Beatification of Pope John Paul II

Well, it is finally official.  Pope Benedict XVI has set the date for the beatification of Pope John Paul II for May 1,  2011.  This happens to be Divine Mercy Sunday, a special day that John Paul II himself initiated.  No doubt there will be thousands there for this very special event.

Return from Mexico & Our Lady of Guadalupe Pilgrimage

We are back.

I believe everything went well, and everybody enjoyed the experience.

Thanks again for the opportunity you have given me.

Fr. Michael

Feast of Saint Juan Diego

Today marks the Feast of Saint Juan Diego, the simple peasant to whom the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared and became known as "Our Lady of Guadalupe".  Our group is currently in Mexico had is in the colonial city of Puebla.  They will be in Mexico City for the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe on December 12th.

Off to Mexico

Well we are off to celebrate the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City.  Our group will spend three nights in the picturesque Spanish Colonial city of Puebla before going to Mexico City for the celebration of this most popular Feast Day.  The Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe is one of the most visited shrines in the world.  And despite what the news media would like to portray, Mexico is safe for travel so long as you know where to go. 

Pope Benedict XVI greets pilgrims from Medjugorje

This note from Wednesday Dec 2nd puplic audience by our Holy Father Benedict XVI:

At the end of today’s general audience, during part of the greeting of groups in different languages, the Pope addressed the Croatian crowd of pilgrims: “I greet all Croatian pilgrims, and especially those from the parish of St James, Medjugorje! Your pilgrimage to Rome is part of the way of preparation for the coming of the Lord. Therefore, in hope, be evangelisers of God’s love in your nation. Praised be Jesus and Mary!”

Memorial of Blessed Miguel Pro

We invite you to reflect upon the life and sacrifice of this future saint who was martyred in 1928.  As we was executed by a firing squad he proclaimed:  "long live Christ the King".  We think of Mexico as a predominantly Catholic country, which it is, but during the 1920"s a Marxist government came to power and severely persecuted all Catholics.

Safety in Mexico

The press, as usual, has done a great job of scaring people regarding travel to Mexico.  This is not to minimize the serious nature of the violence there, but it is mainly concentrated in the border areas and a few other spots within a country that is 3 times the size of Texas.  We steer clear of these places naturally and anticipate no problems on our upcoming pilgrimage to the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe.  Here is an email we received recently from a lady who travels to Mexico frequently:

"I am so disheartened to hear about people's continuous concerns!  Puebla is perfectly safe.  The three of us, all women, walked around comfortably after dark.  I took taxis by myself to Cholula to Talavera de la Reyna pottery studio and showroom, and had no difficulties at all.  We all took a bus to Puebla from Oaxaca, and from Puebla to Mexico City without incident or fear.  I returned only 10 days ago, so please again reassure people that it is just fine!  I've written about safety extensively on my Web site and have had many others respond, too, that it is only the border areas that are not secure.

Norma Hawthorne 
Oaxaca Cultural Navigator LLC
110 Blue Heron Farm Road
Pittsboro, NC 27312
(919) 274-6194
www.oaxacaculture.com
facebook.com/norma.hawthorne
twitter.com/OaxacaCulture

Come join us for the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe