Honoring the Virgin of Guadalupe Dec. 12
Honoring the Virgin of Guadalupe Dec. 12MONROE — Looking out over a sea of parishioners, most of whom hail from Mexico, Father Benjamin Roberts preached on the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe to a standing-room-only crowd Dec. 12 at his parish of Our Lady of Lourdes.
“The voice of the Mother of God calls me to her Son!” he said.
“On the mountain of Tepeyac, the Virgin of Guadalupe called to Juan Diego. He was humble. He was faithful. He was obedient. He was precious to Our Lady. He was precious in her sight. Our Lady had come to see him. She was a pilgrim to Guadalupe. She came with a message. She came with an invitation. She came to announce the love of the Father with the voice of a Mother. She was a pilgrim to Guadalupe with a message from heaven.”
Hundreds of parishioners, many dressed in traditional Mexican clothing to mark the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, made their own pilgrimage to the church to sing songs to the Blessed Virgin, perform traditional dances, bring her roses and bouquets of flowers, thank her for her motherly love and ask for her intercession.
“Our Lady was a pilgrim at Guadalupe inviting us to begin our pilgrimage to heaven. She invited us to union with her Son and union with each other,” Father Roberts explained. “The Virgin of Guadalupe tore down the walls that separated peoples. She tore down the walls of division and asked for a church to be built. She tore down the walls of sin and built up the people of God.
“The Virgin Mother of God was a pilgrim at Guadalupe so that we could join in the pilgrimage of all creation to the house of the Father.”
He stated that at the voice of the Virgin Mother, we are all pilgrims. We join with Juan Diego as we listen to the voice of Our Mother, the Church.
“We listen to Her and we hear of the Lord Jesus.”
Father Roberts noted that we share the faith of Christ which has been shared with us. We found our families on the rock of Christ and the grace of His sacraments.
“We are pilgrims to Guadalupe. We are pilgrims from Guadalupe. We have heard the voice of our Mother. We have heard of her love for us. We have heard the mission that she has entrusted to our care. We are pilgrims and we carry the message of heaven,” he concluded.
— Story, photos and video by SueAnn Howell, senior reporter.
