BIOGRAPHY OF JUAN DIEGO AND INFORMATION ON SHRINE OF GUADALUPE

VATICAN CITY, JUL 31, 2002 (VIS) - Blessed Juan Diego Cuauhtlatoatzin whom John Paul II will canonize in the shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe was an Indian born in 1474. The name Cuautlatoatzin means 'eagle that speaks.'

Although he was not a slave and owned land on which he built a house, he had humble origins. He was a farmer and made blankets to sell.
After Brother Toribio de Benavente preached among the Indians, Cuauhtlatoatzin converted to Christianity along with his wife between 1524 and 1525. He then took the name Juan Diego and his wife Maria Lucia; when she died in 1529, he moved with his uncle Juan Bernardino to Tolpetlac, located 14 kilometers from the church of Tlatilolco in Tenochtitlan.

On December 9, 1531, during one of his journeys by foot, crossing forests and villages to go from his house to Tenochtitlan, the Virgin Mary appeared to him for the first time, speaking to him in his native nahuatl in a place now known as 'Chapel of the Little Hill.' Our Lady asked him to build in the same place a church in her honor in order to be able to give her love, help and compassion to men and women. At the Virgin's request, Juan Diego informed the bishop who did not believe him unless he brought him proof.

Three days later, the Virgin appeared to the Indian again and told him to go up to the summit of Mt. Tepeyac where he would find roses from Castilla which did not grow on the mountain, and to bring them to the bishop. When Juan Diego opened out before the prelate the cloak in which he had put the roses, there was an image of Our Lady miraculously impressed in it. It is the same image that has been venerated for almost 500 years later in the shrine of Guadalupe.

Juan Diego died in 1548 at 74 years of age and has become one of the most popular subjects of devotion in all of Latin America. In 1737, the Virgin of Guadalupe was proclaimed Patron of Mexico and in 1910 Patron of the Americas. In 1935, the Phillipines also proclaimed her their patron. John Paul II elevated Juan Diego to the altars in 1990.

The present shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe is located 15 kilometers from Mexico City in the same place where the old basilica was constructed in the 16th century and used until the middle of the 20th century. When the foundations of the basilica gave in, posing a danger to the faithful, the Mexican Episcopal Conference decided to start the construction of a new basilica. The first stone was set in place on December 12, 1974 and the complex, the work of architect Pedro Ramirez Vasquez, was inaugurated two years later.

Our Lady of Guadalupe today is the biggest and most visited Marian shrines in the world; each year 20 million pilgrims visit it. From the outside, it looks like a circular tent in the desert, in memory of the tabernacle of Moses at the foot of Mt. Sinai, and is lined with dark green copper sheets of (the color of the Virgin's cloak). The inside of the church is covered in Canadian pine (6,000 square meters), the floor is made of Mexican marble and in the central column, lined with planks of cedar covered in sheets of gold, lies a fragment of Juan Diego's cloak with the image of Our Lady.

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POPE RECALLS THAT HE BEGAN HIS TRAVELLING APOSTOLATE IN MEXICO

VATICAN CITY, JUL 30, 2002 (VIS) - After a brief farewell ceremony, John Paul II departed at 4:30 p.m. local time (12:30 a.m. on Wednesday July 31, Rome time) from the international airport in Guatemala City for Mexico City where he landed approximately 2 hours later after covering 1,050 kilometers.

At 7:30 p.m. local time (2:30 a.m. on Wednesday July 31, Rome time), the Pope arrived at the airport in Mexico City where he was received by the president of the republic, Vicente Fox, and by political and civil authorities, and representatives from the diplomatic corp. The archbishop of Mexico City, Cardinal Norberto Rivera Carrera, archbishop of Guadalajara, Cardinal Juan Sandoval Iniguez, archbishop of Monterrey, Cardinal Adolfo Antonio Suarez Rivera and Archbishop Luis Morales Reyes of Potosi, president of the Mexican Episcopal Conference, also participated in the welcome ceremony. It is the fifth time that John Paul II has visited Mexico. His previous trips were in 1979, 1990, 1993 and 1999.

The Holy Father addressed those present recalling that in their "hospitable land" he had begun his "travelling apostolate that ... has brought me to so many parts of the world, drawing me near to many men and women to confirm them in the faith of Jesus Christ, Savior."

Afterward, John Paul made reference to the new saints and blesseds of the Latin American continent, Pedro de San Jose Betancur, Juan Diego, Juan Bautista and Jacinto de los Angeles who "join in this way," he explained, "the beautiful examples of holiness in these beautiful American lands, where the Christian message has been welcomed with an open heart, has permeated its cultures and has reaped abundant fruits."

At the end, the Pope thanked Mexicans for their "constant affection" and their "faithfulness to the Church" and he added: "I bless each one of you from my heart in the way that your forefathers used to bless their loved ones; 'May God make you like Juan Diego.'"

