Last Wednesday was a very special day for the UW-La Crosse FOCUS team. December 12th is the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, which commemorates the Marian apparition that occurred near modern-day Mexico City, Mexico in December of 1531.
La Crosse is home to a beautiful Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe, which is a pilgrimage place for faithful, visitors, and wanderers to come and experience the love of God within the bluffs of the La Crosse valley. There is a beautiful church at the top of the Shrine as well as a rosary walk, Stations of the Cross, and a Memorial to the Unborn. I would often visit this mystical place last year when I lived only 40 minutes away, and it has been such a gift this year to be only 5 miles away from it and to "escape" for awhile as often as I please (I've averaged almost every weekend!).
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| Team UW-L at the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe |
This summer, as I was doing some praying and planning for starting the FOCUS mission at UW-La Crosse, I realized that we should adopt Our Lady of Guadalupe as our patron saint and intercessor for the students, staff, and missionaries involved. The team and I began a small devotion to Mary as Our Lady of Guadalupe, praying daily for her intercessory prayers and protection on our mission here. We were even given a beautiful painting of the Our Lady of Guadalupe image somewhat providentially by a fellow FOCUS staff member.
Last Wednesday, on the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, our team celebrated the gift that Mary has been in her prayers and intercessions for our mission here by going up to the Shrine for Mass. Cardinal Burke, the former bishop of La Crosse who started the Shrine was visiting from his current clerical position in Rome to celebrate Mass on this beautiful feast day. Our team was so blessed to meet the Cardinal, to tell him of the work that we have been doing here in La Crosse, and to get a picture with him!
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| FOCUS team excitedly meeting Cardinal Burke |
Our Lady of Guadalupe, Pray for us!
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