Uncategorized

You Must Choose Your Weapon Carefully!

October 28, 2021

The true soldier fights not because he hates what is in front of him, but because he loves what is behind him. ~ G.K. Chesterton
No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. ~ Jesus Christ (John 13:15)

There are times in history where the course of human events is determined for centuries to come.

Some of these are sublime: The Birth of Jesus Christ, the election of St. John Paul II, and the conversion of millions in Mexico by the appearance of Our Lady of Guadalupe. These seem to be a spontaneous, sublime, subtle, and yet powerful mystical intervention in human history. Few, if any, could see or understand the widespread historical importance of the event at the moment it occurred. The measure of these gifts is not understood for decades as their span reaches for centuries.

Other of these events are not sublime or benevolent but rather rooted in evil. They are fought to the death. The epic battles which have shaped the world include Normandy, Battle of Vienna, and Lepanto. These battles were fought against great odds, with astounding courage and at a great cost for those who charged into war. The outcome of war is never certain! But in these cases, victory was obtained, and the fruit endured.

It is in war that the quotes above of Chesterton and Jesus become most manifest. On these battlefields the acts of courage and the decisions of valor and faith are played out. Here the measure of love spelled out by Jesus becomes most evident.

But is this the real war? Or is there something more? Could wars be the physical manifestation of the spiritual battle that has broken through?

Don’t get me wrong. War is real, it is horrible, people die, and lives are forever changed. But cannot the same be said of the ever-raging battle between good and evil. It is satan’s singular goal to destroy all that God loves, especially us! Evil is real, it is horrible, people pass into eternal suffering and lives are enslaved in sin. In comparing the two battles, which one is to be feared most?

So which battle is the most important, the terrestrial battle or the spiritual battle? One is transient. The other is eternal. And once you determine that answer you must then choose your weapon accordingly!

To fight physically is different than to fight spiritually; and the weapons are different as well. Fighting on the battlefield you want weapons that are better and more effective than your opponent both in capability and in quantity. For these factors determine the outcomes of war. Or do they?

If these are the sole factors of war then Normandy, Battle of Vienna, and Lepanto should each have ended differently. So, what is the factor that tilted these battles?

Hint: “Who is she that comes forth as the morning rising, fair as the moon, bright as the sun, terrible as an army set in battle array?” (Song of Solomon)

There is a fabulous video I have shared with friends and family. So now I share it with you. It explains the weapon of the spiritual battle – the Rosary. It’s about an hour-long commitment of time and attention. However, the audio is more important than the video, which makes this great commute time listening.

The video by Fr. Don Calloway explains the power of the Rosary and of Our Lady. After you listen to it ask yourself would you be willing to enter battle without it.

In the spiritual world our Nation is under grave attack. America is a most important target of evil because of our rich history of faith and love. There seems to be an ever-increasing breakthrough of the spiritual battle into our physical world. Now is the time when we should petition Our Lady, the Immaculate Virgin, Patroness of America with urgency and haste. The Rosary is the most powerful way to seek the intercession of our Queen.

If we ask, she will respond. If she responds evil has no hope. It’s that simple!

Listen to the video and let me know what you think.

The Combat Rosary

The Rise and Fall of America?

September 29, 2021

| 1 Comment

| Uncategorized

“We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.” – Preamble to the U.S. Constitution.

American greatness started with this! Thomas Jefferson and his fellow forefathers acknowledged the existence of unalienable rights. Recognizing God’s Divine Mandate, that man was created to be free in life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness by God’s own hand, was critical in the foundation of this new experiment in government they set to establish.

Signing the Declaration of Independence

Alternatively, if the concept of freedom was established as coming from man himself, it could be taken away at any time by men. God is the source of these rights. When man denies God, he denies for himself the very source of his Freedom which then leaves him subject to men as his arbiter. If able, evil men will place their brother into bondage. (Genesis 37: 28 “They sold Joseph for twenty pieces of silver to the Ishmaelites, who took him to Egypt.”)

As many in society increasingly choose the perceived conveniences, comfort, and security of the secular world, they steadily move away from God. And with that chosen course they steadily find themselves losing the freedom our forefathers had so wisely recognized in God’s creation and enshrined in our nation’s founding.

