Roses in December

We can "fake" a Christmas in July for fun, especially if it's an exceptionally hot July, but roses in December?  Not as easily done,  and as such, a convincing sign given to Juan Diego, the simple peasant who saw a beauriful lady who wanted a church built on the hill where she was standing.  Juan was amazed to find roses in bloom at that time of year and thought sure the bishop would agree to Mary's request.  Little did he know that an even more spectacular sign was imprinted on his tilma.  That sign, which we now acknowledge as the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe still exists in all its full colorful splendor in the basilica outside of Mexico City.  Thousands will be there this day, 12/12/12, to pray for her intercession.
Mary, the roses, the tilma and Juan Diego himself are wonderful Advent figures...Mary, whose Son would bring salvation to the world; the roses, signs of hope and blessing in during the darkness of Advent; the image on the tilma of a pregnant peasant woman with the sun behind her and the evil one under her foot; and Juan, the representative of the poor, for whom Mary especially came, and to whom she continues to address the message of God's love and protection.  No wonder she has been named the Patroness of the Americas and the Protector of the Unborn...In her quiet, yet powerful simplicity, Mary underlines the message and mission of her Son:  to show God's unconditional and eternal love for us.  May Mary's presence today in our lives, as at Guadalupe, draw us into a deeper understanding  and appreciation of that love which extends into the minutest details of our lives.
Bro. Rene