Saints of the Americas: Conversations with 30 Saints from 15 Countries

ARTURO PÉREZ–RODRÍGUEZ and MIGUEL ARIAS

Saints Americas

of the

Conversations with 30 saints from 15 countries

� | Saints of the Americas

Yes, I did. We know that it was not always the case in other parts of our country. We heard stories of great abuses, but these friars respected us. We learned about the man called Jesus who came to save all people everywhere. He came from a very humble family but did great things. His love for others cost him his life. What a noble act. They spoke about Jesus being the Good News. He was good news for us. Antonio, stop making faces at me.

All right, you both win; let me say something, too. When the ones called Dominicans came to our school and asked for inter-preters and catechists to journey with them to the south of Mexico, to Oaxaca, Juan and I both volunteered right away. I said very valiantly that we, Antonio and Juan, wanted to go with them and do what God, in whose name we had been baptized, wanted of us, even unto death itself. Fray Martín did warn us that it would be a difficult journey. We did not know how the local people would react to this Good News that we were bring-ing to them. But, was not Peter crucified, Paul beheaded, and Bartholomew flayed for the Good News?

When we arrived in Tepeaca, Puebla, we started our work right away. We began collecting all of the images and statues of the gods so that they could be destroyed. In the town of Cuauhtinchán, Juan and I were doing the same thing. I went into a house while Juan waited outside. Juan did not see the men who came up behind him. They hit him so hard that he died instantly. When I came out of the house I told them that I was the one respon-sible and that is when they also beat me to death.

Yes, Antonio, I know. That is what I was told is on the paintings in the church that we are going to visit.

Cristóbal, Juan, and Antonio, the Child Martyrs of Tlaxcala | �

The three of you look so innocent and young, yet you acted so bravely. Cristóbal, I . . .

Are you saying that we look weak? We come from a great people, from noble families. We have been raised to do what-ever is asked of us.

My friends, I did not mean that. We adults do not pay enough attention to you young people. Your particular actions serve as a good example not only for others your age but also for us who are older. This is the reason why I came here, to talk with you and to get to know you better. You may not believe this, and I am not sure if anyone has ever told you, but you three are great teachers. For being so young, you took seriously the Christian faith. Your witness served as seeds of faith in the lives of many of your people. The harvest would come a few years later with Juan Diego and the most holy Virgin of Guadalupe. I was very glad to read that Fray Toribio de Benavente, one of the first Franciscans to arrive in Mexico in 1523, was the one who wrote down your story. Cristóbal, your brother Luis was the one who saw what happened to you.

Oh yes, Fray Motolinía, as we liked to call him, was a very rev-erent man. All of us grew to trust him and believe in him. My brother did see what was happening. It was hard for him to talk about it. But I was proud that he did.

That is right. Fray Motolinía’s historical accounts are well respected. I am sorry that more attention was not given to your great testimony until recently. For the longest time, San Felipe de Jesús was considered the first martyr of Mexico, when actu-ally you three were.

10 | Saints of the Americas

Antonio, Juan, and I are not in a contest with anyone. Everything works out according to God’s plan. We learned to follow Jesus from the examples of the good friars, and we just wanted to share the Good News that we had been given. We do not com-pare ourselves with anyone.

That is certainly very evident. Do you think we could go to see the church now?

You mean you do not have more questions for Cristóbal, Juan, or me? That is all you wanted to ask? I thought that you were more curious. You could at least buy us a cold drink on such a hot day.

Listen to him, Cristóbal. I told you, Antonio, that you could not keep quiet for very long.

No, no, it would be my pleasure. Do you know where?

Sure, Doña Cuca always has something ready for us.