The Constitution was constructed to deliver a Republic form of government, not a pure Democracy where the majority of opinion rules even if that rule is wrong, harmful or endangering to life, liberty or the pursuit of happiness in a segment of our society. Our Republic is different in that it CAN operate for the protection of the individual against the majority when they get out of control. The three branches of government and the representative nature of our congress offers some protection to individual rights. But even a republic cannot save a people from themselves if they choose to stray.

William Tytle (1711-1792) a Scottish lawyer and historical writer documents the life cycle of democracies and republics. Attributed to him is this description of the rise and fall of democratic nations:

“A democracy is always temporary in nature; it simply cannot exist as a permanent form of government. A democracy will continue to exist up until the time that voters discover that they can vote themselves generous gifts from the public treasury. From that moment on, the majority always votes for the candidates who promise the most benefits from the public treasury, with the result that every democracy will finally collapse due to loose fiscal policy, which is always followed by a dictatorship.

The average age of the world’s greatest civilizations from the beginning of history has been about 200 years. During those 200 years, these nations always progressed through the following sequence: From bondage to spiritual faith; From spiritual faith to great courage; From courage to liberty; From liberty to abundance; From abundance to selfishness; From selfishness to complacency; From complacency to apathy; From apathy to dependence; From dependence back into bondage.

Even though the progression described by Tytle seems to be confirmed by history, could there be another outcome? If we could understand the drivers that move us to the next step then perhaps we could break the cycle! Is it possible?

Looking at the life cycle there are 4 steps to the rise and 4 steps to the fall of democratic societies. One could divide the circle in two with a straight line up and down. There is commonality to the four items on the right(rise) and a different commonality to 4 items of the left(fall). Understanding this exposes the reason for the pivot point from rise to fall.

In society there is individual virtue. Virtuous choices are ones made according to the natural law as embodied in Matthew 22;34-40: Love God above all and love your neighbor as yourself. When taken as a whole, societal virtue is a composite of its member’s virtue (or lack thereof).

In the rise of nations societal virtue is growing and becomes strong. First is faith and the search for unity among the people. The Second is courage born of faith and unity. Next is liberty which manifests in a people united in faith, which then have courage and numbers to break the tyrannical bondage. During the rise of society, the measure of societal virtue is also rising.

In the life cycle of nations, it becomes obvious that the rise of nations is during the period where faith and the practice of the Golden Rule is strong and growing. It is also obvious that the demise of nations follows when these are abandoned by more than one half of society. This results in a situation where neighbor steals from neighbor and fosters other immoral acts under the protection of the government controlled by the now immoral majority. Here are two examples: the taking of innocent life in abortion and the legitimized theft inherent in entitlement and other programs designed for the political benefit of government officials and not for the common good.

In the fall of nations, we see a gradual abandonment of the virtues and then an increasingly rapid pursuit of the vices. This marginalizes God and abandons the Golden Rule, resulting in grace being largely diminished. We are then left to the influences of evil.

Very simply, it is Grace that supports the rise of nations. Without Grace nations collapse. Without faith the practice of the Golden Rule is gone and is replaced by selfishness. And without the Golden Rule the flow of grace is halted, and societies move to narcissism, violence and irresponsibility; eroding the pillars of society until they collapse!

It is not hard to see that as a nation, America has moved past the mid-point. Selfishness abounds and dependence is becoming the norm for a growing part of our society. I fear for where we are heading with apparent haste!

So that’s the bad news. Now for the good news!

I take issue with Tytle’s conclusion that “A democracy is always temporary in nature.” Here is why.

God is constantly open to us returning to him. In fact, Heaven gives us easy paths back and even extends personal invitations for us to come to Him. This is true for individuals and nations.

Right now, America has a personal invitation to return to a life of virtue and practice of the Golden Rule in the devotion to Our Lady, the Immaculate Virgin, Patroness of America. Our Lady of America is calling us to imitate the Holy Family where virtue was perfect, and sin was perfectly avoided.

She is calling us, the United States of America, back to increasing greatness by our faith and our imitation of the Holy Family. She is calling us to place God first, and our brothers and sisters next. She is calling us to pursue the virtues and avoid sin. She is calling us to the Golden Rule. She is showing us the way.

But most importantly she has a promise for us. She promises that if we pursue imitation of the Holy Family, fervently desire purity, frequent the Sacraments, practice the virtues, avoid sin and pray, she will lavish the graces to persevere in this Holy pursuit. And if enough of us do this, it will change the future of our Nation.

