hymn to our lady of Guadalupe

On December 9, 1531, in Mexico, Our Lady appeared to Juan
Diego, a poor humble Aztec Indian who had recently converted to
the Catholic faith. She asked him to go to the Bishop and tell him
to build a church where she said “I will show and offer all of my
love, my compassion, my help and my protection to my people.”
Juan Diego did as she asked, but the Bishop asked for a sign that
this message was really from Our Lady.
Mary granted his request. On December 12, she showed Juan
where the most beautiful Castilian roses were and told him to
gather them. It was a miracle that the roses were there and in
bloom because there was frost on the ground, and the ground was
an infertile place where only cactus and thistles grew. After he
gathered them, she helped arrange them in his tilma, or poncho,
and told him to show them to the Bishop.
When he brought them to the Bishop, the Bishop was amazed at
the roses, but was even more amazed at what began to happen to
Juan Diego’s tilma. Right before their very eyes, the image of Our
Lady began to form on the cloth. The picture of Mary was
beautiful and the Bishop fell to his knees. He had the church built
at her request.
The tilma is still intact after 470 years. The colors have not faded
and the cloth has not deteriorated. It has been on display in the
Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe for all this time.
The manner in which Our Lady appeared on the tilma was very
significant to the Aztec Indians. God had her dressed in a way that
they would understand who she was. She was dressed in royal
clothes that showed that she was very important, perhaps a queen.
She also had the symbol of the cross at her neck which was the
same symbol the Spaniards had on their ships and in the churches