The baker woman in her humble lodge
Received a grain of wheat from God.
For nine whole months the grain she stored.
Behold the handmaid of the Lord!
Make us the bread, Mary, Mary,
Make us the bread, we need to be fed.

The baker woman took the road which led
To Bethlehem, the House of Bread.
To knead the bread she labored through the night
And brought it forth about midnight.
Bake us the bread Mary, Mary,
Bake us the bread. We need to be fed.

She baked the bread for thirty years
By the fire of her love, and the salt of her tears
By the warmth of a heart so tend and bright
And the bread was golden brown and white.
Bring us the bread, Mary, Mary,
Bring us the bread, we need to be fed.

After thirty years the bread was done.
It was taken to town by her only son;
The soft white bread to be given free
To the hungry people of Galilee
Give us the bread Mary, Mary
Give us the bread, we need to be fed.

For thirty coins the bread was sold,
And a thousand teeth so cold, so cold
Tore it to pieces on a Friday noon
When the sun turned black and red the moon.
Break us the bread , Mary, Mary.
Break us the bread, we need to be fed.

And when she saw the bread so white,
The living bread she made at night,
Devoured as wolves might devour a sheep
The baker-woman began to weep
Weep for the bread, Mary, Mary
Weep for the bread, we need to be fed.

But the baker woman’s only son
Appeared to his friends when three days had run
On the road which to Emmaus led,
And they knew him in the breaking of bread.
Lift up your head, Mary , Mary
Lift up your head, for now we’ve been fed.

The image of Mary as the “Baker’s Woman” reveals how selfless Mary is and thus it is not surprising therefore Mary is always associated with the poor. She probably understand better than anyone else that loving others is the best way to love God.

"The Immaculate alone has from God the promise of victory over Satan. She seeks souls that will consecrate themselves entirely to her, that will become in her hands forceful instruments for the defeat of Satan and the spread of God's kingdom." --St. Maximilian Kolbe. As we continue our look at the different images of the Blessed Virgin Mary and reflect on the spiritual insights that come from them, I turn once more to Ann Ball’s book: The Other Faces of Mary: Stories, Devotions, and Pictures of the Holy Virgin Around the World to find our next image that of The Virgin of Altagracia “Our Lady of High Grace.”

The Virgin of Altagracia has a special place in the heart of the people of Dominican Republic. This particular image received a papal crown (special honor) twice first by Pius XI and then again in Pope John Paul II. Ann Ball describes the image as: “The image is a portrait of the Virgin at the nativity. It is small, about thirteen by eighteen inches, and is painted on cloth. The picture was painted about the turn of the fourteenth century by an unknown artist of the Spanish school. It is framed in an ornate frame of gold, enamel, and precious stones. The frame was crafted by an unknown eighteenth-century artisan, who must likely used the jewelry presented as ex votos to the image for his materials. His work is considered one of the finest examples of Dominican gold work. “

This image of Mary at the nativity physically contradicts historically everything that actually happened. Mary was in no way royalty so hence she would have no crown. She was a traveler far away from home and so her clothes would not have been very clean. She gave birth to Jesus in a stable that I would have to assume would be messier than what the image portrays. Ironically though the painting probably portrays what is going on much more accurately than we may realize. Mary is the royal daughter of God the Father. She is the “Queen Mother” and hence the crown. Mary’s clean and beautiful clothes represent her soul that is not tarnished by the dirt of sin. The clean surroundings speaks of the lack of chaos in Mary’s soul for she has her soul completely oriented with the Father’s will. I believe that decorating images like this can help remind us what is truly important.

Carlos Cabral, a Dominican Republic businessman, quoted in Ann Ball’s book had this to say when pondering the image of The Virgin of Altagracia: “For me, no matter how she is portrayed, the Virgin Mary represents much by the fact that she is the Mother of Jesus, the Son of God. The words of Christ from the cross, “Mother, there is our son; son there is your Mother,” have always echoed in my mind, and in many moments of uncertainty and suffering I pray to Mary for consolation. From her example, we receive the greatest of lessons: humility, selflessness, unconditional love, conviction, and resignation.”

