"Mary said, 'Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.' Then the angel departed from her."
Luke 1:47
We may think the most difficult part of this reading is Mary's "Yes!" But, after reading "Jesus--A Pilgrimage," the first time and re-reading parts of it many times, I can appreciate the hardest part is the last line, "Then the angel departed from her." Mary was left on her own, with her tremendous faith, in this monumental mission. In another time, 1531, in another place, Mexico, Our Lady of Guadalupe appeared to Juan Diego on a hillside. The image, however, didn't depart at all, but is still present and visible on the tilma of Juan Diego, hanging in the Basilica. Our Lady left behind her image on the 16th century cloak for all to see and millions go to see it each year. It's as if Mary understood even as the angel left her, a physical image is very nice to have, to hang onto, once the vision is gone. So today we celebrate Our Lady of Guadalupe, the Mother of the Americas. Please, Mother, pray for all of your children from the southern point of South America to the very tip top of Canada. We are all in need of your prayers, especially for the poor, for peace, and for justice for all...Love, heidi
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