Growing up I was blessed with wonderful parents. I forget the context but have never forgotten the words my mother said to me as a young boy; “One person can change the world.” The more I see in life the more I know this to be true – both for the better or the worse.

Heaven has a hope and plan for America – to lead the world to peace! Will we rise to the call or disappoint our Sorrowful Mother? By tapping the infinite treasury of God’s graces merited by Our Lord, Jesus Christ anyone can change the world for the better. We are called by baptism to do exactly this!

This slide into bondage is not a certainty! We can change the course of history; one soul at a time. Commit today to changing the world in cooperation with Our Lady’s call to America. We can do this! We must not fail! Millions of souls are at stake.

Pilgrim visits grow as more people discover Our Lady of America

August 31, 2021

| 4 Comments

| Uncategorized

August has been a big month for pilgrims at the Mother of Mercy Chapel. More than 1000 souls have visited to pray, receive reconciliation, participate in Holy Mass and honor Our Lord and Our Lady in procession.

A common theme in these pilgrims is seeking the intercession of Our Lady, The Immaculate virgin, Patroness of America (Our Lady of America) before the Throne of Her Son, Jesus for their personal intentions and for our nation.

The August First Saturday Devotion Mass offered by Fr. David Voors was well attended with a comfortably full Chapel.

Mid-month the Divine Will conference packed the Chapel with a record number of attendees. Blessed with spectacular weather the pilgrims partook in talks, Confession, Holy Mass, strolls across the campus and wonderful community. The culmination was a Eucharistic Procession with Our Lady leading the crowd of pilgrims, bringing honor and praise to Our Lord, Jesus Christ.

While the Chapel is open most days, if you are making a special trip, please call us to make sure we will be there when you arrive.

By Thy Holy And Immaculate Conception O Mary, Deliver Us From Evil

August 30, 2021

| 1 Comment

| Uncategorized

Why is this prayer so powerful?

Today’s headlines tell of war, disasters, lawlessness, loss of faith and total disregard for the sacred reality of human life. Those who have eyes to see recognize this as godlessness in our culture and society, which seems to have now spanned to the four corners of the earth. Evil seems to be winning.

But those with faith in Our Lord, and trust in the Intercession of Our Lady know with certainty that evil will not win. Heaven has time and time again given us the weapons and means of protection – the Rosary, devotions, and intercessory prayers. And with the greatest of importance, Heaven has given us the way back – the Sacrament of Reconciliation and the Eucharist all merited by the Passion of Our Lord, Jesus! Our Shepard will not abandon us!

As a key part of devotion to Our Lady of America we are given yet another defense against evil contained in the very short prayer “By thy Holy and Immaculate Conception O Mary, deliver us from evil.” When Our Lady, the Immaculate Virgin was conceived without sin, the order of all creation was forever changed. Before the fall, Adam and Eve were above the angels in dignity and closest of all creation to the Holy Trinity as they enjoyed completely living in the Divine Will, as sin had not yet entered into the world. After the fall, they fell so distant from the Holy Trinity that they were now under the dominion of the fallen angels. All humanity from that point forward were vastly separated from the Holy Trinity. And evil wanted it to stay that way – FOREVER. But then…

…One of our own was protected from the inherited sin of Adam & Eve and was not under the dominion of evil. Our Lady, Conceived without Sin was thus elevated to the greatest heights of all creation. Through the gift of the Immaculate Conception the order of creation which existed before the fall was reclaimed (at least for Our Lady.) And set into motion was the plan of Heaven to save us who are conceived with sin.

Through the FIAT of Our Lady, Our Savior was born into humanity and Salvation was brought to mankind! Through the Passion of Our Lord, Salvation was opened to ALL. Now we could be saved. Praise God!

But in a vain attempt evil has not given up. We are constantly bombarded by the wickedness and snares of evil. Not a single moment goes by where we are not in need of grace and protection to withstand these attacks.

The Prayer to St Michael the Archangel is a prayer of protection and deliverance that is well known. The Our Father is yet another. These prayers are powerful protection and should be prayed often.

One more is given in this devotion. It is short, sweet and to the point. It calls on the one who has been assigned by the Holy Trinity to crush evil – Our Lady. And it asks her to invoke the power of the second greatest gift (the Immaculate Conception) given to mankind which opened the path for the Greatest Gift, the Incarnation and Passion of Our Lord, Jesus Christ.

