A Reflection on the Triumph of the Immaculata over the Enemies of God.
- Roland Flores
- 4 days ago
- 5 min read
Ave Maria! May Our Immaculate Lady, assumed into Heaven, together with St. Joseph, St. Eusebius, and Blessed Father Kolbe, pray for us! On this day, August 13, 1521, one of the most demonic regimes thus far was conquered for Christ under the banner of Our Lady. Let’s take a moment to learn about this triumph and what it can teach us.
The Standard of Mary and the Conquest of the Aztec Empire.
For almost a century, the Aztec Empire had ruled most of modern-day central Mexico through cruel, militaristic conquest. The Aztecs ruled their empire through loyal local rulers and the perception of unchallengeable military supremacy. Most notable in Aztec history is the ridiculously high number of human sacrifices they performed each year. Each year, thousands were murdered as part of their pagan rituals to appease their idols. Most of those killed in sacrifice were captured enemy soldiers, serving the dual purpose of demonstrating political dominance and appeasing their idols.
Another large part of the sacrifices came from other conquered nations, which were required to supply captives as part of their political submission. The Aztecs also had certain idolatrous festivals that called for specific demographics, such as their own children being tortured in honor of one particular idol, believing their tears would bring rainfall. Aztec society was also heavily oppressive and degenerate. Sodomy, polygamy, idolatry, sorcery, drug use, and cannibalism were all rampant in Aztec society. The Aztec Empire imposed crushing taxes upon its subjected nations, taking goods such as corn, cotton, jade, and gold and forcing local populations into poverty. This was combined with slavery, with slaves being treated as legal property. Slaves were made up of people captured from rival tribes, those who entered slavery through debt or criminal punishment, and those stolen as children by their parents during hard times. The oppression of Aztec society, imposed by Aztec elites, did not end there. Society was riddled with strict laws dictating what clothing, jewelry, and homes different social classes could use. This horrible society, and the regime responsible for it, came to an end on this day, August 13, 1521. Starting in February 1519, a fleet of conquistadors landed at Veracruz. About 600 Spaniards, led by Don Hernán Cortés, began their march against the Aztec Empire. With them were only two priests: Mercedarian Father Bartolomé de Olmedo and secular Father Juan Díaz. Along the way, the Spanish fought several skirmishes and secured vital indigenous alliances—most notably with the Tlaxcalans. By August 13, the Aztecs were totally defeated and surrendered. The Cross was lifted up upon the tallest temple.
Don Cortés named the former Aztec Empire New Spain. One of the most demonic nations on the planet at the time was now a possession of Christendom. Throughout the entire three-year campaign, Cortés flew his banner, which was a red flag with a central image of Our Lady in prayer. Around the central image were the words: “Friends, let us follow the cross, and if we have faith, in this sign we shall win.” This standard of Our Lady often led the charge for the Spaniards and their allies against the demonic forces of the Aztecs. As the idols of the Aztecs were toppled over, this standard proudly flew. Almost immediately after the triumph, Cortés ordered the construction of a church dedicated to Our Lady’s Assumption upon the ruins of the old Aztec temples. Using the stones that once held up altars for human sacrifice and demonic idols, those same stones were used to build altars dedicated to Almighty God and for the sacred images of Christ, Our Lady, and the saints. This church would later become the Cathedral of Mexico.
The Aztec Empire, Not Too Far Off from Our Own
While the conquest of the Aztec Empire seems like a tale from a far-off land, the truth is that our culture and our nation are closer to that of the Aztecs than they have ever been.
While there are no public altars for human sacrifice, the number of children who are killed each year by abortion makes the statistics of the Aztecs look like child’s play. Similarly to the Aztecs, our nation has many vassal states and has ruled much of the world through the same means: perceived military dominance. As each year passes, our nation becomes more oppressive and more controlling, and the influence of the pagan elites becomes more evident in our everyday lives. Almost the same degeneracy that plagued Aztec society now plagues our own society.
Perhaps the most damning quality our society shares with that of the Aztecs is a pride that produces only relativism. The Aztecs thought they were the center of the world. The Aztecs held a deep sense of collective pride that stemmed from the idea that they were the chosen race and nation. This is Americanism in a nutshell. Perhaps this is why there is a frieze of Cortés meeting the Aztec emperor in the United States Capitol. The frieze was created by Constantino Brumidi in 1878, Brumidi being a military captain during the 1848 republican revolution against the Pope and the Church. Though in it, the Spaniards do not have a single Catholic image, the Aztecs have several idols in their corners of the plaque, including an altar wrapped in a snake and overt Masonic symbols. The message is clear.
May Mary Be Our Standard, Our Refuge, and Our Guide
On this day, two days before the Feast of the Assumption of Mary and the vigil of the anniversary of the martyrdom of the great Marian Father Maximilian Kolbe, we should reflect upon the victory of Our Lady.
First, her victory against the Aztecs: first, in utterly destroying their demonic regime, and secondly, in her compassion for them, which is why she appeared to them as Our Lady of Guadalupe. It was the direct will of God for Cortés not only to have Our Lady on his personal standard, but for it to be present in the worst parts of battle—for her to be the battering ram against the enemies of God.
Cortés also willed for a statue of Our Lady to be enthroned in place of one of the chief idols, ordering his men to topple it and his chaplain to bless the stone so that Our Lady could be enthroned. Perhaps this echoes the words of Father Kolbe: “The more you spread veneration and love for the Immaculata, the more souls you will win for her, and through her, to the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, who loved us unto death on the Cross” (KW 1094).
In doing this, Cortés essentially gave the Aztecs to Our Lady, and from them she made one of the most Catholic peoples this side of the Atlantic.
Secondly, we should understand this as a type of the coming triumph of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. For today, we are very much in the position of Cortés in a spiritual sense: submerged in a degenerate culture and opposed by a ruling class of pagan elites who love only control, misery, and death.
Like him, we should fearlessly fly the standard of Mary in a spiritual way. We must fight for Our Lady and her Immaculate Heart, since this is the means God wills for the salvation of souls. Our Lady will crush the enmities of God and convert souls, preparing the way for her Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ.
Like Cortés and those brave Spaniards, we should not despair or retreat, but advance fearlessly under the standard of Mary and the Cross.
“In the hands of the Immaculata you can do all things. Entrust to her what you do not know or are unable to do, then you shall know and will manage to do what is the greatest glory of God, without limits” (KW 987).
References:
The Fall of Tenochtitlan.
Two Cheers for the Conquistadors
Feeding the gods: Hundreds of skulls reveal massive scale of human sacrifice in Aztec capital.
Cortez and Montezuma at Mexican Temple
Hernando Cortés
Aztecs
Mexico
The Writings of St. Maximilian Maria Kolbe
Comments