Guadalupe

Our Lady of Guadalupe, the primary Marian devotion in New Mexico, is an ever-present symbol, at once peaceful, powerful, and persuasive. The New World advocation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Guadalupe appeared five hundreds years ago near Mexico City to Indian peasant Juan Diego. First introduced into the northern Rio Grande Valley with the Spanish reconquest in 1692, Guadalupe has played an important role in the daily lives of New Mexicans for three hundred years. Guadalupan scholar Jacqueline Dunnington brings fifteen years of extensive research to this study, tracing the devotion of Guadalupe from Mexico to its full expression in the religious folk life of New Mexicans. Today in New Mexico, Guadalupe's name appears everywhere and her image graces tombstones, prayer cards, street murals, and folk art; feasts and plays are held in her name and myriad pilgrimages are undertaken annually by her devotees. Drawing from a variety of sources including church records, newspapers, archives, and interviews, this book significantly fills a void in New Mexican cultural history.