From: richarra@gmail.com   
      
   September 24th - Our Lady of Walsingham   
   (Also known as Virgin by the Sea)   
      
   Today, September 24, we celebrate the feast day of Our Lady of   
   Walsingham, one of the many titles and devotions to Our Blessed   
   Mother. Located in England, pilgrims visit the shrine of Our Lady of   
   Walsingham to contemplate the great mystery of the Incarnation....   
   that moment when God emptied Himself and became man, took flesh in the   
   womb of Mary. At Walsingham, the New Nazareth, Mary asks that   
   Christians remember the great act of love when the Creator embraced   
   his creatures. At Walsingham, too, devotion to Mary is a call to unity   
   and to world peace. Every Thursday, a candle is lit before the statue   
   of Our Lady as a reminder to all, residents and pilgrims alike, to   
   pray for Christian unity. This is in keeping with the message of the   
   reconciliation of all things in Christ, which this shrine has   
   proclaimed for over 900 years.   
      
   Devotion to Our Lady of Walsingham began in the 11th century when   
   Mary, the Mother of God, appeared to a Saxon noblewoman, Richeldis de   
   Faverches. Her husband, the Lord of the Manor of Walsingham Parva, had   
   previously died, leaving her a young widow with a son named Geoffrey.   
   At this time in history, there was a great deal of interest in the   
   Holy Land and people undertook long and often dangerous pilgrimages   
   there. Christian armies were soon to be engaged in a number of   
   Crusades to liberate the holy sites from Muslim control and it is   
   believed that Geoffrey eventually joined one of those Crusades as an   
   expression of his Christian faith.   
      
   For Lady Richeldis, however, despite the tragedy of the loss of her   
   husband, she devoted herself to cheerful prayer and good works… and   
   her devotion to the Christian faith was rewarded by a vision in the   
   year 1061. In her vision, she was taken “in spirit” by Mary to be   
   shown the house in Nazareth where Gabriel had announced the news of   
   the birth of Jesus. Our Blessed mother asked that Richeldis build an   
   exact replica of that house in Walsingham. This is how Walsingham   
   became known as England's Nazareth. Our Lady gave Richeldis three   
   reasons that the structure should be built: 1) for the honor of Mary,   
   2) as a place where all who sought Mary could find succor, and 3) as a   
   memorial of the great joy of the Angelic Salutation.   
      
   Lady Richeldis was graced with the same vision three times, and   
   eventually hired construction workers and began construction. However,   
   the project ran into difficulties with land selection, and   
   unaccustomed to construction, Lady Richeldis had difficulty   
   communicating to the workers the specifications of the project.   
   Discouraged, she spent the night keeping a vigil of prayer and in the   
   morning, upon the arrival of the workers, discovered that Our Blessed   
   Mother had sent angels to complete the project.   
      
   Upon the death of Lady Richeldis, Geoffrey inherited the land, and   
   eventually bequeathed it to an Augustinian order who built a priory to   
   house the simple wooden structure that Mary had asked to be built.   
   This priory became the focus of pilgrimages, and grew in wealth and   
   size due to the patronage of the faithful royals Henry III, Edward II,   
   Edward III, Henry IV, Edward IV, and Henry VII. Unfortunately, Henry   
   VIII, eventually brought about its destruction in 1538. The   
   pilgrimages to Walsingham were suspended during the time of Catholic   
   persecution in England, but were kept alive in secret by the faithful,   
   to return upon the granting of religious freedom to Catholics. Today,   
   pilgrimage to Walsingham is a regular part of Christian life in the   
   British Isles.   
      
   The statue present at Walsingham today, commemorating the visions of   
   Lady Richeldis, was modeled after the seal of Walsingham priory, a   
   medieval seal preserved in the British museum. (The previous statue   
   was destroyed by Henry VIII). It depicts Mary as a mother, crowned in   
   the Saxon style, and seated on the throne of wisdom. She is herself a   
   throne for Christ, her Son, who is represented holding the Gospels as   
   if to present them to the world. Mary is holding the three-fold   
   lily-scepter of virginity. Her right hand points to Christ. The child   
   extends his arm in a double gesture of blessing and protection of his   
   mother. Each part of the statue is rich in symbolism, such as the   
   seven rings on the throne which stand for the sacraments. The crown   
   for today's statue is used only on special occasions. It was made from   
   gifts from all over the world. It is made from 18 carat gold and   
   contains 116 precious stones including 71 diamonds.   
    by Jacob   
      
   Saint Quote:   
   That which God commands seems difficult and a burden. The way is   
   rough; you draw back; you have no desire to follow it. Yet do so and   
   you will attain glory.   
   --Saint Anthony Mary Zaccaria   
      
   Bible Quote:   
   And you my flocks, the flocks of my pasture are men: and I am the Lord   
   your God, saith the Lord God.  (Ezekiel 34:31) (DRB)   
      
      
   <><><><>   
   "Walsingham, 'in thee is built New Nazareth'   
      
   Where shall be held in a memorial   
   The great joy of my salutation,   
   First of my joys, their foundation and origin   
   Root of mankind's gracious redemption,   
   When Gabriel gave me this news:   
   To be a Mother through humility   
   And God's Son conceive in virginity.   
      
   O England, you have great cause to be glad   
   For you are compared to the Promised Land, Zion   
   You are called in every realm and region   
   The Holy Land, Our Lady's Dowry.   
   In you is built new Nazareth,   
   A house to the honor of the Queen of Heaven   
   And her most glorious Salutation   
   When Gabriel said at Old Nazareth,   
   Ave, This same joy shall here be daily and for ever remembered."   
   (From the Pynson Ballad, c.1470)   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)