The Miraculous Christ of Santa Maria Aztahuacan: A Faith of Over 200 Years

The Miraculous Christ of Santa Maria Aztahuacan: A Faith of Over 200 Years By: Gibran Rivas Category: Aztahuacan Legends / Subcategory: Tales of Faith and Fantastic Apparitions

Introduction To understand the strength of an original town like ours, it is not enough to look at its current streets; we must look into the secret miracles guarded by families in the intimacy of their homes. Today we begin a very special series dedicated to reviving the oral tradition of our land.

Fundamental Historical Clarification Pay close attention to this legend, as the speaker innocently mentions “the war where masses were forbidden”. She is referring to none other than the Cristero War (1926-1929). This was a dark era when President Plutarco Elías Calles—who later became the “Jefe Máximo” manipulating presidents at his whim—felt so powerful that he set out, according to sayings of the time, to “use Juan Diego’s mantle to wash horses”. Calles ended up receiving a lesson and humiliation of biblical proportions: the resistance of brave Christian martyrs put a stop to his actions with the cry of Viva Cristo Rey!, proving that some of the greatest battles of the Mexican soul were won with something as simple and dangerous as preserving a crucifix in hiding. Calles would go down in posterity as one of the biggest losers in Mexico’s spiritual history, while the faith of the common people prevailed.

Letting the voice of the community speak for itself, we leave you with the full testimony of Mrs. Juana de la Cruz Rosas about one of the most sacred and amazing relics of Santa Maria Aztahuacan.

The Miraculous Christ

Speaker: Mrs. Juana de la Cruz Rosas (Juanita Rosas)

“My name is Juana de la Cruz Rosas, I am known as Juanita Rosas, I was born in the town of Santa Maria Aztahuacan on June 24, 1935, so I am 73 years old. Just like my mother, my grandmother, great-grandmother, and my whole family, I am from the same town. This little saint, which is a crucified Christ that I have in my bedroom, has been in my family for over 200 years, since it was bought by my great-grandmother’s great-grandmother, and has passed from generation to generation.

During the war when masses were forbidden, my grandmother dragged him everywhere in the state of Puebla. They were about to take him away, but he fell and broke, and he stayed like that for many years. About fifteen years ago, the roof of the room where he was hanging collapsed, since it was made of beams with dirt on top; the room was already very old. The Christ was buried. When they dug him out, his little arm was already repaired. It repaired itself, and even my mother fainted.

There are people who have come to ask him for favors, like a lady who could barely see. She would bring him her candles, wipe his little eyes and light them for him, and she was able to see—not a lot, but at least she knew where she was going. The lady’s name was Dionisia, Chavarría I think, who died about 20 years ago. Just like her, many people have come to ask him for favors.

As I was saying, my mother left him to me, her mother left him to her, making a chain. I will leave him to my son, he to his children, and they to their children.”

Conclusion: The Chains of Our Identity

Doña Juanita’s tale shows us that miracles in Aztahuacan do not only happen in large temples; they are lived under old roofs of beams and dirt that guard family faith through the centuries, resisting even the onslaught of presidential persecutions. This “chain” of inheritance she speaks of is what keeps the spirit of our original town alive despite the passage of time and modernity.

Do you keep any old story or image in your home that has survived a difficult time in Mexico? We would love to read about it. Leave us your comment below and share this article with your neighbors so the voice of our traditions keeps flying high. Don’t miss our next publication in the series!

During the Cristero War, a dynamite charge was detonated in front of the Virgin of Guadalupe Vera Icon at the Basilica. The mantle remained intact and a Christ was bent. Calles or his henchmen were shamed, gifting the Church a new relic and strengthening the faith.

About the Legends

Each of these tales reaches you thanks to the invaluable compilation work of Frida Alejandra Mejía Gómez in her book “La voz de las garzas,” a research piece we were able to bring to the blog thanks to her authorization and the bridge of neighborhood trust built by the collective Grupo Cultural Ollin. If you want to deeply know how this archive was rescued from university libraries and who the young people defending this memory are, we invite you to read our opening posts on the history of the research and the work of Grupo Cultural Ollin.