Northwestern University Press, 2007 eISBN: 978-0-8101-6214-3 | Cloth: 978-0-8101-2240-6 | Paper: 978-0-8101-2427-1 Library of Congress Classification PS3619.I75B47 2005 Dewey Decimal Classification 813.54
ABOUT THIS BOOK | AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY | REVIEWS | TOC | REQUEST ACCESSIBLE FILE
ABOUT THIS BOOK
In 1980, with the Sandinistas newly in power, tailor and pig farmer Bernardo Martinez witnesses an extraordinary thing: an otherworldly glow about the statue of the Virgin Mary in the church where he works as sacristán. Soon the Holy Virgin appears. She tells Bernardo to forget his money problems and fear of ridicule and spread her message of peace and faith to his neighbors. Though a work of fiction, Bernardo and the Virgin is based on actual events in Bernardo Martinez's life. The visitation of the Virgin Mary at Cuapa, Nicaragua, remains one of the few such events accepted by the Roman Catholic Church in the last sixty years.
Silvio Sirias' sweeping novel tells many stories: that of a humble man touched by the transcendent; that same man as a devout boy denied the priesthood because of poverty; and those in his orbit, past and present. It is also the stormy epic of Nicaragua through the long Somoza years to the Sandinista revolution. Sirias' beautiful language mixes English with Spanish and details of dusty village life with wondrous images of Catholic mysticism. His portrayal of the rich recent past of Central America resonates with the experiences of both the natives and the thriving communities of Nicaraguans, Salvadorans, and others putting down roots in the United States.
AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY
Silvio Sirias was born in Los Angeles and he grew up there and in Nicaragua. His other works include writing Julia Alvarez: A Critical Literary Companion (Greenwood, 2002), editing Salomón de la Selva's Tropical Town and Other Poems (Arte Público Press, 1999), and co-editing Conversations with Rudolfo Anaya (University Press of Mississippi, 1998). Sirias is currently an associate professor at Florida State University-Panama.
REVIEWS
"By demonstrating the magic in everyday rural Nicaragua, this tale of religious mysticism is elevated from the unattainable buried headline—'villagers see image of Virgin Mary'—to a story of faith, politics, love, and loss which we all can understand."
—Rain Taxi Review of Books
"The details of Bernardo's Nicaragua are wholly entertaining and enticing, with images of Catholic mysticism juxtaposed against the particulars of life in the dusty village of Cuapa. Sirias's prose is lovely."
—San Antonio Express-News
"Bernardo and the Virgin is a gargantuan book, full of beauty and wonder. . . . This book is a page-turner, as we begin to get engrossed in the life of humble Bernardo and his world. . . . Bernardo and the Virgin will join the ranks of other memorable books [by writers such as] Francisco Goldman, Jaime Manrique, and Mayra Montero. . . . It is adventure of the first order."
—Virgil Suárez, author of Havana Thursdays
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Primera Parte: Inocencia
Illuminatio (The Illumination)
April 1980
Bernardo
CHAPTER ONE Hyperdulia (The Veneration of Our Lady)
1931-1945
Padre Orlando García Sánchez
CHAPTER TWO Dulia (The Veneration of Saints)
1949-1950
Teresa de Jesús Medina
. . .
Prima Vision (The First Apparition)
May 8, 1980
Bernardo
CHAPTER THREE Transitus (The Journey)
1954-1978
Blanca Arias
Segunda Parte: Guerra
CHAPTER FOUR Radix Sancta (The Holy Root of Salvation)
June and July 1979
Elias Bacon
. . .
Visio Opprobii (The Apparition of the Reproach)
May 8-18, 1980
Bernardo
CHAPTER FIVE Partus (The Birth)
December 1980
Sofia Velázquez
CHAPTER SIX Ecclesiae (The Church)
March 1981
Father Damien MacManus
. . .
Secunda Visio (The Second Apparition)
June 8-24, 1980
Bernardo
CHAPTER SEVEN O Felix Culpa (O Happy Sin)
October 14, 1982
Flor de María Gómez
CHAPTER EIGHT Protospathari (The Royal Guard)
February 1983
Tatiana Altamirano
. . .
Tertia Visio (The Third Apparition)
July 8-September 6, 1980
Bernardo
CHAPTER NINE Theotokos (The God-Bearer)
November 1988
Germán Sotelo
Tercera Parte: Paz
CHAPTER TEN Kekaritomene (Thou That Art Highly Favored)
November 1993
Paulina Thompson
. . .
Nulla Visio (No Apparition)
August 8-12, 1980
Bernardo
CHAPTER ELEVEN Aeiparthenos (Ever Virgin)
August 20, 1995
Sor Milagros, Tijerino
CHAPTER TWELVE Humilitas (Humility)
January 15, 2000
Nicholas Salazar
. . .
Quarta Visio (The Fourth Apparition)
September 8, 1980
Bernardo
CHAPTER THIRTEEN Hypapante (The Meeting)
May 8, 2000
Padre Ginés Hidalgo and the Pilgrims
CHAPTER FOURTEEN Koimesis (To Sleep Eternal)
November 22, 2000
Diego Miranda
. . .
