In the gentleness of a smile or in a discreet intervention; as a friendly hand that reassures or a strong arm that supports; by a simple inner inspiration that is tantamount to salutary advice… In short, Dona Lucilia’s maternal help is felt in many different ways even by people who do not know her!
Certain that, close beside us, this good mother is interceding for us in our daily struggles and needs, let us take a look at a few more testimonies sent in by her devotees, souls who have in some way found solace under her lilac shawl.
A painful financial situation…
Dona Lucilia overcame financial difficulties that seemed unsolvable to Olga and her husband, and at the same time helped them build a house
Mrs. Olga Lucía Gracia Bello, from the Colombian town of Carmen de Apicalá, sends us a story to testify to her deep gratitude to Dona Lucilia who lit a light of hope in her life during a time when she found herself in a veritable sea of difficulties
Olga and her family were facing a critical financial situation. Her husband had worked for a construction company for around six months without receiving the payment due to him, which reached a sum equivalent to around US $15,000. This left the family in such straits that she turned to weaving ponchos and handbags in the local style, so that by selling them she could gain the minimum needed to survive on a day-to-day basis.
She was dedicating herself to this hard labour when she received a phone call from a Sister of the Heralds of the Gospel, asking her if she would like to receive a visit from the Shrine of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, which was passing through town. Very surprised, Olga replied: “How can you ask me for permission for the Virgin to come to my house, when I am the one who is needing her, and who is thankful for her looking at us, for choosing our house, when there are so many other families?”
At the end of the visit, as the Sisters were about to leave with the Shrine, Olga told them about her current financial crisis and how urgently she needed to find a way out. One of them suggested she ask Dona Lucilia for help, and went on to tell her a little about her story and the many favours obtained by people who turned to her.
You could say that desperate cases are very much the specialty of this kind lady… a fact that Olga seems to have sensed immediately. She decided to make a novena to Dona Lucilia, trusting that the solution to her problem would come through her.
…and new house!
Here are her words:
“I started the novena and, on the third day, an engineer called who was interested in buying a backhoe that we were selling. My husband wanted to sell it because he was tired of working and losing money on it. We also had a plot of land for sale in Carmen de Apicalá; we wanted to sell both together because we needed to pay off other debts.”
In two days of negotiation between the engineer and Olga’s husband, the backhoe deal was finalized: “They agreed that my husband would give him the backhoe and he would build a house for us in Carmen de Apicalá. He also paid a part in cash – the equivalent of over four thousand dollars – and that is how we settled our debts. On the third day, Dona Lucilia gave us the ‘miracle’ we had been asking for!”
When Olga sent her story, the foundations of the new home had already been laid, and her husband was working on the construction with the very excavator he had sold as part of the contract. Dona Lucilia had finally overcome financial difficulties that seemed unsolvable, and at the same time had helped them get a house.
Olga ends her words with a warm thank you: “I am very grateful to you for your time, for having fixed your eyes on our family. Many, many thanks. May God bless you abundantly.”
A providential encounter
There are certain situations of extreme distress, danger or fear in which it is difficult for anyone to trust and abandon themselves into God’s hands. In such circumstances, there is nothing like keeping our hearts anchored in faith. While keeping this virtue firm, we can also be helped by devotion to Dona Lucilia, because this loving mother knows very well how to take care of her children in times of great affliction, giving each one the remedy, advice or simply the support they need to overcome adversity.
This is one of the lessons we can learn from the report sent in by Mrs. Andresa Aparecida Pinheiro Rebelo, a native of Nazaré Paulista, married and the mother of three children. She came into contact with the Heralds of the Gospel in 2012, in a somewhat unusual way: at the funeral of a friend who had relatives in the organization.
“The first time I saw the habit, I was very impressed. I was invited to the seventh-day Mass at the Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary, the Heralds’ church in Caieiras. As soon as I arrived, I felt an enormous desire to go to Confession. It was an excellent Confession, an experience that I will carry with me forever. Years have passed and it has remained etched in my memory.
“On November 21, 2020, we heard that the Heralds’ choir would be at the parish church in my town, Nazaré Paulista. That same day, I found out that I was pregnant with João, our second child.”
Andresa and her husband, Tiago, attended a performance by the Heralds’ choir and were invited to visit the institution’s house. A friendship developed that was so deep that they invited a Herald brother to be the godfather at the Baptism of their unborn child. The couple then began to find out about devotion to Dona Lucilia and began to ask for her intercession.
“My name is Luci”
It was not long before a favourable opportunity arose for Dona Lucilia to show the couple that she had taken them and their baby under her protection. Andresa recounts:
“On June 21, 2021, I had a placental abruption and we rushed to hospital. We contacted a Herald priest by mobile phone and, despite the late hour, he promptly attended us, sending blessings and accompanying the whole process. On the journey from Nazaré Paulista to São José dos Campos, I prayed the Rosary and asked for Dona Lucilia’s company and intercession, imploring her to be with me at that delicate moment.