Mary’s example of holiness, of love, and of discipleship cannot help but send the devil packing fearfully. The idea of Blessed Virgin Mary as “Our Lady of Grace,” invokes in me the reminder that with God I am capable of doing nothing. God willingly gives us what we need to avoid sin. The question is am I open to receiving what God wants to give me. Sometimes I feel that if I do things God’s way that I will be missing out on something. Mary understood that God loved her and desired what was best for her so she willingly submits to His will and declares herself to be “the handmaid of the Lord.” She finds true happiness by learning to rejoice in God’s will. We are challenged by her example to do the same.

"So your strength is failing you? Why don't you tell your mother about it? . . . Mother! Call her with a loud voice. She is listening to you; she sees you in danger, perhaps, and she—your holy mother Mary—offers you, along with the grace of her son, the refuge of her arms, the tenderness of her embrace . . . and you will find yourself with added strength for the new battle." --St. Josemaria Escriva. It seems like all the saints had a devotion to Mary and would pray to Blessed Virgin Mary in times of temptation. Seizing on this idea, I often recommend to those struggling with chastity to keep a rosary nearby and when there is a temptation to be unchaste to pull out the rosary and pray it. The praying of the rosary not only refocuses on Christ but also puts distance (speaking of time) between the temptation and any actions following the temptations. I believe the devil being the father of lies does not want us to wait after he presents a temptation for he would rather us not think and discover the falsehood of his lies. The image of the Blessed Virgin Mary today is called “Our Lady of Chapi” or “Mary Most Pure.” Ann Ball in her book: The Other Faces of Mary: Stories, Devotions, and Pictures of the Holy Virgin Around the World states: “The Virgin of Chapi is of a type known as a candelaria, an image of purity symbolized by the candle she holds in her right hand.” Ann Ball continues her description: “The image is approximately two feet tall. In her right hand she holds a candle and a small basket containing two turtle doves. She cradles her Divine Son on her left arm and holds a rosary in her left hand. In keeping with Hispanic tradition, the image is dressed in richly embroidered clothing. Inside the temple, both she and the babe wear beautiful crowns, and Our Lady wears a regal cloak and sometimes a decorative sash. When the Virgin of Chapi goes out to meet her clients in procession, however, her hair is braided and falls in graceful plaits similar to those of the woman of the region. She and her son don a protective cloak, and each wears a large Peruvian hat. The large dark eyes of the Virgin of Chapi are compelling. They seem to invite the repentant pilgrim to the love and mercy of her Son.”

Sometimes, I believe that there are mysteries of our faith and experiences of our life that really cannot be explain with words and so to fully explain them one must use his or her body. John Paul II in his Theology of the Body talks, pointed out that one of the reasons why a person’s body was so important was because it alone is capable of expressing the soul. For example, we only know what people are feeling because their body expresses it either through gestures, words, or both. I think one of the great mysteries expressed in this devotion to Mary is that she and Jesus remove their crowns before they go out and meet the pilgrims who have come to the shrine and then they place on the statues a normal Peruvian hat. What a beautiful symbolism of how Mary and Jesus do not Lord their heavenly status over others but rather they come down low to hear our petitions and to care for us. It speaks to me of what heaven is all about. Heaven is not a place that if I make there I will brag about my accomplishments but rather heaven is a place where I will love and be concerned with the needs of others as God is. I also like the idea of the procession where Mary and Jesus symbolically come out to those who wish to be close to them. This symbolizes of course that Mary and Jesus are always close to us and do not simply remain aloof in heaven.

Another interesting thought about the Virgin of Chapi is that her shrine has been moved a few times over the years because non-Catholics (and probably some Catholics) grew tired of the great crowds of pilgrims that would come to the shrine. It reminds me sort of the fact that Mary had to give birth to the savior in a manger because there was no room for her in any inn. Sometimes we can accept Christ and His mother into our hearts and unfortunately there are also times in which we expel Jesus and Mary from our hearts because of what others think or because they make us uncomfortable. We are challenge therefore to keep our hearts always as a dwelling place of Jesus and of His Mother Mary.

