Centennial of the crowning of Andorra’s Patroness
On the feast of the Nativity of Mary, the centennial of the crowning of the Virgin of Meritxell, Patroness of Andorra, was celebrated. Andorra is a tiny country located in the Pyrenees, between Spain and France.
On the occasion, the Archbishop of Urgel, Joan-Enric Vives, recalled the protection of Our Lady over this principality: “Holy Mary watches over us and never leaves us. Even in times of pandemic or crisis, we can trust entirely in Her, who desires fraternal union for all and our fidelity to Jesus and His Gospel.”
The crowning that took place a hundred years ago gave rise to the local national anthem, El gran Carlomagno. Several countries have national anthems that mention God, but Andorra’s is the only one that makes reference to the Virgin Mary.
Award to the Virgin confirmed by the Andalusian High Court
In 2017, the government of Cádiz in Spain, with the endorsement of over six thousand of its citizens, awarded the city’s Gold Medal to its Patroness, the Virgin of the Rosary, who has held the title of its mayor in perpetuity since 1967. The presentation was made to the Dominicans, guardians of this statue of Our Lady.
The secularist association Europa Laica, however, tried to challenge the bestowal in court, alleging, among other arguments, that the municipal decision affected the citizens of Cádiz, who do not all share the same beliefs, that the distinction was made to the Dominican Order and not to the Virgin of the Rosary, and that the merits of Mary were considered from a religious and not scientific perspective.
However, in September the Andalusian High Court rejected the appeal filed by Europa Laica and ratified the awarding of the medal. The ruling accepted the argument of the lawyer for the House of Our Lady of the Rosary and St. Dominic, who argued that the Virgin Mary existed historically, independently of religious considerations about Her, and that the recognition is attributed to one of her invocations – in this case, coming from the Dominican Order.
Relics of Blessed Maria Felícia return to Paraguay
The relics of the first Paraguayan Blessed, María Felicia de Jesús Sacramentado, known as Chiquitunga, returned to her native land on September 21 after three years in Rome. They had been transferred to the General House of the Discalced Carmelite Order in March 2018 to undergo a conservation process and be placed in more resistant and appropriate containers.
Fr. Víctor Giménez, Vicar General of the Archdiocese of the Most Holy Assumption, explained that the return of the relics to Paraguay was later than expected due to the pandemic situation. Two reliquaries were made: one will remain in the Oratory of the Discalced Carmelites in Asunción, and the other will travel throughout the country, fulfilling Maria Felicia’s desire to reach out to the farthest corners of Paraguay. The reliquary design was inspired by the cloister arches of the Carmelite monastery where the Blessed lived, each arch containing a scene from her life.
175th anniversary of the apparitions of La Salette
The National Shrine of Our Lady of La Salette in Attleboro, Massachusetts, USA, has planned a calendar of events for the celebration of the 175th anniversary of the apparitions of Our Lady in France in 1846.
To mark the important date, and mindful of Mary’s call to make her message known, the La Salette Retreat & Conference Center has launched an online lecture series on Scripture, the spirituality of La Salette and the relationship between the Bible, psychology and spirituality.
Kazakhstan entrusted to the patronage of St. Joseph
On September 19, in the small Basilica of St. Joseph in Karaganda, an act of consecration of Kazakhstan and the local Church to the Spouse of Mary took place, in the presence of members of the country’s Catholic Bishops’ Conference.
Kazakhstan was already entrusted to the guardianship of the Queen of Peace twenty-six years ago, by Bishop Jan Paweł Lenga, presently emeritus. Now it has received another guardian, in the person of St. Joseph. The Catholic faithful hope that their love and veneration for the Patriarch of the Church may manifest itself in their daily work, and that he be their faithful protector in their endeavours.
Priest is assassinated in Haiti
Beaten and shot by a motorcycle gang, seventy-year-old Fr. André Sylvestre died in the city of Cap-Haitien, in northern Haiti, despite being rescued and taken to hospital. The criminals took nothing from the priest, further accentuating the anti-religious nature of their attack.
In April, this same gang of criminals, who call themselves the 400 Mazowo, kidnapped ten Catholics, including priests and nuns. In recent years Haiti has experienced an intense surge in violence and the Archdiocese of Port-au-Prince has warned that it has already reached unprecedented levels in the country.
Anniversary of the apparitions of Our Lady of Coromoto
For the first time in twenty years, the feast of Our Lady of Coromoto in Guanare, Venezuela, was held with national and international media coverage. Despite the pandemic, the tradition was maintained of pilgrims, cyclists, motorcyclists and runners arriving from different parts of the country from daybreak to celebrate the last apparition of the Beautiful Lady to the Indian Coromoto and his family, on September 8, 1652.
The Mass commemorating the 369th anniversary of that apparition was presided over by the Head of the Diocese, Bishop José de la Trinidad Valera Angulo, who highlighted in his homily: “The figure of Mary presented in the Gospel: the beautiful and holy Woman of high ideals who knew how to listen to the voice of God.”
52nd International Eucharistic Congress
The 52nd International Eucharistic Congress, held in Budapest from September 5 to 12, was a sign of hope for the Church in Hungary, still recovering from decades lived under the communist regime. Twenty-five Cardinals and numerous Bishops, some from Middle Eastern and Asian nations, as well as religious and faithful from various parts of the world, participated in the event.
During the opening Holy Mass in Heroes’ Square, presided over by Cardinal Angelo Bagnasco, President of the Council of European Bishops’ Conferences, about one thousand two hundred children received First Holy Communion. Cardinal Péter Erdő, Archbishop of Esztergom-Budapest and Primate of Hungary, presided the Eucharistic Celebration in front of the Parliament. In his homily, he recalled how St. Stephen, entrusting his crown to the Mother of God, implored her protection for the Hungarian people, and it is She who intercedes for Christian unity between East and West.