The short prayer, “By thy Holy and Immaculate Conception O Mary, deliver us from Evil” calls on Our Lady to exercise the grace of her exclusive gift for our protection and to deliver us from evil.

But it also calls us to recognize the Immaculate Conception as the model for our own pursuit of purity and perfection; and to use Our Lady as a guide for our lives. It calls us to seek the life, grace and relationship with the Holy Trinity as it existed before the fall. Can we achieve that here on Earth? Not perfectly. But with prayer, penance, and the Sacraments we can get close and live-in peace even as the headlines tell us the world is not at peace.

I can only imagine what the fruits of the final battle between Our Lady and evil will be. Perhaps the infinite creativity of the Holy Trinity will provide a way where we are once again in complete unity with the Holy Trinity and live in the Divine Will. There is a hint in the Our Father that gives me hope – “Thy Kingdom Come, Thy Will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven”.

Only time will tell how this will be made manifest. I expect it will be Glorious!

Video of First Saturday Mass

August 6, 2021

| No Comments

| Uncategorized

First Saturday Mass Video – August 7, 2021

Homily begins at 10:10

View on Youtube

Click Here

Special July 4th Weekend Set to Honor our Patroness

July 30, 2021

| No Comments

| Uncategorized

Nearly 200 pilgrimages visited Our Lady, the Immaculate Virgin, Patroness of America this past July 4th weekend. The pilgrims attended Holy Mass, Reconciliation, and offered the Patriotic Rosary seeking her intercession as our nation’s guardian, protector, and supporter.

Fr Jeff Pomeisl, offered Mass in the Mother of Mercy Chapel as part of the Five First Saturdays in reparation for offenses against the Immaculate Heart. The Chapel built in 1916 is home to the statue of Our Lady of America in the Chapel’s west transept. The chapel is adorned with stained glass which depicts the Seven Joys of Our Lady.

LoAfter Mass each pilgrim received a blessed fresh Lily like the one Our Lady if holding, representing purity. The pilgrims took these home to remind them of Our Lady’s call to imitate the Holy Family.

With lily in hand pilgrims participated in praying the Patriotic Rosary. In short, each bead of the Hail Mary Prayer is offered for one of the fifty states.

We pray these pilgrims received abundant graces and that their prayers to Our Patroness were heard!

Less than 20 miles from Interstate-80/90 (Indiana Toll Road) and Intersate-69 in Northeast Indiana, it is easy to get to and is a worthwhile addition to your travel. Call (260) 303-4990 before your visit for details and hours. Map

SHE WANTS YOUR HOME TO BE LIKE HERS!

July 28, 2021

| No Comments

| Uncategorized

Our Lady, the Immaculate Virgin, Patroness of America (in short, Our Lady of America) has been a foundational devotion for America since May 28, 1792 when America’s first Bishop, John Carroll, consecrated our nation to her.

On September 26, 1956 that devotion took on a more specific program when Sr. Mary Ephrem was inspired in prayer to pen a specific devotion to Our Lady under the guidance of her spiritual director Archbishop Paul F Leibold. Sr. Ephrem was in the nun’s private chapel of the convent at Rome City, Indiana when the image of Our Lady of America was first formed.

The devotion to Our Lady of America is her specific instruction of how to live the admonition given by our first Bishop of “zealous imitation of her virtues.” The devotion is a re-iteration, call and example of what the U.S. Bishops have already asked of the faithful from the very start of our nation’s history.

On November 8, 1954 a short time after the visit of the Angel of Peace, Our Lady spoke to me in these words: “It is the wish of my Son that fathers and mothers strive to imitate me and my chaste spouse in our holy life at Nazareth. We practiced the simple virtues of family life, Jesus our Son being the center of all our love and activity. The Holy Trinity dwelt with us in a manner far surpassing anything that can ever be imagined. For ours was the earthly paradise where once again God walked among men.

“As in our little home no sin was to be found, so it is the wish of the Heart of my Son and my Immaculate Heart that sin should, as far as possible, be un-heard of in the homes of our children.

“The Divine Trinity will dwell in your midst only if you are faithful in practicing the virtues of our life at Nazareth. Then, you also, my children, you also will become another paradise. God will then walk among you and you will have peace.

“I need your help to bring peace into the world. Do not disappoint me.”