Fr. Thomas M. Pastorius
October 5, 2014
Spiritual Ponderings
Images of Blessed Virgin Mary

Growing up, I would hear priests from the pulpit and teachers in schools tell me that in order to be a good Christian that I needed to have a strong devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary. I just did not know what that looked like besides trying to pray the rosary every day. It was not until I entered the seminary did I learn the truth that Mary always points us toward her Son and so the more I prayed through Mary and the more that I studied Mary’s life the closer I grew to Christ and the more I learned about Him.

As human beings, we learn a lot about a person by learning about his or her family especially their parents. Meeting the parents of an individual always adds an extra dimension for good or for bad. Archbishop Fulton Sheen said the following in his book The World’s First Love: Mary, Mother of God - “When God willed to become Man, He had to decide on the time of His coming, the country in which He would be born, in the city in which He would be raised, the people, the race, the political and economic systems that would surround Him, the language He would speak, and the psychological attitudes with which He would come in contact as the Lord of History and the Savior of the World. All these details would depend entirely on one factor: the woman who would be His Mother. To choose a mother is to choose a social position, a language, a city, an environment, a crisis, and a destiny.”

For the month of October, I would like to reflect with you all on some of the different images of the Blessed Virgin Mary throughout history and across the globe. The first image I would like to look at is called The Virgin of Loreto of La Bahia and is located in Goliad, Texas. For help in our exploration we will be using The Other Faces of Mary: Stories, Devotions, and Pictures of the Holy Virgin Around the World by Ann Ball.

The Presidio La Bahia is the oldest fort in the western United States and is one of the few surviving examples of Spanish Colonial architecture. As the Spaniards explored modern day Texas and California Franciscan Friars would travel with the different groups of explorers bringing with them their devotion to Mary. The particular statue that the Franciscans brought to this mission was an image of Mary under the title of “Our Lady of Loreto.”

Throughout the history of the little fort/community the image of the Blessed Virgin Mary became known for the special graces that seemed to flow to those who prayed to Jesus through His Mother Mary.

“Our Lady of Loreto lights our journey of faith and shows us how to go and trust. She is the best example we have to believe in God’s will as she did. She gives us the strength and courage for what is sent to us. My devotion to her was a decisive turning point in my life. The turning point has been my inner journey of devotion to Our Lady. She shows me the way to her son and Father. Every rosary bead enables me to find confidence in her without reserve. I now I can strengthened my spiritual life and shown me how to obtain peace from within. I try to visit her often because it reminds me of the comfort and understanding she always offers when we deliver ourselves to her spirit of grace. – Michelle Rubio. Michelle is an active member of the parish and community history society in Goliad, Texas.

Archbishop Fulton Sheen: “Before taking unto Himself a human nature, He consulted with the Woman, to ask her if she would give Him a man. The Manhood of Jesus was not stolen from humanity, as Prometheus stole fire from heaven; it was given as a gift.”

WE FLY TO THY PATRONAGE
We fly to thy patronage, O holy Mother of God; despise not our petitions in our necessities, but deliver us always from all dangers, O glorious and blessed Virgin. Amen.
May the Divine assistance remain always with us! Amen.

Fr. Thomas M. Pastorius
October 12, 2014
Spiritual Ponderings
Images of Blessed Virgin Mary

Let us deepen our relationship with Our Lord Jesus Christ by learning more about Him by learning more about his mother.

For the month of October, I would like to reflect with you all on some of the different images of the Blessed Virgin Mary throughout history and across the globe. The second image I would like to look at is called Our Lady of Nyaunglebin and can be found in Myanmar. For help in our exploration we will be using The Other Faces of Mary: Stories, Devotions, and Pictures of the Holy Virgin Around the World by Ann Ball.

The image of Our Lady of Nyaunglebin started off as an image of Our Lady of Lourdes. In Lourdes, France the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to a young girl named Bernadette. She told Bernadette in the image that she was the “Immaculate Conception.” Fulton Sheen said the following about the idea that Mary was conceived without sin: “The closer one gets to fire, the greater the heat; the closer one is to God, the greater the purity,” and “The Immaculate Conception does not imply that Mary needed no Redemption. She needed it as much as you and I do. She was redeemed in advanced, by way of prevention, in both body and soul, in the first instant of conception.”

