Statues and relics survive catastrophe in Rio Grande do Sul
In the midst of the tragedy ravaging the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul, the discovery of images and relics that inexplicably escaped the catastrophe has brought a sign of hope to the faithful.
In the city of Três Coroas, a copy of the Holy Scriptures was found intact by a volunteer from the Fire Brigade. The Bible was open to chapter 36 of the Book of Job, which read: “God teaches through suffering.” Three statues of Our Lady of Fatima, one in Porto Alegre, another in Bento Gonçalves and the third on the banks of the Guaporé River, were preserved unharmed despite the surrounding destruction, as was a statue of St. Therese of the Child Jesus containing a relic, recovered among the debris of a house swept away by the floods.
Warsaw bans crucifixes in public places
A decree signed by the mayor of Warsaw, Poland, has banned the display of crucifixes and other religious images in the city’s public spaces and workplaces. The measure, which is based on the Guarantee of Freedom of Conscience and Religion Act, requires the removal of all religious symbols and will be enforced in the capital.
The decision has raised numerous opponents, outraged by the direct attack on the country’s Christian and cultural traditions and the violation of the Constitution, which guarantees citizens the right to publicly express their religion.
Possible miraculous cure in Lourdes
During the annual pilgrimage organized by the Hospitality of Our Lady of Lourdes in Madrid to the French shrine of this invocation, a pilgrim was cured of a serious visual impairment when she used the water from the Grotto of Massabielle.
The shrine’s Medical Bureau has been informed and doctors have now verified the extraordinary case, but several years of study and follow-up will be necessary before it can be declared a new miracle. The healing must first be proven to have been immediate, complete, lasting and unexplainable – requirements of the Church that are far more rigorous than the mere declaration of unexplained healing issued by the medical doctors.
If these demands are met, it will be the 71st miracle to take place in Lourdes.
Pilgrimage for the reopening of Notre-Dame
On the occasion of the reopening of Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris, seven pilgrimage routes from all over France will converge towards the emblematic church under the motto The Great Saints Who Have Gone Before Us Have Shown Us the Way. The pilgrimage will begin on July 28 and each route will be under the protection of one of the following patron saints: St. Joseph, St. Michael, St. Joan of Arc, St. James, St. Anne, St. Martin and St. Benedict Joseph Labre. Another pilgrimage, entitled the Marian Crown, will travel around Paris, starting from Nanterre, with the image of Our Lady of Tenderness.
The programme will conclude with a solemn vigil on September 14 and Mass on September 15, presided over by the Archbishop of Paris in the Church of Saint-Sulpice.
Florida public schools to have chaplains
Starting in July, the educational programme of public schools in the state of Florida can include the presence of volunteer chaplains. The bill that approved this benefit was signed by Governor Ronald Dion DeSantis in April this year and seeks to offer students additional support in the difficult phase of challenge and change they face during the school term.
The measure includes obligatory written consent from parents allowing children to receive guidance from the chaplains and take part in the programmes they offer in schools.
Large-scale celebrations in Fatima
Braving the cold and the possibility of rain, more than 450 thousand faithful from all over the world took part in the celebrations for the feast of Our Lady of Fatima at her shrine in Portugal.
Around 250 thousand devotees accompanied the candlelight procession on Sunday, May 12, and 200 thousand crowded the esplanade during the solemn Eucharistic Celebration on the 13th, the anniversary of the Virgin Mary’s first apparition to the little shepherds.
The rector of the shrine expressed his amazement at the large number of young people who made the journey to the site on foot, and the Archbishop of Barcelona, Cardinal Juan José Omella, who presided over the celebrations, was moved by the sight of thousands of Catholics gathered to affirm their desire to follow the call of the Mother of God expressed there over a century ago.
Floating rosary in Lebanon
The seaside town of Bouar in Lebanon was the scene of an unusual tribute to the Virgin Mary on May 11, the feast of Our Lady of the Seas.
Catholics from the region – led by Joe Abdel Sater, the initiator of the project, and supported by the local priest and the town’s mayor – made a rosary of over a hundred metres and carefully placed it on the waters of the Mediterranean Sea. The floating rosary is fitted with lights to make it glow at night and tied to rocks on the seabed to maintain its shape despite the movement of the water.
Fifth worldwide edition of Men’s Rosary
Asking Our Lady to revitalize in the hearts of men the role that God has entrusted to them in the plan of salvation as protectors of the family and society: this was the intention of the fifth world edition of the Men’s Rosary, which took place on May 4.
The event, which united men from 40 countries and 200 cities in prayer, also raised petitions for priests and offered the Mother of God an act of reparation for the offences committed on a daily basis against her Immaculate Heart, as well as for the attacks upon the Catholic Church and the family.
Volleyball champion gives up career to enter monastery
At the age of thirty-two, Ludovic Duée, the captain of the Saint-Nazaire Volley-Ball Atlantique team, last season’s French champions, has decided to give it all up to follow God’s call.
The athlete, who has won several trophies, will now go in search of more lasting rewards within the cloisters of the Abbey of St. Mary of Lagrasse, located 400 kilometres from Paris.
The decision, which came as a surprise to many, was born in the young man’s heart at the beginning of the pandemic, as he declared: “I discovered that God loved me and that the only thing He expected of me was to love Him too.” Ludovic will now begin a period of formation to become a cleric of the Canons Regular of St. Augustine.
Catholic school headmaster prevents terrorist attack
A group of unidentified extremists tried to break into the Fr. Angus Frazer Memorial Catholic High School in Makurdi, Nigeria, on the night of May 7.
The attackers opened fire on the building in which the students were sleeping, but the attack was thwarted thanks to the wise intervention of the headmaster, Fr. Emmanuel Ogwuche, who quickly switched off all lighting to the building, preventing the terrorists from finding the entrance. However, fearing further attacks, the young people have been evacuated as a precautionary measure, while waiting for the situation to stabilize.
Mexican archdiocese is consecrated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus
On May 26, Cardinal Carlos Aguiar Retes, Primate of Mexico, consecrated the Archdiocese of Mexico City to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, through the intercession of the Virgin of Guadalupe, St. Joseph and St. Michael.
The act, solemnly carried out at the end of the Mass celebrated by the Cardinal in the National Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe, was attended by members of the Guadalupe Chapter and a large number of faithful.
