Our Blessed Mother pours out her profound love to her spiritual children on a daily basis, but do we notice it? Do we trust it? A recent chance encounter with Our Lady of Walsingham reminded me just how much our mother in heaven loves us.
Until this past January I had not heard of the Marian devotion under the title of Our Lady of Walsingham. Following an assignment to edit a novena to her, I began learning about the history of this title. As the story goes, in 1061 an English widow who lived in the manor of Little Walsingham prayed to Mary, asking for a special way to honor her. She said that Mary led her in spirit to Nazareth and showed her the house where the angel Gabriel appeared and where she said yes to becoming the mother of our Savior.
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The widow explained that Mary asked her to build a replica of that house in Walsingham so that people could make pilgrimages there to remember her “yes” and worship Jesus. The widow did as Mary requested, and people began visiting. Many years later, the Augustinians built a church around it, and for centuries, people traveled there to worship God and adore Mary. Protestants destroyed it during the Reformation, but a priest initiated its rebuilding in the early 20th century; today hundreds of thousands of pilgrims visit each year. Our Lady of Walsingham is now known as the patroness of Catholics in England.
When I learned of Our Lady of Walsingham, I felt as if she were speaking to me, as just a week prior, my youngest son had left to study in London for the semester. I knew Mary was telling me to put him in her loving hands, and I began a special devotion to her.
That devotion soon spread to prayers for myself, as I wanted to visit my son but felt uneasy about flying so far. It wasn’t that I was afraid to actually fly; I have flown hundreds of times in my life. But a scary incident on a flight the year before, during which I passed out from a serious bout of pneumonia, overwhelmed my thoughts and prevented me from experiencing the joy I should have felt around my impending trip.
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So, I began to pray to Our Lady of Walsingham for safe travels and comfort around my anxieties. I tried to trust that all would go well, but that fear kept creeping in. I know that Jesus taught many times to “not be afraid” and that Padre Pio famously told us “Pray, hope, and don’t worry,” but I did worry. A lot. My rational mind told me to trust, but my fear-filled mind kept asking, What if?
However, I wasn’t going to allow those fears to prevent the trip. And thanks to God, all went well. A close friend of mine flew with me, and my older son and his fiancé flew from another city to meet us in London.
We had planned to spend a few days in London and then travel to Wales for a day trip, but for various reasons, we decided to see something closer to London, so we googled nearby towns and decided on Arundel. It boasts an awesome 11th century castle and looked like a great alternative.
As we walked the castle’s grounds, we encountered its chapel, built in the late 1300s. We stepped into its front room, and I couldn’t believe my eyes, for there on the wall was a statue of Our Lady of Walsingham. The sign on a nearby table read that the shrine had just been installed, and it encouraged people to reflect on Mary’s message of hope.
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Hope: something I had desperately needed as I thought about this trip. Not hope in the sense of a wish, but hope and trust in God and in Mary’s prayers for me. I suddenly felt immense joy, and the weight I had carried for so long about a health-related problem occurring finally lifted. It wasn’t only that I knew that my spiritual mother was looking out for me. It was that she had made it so obvious that she wanted me to know she was looking out for me. This was my mother telling me I love you, and I am here.
And that’s what she does for everyone. Her presence in our lives gives us hope and helps sustain our faith.
Sometimes we wonder who we are to God, to Mary, or to the saints and why they would listen to our prayers. We think we are insignificant and that they certainly have better things to do than acknowledge our worries and send us special messages. But this is not the way a good mom and dad act. None of us is insignificant. We all matter.
That’s what Mary was telling me by guiding me to Arundel that day. She wanted me, as she wants us all, to live in the hope of her son and to feel the joy that comes from that hope. And she conveys that truth every time she gives us a sign of her love and presence.
We all had an amazing time together and created so many wonderful memories of England, but that day at Arundel Castle will always hold a special place in my heart. I have always known that Mary is a good and loving mom, but she proved it to me in Arundel.