(Excerpt from Sr. Mary Ephrem’s printed diary, November 8, 1954)

Due to the good providence of Bishop Kevin Rhoades, the private devotion to Our Lady, the Immaculate Virgin, Patroness of America (in short, Our Lady of America) has been allowed to be promoted and practiced by the lay faithful at Mother of Mercy Chapel in Rome City, Indiana. The west transept of the chapel is the home to the Our Lady of America Statue.

From there it is hoped that this devotion will flourish and the American family will be restored through the program of imitating the Holy Family, the Sacraments and prayer.

Just recently the Mother of Mercy Chapel and convent in Rome City, Indiana has become open for pilgrims.

Is she calling your family to imitate the Holy Family? Is she calling your family to be a home for the Holy Trinity? Through zealous imitation of the Holy Family and reception of the Sacraments it can be so!

IN GOD WE TRUST

June 20, 2021

| 1 Comment

| Uncategorized

In just a few weeks we will celebrate the 245^th anniversary of our nation’s beginning! In these years we have risen to become the greatest nation in modern history. America was constructed with a novel Declaration of Independence and subsequent Constitution that recognized in law the greatest of human freedoms. Among those freedoms enshrined into law was the free right to worship God without coercion or obstruction.

Not only was our nation founded with these freedoms, but our founding fathers also recognized that Divine Providence was clearly evident in our establishment.

“The Hand of providence has been so conspicuous in all this, that he must be worse than an infidel that lacks faith, and more than wicked, that has not gratitude enough to acknowledge his obligations.” George Washington, 1778.

“It becomes a people publicly to acknowledge the overruling hand of Divine Providence and their dependence upon the Supreme Being as their Creator and Merciful Preserver . . .” Samuel Huntington, 1791. Signatory to the Declaration of Independence

To further recognize this reality the motto “In God We Trust” has graced our currency – on and off – throughout our history. But it was a law unanimously passed in joint resolution by the 84th Congress (P.L. 84-140) and signed into law by President Dwight D. Eisenhower on July 30, 1956,that established IN GOD WE TRUST as the national motto of the United States.

Just years earlier the U.S. Supreme Court in Zorach v. Clauson (1952) found that a New York school time release program for students to attend religious instruction was constitutional. Justice Douglas’s majority opinion dismissed the free exercise claim by pointing out that the parents of the children in the released time program had given their permission. The court could find no coercion or obstruction to religious practice in this case and concluded in a widely quoted statement. He disposed of the establishment clause issue by writing, “We are a religious people whose institutions presuppose a Supreme Being.” Accommodating people of faith who desire religious education “follows the best of our traditions” and “respects the religious nature of our people.”

Stop and think about this!

Our nation’s Congress, unanimously declare in law, IN GOD WE TRUST!
President Dwight Eisenhower signed it into law.
The U.S. Supreme Court upheld the choice of and access to religious education as a Constitutional right.

In the 1950s each branch of the Federal government acted to establish that we are indeed “One nation under God!”

Spiritual Backdrop

As written here before (link) the Catholic Church in America has long laid the foundation for what had now become a political reality. With our nation’s first consecration to Our Lady on May 28, 1792, by Bishop John Carroll, he named her Patroness of America with these words: “I shall only add this my earnest request, that to the exercise of the sublimest virtues, faith, hope and charity, you will join a fervent and well-regulated devotion to the Holy Mother of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ; that you will place great confidence in her in all your necessities. Having chosen her the special patroness of this Diocese, you are placed, of course, under her powerful protection; and it becomes your duty to be careful to deserve its continuance by a zealous imitation of her virtues and a reliance on her motherly superintendence.”

Bishop Carroll’s consecration of the United States has been repeated throughout our nation’s history by the U.S. Bishops. There is no doubt that our nation is consecrated to Our Lady and that she is Our Patroness. (See Springs forth from the Immaculate Conception)

Considering this backdrop, is it coincidence, or something more, that just weeks after President Eisenhower signs the bill is when Sr. Mary Ephrem is inspired in prayer to bring to our attention the fact that Our Lady, the Immaculate Virgin, is Patroness of America (in short, Our Lady of America)? It is at this same time that the construction on the upper church of the Basilica Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington DC is in full swing, further showing our nations love for Our Lady, the Immaculate Virgin, Patroness of America.

Perhaps Heaven was giving recognition to the fact that America is a Nation Under God. By 1956 both the Church (in consecration) and the secular government (in Law) had given full recognition to this fact!