A copy of the image of Our Lady of Lourdes made it to Myanmar and despite many government persecutions the devotion of the Burmese people remains faithful to their queen of heaven. The national Marian pilgrimage center of Myanmar is in the town called Nyaunglebin, about one hundred miles from Yangon (Rangoon). Here the Lourdes image is known as Our Lady of Nyaunglebin. Her feast day is celebrated for three days in February, and many Catholics and even non-Catholics who have heard of her go there by car, plane, train, or bullock carts. In spite of the government restriction, thousands dare to attend the annual festival. During the joyful celebration, there is a candlelight procession every evening when the image is carried from the church around the town.

Our Lady of Nyaunglebin highlights some very important truths about the Blessed Virgin Mary. The first is that we are all her children. She does not look upon us and see race, creed, ethnicity, social status etc. Instead she looks down upon us and sees her beloved children - children who were given to her by her Beloved Son. Secondly we see Mary associated with the poor and not with military, rich, and violent leaders. She is a sign of hope for all people because Mary was raised up by God from her lowly state. We are raised up in a similar way at our baptism when we are made brothers and sisters of Christ.

“God could destroy evil, but only at the cost of human freedom, and that would be too high a price to pay for the destruction of dictatorship on earth—to have a dictator in Heaven.” – Fulton Sheen. Remember that in God’s interaction with Mary, He always asked her to cooperate with Him and never forced her. We should treat others in the same way.

Prayer
Most holy, immaculate Virgin Mary, to your motherly heart Jesus entrusted his disciples and to us He has given you. I thank you, O most beautiful and noble of women, that you have always loved me as a mother, and I want to provide afresh for you an honored place in my life. Obtain for me from Jesus the gift of a new beginning and a new heart: a heart open and obedient to God's Word; a heart simple as a child's; a heart bold in sacrifice; a chaste heart; a thankful heart; a compassionate heart; a heart like yours, O Mary. Enfold in your mercy, dear Mother, all my dear ones especially.... (pause) and all who have a special claim to your help, children and young people, the sick and the suffering, the forgotten and the poor of this world. Join your prayers to our petitions for those who do not cease to be your children even though they have abandoned the faith and fallen into sin. May a remembrance of your love and beauty touch their hearts at depths we cannot reach. As at Pentecost, so now pray for the Church; pray for our parish, our priests, our Brothers and our Sisters, and for all of us, who strive to serve others in the name of Jesus, your Son. With all generations, we will ever call you blessed, O Mary, our Mother of Perpetual Help, for God, the Almighty, has indeed done great things for you, and you have been and are so gracious to us: O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary.

Fr. Thomas M. Pastorius
October 19, 2014
Spiritual Ponderings
Images of Blessed Virgin Mary

As we continue to learn more about God by exploring Jesus’ relationship with His mother let us once again reflect on a different image of Mary.

The third image I would like to look at is called Our Lady of Garden from Genoa, Italy. For help in our exploration we will be using The Other Faces of Mary: Stories, Devotions, and Pictures of the Holy Virgin Around the World by Ann Ball.

The image of Mary known as “Our Lady of the Garden” actually does not depict the Blessed Virgin Mary in a garden. The painting receives its name from the location the painting originally hung – a small garden (City Park) in Genoa, Italy.

Maria de Quercio made a vow to God that if her family escaped the cholera epidemic she would create an outward shrine to the Blessed Virgin Mary in gratitude. As part of the shrine, she had a painting of the Blessed Virgin Mary commissioned by Renaissance painter Benedict Borzone. The image became a place where people came to pray for healing during a horrible epidemics.

The image in a special way depicts the last petition of the Hail Mary: “Pray for us sinners now and at the hour of death,” because Mary’s hand is directing the Christ child’s hand in making the Sign of the Cross (or in other words in blessing the city).

