POPE FRANCIS CROWNS WEEPING MOTHER OF LA SALETTE

NEWS:
FROM ROME:

A letter from the superior general of the La Salette missionaries regarding an important and impressive short ceremony to be held in St. Peter's Square, Vatican City on May 18, 2016.  In hnor of the 170 the anniversary of the Apparition of Our Lady,  Mother of Jesus to two young cowherds at La Salette, France, His Holiness, Pope Francis will crown the statue of the Weeping Mother of La Salette immediately following the general audience which takes place in St. Peter's Square on Wednesday mornings.

Here is the leatter from the Superior General:

The Crowning of the Statue of Our Lady of La Salette in 2016

Over these 170 years since the apparition of the Weeping Mother of La Salette, the La Salette Missionaries have graciously and repeatedly invited various Popes to come to La Salette as a sign of affirmation of our mission and ministry and to honor Our Lady who appeared to two children in the valley, wept for them and spoke to the witnesses about her love for her sinful people. 

Please read the letter from our La Salette Superior General explaining this important upcoming and blessed event:

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May 5, 2016

Dear Confreres and friends of La Salette,

from Our Lady of Sorrows Church in Hartford, CT, USAIt is with great joy that I inform you that, through the initiative of Father Manuel dos Reis Bonfim, Rector of the Shrine of La Salette (France), Pope Francis will officially crown the statue of Our Lady of La Salette on Wednesday, May 18, 2016. 

The brief and moving ceremony will take place immediately after the General Audience in the St. Peter’s Square in Vatican City. On that occasion those invited to greet the Pope personally will include Fr. Manuel, Rector of the Shrine, some members of the La Salette General Council of the Congregation, Fr. Joseph Antin, Vicar General of the Diocese of Grenoble, Sr. Elisabeth, Superior General of the Sisters of Our Lady of La Salette, the Honorable Gilda Perrin, Mayor of La Salette-Fallavaux, among others.

I will take advantage of this grace-filled meeting with Pope Francis to renew the Congregation’s invitation to visit the Shrine of La Salette in France during this Jubilee Year of Mercy and the 170th Anniversary of the Apparition.

The Audience and the ceremony of the Crowning of the Virgin can be followed live on the Congregation’s Rome website or on the Vatican website. You may also find it on local stations which ordinarily show the Pope’s Wednesday General Audiences, such as EWTN or Italian Television.

Given the particular importance of this moment and the undeniable relevance for the entire Congregation, I invite every community and each individual member to unite themselves with us this coming Wednesday, May 18, in prayer and in thanking God for this auspicious event. 

It will also be a good occasion to further our making known the Apparition of the Beautiful Lady and her message of reconciliation.

I hold all of you in prayer and blessing.


Fr. Silvano Marisa, M.S., 
La Salette Superior General, Rome, Italy