“The doctor referred me for an emergency caesarean section, warning me that the baby and I could die due to the time without oxygen – two hours – and the degree of infection; or that the child would have some kind of sequelae for the rest of its life. Seven spinal anaesthetics were necessary, and I was so emotionally shaken.
“In this situation, I looked at the name tag of the nurse next to me and read her name: Luci. I then asked: ‘What’s your name?’ She replied, smiling serenely: ‘I’m Luci and I’m going to accompany you. Don’t worry, everything will be fine.’”
The similarity of the nurse’s name to Dona Lucilia’s served as a sign to Andresa that she would come to her aid in that emergency situation
The similarity of the nurse’s name to Dona Lucilia’s served as a sign to Andresa that this kind mother was supernaturally there, helping her to get through this emergency, mitigating the dangers involved and obtaining from God a happy outcome to the dramatic situation in which she found herself.
She recounts: “At that moment, something calmed me down and I felt that a beacon lit up in the darkness. My son was born super healthy, without any sequelae. To this day we are approached by doctors who insist that there is no explanation for what happened with João. I owe my son’s life to Dona Lucilia, because thanks to her, on the day of his Baptism, we were able to sing: ‘I sought the Lord, and He answered me, and delivered me from all my fears’ (Ps 33:5).”
A mysterious companion…
In today’s materialistic society, it can be hard to believe that the supernatural world is close to use, within reach of our prayers
In the materialistic society in which we live, it can be hard to believe in the supernatural… How difficult it is to free ourselves from the maxims of the world and believe that we constantly have our Guardian Angel and the saints of our devotion by our side! Well, in the account that follows, we find a beautiful lesson Dona Lucilia wanted to give to one of her spiritual daughters, Mrs. Taciane Derossi, from Miracema (Brazil).
“Every month I go to a town seventy kilometres from here to buy medication for my father. On September 14, I went to Confession at a place located at the halfway point. Afterwards, I said to my sister: ‘Since we have already travelled halfway, let’s take the opportunity to go to this town straight away and buy the medication, so we won’t have to come back next week.’
“Whenever we go there, we also go to a utility shop to buy a few things. That day was no different. While I was waiting for my sister to go through the checkout, the attendant at the next checkout, which was unoccupied, called out to me. So I said to her:
“‘I’m not shopping, I’m just accompanying my sister.’
‘I need to talk to you,’ she replied.
So I went over to her and she said:
‘Look, you were here once with a lady, and this lady, not knowing what was happening to me, looked at me and said: “Don’t worry, everything has worked out fine, God is in charge.”’
“Then the lady at the till told me that that day she had said a prayer in the morning; being worried about a distressing situation, she had asked God for a solution to her problem. So when this lady told her that, it gave her great certainty that the problem would be solved.”
The solution to the riddle
Taciane, however, had no recollection of the fact mentioned by the clerk, especially since she always went to the shop in the company of her sister, and not “a lady”. Certain that the employee was mistaken, she asked her:
“But are you sure it was me?
“I’m sure! I see you here in the shop every month.
“Look closely, make sure it is me!” – insisted Taciane.
“Yes, you were with a lady, a lady with grey hair.
“And how was the lady dressed?
“She was dressed the way you dress. Just as you are dressed now.”
Taciane then took a photo of Dona Lucilia out of her handbag and handed it to the attendant, saying:
“See if it is this lady.
“Yes, that is the lady who spoke to me! And when I got home that night, my problem was practically solved! I had been waiting for the rent to come down on a house I wanted to rent, but was not able to due to the high price. The price dropped inexplicably, and I was able to rent the house! Is that lady related to you?”
Taciane had received a confirmation of Dona Lucilia’s presence at her side, willing to help even people who did not know her
Taciane gave a quick explanation about Dona Lucilia and asked the employee:
“Are you Catholic?
“No, I am evangelical. I have never been to a Catholic church, but I would like to.”
Thus, in this unexpected way, Taciane received a clear confirmation of Dona Lucilia’s presence at her side, willing to help even people who had not even heard of her.
Continuous assistance
How many of us who know Dona Lucilia and trust in her intercession are really mindful that we can turn to this kind mother at any time, turning our contact with her into a prayer? How much we would profit if we trusted her protection more, if we were as much her children as she is the mother of those who call upon her!
Taciane ends her story with a phrase from that same employee, which deeply affected her: “Every time you come to the shop I remember that lady who was with you.”
Without knowing it, she had become a reminder of the grace that someone else had received and perhaps a means of revitalizing that person’s faith and trust in Providence. But not only that, this grace has also borne precious spiritual fruit for Taciane herself:
“I believe that Dona Lucilia used this fact to increase my confidence even more than that of this woman. Dona Lucilia was truly with me, and in a way, when the fact is very close to us, it seems that we acquire a different view of things, it becomes clearer how we have this continuous assistance from her.”
May reading these lines encourage all of Dona Lucilia’s devotees to trust more in the supernatural world, certain that she will always be there for us! ◊