But Heaven is calling America to an even higher purpose. The Devotion to Our Lady of America calls us as citizens of this great nation to seek purity through imitation of the Immaculate Conception and the Holy Family. In doing so, an abundance of Grace will come upon us and strengthen us to fulfill Heaven’s plan.

This fulfillment would, in fact, cause a great diminishment in the power of evil. As we can see since 1956 there has been continuous moral decay in our nation. We see the social ills that bring so much pain to our people. And our government has enshrined into law much that is against the natural law and clearly an afront to our Creator. Evil is aggressively blocking Heaven’s plan.

Have we strayed too far? I take great solace in Genesis 18:32 “But he persisted: “Please, do not let my Lord be angry if I speak up this last time. What if ten are found there”? The Lord replies “For the sake of the ten, he replied, I will not destroy it”.

So, if there are still faithful and holy people in our nation then it will not be destroyed. However, the Bible in many places speaks of punishment and chastisement for nations that stray from God. Even America has experienced this chastisement. In the 1950s when the government and Church declared us as “One Nation Under God” we had just experienced the great chastisement of two World Wars and the Great Depression. We were tested and we returned to God.

Given our current state can chastisement be avoided? The answer is clearly yes! In Jonah 3:10 we see God stepping back from His chastisement of a repentant people: “When God saw by their actions how they turned from their evil way, he repented of the evil he had threatened to do to them; he did not carry it out.”

Fortunately, Heaven has also given us a way to appease His Divine Justice: seek the Virtues, avoid the Vices, pray, and receive the Sacraments – especially Confession and Eucharist. Furthermore, Our Lady of Fatima gave us the First Saturday Devotion as a specific way to appease Divine Justice by making atonement for offenses (sin) against the Immaculate Heart of Mary. The Mother of Mercy Chapel has been allowed by Bishop Kevin Rhoades to have Mass in the Chapel on the First Saturday of each month for this purpose.

This is our institutional effort at the Mother of Mercy Chapel to appease the Justice of God. We urge you to follow a personal plan as outlined in the Devotion to Our Lady of America of seeking purity in your life by imitation of the Holy Family and frequenting the Sacraments.

With this abundance of Grace, we as a nation will change our culture and lead the world to peace. I pray that we once again rise to recognize that we are “One Nation Under God!”

Springs Forth from the Immaculate Conception

May 25, 2021

| No Comments

| Uncategorized

To understand the devotion to Our Lady, the Immaculate Virgin, Patroness of America (in short Our Lady of America) it is most helpful to understand the historical backdrop to her message. The devotion to Our Lady of America has as its very center the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary. Forming its very foundation is the consecration of our nation by the American bishops, the love of her children in America and the honor given Our Lady as the Immaculate Conception which has been made manifest by the Basilica Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C.

When the Catholic Church erected out first diocese in the United States in 1791 Bishop John Carroll was named our first Bishop. On May 28, 1792 he addressed his diocese which encompassed all that was then the United States of America with these words:

Archbishop John Carroll

“I shall only add this my earnest request, that to the exercise of the sublimest virtues, faith, hope and charity, you will join a fervent and well-regulated devotion to the Holy Mother of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ; that you will place great confidence in her in all your necessities. Having chosen her the special patroness of this Diocese, you are placed, of course, under her powerful protection; and it becomes your duty to be careful to deserve its continuance by a zealous imitation of her virtues and a reliance on her motherly superintendence.”(Underline added)

This devotion to Our Lady of America is her specific instruction of how to live the admonition given by our first Bishop of “zealous imitation of her virtues”. The devotion is a re-iteration, call and example of what the U.S. Bishops have already asked of the faithful from the very start of our nation’s history.

Sixth Provincial Council of U.S. Bishops 1846

Archbishop Samuel Eccleston of Baltimore called the Sixth Provincial Council of the Church in America in 1846. Twenty-two bishops responded, and the Council passed as its first decree the resolution to choose Mary Immaculate as the Patroness of the United States and to make December 8 the patronal feast. In the Pastoral Letter issued by the Council, dated May 5, 1846, we read:

“We take this occasion, brethren, to communicate to you the determination, unanimously adopted by us, to place ourselves and all entrusted to our charge throughout the United States, under the special patronage of the holy Mother of God, whose Immaculate Conception is venerated by the piety of the faithful throughout the Catholic Church. By the aid of her prayers, we entertain the confident hope that we will be strengthened to perform the arduous duties of our ministry, and that you will be enabled to practice the sublime virtues, of which her life presents the most perfect example.”

