Miguel Sánchez (1594–1674) was a

Novohispanic New Spain, officially the Viceroyalty of New Spain ( es, Virreinato de Nueva España, ), or Kingdom of New Spain, was an integral territorial entity of the Spanish Empire, established by Habsburg Spain during the Spanish colonization of the A ...

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in partic ...

writer A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles and techniques to communicate ideas. Writers produce different forms of literary art and creative writing such as novels, short stories, books, poetry, travelogues, p ...

and

theologian Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

. He is most renowned as the author of the 1648 publication ''Imagen de la Virgen María'', a description and theological interpretation of an apparition to

Juan Diego Juan Diego Cuauhtlatoatzin, also known as Juan Diego (; 1474–1548), was a Chichimec peasant and Marian visionary. He is said to have been granted apparitions of the Virgin Mary on four occasions in December 1531: three at the hill of Tepeyac a ...

of the

Virgin Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother of ...

Our Lady of Guadalupe Our Lady of Guadalupe ( es, Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe), also known as the Virgin of Guadalupe ( es, Virgen de Guadalupe), is a Catholic title of Mary, mother of Jesus associated with a series of five Marian apparitions, which are believed t ...

which is the first published narrative of the event. The precise nature of the cult before that date and whether the tradition as to the apparition dates back to 1531 (as Sánchez claims), constitute a vexed historical problem. The existence of a cult of the Virgin Mary at a chapel (or ermita) at Tepeyac, focussed on a painted cult image of the Virgin and enjoying a reputation for miraculous healing, was certainly established by 1556. Professor Brading, a scholar of

Mexican history The written history of Mexico spans more than three millennia. First populated more than 13,000 years ago, central and southern Mexico (termed Mesoamerica) saw the rise and fall of complex indigenous civilizations. Mexico would later develop ...

, noted of Sánchez: "even if he did not initiate the devotion, he determined the manner in which the image was exalted and justified." Sánchez was born in New Spain (today's

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

) and studied at the

Royal and Pontifical University Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, Iowa, a c ...

Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital city, capital and primate city, largest city of Mexico, and the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North Amer ...

. He sought teaching positions but did not get them. On various occasions he served as chaplain of the chapel of Our Lady of Los Remedios, and in 1662 he joined an archconfraternity of secular priests which was later constituted as the first

Oratory of Saint Philip Neri The Confederation of Oratories of Saint Philip Neri ( la, Confoederatio Oratorii Sancti Philippi Nerii) abbreviated CO and commonly known as the Oratorians is a Catholic society of apostolic life of Pontifical Right for men (priests and lay- ...

in Mexico. His work makes use of the

typology Typology is the study of types or the systematic classification of the types of something according to their common characteristics. Typology is the act of finding, counting and classification facts with the help of eyes, other senses and logic. Ty ...

of Augustine of Hippo, although applying it not to events in the New Testament but rather to events alleged to have occurred the previous century in Mexico. He was buried at the sanctuary of the Virgin at Guadalupe, having been her lifelong devotee and the first of the "four evangelists" of the Guadalupan apparition.On the "four evangelists of Guadalupe" (''viz''., in addition to Sánchez, Lasso de la Vega, Becerra Tanco and Francisco de la Florencia), see Brading, ''op.cit''., p.329.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sanchez, Miguel Mexican Roman Catholic priests Mexican male writers 17th-century Roman Catholic theologians Our Lady of Guadalupe 1594 births 1674 deaths Novohispanic Mesoamericanists 17th-century Mesoamericanists Roman Catholic clergy in New Spain