“When the Divine enters into the human, then the souls thinks less of asking than of loving Him. The lover seeks no favors from the beloved; Mary has no petitions but only praise. As the souls becomes detached from things and is conscious of itself and of its destiny, it knows itself only in God” – Fulton Sheen

Prayer:
Hail Mary! Daughter of God the Father.
Hail Mary! Mother of God the Son.
Hail Mary! Spouse of God the Holy Ghost.
Hail Mary! Temple of the Most Blessed Trinity.
Hail Mary! Pure Lily of the Effulgent Trinity, God.
Hail Mary! Celestial Rose of the ineffable Love o God.
Hail Mary, Immaculate! Conceived without sin!
Hail Mary, Full of Grace, The Lord is with thee!
Hail Mary! Virgin pure and humble, of whom the King of Heaven willed to be born and with thy milk to be nourished.
Hail Mary! Virgin of virgins.
Hail Mary! Queen of Martyrs, whose soul as sword transfixed.
Hail Mary! Lady most blessed, unto whom all power in Heaven and earth is given.
Hail Mary! My Queen and my Mother! My life, my sweetness and my hope.
Hail Mary! Mother most amiable.
Hail Mary! Mother most admirable.
Hail Mary! Mother of Divine Love.
Blessed art thou among women and blessed is the Fruit of thy womb, Jesus!
Blessed be thy spouse, Saint Joseph.
Blessed be thy father, Saint Joachim.
Blessed be thy mother, Saint Anne.
Blessed be thy guardian, Saint John.
Blessed be thy holy angel, Saint Gabriel.
Glory be to God the Father, Who chose thee.
Glory be to God the Son, Who loved thee.
Glory be to God the Holy Spirit, Who espoused thee.
O Glorious Virgin Mary,
May all men love and praise thee.
Holy Mary, Mother of God, Pray for us and bless us,
Now and at death, in the Name of Jesus, thy Divine Son.
(Composed by St. John Eudes - 1601 to 1680.)

Fr. Thomas M. Pastorius
October 25, 2014
Spiritual Ponderings
Images of Blessed Virgin Mary

As we continue to learn more about God by exploring Jesus’ relationship with His mother let us once again reflect on a different image of Mary. This last image of the Blessed Virgin Mary is called “The Sweet Mother of Den Bosch”. For help in our exploration we will be using The Other Faces of Mary: Stories, Devotions, and Pictures of the Holy Virgin Around the World by Ann Ball. Quotes from her are in bold.

This statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary is only three and half feet tall and was carved out of oak. The artist or woodworker is unknown. According to pious legend, the statue was discarded and found by a man who was looking for firewood to start a fire. The man through the wood statue into the fire just as a monk entered the room. The monk named Brother Wouter quickly rescued the statue from the fire and was given permission from his superiors to keep the statue in his room as a private devotion.

As the monk carried the statue through the Church of St. Jan (a shortcut to his room) the statue became so heavy that he could no longer move it. The statue, that could not be moved, quickly became the talk of the town and the image began to be venerated by the faithful. It is said that the Blessed Virgin Mary answered many of the prayers of the people who asked her to intercede to her Son for them.

The statue though was always under constant threat of being destroyed. According to Ann Ball: In 1629, the city was conquered by Prince Frederik of Hendrik and St Jan (the church where the image was kept) fell into Protestant hands and went into use for Dutch Reformed church services. The Catholic faith was forbidden in the Netherlands, and during these difficult times, sturdy Catholics risked their lives to keep the faith. Mass was celebrated secretly in barns, cellars, and sheds. These were known as schuilkerken (secret Churches) Her pious devotees secretly smuggled their Sweet Mother to safety in Belgium. She was taken first to Antwerp and then to Brussels, where she remained for more than two hundred year in the Coudenberg church. It would not be until the year of 1853 that the statue would returned to the Netherland.

To wrap up this month’s reflections here are three quotes from Fulton Sheen.