Once again, our Bishops called the faithful to “practice the sublime virtues, of which her life presents the most perfect example”. This devotion to Our Lady of America teaches us how to live these, further calling out the life of the Holy Family as example for mother, father and child.

The following year the Sacred Congregation of the Propaganda Fide confirms in its announcement that “our Holy Father Pius IX most willingly confirmed the wishes of the Council that has “selected the Blessed Virgin, conceived without sin, as the patroness of the Church in the United States of America.”

Pope Pius IX

“To complete the crown of Mary Immaculate as Patroness of the United States there remained the building of a national shrine which should serve as an outward expression of our love and as a place of pilgrimage where honor should be paid to the Mother of God who had protected our nation in all its days. At the time of the fiftieth anniversary of the promulgation of the dogma of the Immaculate Conception, 1904, a national shrine to be built in Washington, on the grounds of the Catholic University of America, began to be speculated upon by members of the hierarchy of our country. Plans were laid, and ten years later His Holiness Pope Pius X, sent to His Eminence, James Cardinal Gibbons, the blessing of the Holy See upon the project. World War I intervened. In 1920 Archbishop Bonzano, the Apostolic Delegate to the United States, celebrated Mass outdoors on the site. Within a few months Cardinal Gibbons laid the cornerstone with solemn ceremonies, attended by a large number of the hierarchy and by diplomatic representatives of twenty-four nations.”

Richard Cardinal Cushing (then Auxiliary Bishop) noted that the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception would serve “as an outward expression of our love and a place of pilgrimage where Honor should be paid to the Mother of God…” This statement is completely aligned with the desire of Our Lady. This excerpt from the diary of Sr. Mary Ephrem:

“Today the Holy Virgin appeared to me as I was working in my room. Our Lady was very beautiful, and she was again smiling in her heavenly way. She was dressed in the same manner as when I first saw her, except that her Immaculate Heart did not appear. Instead of the lily, she held with both hands a small replica of the finished Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. She then began to speak. Her presence overwhelmed me with its holiness. I was compelled to stop my work, for it was impossible to go on. I then knelt down and wrote Our Lady’s words as she desired:

“This is my shrine, my daughter. I am very pleased with it. Tell my children I thank them. Let them finish it quickly and make it a place of pilgrimage. It will be a place of wonders. I promise this, I will bless all those who, either by prayers, labor, or material aid, help to erect this shrine.” (October 13, 1956)

One may rightly ask the question of why would Our Lady come with yet another title when we as a nation have chosen her as the Immaculate Conception to be Patroness of Our Land? In answer to this it is worthy of note that she only once refers to herself as Our Lady of America and that is on the date of her first alleged appearance in that regalia. The day before this first alleged appearance she appears as Our Lady of Lourdes, showing that her title of Our Lady of America is in response to our nation’s claiming of her, the Immaculate Conception, as our own. As Our Lady of Lourdes and on the eve of her alleged appearance as Our Lady of America she says this:

“I am pleased, my child, with the love and honor my children in America give to me, especially through my glorious and unique privilege of the Immaculate Conception. I promise to reward their love by working through the power of my Son’s Heart and my Immaculate Heart miracles of grace among them. I do not promise miracles of the body, but of the soul.”

So it is clear here that the promises of graces come out of her Immaculate Conception and not out of the added title of Our Lady of America.

Furthermore, the petitions for grace in this devotion are also to be directed to the Virgin Mary with recognition of her singular grace as the Immaculate Conception:

“By thy Holy and Immaculate Conception, Oh Mary, deliver us from Evil.”

The next day after (feast of the North America Martyrs) allegedly appearing as Our Lady of Lourdes she is in new regalia and introduces Her new program for America:

“I am Our Lady of America. I desire that my children honor me, especially by the purity of their lives.”(September 26, 1956)

On the next day, as Our Lady of America, she confirms her identity as that which the U.S. Bishop declared and which was ratified by the Holy See in proclaiming:

“I am the Immaculate One, Patroness of your land. Be my faithful children as I have been your faithful Mother.”(October 27, 1956)

As asked by the U.S. Bishops (for “zealous imitation of her virtues”) in that first consecration to the Immaculate Virgin and in unity with them, Our Lady of America asks us to imitate her purity.

