Our Lady's Visit in Saipan

Untitled from Patrick Sabat on Vimeo.

FROM the SAIPAN TRIBUNE

Historic Visit to the Diocese of Chalan Kanoa - SAIPAN


BY Fr. Celso Magbanua Jr.

The upcoming and first-ever visit of the IPVS to the Diocese of Chalan Kanoa started with the deep love and devotion of a simple lady, Patricia Guerrero, to the Blessed Mother. Patricia, who was cured of her eyes' illness, had been incessantly searching for prayer aids such as novena pamphlets as her way of expressing her gratitude to God, to whom she attributed her healing. 

Four years ago, in 2007, Patricia found a prayer booklet on the IPVS and she has been praying to the Blessed Virgin Mary of Fatima since then. When she learned that it's possible to bring the IPVS to the CNMI, she looked for ways on how to do it. As early as 2007, Patricia inquired and communicated with Rose Marie Malburg, one of the custodians of the IPVS. 

On Feb. 14, 2010, Patricia received a letter from Ms. Malburg. Attached to the letter were the guidelines and some other pertinent things for the visit of the IPVS. Ms. Malburg recommended Patricia to see Fr. Mike Crisostomo of the Archdiocese of Agana, Guam, the latter being the contact person of the Foundation in Guam. The IPVS visited Guam twice, in 2006 and 2010.

It was on Sept. 1, 2010, that Patricia, accompanied by Fr. Mike Crisostomo, had a meeting with the late Very Rev. Fr. Manuel Reyes Corcuera, then Apostolic Administrator of the Diocese of Chalan Kanoa. The purpose of the meeting was to ask the good Apostolic Administrator to allow the visit of the IPVS to the Diocese. Fr. Corcuera conceded and immediately ordered the necessary preparations to be made.

In order to assure the success of the first visit of IPVS, Fr. Corcuera assigned Sr. Estela Altea, SGBP, Religious Education Directress, to head the Steering Committee with the assistance of Rev. Fr. Ryan Jimenez, then Chancellor of the Diocese. Members of the Steering Committee were selected: Sonia and Jeffrey Camacho, Tony and Linda Yarobwemal, Patricia Guerrero, Rita Guerrero and Lourdes Leong. The committee had its first meeting on Nov. 12, 2010, at the Pastorelle Sisters' convent in San Antonio. Henceforth, they have been meeting every Friday night (later Tuesday night) in the same venue. 

Purpose

When the Blessed Mother appeared to Francisco, Jacinta, and Lucia in Fatima, Portugal from May 13, 1917, to Oct. 13, 1917, she told them to tell the people to pray and do sacrifices for the conversion of sinners and pray the Holy Rosary for peace in the whole world. These will also be the primary intentions for the visit of the Blessed Mother to the whole Diocese. 

In addition, it is also our prayer that through the intercession of the Blessed Mother, we would soon have a new bishop to shepherd and guide the Diocese to the path of holiness toward her Son, Jesus.

When asked what she would ask the Blessed Mother for, Sr. Estela Altea, SGBP, the committee chairperson for this event, said: “I would ask the Blessed Mother to pray for each one of us here in the Diocese, for us to be serious with our relationship with Jesus and not to be lazy with our religious life.”

SCHEDULE OF PARISH VISITS 

Feb. 1: Mt. Carmel Cathedral; 5:30pm arrival; Holy Mass, 6pm; *Departure, 11am

Feb. 2: San Roque Parish; 5:45pm, arrival; Holy Mass, 6pm; *Departure, 9am

Feb 3: Saint Jude Parish; 5:30pm arrival; Holy Mass, 6pm; Departure, 11pm

Feb 4: Mercedarian Sisters (Maturana); 8am arrival; Holy Mass, 8am; Departure, 7pm

Feb. 5: San Vicente Parish; 5pm arrival; Holy Mass, 6pm; Departure, 11pm

Feb. 6: Santa Soledad Mission Parish; 3pm arrival; Holy Mass, 6pm; Departure, 11:30pm

Feb: 7: San Jose Parish - Saipan; 6pm arrival; Holy Mass, 8pm; *Departure, 7:30am

Feb. 8: San Antonio Parish; 5pm arrival; Holy Mass, 6pm; *Departure, 5pm

Feb. 9: Kristo Rai Parish; 5:30pm arrival; Holy Mass, 6pm; *Departure, 7am

Feb 11: Santa Remedios Parish; 5:30pm arrival; Holy Mass, 6pm; *Departure, 7pm

Feb 16: San Francisco De Borja; 10am arrival; Holy Mass, 6pm; *Departure, 7am

Feb. 17: San Isidro Parish (Rota); 3pm arrival; Holy Mass, 4pm; Departure, 9pm

Feb 18: San Jose Parish (Tinian); 2:30pm arrival; Holy Mass, 6pm; *Departure, 8am

