A pilgrimage closer to home

WITH MARY  At St. Gerard Church in Paterson, Mary Delgado, Alianny Labol, Vocationist Father Leo Antony, administrator of St. Gerard’s; Father Michael Rodak, pastor of Our Lady Queen of Peace in West Milford and diocesan pilgrimage director; Filippini Sister Jo-Ann Pompa, principal of St. Gerard School; Alynna Grandez and Carlos Diaz stand with the Our Lady of Fatima pilgrim statue, which visited 14 parishes in the diocese last week.

CLIFTON  It was a little bit like the pilgrimage in Fatima, Portugal but closer to home, as thousands of the faithful visited neighboring parishes in the Paterson Diocese to pay homage to the United Nations International Statue of Our Lady of Fatima during the week of Nov. 14-20.

The statue, which was blessed on Oct. 13, 1952 and commissioned for its mission to the United Nations, visited 14 parishes in the diocese. The statue of Our Lady of Fatima was accompanied with a piece of the holm-oak tree, in which the Blessed Mother appeared in Fatima in 1917 before three shepherd children. Relics of two of the three children were also present for veneration.

Judy Studer, custodian of the statue, who lives in Rhode Island, brought the statue to the Diocese and shared her personal story on the Blessed Mother’s miraculous healing in her life more than two decades ago.

“The doctors told me I had six months to live,” said Studer, “My mom called me one day and said, ‘The U.N. statue of Our Lady of Fatima is coming to the cathedral. We have to go and pray that Mary will have Jesus heal you.’ I said, ‘Mom, the doctors told me six months.’ She said, ‘You can say no to me, but you can’t say no to our Blessed Mother.’”

What happened next was miraculous. After the visit, Studer found out she was cancer free and she promised to spread devotion to the Blessed Mother and the rosary.

At St. Andrew Church here Nov. 15, the rosary, Mass, quiet prayer time and the Divine Mercy chaplet coincide with the statue’s visit. During the Mass, students at St. Andrew School presented a skit on the story of Our Lady of Fatima and her appearance to the three children.

Father Michael Rodak, diocesan director of the Pilgrimage Office and pastor of Our Lady Queen of Peace Parish in West Milford, who is traveling with Studer and the statue to the different parishes, noted the visit of Our Lady of Fatima to young children. “This is the end of the Year of Mercy and we are very blessed here in the Paterson Diocese to celebrate the end of the Year of Mercy with Our Lady’s statue going around the Diocese. Because this message of mercy is something that can help us all be healed of so many different things that happen — divisions within family, divisions away from God, divisions that may take us away from the goodness that God has given us so I’m hoping this will be a week of healing for our Diocese and for all who will be touched by Our Lady.”

It was a similar scene throughout the parishes where Our Lady visited. At St. Gerard Church in Paterson, the school children venerated the relic of Fatima.

St. Joseph Church in Lincoln Park was also honored with a visit. Kimberly Rizzo said, “Young and old parishioners of St. Joseph’s and neighboring parishes in the Diocese lined up to pray before the statue of the Blessed Mother.”

Deacon Joe Parlapiano of St. Joseph’s said to the pilgrims gathered: “What a gift Jesus has given us — his mother to be our mother. Tonight we have the opportunity to meditate on what this gift has meant to us. Place your hopes and fears, your joys and sorrows or your petitions before Mary and speak to her as you would a loving mother. She will hear you.”

In speaking to the school children at St. Andrew’s in attendance, Father Rodak said, “Remember that Our Lady came to three young children like you — she had a desire to reach out to you. She had a love to come to you. Embrace Mary as our spiritual mother in the heavenly kingdom. The power of the Blessed Mother is so strong. Mary was the first woman to say ‘yes’ to the angel and to say ‘yes’ to God that she was going to be the mother of Jesus and she was there as a mom like your mom is there for you and she was there with Jesus all the way to his death. Mary is the patron of the Americas and Our Lady of Fatima, the one that heals, is always here to help you. Always understand that she comes to you, so pray the ‘Hail Mary,’ pray the rosary, love Mary and find a deeper relationship with Jesus through Mary. When we all do that we all become better people, called to love God and to find a better world because of her intercession.”