Heavenly Melodies Resounding
on Earth
What is the ideal music to celebrate the birth of the Christ Child? How do the different nations express, in melody, the grace of Christmas? What songs did Our Lady and St. Joseph sing on that blessed night when Heaven touched earth in the grotto of Bethlehem? Wishing to relive those graces, the Heralds of the Gospel choirs performed Christmas concerts in several countries.
On the European continent, Portugal rejoiced in a special way at the Shrine of Our Lady of Sameiro in Braga; in the Church of St. Francis of Assisi in Guimarães; at the Jerónimos Monastery in Lisbon, with the presence of Archbishop Ivo Scapolo, Apostolic Nuncio to Portugal; in the Cathedral of Évora, with the presence of Metropolitan Archbishop Francisco Senra Coelho, and at Porto Cathedral, with the presence of Diocesan Bishop Manuel da Silva Rodrigues Linda. The presentations in Spain took place at the Basilica of Our Lady of the Conception in Madrid; in the Basilica of Our Lady of the Forsaken in Valencia; and at the Parish of St. Julian in Toledo.
In Colombia there were concerts at the Church of Our Lady of Fatima in Tocancipá, and at the Oratory of Our Lady of the Reconquest in El Retiro. In Paraguay, the performances took place at the Gran Teatro José Asunción Flores in Asuncion; at the Francisco Solano López Auditorium in Encarnación; at the Shrine of Our Lady of the Rosary in Luque; and at the Mother of Good Counsel Church in Ypacaraí. The strains in honour of the Divine Child also resounded at the Salamanca Events Centre, in El Salvador, with the presence of Archbishop Luigi Roberto Cona, the country’s Apostolic Nuncio; at the Camino Real Westin Hotel, in Guatemala, with the presence of the Most Rev. Tulio Omar Pérez Rivera, Auxiliary Bishop of Santiago de Guatemala; at the Shrine of the Lord of Divine Mercy, in Lima, Peru; in the Basilica of Our Lady of the Angels, in Cargago, at the Presidential House and at the Heralds’ residence in Costa Rica.
In Brazilian territory, we highlight, among the many presentations, those held in Barueri and Jaú (SP), Montes Claros and Janaúba (MG), Nova Friburgo and Campos dos Goytacazes (RJ), Piraquara and Maringá (PR), as well as in the capitals Campo Grande and Cuiabá.
A Day with Mary!
In order to increase the union with Our Lady of those already consecrated to her as slaves of love according to the method of St. Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort, the Heralds of the Gospel provide formation meetings in the places where they are established. Catechetical lectures, recitation of the Rosary, solemn crowning of the Pilgrim Statue, benediction with the Blessed Sacrament and Holy Mass are some of the items on the programme of what came to be known as A Day with Mary.
In recent months, Fr. Manuel Rodríguez Sancho, EP, instructor for the Spanish consecration course on the Reconquest Catholic Formation Platform participated in well-attended Marian days in Guatemala, Paraguay and Costa Rica. For his part, Fr. Ricardo José Basso, EP, instructor of the Portuguese language course, was in the Brazilian city of Nova Friburgo with the same objective. Meetings for consecrated people also took place in Cariacica, Brazil, as well as in Mexico City, Tuxpan and Aguascalientes, in Mexico.
The Pilgrim Statue of the Immaculate Heart of Mary also blessed the retreat of the St. Anne Sodality in Klerksdorp, South Africa.
Sacraments of Christian Initiation
The last months of 2023 were marked by numerous ceremonies for the Sacraments of Christian initiation.
Among them we note the Baptism of several children in Matola-Gare, Mozambique; First Communion Masses at the Discalced Conceptionists of San José Monastery in Lima, Peru; and in Brazil, at St. Agnes Chapel in Mairiporã, Our Lady of Claríssimos Montes Church in Montes Claros, and at the Heralds’ house in Belo Horizonte; the Sacrament of Confirmation, also in Brazil, at Our Lady of Fatima Oratory in Nova Friburgo, administered by Diocesan Bishop Luiz Antônio Lopes Ricci, at the Church of St. Jude in Mairiporã, by Bishop Sérgio Aparecido Colombo of Bragança Paulista Diocese, as well as at the Heralds’ houses in Juiz de Fora, by Metropolitan Archbishop Gil Antônio Moreira, and in Campo Grande, by Archbishop Emeritus Vitório Pavanello, SDB.
Hope for those who suffer – The Heralds living in Cuenca, Ecuador, organized a distribution of basic food baskets to the communities in the town of Tarqui, through the Faith and Charity project. The communities of Sangallaya and Encomarca, in Peru, in turn, received a visit from the Pilgrim Statue of the Immaculate Heart of Mary and the Child Jesus, along with donations of food and Christmas gifts for children. In Asunción, Paraguay, the Divine Infant brought hope to the sick at the Central Hospital of the Social Security Institute.