Feb. 19: Pastorelle Sisters Convent/IPVS Steering Committee; 8:45am arrival; Adoration, 9am; *Departure, 7:45am

Feb 20: Mt. Carmel Cathedral; 8am arrival; Holy Mass, 9am; *Departure, 7am

Feb. 21: Bishop's House; Arrival, 7am; Departure, 3pm

Mt. Carmel Cathedral - Culmination; Holy Mass, 6pm, all priests; Departure, 8pm

Fatima statue promotes message of prayer and peace

By Jennifer Brinker | jbrinker@stlouisreview.com

In just a few months, Marianna Higgins will be preparing for one of the biggest moments of her vocation as a mother.

On April 8, one of her 11-year-old twin daughters, Raynie, will undergo a spinal fusion surgery. Raynie was born with spina bifida and later diagnosed with scoliosis. Raynie's sister, Mercydies, has been a big help as a caretaker, said her mother.

"God's not going to give us more than we can handle," said Higgins.

So she's doing what any Catholic mother would do when faced with such a situation. She brought the matter to the Blessed Mother.

Higgins and her daughters were among more than 500 people who visited the International Pilgrim Virgin Statue of Our Lady of Fatima last weekend at Immaculate Conception in Arnold. The Jan. 16 stop was part of a tour of the statue in the St. Louis Archdiocese this month. The evening service included adoration, the Rosary, brown scapular enrollment and prayers of consecration.

The history of the statue dates back to 1946, when young people from Portugal attended a congress on Fatima in Lisbon and took a statue of Fatima with them. As they walked to Lisbon, they stopped in towns along the way, and people gathered to pray. The statue returned to its original location of Cova de Iria, Portugal, but people still wanted to see the statue in their own communities. The following year, sculptor José Thedim created a new statue, which was blessed by the Bishop of Leiria at Fatima, and it was named the International Pilgrim Virgin Statue of Our Lady of Fatima. Since then, the statue has traveled to more than 100 countries, including Russia and China.

The purpose of the statue is to spread the message from Our Lady of Fatima, which is to offer prayer and penance in reparation for sin. In particular, she asks for communions of reparation on the first Saturday of the month. Daily, the faithful are called to offer each act as a sacrifice for sin, to pray the Rosary, to consecrate themselves to her Immaculate Heart and to wear the brown scapular as a sign of their consecration.

Fatima's message is timeless and can be applied to all the ages, said Carl Malburg, one of two custodians of the statue, which is based in Munster, Ind. In fact, the last seven popes have endorsed her message, he noted, including Pope Benedict XVI, who visited Fatima last year.

Malburg, who has traveled with the statue around the world for almost two decades, said he is on the road at least 10 months out of the year visiting churches, schools, nursing homes, prisons and other places, spreading Fatima's message. For the last few years, the 70-year old has been working with a new custodian, Patrick Sabat, who is expected to become his replacement some day.

While there is a history of occasional unexplainable physical miracles attributed to some who visit the statue, Malburg noted that perhaps the most important "miracle" is the conversion of heart.

"People are constantly asking us, 'Is it true there are miracles? Is it true the statue cries?' and all those phenomenon?" said Malburg. "And it is true that those things happen occasionally. But I have always maintained that (conversion of heart) is the most important 'miracle' that God can give us, because a cancer cure will only last a few years and then we die from something else," said Malburg. "A conversion changes eternity. It's probably the best miracle that Mary gives."

While we are encouraged, through the saints, to embrace Jesus' cross, Malburg said perhaps the next best thing we can do as the faithful is to turn to the Blessed Mother for guidance.

"The next best thing to say when you're faced with a problem is, 'Mother Mary, I need some help from you.' That's music to a mother's ears. A mother loves to hear that, and she loves to respond to that simple request from her children."

Michelle Wolk, who helped organize the evening prayer service at Immaculate Conception, said that if the statue inspires just one person to convert, "it's worth every single bit of time and work that goes into" the effort. As a mother of eight children, "I've always been drawn to the Blessed Mother and Our Lady of Fatima. There's a lot of times when I'm going through something, and I said, 'Blessed Mother, please help me.'"

Her hope is that last weekend's gathering "will instill in them that there's somebody to turn to. As human beings we can't do everything. But the Blessed Mother can go to her Son Jesus and do wonders."