As we prepare for the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, we begin a new novena series exploring the deeper history behind her miraculous apparitions.

Our first episode takes us to Toledo, Spain, the ancient primatial diocese and spiritual heart of the Spanish Church, where Fr. Ambrose interviews Fr. Gabriel Calvo Zarraute. Known across the Spanish-speaking world for his teaching and digital apostolate, Fr. Zarraute explains why Spain—called by St. John Paul II “Land of Mary”—played a central role in the story of Guadalupe.

He reminds us that the New World was not an “appendix” to Spain but part of her civilizational and apostolic mission, shaped by the Reconquista, Marian devotion, and a profound evangelizing spirit. This produced a unique fusion of cultures, later called the “Christendom of the Indies,” a world where Our Lady of Guadalupe appeared and spoke to both Spaniards and indigenous peoples alike.

To understand Guadalupe, he says, we must understand the spiritual and cultural world she entered.

To pray the novena prayers, visit here: https://theabbotscircle.com/post/encountering-our-lady-of-guadalupe-day-one

Watch the full interview above, available in English and Spanish with subtitles.

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Intro music: Maitines de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe — Manuel Arenzana; Mexico City Chorus & Chamber Ensemble, cond. Benjamin Juárez Echenique