WEBSTER CITY — In December 1531, the Virgin Mary reportedly appeared to a Mexican peasant, Juan Diego, and his uncle, Juan Bernardino, at a place called the hill of Tepeyac, near present-day Mexico City, asking that a church be built in her honor on the site.

Juan Diego told the archbishop of Mexico City of the apparition, but the archbishop didn’t believe him.

The same day, the Virgin again spoke to Juan Diego, insisting he press the archbishop about the matter of building the church. This time, the archbishop directed Juan Diego to ask the Virgin for a tangible sign of her presence.

In the early hours of Dec. 12, the Virgin instructed Juan Diego to gather flowers from the summit of Tepeyac hill, which was barren at that time of year. Juan Diego did as he was told, and when he next saw the archbishop he went to take off his cloak and a large quantity of Castilian roses, which are not native to Mexico, fell to the floor.

Imprinted on the cloak was a likeness of the Virgin Mary as she had appeared to Juan Diego.

Due to an increase in Hispanic-Americans across the country, and liturgies that arise from the Catholic Mass, both Episcopalian and Lutheran churches have begun celebrating the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe with special services on Dec. 12.

A special Mass, marking the feast day of Our Lady of Guadalupe, will be held at 7 p.m. today at St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church, 1000 Des Moines St., Webster City.

The Mass will be celebrated in English, by the Rev. Francis Kwame Anane.

An interpreter will translate the proceedings into Spanish.

Today, the original cloak is displayed in a large church on Tepeyac hill where it is revered by more than 20 million annual pilgrims as an authentic relic of the Virgin Mary, the earthly mother of Christ.

It is said to be the most visited Christian shrine in the world.

Numerous examinations have been made of it through the centuries.

The first, a tribunal of seven artists, agreed that the image depicted on the rough cloth was far beyond the known capabilities of any living artist and was declared to be of “miraculous origin.” A scientific examination using infrared light in 1981 concluded that there “had been alterations over the years, clearly the work of human hands, but found the original parts of the image and its superb, intact condition, “could not be explained.”

In 1754, a papal decree named the Virgin of Guadalupe as patroness (ie. Patron Saint) of New Spain (all the Spanish possessions of the new world).

In 1910, she was declared patroness of the Republic of Mexico. She is also the patron saint of The Philippines, El Salvador and Guatemala.

Immigrants from these countries have carried their strong belief in her power to hear and intercede on their behalf to America.

In 1979, during his first trip abroad as pope, John Paul II became the first Roman pontiff to visit the shrine. His devotion to St. Mary in all her manifestations has inspired millions of people worldwide, whether Catholic or not.