I am also reminded of another period in Mexican history when the Virgin Mary was of great help and that was the "Cristero Uprising". When secularism and anti-clericalism turned into an outright attack on the Church, the Catholic cowboys of Mexico took up arms to defend their right to worship freely. Fighting for "Cristo Rey" (Christ the King) these soldiers, called Cristeros, looked to Our Lady of Guadalupe as their "commander-in-chief" in that struggle for religion against secularist oppression. Today, secularism is again on the rise, all across the Western world, and though the Church herself is not under direct attack, and we cannot respond with force, we need our Holy Mother again to be our leader as we face with words and argument this attack on the foundations of Christian society.
Why is Blessed Mary, Our Lady of Guadalupe, such a powerful patron in the fight against abortion? Perhaps because she knows only too well what it is like to lose a child, and the death of her divine Son was painful enough even when serving the most good and precious cause there could ever be, so we can only imagine how much she feels for those who lose their lives simply because society would consider them, too much of a "burden". Every life is a gift from God, and no one knows this as much as the Blessed Virgin, and no one could be a better example to all Christians than she whose soul magnified the Lord, who said, "let it be done unto me according to thy word" and who gave us the good, simple, motherly advice that when it comes to God, "do whatever he tells you to do". Holy Mary, Our Lady of Guadalupe, pray for us, and pray for all of the unborn in the world. Amen.
