News from the Missionary Image of
Our Lady of Guadalupe
Memorial of Our Lady of Mount Carmel
July 16, 2011
Dear Friend of Our Lady of Guadalupe,
July 16th marks the Memorial of Our Lady of Mount Carmel.
Blessed Pope John Paul II said “The Marian patrimony of Carmel has become, over time, through the spread of the devotion of the Holy Scapular, a treasure for the whole Church. For its simplicity, for its anthropological value and for the relationship with Mary as regards the Church and humanity, this devotion has been profoundly and widely grasped by the people of God, so much so as to find expression in the commemoration of July 16th, which is present in the Liturgical Calendar of the Universal Church.”
Blessed Pope John Paul wore a Scapular and encouraged the faithful to follow his example. The Scapular was handed to St. Simon Stock from Mary over 700 years ago.
St. Simon Stock was born in England around 1165 and it is said as a twelve year old he lived as a hermit in the hollow of an oak tree, hence came his last name which means tree trunk.
As a young man he traveled to the Holy Land and joined the Carmelite order. He was instrumental in its growth as it spread throughout the land.
This order struggled with oppression so they turned to their patroness, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and prayed. She responded by appearing to St. Simon Stock with the Brown Scapular in her hand, offering it to them as a spiritual shield. She said,
Receive, my beloved son, this Scapular . . . He who dies clothed with this habit shall be preserved from eternal fire. It is the badge of salvation, a shield in time of danger, and a pledge of special peace and protection.
How blessed they must have felt and how blessed we are still to have the Scapular. Our Lady’s promise has been extended to all of us when we enroll with an investiture by a priest.
Obviously, simply wearing this Scapular does not save us, as if by magic. Jesus saves us through living our total consecration to Him. The Brown Scapular is a sign of our consecration.
On her Feast Day, Blessed Pope John Paul said, “Even I, from my youngest days, have worn around my neck the Scapular of Our Lady and I take refuge with trust under the mantle of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of Jesus.” He added, “I hope the Scapular will be for everyone, especially the faithful who wear it, a help and defense in times of danger, a seal of peace and a sign of Mary’s care.”
Blessed Pope John Paul II’s Consecration
to Our Lady of Guadalupe
This consecration was made by Pope John Paul II during a Mass celebrated in the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe on January 27, 1979.
It was his first pilgrimage as Pope and the first time that a pope had visited the Guadalupe Shrine.
O Immaculate Virgin, Mother of the true God and Mother of the Church, who from this place reveal your clemency and your pity to all those who ask for your protection, hear the prayer that we address to you with filial trust, and present it to your Son Jesus, our sole Redeemer.
Mother of Mercy, Teacher of hidden and silent sacrifice, to you, who come to meet us sinners, we dedicate on this day all our being and all our love.
We also dedicate to you our life, our work, our joys, our infirmities and our sorrows.
Grant peace, justice and prosperity to our peoples; for we entrust to your care all that we have and all that we are, Our Lady and Mother.
We wish to be entirely yours and to walk with you along the way of complete faithfulness to Jesus Christ in His Church. Hold us always with your loving hand.
Virgin of Guadalupe, Mother of the Americas, we pray to you for all the Bishops, that they may lead the faithful along paths of intense Christian life, of love and humble service of God and souls.
Contemplate this immense harvest, and intercede with the Lord that He may instill a hunger for holiness in the whole People of God, and grant abundant vocations of priests and religious, strong in the faith and zealous dispensers of God’s mysteries.
Grant to our homes the grace of loving and respecting life in its beginnings, with the same love with which you conceived in your womb the life of the Son of God.
Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of Fair Love, protect our families, so that they may always be united, and bless the upbringing of our children.
Our hope, look upon us with compassion, teach us to go continually to Jesus and, if we fall, help us to rise again, to return to Him, by means of the confession of our faults and sins in the Sacrament of Penance, which gives peace to the soul.
We beg you to grant us a great love for all the holy Sacraments, which are, as it were, the signs that your Son left us on earth.
Thus, Most Holy Mother, with the peace of God in our conscience, with our hearts free from evil and hatred, we will be able to bring to all true joy and true peace, which come to us from your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, who with God the Father and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns for ever and ever. Amen.
Over the centuries, from saints to modern-day Catholics, Our Lady gently calls us and invites us to trust in her Son and in the Father’s love.
Just as she showed a path of grace to St. Simon Stock through the wearing of the Scapular, she continues to show the path of filial trust in her intercession through the Missionary Image.
Testimonies
Andrew Rabel of Australia sent out an international email after he won a statue of Our Lady of Guadalupe on Divine Mercy Sunday.
I first met Andrew when I brought the Missionary Image to Australia in 1994 to spread devotion to her as the Patroness and Protectress of the Unborn. At that time most Australians had never heard of her, and there were no public Peaceful Prayer Presences at any of their abortion centers.
I wanted to jumpstart this spiritual work of mercy in Australia. So I spoke at several conferences and led Peaceful Prayer Presences which were reported in the media. My hopes that this practice would continue were realized. Here’s what Andrew said in his e-mail release:
In 1994 Dan Lynch came to Australia with the Missionary Image of Our Lady of Guadalupe. During the conference he attended in Melbourne, some of us asked Dan if he could take it to a local abortion center. Hundreds of people processed behind the Image to the abortion center and I can tell you that it no longer operates now!
From that time, more prolifers wanted to use Mary in the movement here, and now we have in a number of Australian cities, the Helpers of God’s Precious Infants, who always march to the abortion centers, praying the Rosary, often with the Guadalupe image.
Was Mary giving me, a little sign too, by me winning this statue of Our Lady of Guadalupe by a chance of only one in fifteen hundred? I know how unworthy I am, if this is the case. So I have asked that this statue be given to the Helpers (of which I am a member) so we can have Our Lady’s intercession on this work, even stronger.
How can you help The Missionary Image reach more people and impact many more lives?
• Host a parish or home visitation
• You can form a prayer group in your home or parish and pray the prayers of the
Devotion• You can share our newsletters with others
You can also help support us with a gift! In the summer, many of our supporters take well-deserved vacations. As a result, our donations fall to their lowest level and we barely make it through the summer.
Please pray for our apostolate, we rely solely on your help to spread this Devotion and to coordinate Visitations of the Image. We rely solely on your help to spread this Devotion and Consecration throughout the world and to coordinate the Visitations of the Missionary Image of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
Our benefactors receive the following spiritual benefits from our apostolate: Remembrance of your intentions-
• in our daily perpetual Novena to Jesus King of All Nations
• our weekly Holy Hour before the Blessed Sacrament
• our special monthly Masses.
May God bless you for your generous support. I am very grateful.
Sincerely in Christ,
Dan Lynch