She then develops a special program of devotion to Our Lady of America to include all of her virtues, those of Saint Joseph and the Holy Child. In total she calls us to imitate the Holy Family. Sr. Mary Ephrem further explains:

Our Blessed Mother called herself Our Lady of America in response to the love and desire that reached out for this special title in the hearts of her children in America. This title was the sign of her pleasure at the confidence our land places in her and as a reward for its staunch and childlike devotion to her. Her children longed for this personal visit of Our Lady, whether consciously or otherwise, and in her kindness and mercy she responded far beyond all expectations. (Page 7)

The title of Our Lady of America does not portray a new theological understanding, but rather is granted by Heaven to acknowledge our love for Her. She is not asking for a new consecration of our nation, but rather is acknowledging that which has already been accomplished. Further she exhorts us to imitate that which she is, the Immaculate Conception. She goes on to describe the desire of her Immaculate Heart.

“My child, I entrust you with this message that you must make known to my children in America. I wish it to be the country dedicated to my purity. The wonders I will work will be the wonders of the soul. They must have faith and believe firmly in my love for them. I desire that they be the children of my Pure Heart. I desire, through my children of America, to further the cause of faith and purity among peoples and nations. Let them come to me with confidence and simplicity, and I, their Mother, will teach them to become pure like to my Heart that their own hearts may be more pleasing to the Heart of my Son.”

Study of these messages reveals no conflict with our nation’s consecration to the Immaculate Conception, but more over a call to live that consecration through desire to imitate the Holy Family and graces obtained through her.

“… Our Lady of America, the Immaculate Virgin, offers to our country, in title and in grace, a renewal of our national devotion to the Immaculate Virgin, but with a renewed dynamic of purity so as to better live the Gospel call to Christian purity and holiness within the heightened challenges of our present day.

“Just as we would not want to negate the great historic graces received through Our Lady’s 1858 apparitions at Lourdes with the objection: “Why do we need Our Lady of Lourdes when we already have Our Lady of Guadalupe?”, so too, we want to have our hearts open to any new and powerful grace offered to us by God’s generosity in the form of new Marian apparitions, which in turn bring with them new and dynamic graces for our nation now, and ultimately for the entire world. ” [1]

Our Lady calls us to purity. The program which Our Lady of America brings to us promises the graces to reject the temptations of our time and give us emphasis on certain Church teachings which are an antidote for the pervasive sins of today. Given today’s, almost unbridled, sexually immorality one could conclude therein is the focus of her message on purity. But what Our Lady brings is so much more than that. While sexual purity is certainly among that which she asks, it is total purity of heart and mind to that which she calls us. She calls us to that purity of thought, action and sacramental life that results in the ultimate purity which is Sanctifying Grace.

From the appearance of Our Lady of Lourdes in 1858 sprang forth the clear understanding of her Immaculate Nature. Her miraculous appearance and healings caused to be promulgated with speed that Dogma proclaimed in 1854. Whereas the devotional program at Lourdes, France focuses on pilgrimage, physical healings and Eucharistic Procession at the location of the apparition, the devotional program outlined by Our Lady of America focuses on spiritual healing and the opening of our hearts to the Divine Indwelling through adherence to the program and intercessory graces of that same Immaculate Virgin. Where at Lourdes she caused to be created a fruitful cult and great pilgrimage shrine, in this devotion she builds upon that with this ultimate hope:

“I desire to make the whole of America my shrine by making every heart accessible to the love of my Son.”

How? While the depiction of Our Lady of Lourdes shows no external signs of her intrinsic nature (with the exception of the roses springing forth from her feet), Our Lady of America’s depiction shows her Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart fully exposed (through which all graces flow), circled in roses and inflamed. With her right hand she is extending as a gift the lily symbolizing her purity.

She wants to share this gift with us. By accepting it and living a sacramental and pure life as described in this devotion one will live in a state of sanctifying grace. This soul is then pleasing to her Son who takes refuge there. With this indwelling then the soul is a part of the Shrine which our Lady wants to make the “whole of America”.

[1] Dr. Mark Miravalle, Ph.D.

*The Holy Church has been unable to find as objectively supernatural the devotion to Our Lady of America, but has found its origins to be inspired in prayer.