Mary Page News items give insight into our interest areas,
our outreach, and the many ways people honor Our Lady. We welcome your input
and your comments.
In preparation for the Liturgical celebration of the Memorial
of Our Lady of Mount Carmel on July 16, 2002, and for the Memorial
of Saints Ann and Joachim [Parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary] on July 26,
2002, Mary Page offers a variety of resources inviting study,
reflection and meditation.
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We've also added five articles written by Br. John M. Samaha,
S.M.: New Testament Images
of Mary, Marian Feasts in Their American
Context, Saint Juan Diego: Icon of
Mary's Evangelizing Mission, Devotions: An Extension of the Sacred Liturgy and
Touchstones of Faith and The
Virgin Mary's Priestly Role.
We have also added a database indexing Marian
illustrations in the periodical, Marie, to our French language resources, India
to our Marian Shrines Around the World and Prayer
for Peace to Mary, the Light of Hope by John Paul II.
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New Exhibit
The Marian Library is currently exhibiting Religious Folk Art
from the Southwest, Faces of Mary and Saints, by Lydia Garcia of Taos, New
Mexico. Using retablos and altar screens, Garcia creates folk art unique
to the Spanish colonial Southwest. She sees her art as a tool of God's
love and compassion and a way of giving herself back to God. Upon signing
the back of each piece, she complements with prayers or humorous
explanations. This exhibit continues through July 26; hours 8:30 a.m. -
4:30 p.m., Monday-Friday.
Digitized photos of the items on display in the Marian Library can be seen
under Current Exhibit
in our Gallery section.
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International Marian Research Institute Summer Courses
Summer courses have been offered since June 11. See the course
offerings for the summer academic session of The Marian Library/International
Marian Research Institute at: Summer
Schedule.
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Personal thoughts and reflections
about Mary
from our readers
We've added a section to our Research and
Publications section showing selected personal comments from our readers about
the Virgin Mary. Click here
to see comments received within the past month. From this page, feel free
to submit your own personal thoughts on Mary.
We also encourage our readers to submit their
opinions on various styles of Marian Art through an on-line
art survey.
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The
Association for the Arch of Triumph of the Immaculate Heart of Mary and
International Shrine of the Holy Innocents will present an afternoon of
spiritual music and speakers on Sunday, September 1, 2002 from 12 noon to 7
p.m., at LaSalle Park in Buffalo, NY (Rain Location: St. Luke's Mission of
Mercy, 325 Walden Ave. Buffalo). Catholic musical groups to perform
include The Voices of Mercy, and The Bob Fera Group. Admission is
free. For driving directions go to
www.ArchofTriumph.org/events.html.
Click this link for a list of all of the current
Marian Events by
geographical position.
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You are invited to help us pray for our
Prayer Corner intentions. Please take a look! This site has
been updated and enhanced and now allows users to directly submit prayer
requests or to volunteer as a prayer partner for these intentions!
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From ZENIT
Guadalupe Shows Dignity of Indians and Women, Says Cardinal Archbishop of
Mexico City Highlights Importance of Marian Appearance
MEXICO CITY, JULY 9, 2002 (Zenit.org).- The primate of Mexico summed up the 1531
appearance of Our Lady of Guadalupe like this: An Indian was chosen to be the
special envoy of the Mother of God.
With that phrase, Cardinal Norberto Rivera Carrera, presiding over Sunday's Mass
celebrated in the metropolitan cathedral, addressed the participants of the
National Congress on Mariology. The congress is being held in the Archdiocese of
Mexico in preparation for the canonization of Juan Diego Cuauhtlatoatzin.
Jesus' preference for the "little ones" was confirmed in the Guadalupe
event, the cardinal explained. Many then, as well as now, regarded the choice as
"scandalous," but the Virgin was showing that Indians are not slaves
but her sons, the archbishop of Mexico added.
"This fact has profound meaning," he said. "It is the recognition
of Juan Diego's dignity. The Indian, whom many still denied the rank of person,
was chosen to be the personal emissary of the Mother of God."
From then on, Juan Diego and all the indigenous population "are called to
be the chosen people, bearers of a profound religiosity that will make Latin
America the continent of hope," the archbishop primate of Mexico
emphasized.
This reality still generates resistance, the cardinal pointed out. Despite the
change in laws, he said, "Indians continue to be marginalized in their
political and economic rights, serving as pretext to raise other flags that are
not for their progress and development."
The dignity of Indian women is also upheld by the Guadalupe event. The Virgin of
Tepeyac did not appear with a white face, but with mestizo features, Cardinal
Rivera Carrera stated.
"Mary, appearing as a maiden and mother, reaffirmed the dignity of the
Indian woman, humiliated and oppressed," he said. "In Mary, maternity
acquires a sublime dignity."
Hence, the Virgin of Guadalupe brings a message that is very timely, when for
other reasons and in other ways, there is an attempt to "degrade"
woman and "reduce her to an object of pleasure and to one more element of
the great market," Cardinal Rivera lamented.
In statements to the press at the end of the Mass, the archbishop of Mexico
referred to the preparation for Juan Diego's canonization by John Paul II on
July 31.
The celebration is open to all, the cardinal confirmed. It is estimated that
some 8,000 people will be able to attend the ceremony in the basilica, and
12,000 from the square.