Where do this coldness, forgetfulness, and at least, indifference to the Blessed Mother start? From a failure to realize that her Son, Jesus, is the Eternal Son of God. – Fulton Sheen

A Catholic boy from a parochial school was telling a university professor who lived next door about the Blessed Mother. The professor scoffed at the boy, saying: “But there is no difference between her and my mother.” The boy answered: “That’s what you say, but there’s a heck of a lot of difference between the sons.” – Fulton Sheen

There is never any danger that men will think too much of Mary; the danger is that they will think to little of Christ. Coldness toward Mary is a consequence of indifference to Christ. Any objection to calling her the “Mother of God” is fundamentally an objection to the Deity of Christ – Fulton Sheen.

PILGRIM'S PRAYER THROUGH MARY
O Virgin Mary, Help of Christians, we dedicate ourselves to your service. We concentrate our minds, hearts, and bodies and promise to work always for the glory of God and the salvation of man. Protect the young and help the aged, save sinners and console the dying. You are our hope, Mary, Mother of Mercy and Gate of Heaven. Pray to your Son for us so that we may be filled with selfless charity and deep faith. Ask Jesus for those things which we cannot obtain through our own actions and help us in this our present necessity. May we always see the Will of the Father of our lives. We ask you this, Sweet Spouse of the Spirit, so that we may come to your Son in grace. Amen.

Fr. Thomas M. Pastorius
October 4, 2015
Spiritual Ponderings
Images of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Our Lady of the Hmong People

I recently came across an interesting story about Saint John Paul II in a book called Everybody Needs To Forgive Somebody: Stories of Real People Who Discovered the Underrated Power of Grace. It was written by Allen R. Hunt a former Protestant Minister who has converted to Catholicism. He explains that when Pope John Paul II met with the man who had tried to assassinate him, John Paul II discovered not a harden killer but rather a man who was deeply afraid of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It seems that John Paul II’s would be assassin had heard about how John Paul II had attributed the saving of his life to the Blessed Virgin Mary. Agca (the assassin) reasoned that since Mary had saved the pope’s life that it would only be a matter of time before Mary would seek to kill him. John Paul II spent more than two hours explaining to the man who had tried to kill him that Mary was not a goddess who chose to love some people and hate others but rather that Mary was the Mother of God and that Jesus gave her to all of us to be our mother also. John Paul II went onto tell Agca the amazing truth that the Mother of God was now his mother and that he and John Paul II were brothers through the power of Christ. Mary was not a goddess who did her own will but rather she was a conduit of God’s grace.

With that story in mind, I was once again inspired to devote my spiritual ponderings for the month of October to the Blessed Virgin Mary and in a special way look at how the Blessed Virgin Mary has been displayed throughout of history and what religious lessons a particular image of the Blessed Virgin Mary teaches us. For help in our four week endeavor, I will be referring to a book by hagiographer (a person who writes biographies of saints) Ann Ball. The book is called: The Other Faces of Mary: Stories, Devotions, and Pictures of the Holy Virgin Around The World.

The first image, I would like to focus on is called Our Lady of the Hmong People. I first heard about the Hmong people watching Clint Eastwood’s movie Grand Torino. Clint Eastwood’s character’s new neighbors are Hmong. Ann Ball has the following to say about the Hmong people: “America owes a great debt of gratitude to the Hmong people from Laos. While serving in special guerilla units during the Vietnam War, Hmong soldiers rescued many American pilots who were shot down over Laos. Most of the combat forces on the ground in Laos were Hmong, who cut off the supplies to the North Vietnamese as they traveled south along the Ho Chi Minh Trail. By the time America pulled out of Vietnam, thousands of Hmong men, women, and children, had been killed, and more than 100,000 fled to Thai refugee camps… A long genocidal campaign against the Hmong has been conducted by the Laotian and Vietnamese governments in vengeance for Hmong support of the United States during the war.”

The Hmong people are also considered one of the youngest, if not the youngest culture to become Catholic. The first Hmong baptism on record took place in 1954 in Laos. Many of the Hmong have relocated to the United States with the help of the United States Government.

