Anti-Indian cited in saint debate

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 2002

Pope John Paul II is ready to make Juan Diego, an Aztec Indian man renowned for his vision of the Virgin Mary, a saint but some aren't ready to accept someone whose story they call a fantasy.

But those critics are anti-Indian, charge Juan Diego's supporters. Monsignor Jose Luis Guerrero, a leading Diego expert, told The Washington Post: "They can't understand how an Indian, who was nothing, could ever have been chosen by God."

Guerrero also says critics have unfairly dismissed a document written in Nahuatl, an Aztec language, about the Virgin's appearances before Diego

Juan Diego would be the first indigenous person recognized as a saint. American Indians in the United States are trying to get Kateri Tekakwitha canonized.

The Mohawk woman has been beatified, a step before full sainthood.

Get the Story:
Myth Versus Miracle (The Washington Post 2/5)

Relevant Links:
Kateri Info - http://www.expage.com/page/stkateri
Kateri Resources - http://home.att.net/~danderson.halliwell/pages/nacr.html

Related Stories:
Mexican Indian recognized as saint (12/21)
Kateri conference gets underway (8/4)
Kateri conference begins (8/2)