From L’Osservatore
Romano
From L’Osservatore Romano June 26
From Starting Afresh from Christ: A Renewed Commitment to Consecrated Life in
the Third Millennium, Instruction from the Congregation for Institutes of
Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, section on Looking Forward and
Beyond:
"Let us look upon Mary, Mother and Teacher of all. She, the first
consecrated person, lived the fullness of charity. Fervent in the Spirit, she
served the Lord, joyful in hope, strong in trial, persevering in prayer; she
intercedes for us (cf Rom 12, 11-13). She reflects all the aspects of the
Gospel; all the charisms of consecrated life are mirrored and renewed in her.
She supports us in our daily commitments, making them a splendid witness of love
in accord with the invitation of St. Paul: "Live a life worthy of the
calling you have received!" (Eph 4, 1).
From L’Osservatore Romano June 19
With his Message, dated May 9, the Holy Father spiritually joined Archbishop
Alberto Giraldo Jaramillo of Medellin, President of the Bishops’ Conference of
Colombia, and Colombians in renewing their consecration to the Sacred Heart on
June 22.. In concluding he said:
"As I join you in spirit in the Consecration to the Sacred Heart of
Jesus, I beg him to pour out his abundant gifts upon the citizens, families,
ecclesial communities, the public institutions and their leaders, and, at the
same time, entrusting these hopes to the motherly intercession of Our Lady of
Chiquinquira, Queen of Colombia, with great love I impart to you my Apostolic
Blessing."
On May 17 the Holy Father addressed the Abbot and community of the Cistercian
Abbey of Heiligenkreuz (Holy Cross). Their pilgrimage to Rome was to
observe the 200th anniversary of their Faculty for Theological and
Philosophical Studies. Before giving his Apostolic Blessing he said:
"I warmly hope that the Heiligenkreuz Faculty of Theology and Philosophy
and all its members may grow in faith, hope and charity. For that purpose I
entrust to the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Magna Mater Austriae,
St. Bernard, and all the saints of the Cistercian Order, you, your dear ones and
our confreres in the monastery..."
The Holy Father canonized Padre Pio of Pietrelcina, Capuchin Priest, before
the Gloria of the Mass on June 16. In his homily he said:
"‘May Mary rest her motherly hand on your head.’ The wish
that Padre Pio once addressed to one of his spiritual daughters, he addresses to
you today. Let us entrust to the motherly intercession of Our Lady and to St.
Pio of Pietrelcina the journey of holiness of the whole Church at the beginning
of the new millennium."
From L’Osservatore Romano June 12
In his Message to Fr. Pierre Schouver, Superior General of the Congregation
of the Holy Ghost, for the General Council meeting held in Rome to plan the
observance of milestone dates this year and next, the Holy Father warned about
the threat of the numbers game: "The dwindling number of seminarians and
missionary vocations must not water down the quality of discernment nor the
spiritual and moral formation needed for priestly ministry." He said:
"Dear Brothers in Christ, I have not forgotten your Congregation’s full
name: ‘Congregation of the Holy Ghost under the protection of the Immaculate
Heart of Mary.’ I ask Mary, Mother of the Lord and Queen of Missionaries,
kindly to intercede for you and for the many members of your Congregation
scattered around the world in the service of the Gospel. May the blessed Virgin
Mary always be an example and a spiritual model for you! May her ‘yes’ to
the Lord be your rule of life!"
From L’Osservatore Romano June 5
On June 2, the day on which many countries celebrate the Solemnity of Corpus
Christi, the Holy Father said the Angelus with several thousand pilgrims in St.
Peter’s Square. The Pope reminded the faithful that from the days of the early
Church the Eucharist is at the heart of the celebration of the Resurrection on
Sunday. He said: "To explore the fascinating depths of Christ’s presence
under the ‘signs’ of the bread and the wine, faith is necessary, or rather
faith animated by love." He then said: "In adoring the Eucharist we
can only think with gratitude of the Virgin Mary. The famous Eucharistic hymn
that we often sing suggests this: ‘Ave verum corpus/ natum de Maria Virgine’
(Hail true Body, born of the Virgin Mary). Today, let us ask the Mother of the
Lord to obtain that everyone may taste the sweetness of communion with Jesus
and, thanks to the Bread of eternal life, receive a share in his mystery of
salvation and holiness."
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The director and editors of Mary Page under the auspices of the International Marian Research
Institute do not necessarily endorse or agree with the events and ideas expressed in this feature.
Our sole purpose is to report on items about Mary gleaned from a myriad of papers representing
the secular press.
Mary in the secular news
The University of Dayton is profiled as one of the most
interesting colleges in the country in Kaplan Publishing's new college
guide. Its Marian Library contains the world's largest collection of
printed information on the Virgin Mary. "The Marian Library has everything
you ever wanted to know about the Virgin Mary. Just think of the fun you
can have playing Ave Maria trivia games!"
"Saying the rosary is good for you" is the title from
a London CWNews clip of December 21, 2001. Writing in the British Medical
Journal, Peter Sleight of the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford, England, in
conjunction with doctors from Florence and Pavia, Italy, claims that the
formulaic nature of the rosary helps harmonize breathing cycles with
involuntary rhythmic fluctuation in the blood pressure to an optimum of six per
minute. They monitored the blood pressure, heart rate, and breathing of
23 healthy men and women and found their respiration rate slowed down from an
average of 14 breaths a minute when they were not seeking the control of it, to
seven when they were talking rather than chanting, and to six when they were
deliberately controlling their breathing - reciting the rosary. The
doctors say the rosary may have evolved because it synchronized with inherent
cardiovascular rhythms and thus gave a feeling of well-being and perhaps an
increased responsiveness to the religious message!
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June 28, 2002
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URL for this page is http://campus.udayton.edu/mary//news02/20020712.html
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