Juan Bernardino was one of the two Aztec peasants who had visions of Our Lady of Guadalupe in 1531.
Life
Little is known of the life of Juan Bernardino. He lived in Tolpetlac, some nine miles north of Tenochtitlán . He brought up his nephew, Saint Juan Diego, after the latter's parents died. After the death of Juan Diego's wife, Maria Lucia, in 1529, Juan Diego moved to be near his now aged uncle in Tolpetlac.
Vision of Our Lady
At the time of the apparitions of Our Lady to Juan Diego in December 1531, Juan Diego fell ill. According to most sources, he contracted cocolixtle, a dreaded fever that normally led to death. On December 9th, 1531, Juan Diego returned from his first two apparitions to find his uncle very ill. All that night and next day, Juan Diego sat broken-hearted at his uncle's bedside. Towards sunset, it became clear that Juan Bernardino was dying. Juan Diego set out at four the following morning, to bring back a priest to hear his uncle's confession and administer the last rites. While he was gone, Juan Bernardion became too weak to drink the medicine that had been left by his bedside, and he felt he was about to die. Suddenly the room was filled with light and a beautiful radiant lady appeared to him. Our Lady appeared to Juan Bernardio and cured him. He immediately felt that his body had recovered from the fever, and getting up fell at his feet before Our Lady. She told him that she had met Juan Diego and sent him to the bishop with her sacred image imprinted on his tilma. It was at this apparition that she identified herself as 'The Ever Virgin, Holy Mary of Guadalupe' It is now believed that she actually said not de Guadalupe but te coatlaxopeuh which means, who crushes the stone serpent (the god Quetzalcoatl.