Ultima Visio (The Last Apparition)
October 13, 1980
Bernardo
Posdata
REQUEST ACCESSIBLE FILE
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Northwestern University Press, 2007 eISBN: 978-0-8101-6214-3 Cloth: 978-0-8101-2240-6 Paper: 978-0-8101-2427-1
In 1980, with the Sandinistas newly in power, tailor and pig farmer Bernardo Martinez witnesses an extraordinary thing: an otherworldly glow about the statue of the Virgin Mary in the church where he works as sacristán. Soon the Holy Virgin appears. She tells Bernardo to forget his money problems and fear of ridicule and spread her message of peace and faith to his neighbors. Though a work of fiction, Bernardo and the Virgin is based on actual events in Bernardo Martinez's life. The visitation of the Virgin Mary at Cuapa, Nicaragua, remains one of the few such events accepted by the Roman Catholic Church in the last sixty years.
Silvio Sirias' sweeping novel tells many stories: that of a humble man touched by the transcendent; that same man as a devout boy denied the priesthood because of poverty; and those in his orbit, past and present. It is also the stormy epic of Nicaragua through the long Somoza years to the Sandinista revolution. Sirias' beautiful language mixes English with Spanish and details of dusty village life with wondrous images of Catholic mysticism. His portrayal of the rich recent past of Central America resonates with the experiences of both the natives and the thriving communities of Nicaraguans, Salvadorans, and others putting down roots in the United States.
AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY
Silvio Sirias was born in Los Angeles and he grew up there and in Nicaragua. His other works include writing Julia Alvarez: A Critical Literary Companion (Greenwood, 2002), editing Salomón de la Selva's Tropical Town and Other Poems (Arte Público Press, 1999), and co-editing Conversations with Rudolfo Anaya (University Press of Mississippi, 1998). Sirias is currently an associate professor at Florida State University-Panama.
REVIEWS
"By demonstrating the magic in everyday rural Nicaragua, this tale of religious mysticism is elevated from the unattainable buried headline—'villagers see image of Virgin Mary'—to a story of faith, politics, love, and loss which we all can understand."
—Rain Taxi Review of Books
"The details of Bernardo's Nicaragua are wholly entertaining and enticing, with images of Catholic mysticism juxtaposed against the particulars of life in the dusty village of Cuapa. Sirias's prose is lovely."
—San Antonio Express-News
"Bernardo and the Virgin is a gargantuan book, full of beauty and wonder. . . . This book is a page-turner, as we begin to get engrossed in the life of humble Bernardo and his world. . . . Bernardo and the Virgin will join the ranks of other memorable books [by writers such as] Francisco Goldman, Jaime Manrique, and Mayra Montero. . . . It is adventure of the first order."
—Virgil Suárez, author of Havana Thursdays
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Primera Parte: Inocencia
Illuminatio (The Illumination)
April 1980
Bernardo
CHAPTER ONE Hyperdulia (The Veneration of Our Lady)
1931-1945
Padre Orlando García Sánchez
CHAPTER TWO Dulia (The Veneration of Saints)
1949-1950
Teresa de Jesús Medina
. . .
Prima Vision (The First Apparition)
May 8, 1980
Bernardo
CHAPTER THREE Transitus (The Journey)
1954-1978
Blanca Arias
Segunda Parte: Guerra
CHAPTER FOUR Radix Sancta (The Holy Root of Salvation)
June and July 1979
Elias Bacon
. . .
Visio Opprobii (The Apparition of the Reproach)
May 8-18, 1980
Bernardo
CHAPTER FIVE Partus (The Birth)
December 1980
Sofia Velázquez
CHAPTER SIX Ecclesiae (The Church)
March 1981
Father Damien MacManus
. . .
Secunda Visio (The Second Apparition)
June 8-24, 1980
Bernardo
CHAPTER SEVEN O Felix Culpa (O Happy Sin)
October 14, 1982
Flor de María Gómez
CHAPTER EIGHT Protospathari (The Royal Guard)
February 1983
Tatiana Altamirano
. . .
Tertia Visio (The Third Apparition)
July 8-September 6, 1980
Bernardo
CHAPTER NINE Theotokos (The God-Bearer)
November 1988
Germán Sotelo
Tercera Parte: Paz
CHAPTER TEN Kekaritomene (Thou That Art Highly Favored)
November 1993
Paulina Thompson
. . .
Nulla Visio (No Apparition)
August 8-12, 1980
Bernardo
CHAPTER ELEVEN Aeiparthenos (Ever Virgin)
August 20, 1995
Sor Milagros, Tijerino
CHAPTER TWELVE Humilitas (Humility)
January 15, 2000
Nicholas Salazar
. . .
Quarta Visio (The Fourth Apparition)
September 8, 1980
Bernardo
CHAPTER THIRTEEN Hypapante (The Meeting)
May 8, 2000
Padre Ginés Hidalgo and the Pilgrims
CHAPTER FOURTEEN Koimesis (To Sleep Eternal)
November 22, 2000
Diego Miranda
. . .
Ultima Visio (The Last Apparition)
October 13, 1980
Bernardo
Posdata
REQUEST ACCESSIBLE FILE
If you are a student who cannot use this book in printed form, BiblioVault may be able to supply you
with an electronic file for alternative access.
Please have the accessibility coordinator at your school fill out this form.
It can take 2-3 weeks for requests to be filled.
ABOUT THIS BOOK | AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY | REVIEWS | TOC | REQUEST ACCESSIBLE FILE