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CANONIZATION OF BLESSED PEDRO DE SAN JOSE BETANCUR

VATICAN CITY, JUL 30, 2002 (VIS) - John Paul II presided this morning at 9 a.m. local time (5 p.m. Rome time) in the South Hippodrome at the Eucharistic celebration during which he canonized Brother Pedro de San Jose Betancur. Cardinals, bishops and priests from Tenerife, Guatemala and other Central American countries concelebrated with the Holy Father in memory of the old kingdom of Guatemala which during the life of the new saint used to include all the states in Central America. More than 700,000 people attended the ceremony.

The Holy Father began his homily by affirming: "As I inscribe Brother Pedro de Betancur in the catalogue of saints, I do it convinced of the current value of his message. The new saint, with the unique equipment of his faith and his trust in God, crossed the Atlantic to attend to the poor and indigenous of America: ... Cuba ... Honduras ... Guatemala."

Afterward, the Pope greeted participants in the canonization, from Archbishop Rodolfo Quezada Toruno of Guatemala City to political, civil and religious representatives and he added: "I also wish to express my appreciation and closeness to the many indigenous people. The Pope does not forget you and, admiring the values of your cultures, he encourages you to overcome with hope the sometimes difficult situations you experience ... You deserve respect and have the right to realize yourselves fully in justice, integral development and peace."

John Paul II underlined that the new saint "was a man of deep prayer. For this reason, he is an example for all Christians of today whom he reminds that to be a saint 'a christianity that distinguishes itself above all in the art of prayer is necessary.'"

Subsequently, referring to the psalm prayed in the Mass in which it is affirmed that divine justice exists throughout the ages, he exclaimed: "Justice that endures is that which is practiced with humility, sharing cordially good fortune with your brothers, spreading the spirit of forgiveness and mercy everywhere."

"Pedro de Betancur," he explained, "stood out precisely because he practiced mercy with a humble spirit and an austere life. ... He was truly brother to everyone who lives in misfortune and he devoted himself to his salvation with affection and intense love."

"The new saint is also an urgent call today to practice mercy in modern society, above all when there are so many who are waiting for a hand outstretched to help them. Let us think about children and young people without a home or an education; abandoned women with many needs to meet; the multitude of outcasts in the cities; the victims of organized crime, prostitution or drugs; the sick who are unattended or the elderly who live alone."
At the end of the Mass, the mayor of Guatemala City and two representatives of the city gave the Pope the keys to Old Guatemala, the place where St. Pedro de San Jose Betancur lived and died.

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JUAN DIEGO: FIRST INDIGENOUS SAINT OF THE AMERICAN CONTINENT

VATICAN CITY, JUL 31, 2002 (VIS) - Today John Paul II canonized Blessed Juan Diego Cuauhtlatoatzin, who became the first indigenous saint from the American continent, in the basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe.

Several cardinals and Mexican bishops from America, the Philipines and other places attended the ceremony, as well as the president of the republic, Vicente Fox and civil authorities. There were also many indigenous people who came from different regions in the country, representatives of Mexico's many ethnicities and cultures.

In addition to the 12,000 people that packed the basilica, another 30,000 followed the canonization from the square outside thanks to giant screens.

In the homily, the Pope affirmed that Juan Diego was "the simple and humble Indian who contemplated the sweet and serene face of the Virgin of Tepeyac, so dear to the peoples of Mexico."

He continued: "In accepting the Christian message without forgoing his indigenous identity, Juan Diego discovered the profound truth of the new humanity, in which all are called to be children of God. Thus he facilitated the fruitful meeting of two worlds and became the catalyst for the new Mexican identity, closely united to Our Lady of Guadalupe, whose mestizo face expresses her spiritual motherhood which embraces all Mexicans. This is why the witness of his life must continue to be the inspiration for the building up of the Mexican nation, encouraging brotherhood among all its children and ever helping to reconcile Mexico with its origins, values and traditions."

The Holy Father emphasized that "the noble task of building a better Mexico, with greater justice and solidarity, demands the cooperation of all. In particular, it is necessary today to support the indigenous peoples in their legitimate aspirations, respecting and defending the authentic values of each ethnic group. Mexico needs its indigenous peoples and these peoples need Mexico!"

"At this decisive moment in Mexico's history, having already crossed the threshold of the new millennium, I entrust to the powerful intercession of Saint Juan Diego the joys and hopes, the fears and anxieties of the beloved Mexican people, whom I carry in my heart. Blessed Juan Diego, a good, Christian Indian," he concluded, "whom simple people have always considered a saint! We ask you to accompany the Church on her pilgrimage in Mexico, so that she may be more evangelizing and more missionary each day."

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OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

VATICAN CITY, JUL 31, 2002 (VIS) - The Holy Father accepted the resignation from the office of Auxiliary of the archdiocese of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, presented by Bishop Francisco Jose Arnaiz Zarandona, S.J., upon having reached the age limit.

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