The Shrine of San Miguel del Milagro in San Miguel del Milagro, Mexico. / Isaacvp via Wikimedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Tlaxcala, Mexico, Apr 25, 2022 / 16:58 pm (CNA).
Saint Michael the Archangel appeared to Diego Lázaro de San Francisco, a young convert, for the first time on April 25, 1631 in what is now Mexico’s Tlaxcala state.
This apparition would be the first of three that the archangel made that year to Diego, who was about 17 at the time.
There is now a shrine at the site, in the town of San Miguel del Milagro, about 12 miles southwest of Tlaxcala City.
According to tradition, Saint Michael the Archangel appeared to Diego while he was participating in a procession for the feast of Saint Mark.
In that encounter, the archangel told the young man: “You must know, my son, that I am Saint Michael the Archangel. I come to tell you that it is God’s will and mine that you tell those of this town and its surroundings, that in this ravine made by two hills and it’s the one that’s in front of this place, they will find a miraculous spring of water for all diseases, which is under a very large rock. Do not doubt what I tell you, nor not do what I command you.”
However, Diego doubted the apparition and, fearing that people wouldn’t believe him, decided not to do what the archangel told him.
The official Facebook page of the Shrine of Saint Michael the Archangel states that “in punishment for his disobedience, a deadly fever in his entrails came upon the young man.”
The archangel appeared to Diego again the night of May 7-8, healing him and taking him to the place where the shrine would be erected. The archangel appeared once more, on Nov. 13.
The young man collected water from the spring and took it to the local bishop, who in turn, as part of his investigation of the apparition, distributed it among some sick people. According to tradition, those who drank from the water were cured.
Some years later, Blessed Juan de Palafox y Mendoz, who was Bishop of Tlaxcala, ordered the construction of the current Shrine of Saint Michael the Archangel.
In San Miguel del Milagro the apparition is remembered with great festivities, especially on September 29, the feast of the Archangels Michael, Raphael and Gabriel.
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CNA Staff, Aug 2, 2024 / 16:51 pm (CNA).
A scholarship-funded Catholic academy for boys is set to open this August in Cincinnati with the help of state scholarships and private donors, reviving a build… […]
Anna Lulis from Moneta, Virginia, (left) who works for the pro-life group Students for Life of America, stands beside an abortion rights demonstrator outside the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., on June 24, 2022, after the court’s decision in the Dobbs abortion case was announced. / Katie Yoder/CNA
Washington D.C., Jun 24, 2022 / 17:21 pm (CNA).
Hundreds of people — both pro-life advocates and abortion supporters — descended upon the Supreme Court building in Washington, D.C., Friday following the court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, which legalized abortion nationwide in 1973.
Multiple layers of barriers and fencing — along with uniformed police officers — separated protesters from the court itself. Gathered under bright sunshine on a hot, summer day, some abortion supporters and pro-life advocates engaged in conversations with one another in the street in front of the court that was closed to traffic. Media cameras stood ready to capture any dramatic moments.
“I couldn’t be more thrilled,” 24-year-old Anna Lulis from Moneta, Virginia, told CNA of the lives she believes the decision will save. “I think this is a huge step forward for human rights.”
Working for the pro-life group Students for Life of America, Lulis estimated that more than 200 pro-life students were outside the court when it issued its historic 6-3 decision. But, as the day progressed, abortion activists gradually made up a large majority of the crowd.
The scene outside the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., after the court released its decision in the Dobbs abortion case on June 24, 2022. Pro-abortion demonstrators gradually made up a decided majority of the crowd as the day wore on. Katie Yoder/CNA
Lulis carried a sign declaring, “Women don’t need Roe!” As she spoke, abortion activists led various chants with megaphones. Among the refrains: “Legal abortion on demand right f*ing now!” and “f* you, SCOTUS,” using the acronym for the Supreme Court of the United States.
Colorful signs with colorful language flooded the street. “F*** SCOTUS we’re doing it anyway” one pro-abortion poster read. “You will never control my body,” said another. Some women demonstrators outraged by Friday’s decision shook hangers at the court, referencing the view that overturning Roe will mean a return to illegal abortions in some parts of the country.
Abortion activists, at one point, directed their middle fingers in unison at the court building. Others took a calmer approach.
Pierrerasha Goodwin, an abortion rights supporter, stands outside the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., on June 24, 2022. She intervened on behalf of a pro-life activist when a conversation between that activist and abortion supporter became heated. Katie Yoder/CNA
Pierrerasha Goodwin, 22, intervened on behalf of a pro-life activist when a conversation between that activist and abortion supporter became heated. An abortion supporter herself, Goodwin is originally from Chicago. Her first encounter with abortion came when she helped her 15-year-old sister to obtain an abortion. After that experience, she said, watching the country argue about abortion prompted her to learn more about the issue.
“If you’re going to stand for everyone else’s rights, and making sure that everyone is treated equal, you have to treat people with respect,” Goodwin said. “In doing that, fostering those important conversations, you get to actually listen to somebody and say, ‘OK, I may disagree with you, but at least now I know why people think like that.’”
Joseph Little, a 32-year-old Washington, D.C. native who supports legalized abortion, holds a sign outside the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., on June 24, 2022. Katie Yoder/CNA
Joseph Little, a 32-year-old Washington, D.C. native, was another abortion supporter who spoke with CNA. Disheartened by the Supreme Court ruling, Little’s sign read, “Forced Birth is Enslavement.”
Little spoke about the “need” for women to be able to choose abortion, comparing their inability to get an abortion to Black enslavement.
On the other side of the issue was 22-year-old Edwin Garcia-Arzola from Lumberton, North Carolina, who wore a shirt that said “Young pro-life Democrat.” As a Catholic, he said, he was “proud” of the court’s decision.
“For us, and especially for pro-life Democrats, it is very important for us because now we can take this battle to all of our states,” he said, adding that he is affiliated with the group Democrats for Life.
Kara Zupkus, the 25-year-old spokeswoman for the conservative group, Young America’s Foundation (second from left), standing with other pro-life supporters outside the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., on June 24, 2022, after the court released its decision in the Dobbs abortion case. Katie Yoder/CNA
Another pro-life supporter in the crowd was Kara Zupkus, 25, a spokeswoman for the conservative group Young America’s Foundation. Members of the group were there to celebrate the court’s decision.
“We work with high school and college students to bring pro-life speakers to their campuses and host activism initiatives on campus,” Zupkas said. “To finally see our hard work pay off …. It has been just amazing.”
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