1. Our Lady of Guadalupe, or the Virgen de Guadalupe, is the patron saint of Mexico.
2. She is credited with bringing blessings and miracles to people around the world.
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3. The story of Our Lady of Guadalupe began in the 16th century. On December 9, 1531, she appeared as an apparition of the Virgin Mary to a humble peasant named Juan Diego. She gave him a message for the local bishop: Build a temple on the hillside where she appeared. so she would have a place to hear petitions and provide miracles.
4. As the story goes, the bishop didn’t believe Juan and told him he must provide a sign. The Virgen de Guadalupe appeared again to Juan on December 12 and told him to pick roses on the hillside and show them to the bishop.
5. Juan wrapped the roses in his cloak and returned to the bishop later that day. When he opened his cloak, the roses spilled out, revealing an apparition of Mary exactly as she had appeared to Juan, her hands folded in prayer.
6. The same day, the lady appeared to Juan’s uncle. She told Juan Bernadino she wants to be known as "Santa Maria, de Guadalupe."
7. The temple was built on that same hillside and is one of the most visited Catholic shrines in the world. Millions of Catholics have made pilgrimages to the suburb of Mexico City to pray for miracles and see Juan’s cloak with the apparition miraculously preserved.
8. The day of the Virgen de Guadalupe became a national holiday in Mexico in 1859.
9. On October 12, 1945, Pope Pius XII decreed Our Lady of Guadalupe to be "Patroness of all the Americas."
10. Pope John Paul II canonized Juan Diego in 2002, making him the first indigenous American saint.
11. On December 12, the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe is celebrated with music, flowers and candles.