Mexico

12

2

Juan Diego Cuauhtlatoatzin

1474–1548Mexico

December 9Saint

Layman, indigenous Nahuatl, catechist, visionary, husband,

first indigenous saint of the Americas

Juan Diego Cuauhtlatoatzin | 13

Juan Diego, it is good to finally meet you like this. So much has been written about you, your life, and all the events that began on December 9 and ended so wonderfully on December 12, 1531. Like anyone else, you have had your critics. People have their own opinions about not only you but also those events. You proba-bly know about this controversy on a very personal level because you heard some of them yourself. But let’s talk about that later. I have wanted to just sit and talk with you for a long time. I have a lot of questions that probably can’t all be asked right now, but maybe one day. I would hope that you also have questions for me. There may be things that you want to know about, such as why I am even doing this. If it is all right with you, let us just say that this conversation is not so much about history, but rather about our relationship with God. Some people like to call this relation-ship our spirituality. I believe that we can learn from one another through this dialogue of faith, through the sharing of our lives, of the way that God works in each of us, but I am talking too much right now. Let’s begin. I am interested in knowing about you before your baptism. What was your life like?

My friend, what can I tell you? First of all, thank you for taking time to be here with me. Your life is also important to me and I appreciate very much this moment with you. What can I tell you? Remembering those days of my childhood and youth both grieves me and comforts me. I was raised in Cuautitlán. Some say that my family was of the lower class, petty laborers. Others have said that we were merchants and therefore better off. I do not understand this desire, their need to put me or my family into a particular station of life. My people are a noble people. Each of us had our work that contributed to the life of the entire com-munity. My memories of those days are of being at home with my parents; they are good memories. They taught me respect for one


another, dignity in our work, appreciation for our customs. Our family would visit relatives and have wonderful meals together. My friends and I would play our games and tricks on one another. They would take advantage of my small size, so I didn’t win as often as I would have liked, but we were friends.

As a child, I especially remember the sounds that came from the temples. They sometimes frightened me, but I came to understand and appreciate the way they gave order to our lives. I am not ashamed to acknowledge that I sensed, or rather felt, the gods all around me. The great festivals were thrilling cele-brations. Our lives and our faith in the gods were one. They gave us life. I knew who I was. I knew where I belonged.

These memories comfort me when I think about the past because they remind me of my family. I hope that when you remember your family you also find comfort and strength in your memories. All of this changed when the “new people” came to our land. None of us understood what they wanted or why they acted so harshly. There was great confusion and suffering during those days. We were confused as the temples were destroyed and our gods disrespected and then replaced with a dead man all bloody and wounded, hung on two beams of wood. There were these statues and drawings of men and women who were called saints. We did not understand the burning of the great libraries. We all suffered as we witnessed the cruel treatment of our priests, of our leaders, and especially of our elders. Some of my friends gave up and died during those days. What helped me was some of the brown-robed men. They called themselves frailes, Franciscan priests.

One fraile in particular I remember, Fray Toribio de Benavente. We called him Fray Motolinía, “the poor one,” because of his kindness. He was the fraile I came to know best. He was espe-cially patient with me. I would sometimes see all the frailes pray-ing together and wonder what they were doing. Fray Motolinía

Juan Diego Cuauhtlatoatzin | 15

was the one who answered my questions whenever we met. He had time for me. More than anything, I came to believe because he believed so sincerely in this person called Jesucristo, the man hanging on the wooden cross. Fray told me about the mother of this Savior, the Virgen María he called her. The Virgen María was someone of high honor for them. Fray taught me about the good this man and woman had done. I began to sense the presence of God in them and wanted to be around them. I started going to the capilla and Mass to be with the frailes. Being with them was both strange and fascinating. Strange because I did not under-stand what they were doing and fascinating because I felt God in a way that I had not before. I would talk with my wife María Luisa about what I was learning from this good man. She told me that she could see a change happening in me. When we were bap-tized it was a good day, a very happy day for us. Cuauhtlatoatzin became Juan Diego on the day water was poured over me. I could now be more like them. Do you think that is wrong?

