Mariana de Jesús

Mariana Navarro de Guevara, in full Mariana Navarro de Guevara Romero (17 January 1565 – 17 April 1624) was a Spanish Roman Catholic nun who became a member of the Mercedarian Tertiaries. Upon admittance she took the religious name Mariana of Jesus. She was noted for a life of penance and an emphasis on devotion to the Eucharist and is sometimes called the "Lily of Madrid".

She was pious as a child and cared for her brothers after the death of her mother. Her father remarried and her new stepmother seemed to dislike her for reasons unknown. Her father desired that she get married and leave home but she desired to be married to Jesus Christ and to devote her life to him. She turned down a marriage proposal at the age of 23. She tried to join several religious orders but was not accepted because of an illness that prevented her from using her hands freely.

Guevara met a priest who suggested to her that she become a member of a religious order known as the Mercedarians. From 1598 her spiritual director was Fr. Jaun Bautista Ganzáles of the local Mercedarian house. In 1611 the discalced Mercedarians relocated to Santa Barbara, and she settled in a nearby cottage. She spent hours in worship of the Eucharist and counseled people who came to her for advice. She was well known for her patience and kindness with everyone she met.

The introduction to the cause of beatification bestowed upon her the title of Servant of God and it opened in Madrid. Pope Clement XIII recognized her life of heroic virtue and proclaimed her to be Venerable on 9 August 1761.

Pope Pius VI approved two miracles attributed to her intercession on 31 August 1782 and beatified her in 1783. A third miracle attributed to her and needed for her canonization was investigated from 8 March 2011 to 11 November 2013 and received formal ratification on 2 May 2014.

Her memorial day is April 17. Mariana is the patroness of the Mercedarian Third Order.

The Association of Friends of Mariana of Jesus for the poor of Madrid collects food for distribution to the poor, just as she did.