Monsignor Patrick McCormick found himself near the year 2,000 in charge of a multicultural parish in Fresno, California. With a desire to help the diverse culture come together he commissioned two parishioners to design an image of the Blessed Virgin Mary for the parish church. He chose sculptor and artist Manuel Rodriguez to create the statute and asked Tzer Lee Thao (a pious Hmong parishioner) to advise him. The created an image of the Blessed Virgin Mary dressed in traditional Hmong clothing. The statue stands only 12 inches high and Mary is clothed in a white robe and blue mantle designed to look like a special type of needlework called by the Hmong people Pa Ntaub. Mary’s waist has a red and green sash and she wears a headpiece colored purple with black and white stripes. Finally the statue shows Mary wearing a silver necklace and earrings while carrying a rosary in one hand.

Some may object to this statue being considered an image of Mary because it was only recently created, I would have to disagree with them because while the image itself may be considered new, the symbols and message that make up the image are old and traditional. Mary’s headpiece can easily be seen as Mary’s being queen of heaven. Yet being Queen of Heaven, Mary has always identified herself with the poor as seen in the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe. There she was a poor Aztec and here she is a poor Hmong. The rosary reminds and invites us to have recourse to her and her Son I times of trouble. Finally it is an image that unites people together just as Mary’s Son did through His death and resurrection.

Fr. Thomas M. Pastorius
October 11, 2015
Spiritual Ponderings
Images of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Our Lady of Atocha

I have decided to once again devote my spiritual ponderings for the month of October to the Blessed Virgin Mary and in a special way look at how the Blessed Virgin Mary has been displayed throughout history and what religious lessons a particular image of the Blessed Virgin Mary teaches us. I will be referring to a book by hagiographer (a person who writes biographies of saints) Ann Ball. The book is called: The Other Faces of Mary: Stories, Devotions, and Pictures of the Holy Virgin around The World.

Have you ever thought what a unique creature human beings are? We are made up of matter (something that can be seen, taste, touched, smell, or heard) but yet we there is something spiritual to us. It is because of this uniqueness that Catholicism never devalues matter or material things. In fact we use material things to help express our spiritual-ness. For example we use incense at Mass to symbolize our prayers rising up to God and to remind us that we understand divine things only vaguely as if looking through a pillar of smoke with watery eyes. We light candles to remind us that Christ is the light of the world and we have been charged with spreading His light to the world in need.

Please keep the above in mind as I introduce the next image of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This next image of the Blessed Virgin Mary is called Our Lady of Atocha. This image of Blessed Virgin Mary is peculiar in that it is the only image of the Blessed Virgin Mary where the Christ child can be separated from the main statue. Devotees to this particular image of Mary can symbolically receive the Christ child from Mary to take into their home. As part of the devotion, people ask the Blessed Virgin Mary to not only intercede with them for their petition but also to allow her son to visit their house in a special way. (I know of some parishes that have a statue of Our Lady of Fatima that travels from home to home, I am assuming the Christ child travels in much the same way). This devotion should make each of us pause and think about what things we would change if we knew Christ would be spending the week with us and then realize that Christ is always with us and so let us change those things

The image is also unique in that it portrays Mary as a fair-skinned medieval Spanish queen who is dressed with rich embroidered clothes and she wears a golden crown. Jesus on the other hand is dressed as a Spanish pilgrim and had Indian (I am assuming Native American and not someone from India) features.

There is some who believe that the statue or at least the image that the statue of Mary is based on dates all the way back to St. Luke himself. It is said by some devotees that St. Luke carved the image when he was living in Antioch and thus “Atocha” is a shortened form of Antioch.

Another unique legend that surrounds this image of Mary is that during the time that part of Spain was under Moorish (Islamic) rule, people who were thrown into prison for one reason or another were left there to starve and therefore it was up to family members to bring food to their love ones in prison. A really evil Moorish leader came to power and declared that no one over the age of 12 would be allowed near the prison. It was the belief then that the older wiser men would starve to death because they would not have children under the age of 12 to bring them food. According to the legend, the women of the town went and prayed at the Church and appealed to the Blessed Virgin Mary for help. Soon the children of the town began to tell story to the adults about an unknown boy who was visiting and feeding the prisoners. They said that he would always come at night, slipped pass the sleeping guard, and that his basket of bread and jug of water could feed all the prisoners without every running out. The women eventually returned to the statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary and thank her for the miracle and they noticed that the shoes on the infant statue of Jesus were worn out.

