After the news broke, I could see the excitement in my children’s eyes. “Our Lady of Champion, pray for us!” they said, with a tone of awe and wonder.
I wasn’t expecting Thursday, April 20, to be anything out of the ordinary. But when I received a push notification from my Relevant Radio app about some big news from the National Shrine of Our Lady of Good Help, my curiosity was piqued.
What joy it was to hear my local bishop, the Most Rev. David Ricken of the Diocese of Green Bay, proclaim that with the permission of the Holy See’s Dicastery for Divine Worship and Discipline of the Sacraments, the shrine would now celebrate a solemnity each year on October 9, the anniversary of Our Blessed Mother’s 2nd and 3rd apparitions in Champion, Wisconsin.
And not only that, but he decreed, “Given that Our Blessed Mother’s appearance to Adele Brise was at the location of Champion, WI, and in conformity with the proper terminology associated with approved Marian apparition sites elsewhere, I hereby approve, by means of this decree, a change in title from Our Lady of Good Help to the Shrine of Our Lady of Champion.”
Our Lady of Champion. The words sunk into my heart with such weight. Our family has read and studied other Marian apparitions like Our Lady of Fatima, Our Lady of Guadalupe, and Our Lady of Lourdes, and marveled at the grace with which Our Blessed Mother had visited her children on earth with messages of paramount importance.
And we, my family, have lived our entire lives just a short distance away from the only approved Marian apparition site in the United States. But somehow, this simple change in title makes this miraculous event hit even closer to home.
On October 9, 1859, the Queen of Heaven appeared to Adele Brise and spoke to her, instructing her to offer her Communion for the conversion of sinners and to “Gather the children in this wild country and teach them what they should know for salvation.”
Whether you live down the street from this apparition, across the country or around the world, Our Lady’s message to Adele is for us all. Are you teaching the children in your life what they need to know for salvation? Specifically, Our Lady told Adele that the children should know their catechism, the Sign of the Cross, and how to approach the sacraments.
During this Month of Mary, take some time to read about apparition stories and messages that Our Lady has brought to her children on earth. Reflect on how you can better live out her instructions and calls for repentance, penance, and prayer for the conversion of sinners.
“Go and fear nothing, I will help you.” – The Queen of Heaven to Adele Brise on October 9, 1859
This week is our Spring Pledge Drive, and we need your help! Today only, Wednesday May 10, with a gift of a Dollar-a-Day, you will receive a very special thank-you!
You will receive an Our Lady of Guadalupe scapular with medals that Father Rocky carried with him last weekend to the Shrine of Our Lady of Champion during the Walk to Mary!
You are also eligible to receive a copy of Fulton J. Sheen’s book, The World’s First Love.
There are a limited number of these special premiums available and they will only be offered today, so don’t delay in making your $365, Dollar-a-day donation to support the vital mission of Relevant Radio! We thank you for your generous support.
