of her message.

He ordered him to collect the Castilian roses that he found blooming on the hill, despite it being winter, and to present them to the Spanish bishop. Juan Diego filled his cloak - known as a tilma - with flowers. When he presented them to the bishop, he discovered that an image of the Madonna had been miraculously imprinted on his tilma.

Almost 500 years later, Diego's tilma with the miraculous image is kept in the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe and visited by millions of pilgrims every year.

Pope Francis said “contemplating the image of our mother today, we draw from God a little of this style that she has: generosity, abundance, blessing, never curse. And in transforming our life into a gift, a gift for everyone “.

Pope Francis has granted a plenary indulgence to Catholics who celebrate the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe at home this Saturday.

Cardinal Carlos Aguiar Retes announced the pope's decision following a December 6 mass at the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City, and in a December 7 letter he provided details on how to obtain the indulgence.

First, Catholics must prepare a home altar or other place of prayer in honor of Our Lady of Guadalupe.

Second, they must watch a mass broadcasted on stream or televised from the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City on December 12 "with devotion and exclusive attention to the Eucharist."

Third, they must meet the three usual conditions for receiving a plenary indulgence - sacramental confession, reception of Holy Communion, and prayer for the Pope's intentions - once it is possible to do so.