Ten years ago, I would have said that this was a nice story, because back then I thought that I had to know everything and I did not like the idea of being surprised by things that I did not know. I also think that there was a part of me that did not want to admit that stories like this might be true because I did not trust God that much. In this present moment, I don’t necessarily believe the story to be true but I don’t believe it to be false either. All I know is that I don’t know everything and I have seen many things that I cannot explain. I also do not fear God as much because I can see how He has used the bad times of my life to bring about good things. I also cannot help but believe that my God is a God of miracles.

Fr. Thomas M. Pastorius
October 18, 2015
Spiritual Ponderings
Images of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Our Lady of Africa

Once again I have devote my spiritual ponderings for the month of October to the Blessed Virgin Mary and in a special way look at how the Blessed Virgin Mary has been displayed throughout of history and what religious lessons a particular image of the Blessed Virgin Mary teaches us. I will be referring to a book by hagiographer (a person who writes biographies of saints) Ann Ball. The book is called: The Other Faces of Mary: Stories, Devotions, and Pictures of the Holy Virgin Around The World.

It seems that every holy man or woman had some sort of devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary. Cardinal Charles Lavigerie who was Archbishop of Algiers in 1867 is yet another holy man that proves this point. Cardinal Lavigerie was sent to Africa to be one of its spiritual leaders during the time of Western Colonization and he spoke out vehemently against the slave trade and other evils of Western Colonization. His most famous quote according to Ann Ball was: “I am a man and nothing that is human is indifferent to me. I am a man; an injustice against another human being revolts my heart. I am a man and that which I would like done to me; I want to do for others.”

In an effort to draw people to create a mutual respect of both the African people and European people and to fight against all the injustices that were being done, the Cardinal had a statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary created that would have the facial features of a European and the skin color of an African. The image would have Mary standing on a globe and stomping on the head of snake with the inscription “Virgo Fidelis” (Faithful Virgin) written on it. While many of the injustices would carry on the Church in which the statue was place became a place of peace where people could come and pray. It even became a popular sight for Muslims to come and pray as well.

A unique tradition has developed at the Shrine of Our Lady of Africa. Pilgrims and others who come to visit the shrine have begun leaving engraved stones as offering to the Blessed Virgin Mary. Ann Ball does not say what people have engraved into these stones but the idea of stones invokes in me the image of the woman caught in adultery (John 8:1-11). Maybe the shrine is a place of peace because people are symbolically dropping their stones of hate and accusations and instead admitting that they too are sinners. Maybe one day, I will build a shrine to our Blessed Mother and invite people to leave their stones behind. Until then, I invite you to prayerfully using your imagination doing this the next time you feel a desire to accuse another.

Here is a few quotes about the Blessed Virgin Mary to end this week’s ponderings.
1.) A Catholic boy from a parochial school was telling a university professor who lived next door about the Blessed Mother. The professor scoffed at the boy, saying: “But there is no difference between her and my mother.” The boy answered: “That’s what you say, but there’s a heck of a lot of difference between the sons.”- Fulton Sheen

2.) "We never give more honor to Jesus than when we honor his Mother, and we honor her simply and solely to honor him all the more perfectly. We go to her only as a way leading to the goal we seek - Jesus, her Son." --Saint Louis Marie de Montfort

3.) "Men do not fear a powerful hostile army as the powers of hell fear the name and protection of Mary." --St. Bonaventure

4.) “Never be afraid of loving the Blessed Virgin too much. You can never love her more than Jesus did.” --Saint Maximilian Kolbe

5.) "Mary, give me your Heart: so beautiful, so pure, so immaculate; your Heart so full of love and humility that I may be able to receive Jesus in the Bread of Life and love Him as you love Him and serve Him in the distressing guise of the poor." --Blessed Mother Teresa

6.) "To serve the Queen of Heaven is already to reign there, and to live under her commands is more than to govern."
--St. John Vianney