Juan Diego, thank you for calling me your friend. I hope that we can be friends. I don’t think that wanting to be like the friars is wrong. They offered a good example of the gospel of Jesus and everything that he taught. We are all influenced by those with whom we have a special relationship. I can only imagine that they shared with you not only their knowledge about God but also how they loved God and prayed to the saints, especially Saint Francis. Like you said, you felt God’s presence through them. Like the temples of Tenochitlán, you built your faith on your past spiritual experiences. You now feel the love of Jesus in your life. Our families are very much alike. Through them we come not only to know God but also to feel God’s care, God’s concern, for each of us. I suspect that there is a lot more that you are not telling me right now about those days. Maybe you want


to protect me or not shock me? Juan Diego, tell me about your walk to this chapel where you prayed, especially about the day when La Virgen came to you.

What strange questions you ask! I don’t know if anyone has ever asked me that before. Right before dawn, when night and morn-ing meet, is the most beautiful time of the day for me. It is a time when sleep is still in one’s eyes. There is a chill in the air that startles you. I awoke before the birds began to greet the morn-ing sun with their music. I would leave the house at this time so I could reach the hill of Tepeyac and stand there as the morning light clothed me with its warmth. I could feel what the Franciscan friars call the embrace of Brother Sun. Who would not be filled with so much hope as another day of life is beginning? Many people were still suffering and dying from strange sicknesses, but in these moments, I knew that we were not alone.

The walk to Tlatelolco was almost fourteen miles by the way you measure, but I could walk with no hesitation. I was usually one of the first to arrive for Mass and instructions on the Christian faith. There in the quiet of the chapel I came to talk to Jesucristo about the day, about my worries for my family and for my people. I could open my heart. I could feel his love for me. Walking back to my home I stopped to visit friends along the way, tak-ing whatever refreshment they offered. The smells of the morning cooking were so pleasant. Those were such good moments that I remember. But I see in your eyes you want to know about that special morning when she, the Most Holy Mother of God, came to visit me. You already know so much. Let me share with you some more. The morning was like all the others. I heard the birds singing so beautifully, but then I heard my name called, by such a tender voice. I thought I was still not awake. I looked around to see who was there. The woman’s voice spoke in the language of our people. It reminded me of my mother’s voice when I was

Saints Americasof the

Conversations with 30 Saints from 15 Countries

ARTURO PÉREZ–RODRÍGUEZ and MIGUEL ARIAS

“Listen in” as saints tell their stories of faith and perseverance.

religion $13.95 u.s.

Saints of the A

mericas

Conversation

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30 Saints from 15 C

ountries

PÉREZ

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ISBN-13: 978-0-8294-2480-5ISBN-10: 0-8294-2480-6

The strength and vigor of the Catholic Church are nowhere more visible than in North and South America, where hundreds of millions of

people claim the Catholic faith. Saints of the Americas features thirty heroes of this New World faith, with representatives from � fteen countries in South America, Central America, North America, and the Caribbean.

Through “conversations” between the authors and the saints, readers will be inspired by the stories of Catherine Drexel and Elizabeth Ann Seton, who built schools and hospitals in the United States; martyr Óscar Romero from El Salvador; Venezuelan physician and healer José Gregorio Hernán-dez; Peruvian Rose of Lima, the � rst saint of the Americas; and others.

The faith and perseverance of these martyrs and monks, laypeople and clergy, mystics and activists will encourage people today to make a lasting di� erence in the world.

FR. ARTURO PÉREZ-RODRÍGUEZ is a Chicago priest and a well-known author and speaker on matters of Hispanic spirituality and popular religion in the Catholic context. He is the author of Primero Dios and Praying with the Saints.

MIGUEL ARIAS is the senior editor of Spanish media at Loyola Press. He holds a master’s degree in liturgy and is part of the faculty of the Cultural Institute for Leadership in the Midwest, Tepeyac Institute in El Paso, and the Hispanic Liturgy Institute in Chicago. He is the author of Palabra, Vida y Fe.

Saints of the Americas: Conversations with 30 Saints from 15 Countries

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