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Father Eduardo Chavez, who served as the postulator for the cause of St. Juan Diego, delivered a presentation about Juan Diego’s life and Our Lady of Guadalupe to the Supreme Board of Directors at their Feb. 3 quarterly meeting in New York City.
Juan Diego was canonized in 2002. The Knights of Columbus has been sponsoring a speaking tour by Father Chavez around the United States since last year, and his appearances (including one in Brooklyn a day earlier) have drawn large crowds.
The lectures commemorate the 475th anniversary of the appearance of Our Lady of Guadalupe to Juan Diego. Father Eduardo Chavez is one of the most renowned experts on the Guadalupe apparitions. He is also the author of Our Lady of Guadalupe and Saint Juan Diego: The Historical Evidence (Rowman and Littlefield, 2006).
More than 1,500 people heard Father Chavez’s presentations at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels on Sept. 16 and at Immaculate Heart of Mary Church in Santa Ana on Sept. 18. Father Chavez also spoke in Washington, D.C., Lubbock, Texas, and Brooklyn, N.Y.
Entitled Our Lady of Guadalupe: The Woman who Changed the face of the Hemisphere, the fascinating 90-minute talk and accompanying slide show was both scholarly and accessible. He tells the story of St. Juan Diego and Our Lady of Guadalupe, and shows how Our Lady of Guadalupe provided the “perfectly inculturated” example of evangelization that has helped to build the future that all nations share in the Americas.
“During this important 475th anniversary year of the apparitions of Our Lady of Guadalupe, we are honored to have the opportunity to bring her message of peace to people throughout the United States,” said Supreme Knight Carl A. Anderson. “One cannot understand our ‘Catholic hemisphere’ without understanding the role played in creating it by Our Lady of Guadalupe.”
Father Chavez’s presentation provides the historical context at the time of the apparition highlights its effects on the evangelization of the Americas and shows the way in which this event facilitated the unprecedented conversion of the indigenous cultures. Father Chavez also explores the rich symbolism of the various aspects of the apparition including the image itself, and shows how one humble man - with the help of Our Lady - was able to bring the Gospel to an entire continent.
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