Newsletter #62 – Our Lady of Mount Carmel USA

Dear Friends and Benefactors, 09/22/2020

“De Maria nunquam satis – Concerning Mary, there is never enough” (Saint Bernard de Clairvaux).
First of all, whenever we mention the topic of Our Lady of Sorrows, we should always remember Our Blessed Mother’s promise (passed on by Saint Bridget of Sweden) of granting Seven Graces to souls who honor her every day by praying seven Hail Marys and meditating on her tears and Seven Dolors (Her Seven Dolors: [1] Prophecy of Simeon; [2] Flight into Egypt; [3] Loss of the Child Jesus in Jerusalem; [4] Meeting of Jesus and Mary on the Way of the Cross; [5] Mary at the Foot of the Cross; [6] Jesus is taken down from the Cross and laid in the arms of Mary; [7] Burial of Jesus). The Seven Graces are: [1] I will grant peace to their families. [2] They will be enlightened about the divine mysteries. [3] I will console them in their pains, and I will accompany them in their work. [4] I will give them as much as they ask for as long as it does not oppose the Adorable Will of my Divine Son or the sanctification of their souls. [5] I will defend them in their spiritual battles with the infernal enemy and I will protect them at every instant of their lives. [6] I will visibly help them at the moment of their death, they will see the face of their Mother. [7] I have obtained (This Grace) from my Divine Son, that those who propagate this Devotion to my tears and Dolors, will be taken directly from this earthly life to eternal happiness since all their sins will be forgiven and my Son and I will be their eternal consolation and joy.
The image of the Sorrowful Virgin of Quito, with her Heart pierced by the seven swords of her Seven Sorrows, is one of the best-known images of our Mother of Sorrows in the Catholic world. We, at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Seminary, are privileged to have a copy of this Miraculous Image in our Chapel. What is not so well-known is the history of this image and of the miracle which made it so famous. This history is very much entwined with the history of Ecuador itself; for Quito is the capital of Ecuador.

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
Ecuador was the first Spanish colony in the New World to rebel and gain independence from the Mother Country (in 1822). Catholics who fought for independence may have thought they had a just cause, but, as so often happens, eventually the revolutionary movement fell under the domination of anti-Catholic liberals. Ecuador’s history has often been marred by revolutions and anti-Catholic governments. Thus, President José Urbina expelled the Jesuits from Ecuador in 1852.
Ten years later the truly Catholic President, Gabriel García Moreno, allowed the Jesuits to return, and gave them back their ancient church and college. In gratitude, the Jesuits renamed the college “St. Gabriel.” It was the same President Moreno who solemnly consecrated Ecuador to the Sacred Heart of Jesus on March 25, 1874, with these words: “Prostrate before Thy Divine Presence, all the public powers of the Church and State offer and consecrate to Thee, now and for always, the Republic of Ecuador as Thy exclusive property and possession.”

CATHOLIC PRESIDENT ASSASSINATED BY FREEMASONS
Gabriel García Moreno paid for this consecration with his blood. He was assassinated by enraged liberals/freemasons less than one year later, on August 6, 1875, as he was returning from First Friday adoration of the Blessed Sacrament in the Cathedral of Quito – the site of the consecration. General Salazar arrived at the scene of the dying President and ordered Garcia Moreno to be taken to the Cathedral. His massacred body was placed at the feet of the shrine of Our Lady of Sorrow, to whom he had a great devotion. The priest who administered the Last Rites asked the dying President if he forgave his enemies. With effort Garcia Moreno opened his eyes, his expression affirming his assent. Shortly afterward, he expired.
On the breast of the President was a relic of the true cross, a scapular of the Passion and the Sacred Heart, and his Rosary, along with a medal of Pope Pius IX. In his pocket was his copy of ‘The Imitation of Christ’, with his rule of life written on the last page. Penciled in on that page were these few words, “My Savior Jesus Christ, give me a greater love of Thee and profound humility, and teach me what I should do this day for Thy greater glory and service.”
The revolutionaries had hoped that the assassination of Garcia Moreno would spark a revolution among the people, who would rally around the Masonic ideals of Liberty, Equality and Fraternity and reject the Catholic Church. Instead, the opposite happened. The people of the nation mourned their lost President, naming him the Father and Regenerator of Ecuador and regarding him as a martyr for the Catholic Faith.
On Good Friday, 1877, the Archbishop was lethally poisoned in the Cathedral. Later, moderates prevailed, and Ecuador was officially consecrated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary on August 6, 1892. (Ecuador was the first nation to be consecrated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary.) Enraged again, the liberals staged a coup in 1895. Once in power, they launched a furious attack against the Catholic Church, Catholic culture, and Catholic education.
Very soon after the coup, soldiers began to occupy part of the College of St. Gabriel. The following year, the tyrant, Eloy Alfaro, broke the Concordat with the Vatican which had been signed by President Moreno. On the 4th of May, 1897, the liberals assaulted the College of St. Philip in Riobamba, profaning the church and the tabernacle, throwing the Sacred Species to the ground, and assassinating the Rector, Fr. Emilio Moscoso. In 1900 religious education was suppressed in the trade schools, the liberty of teaching was restrained, and the Catholic colleges were denied the right of receiving examinations and conferring degrees.
In 1901, the government seized part of the College of St. Gabriel. In 1902 civil matrimony and the law of divorce were introduced. In 1904, the Minister of Culture launched the motto: “Independent from Spain, let us be independent from Rome.” In 1905 the Redemptorist Fathers were expelled from Riobamba.
In 1906 Alfaro led a revolt against his successor and returned to power. The National Assembly proclaimed laicism, which was then not only anti-clerical but also atheistic; all manifestations of religion, such as processions, were prohibited. The goods of the dioceses and the religious orders were confiscated, and the Catholic Church was despoiled of its legal standing. Alfaro named Manuel Franco, an atheistic, secular and violent man, as civil and military chief in Quito. He incited a riot against the Brothers of the Christian Schools, and expelled the Salesians and Capuchins. A mob invaded the Archbishop’s Palace, harassed the elderly Archbishop González Calisto, and made a bonfire with the Library and Archives of the Diocese.

THE MIRACLE
It was in that very year, when the persecution of the Church had reached its height, that the miracle of the Sorrowful Virgin took place. It was the 20th of April, 1906, Friday of Easter Week; the 35 boarding students were dining in the refectory of the College of St. Gabriel. An image of the Mother of Sorrows hung on one side of the door, to the right as one enters, about six feet from the floor. The picture was an oleograph (a print using oil-based inks), printed in France, of about 20 inches long by 16 inches wide. The Jesuits had purchased three such pictures from a traveling salesman. The Prefect of Discipline, Father Andrés Roesch, testified as follows at the Canonical Process investigating the miracle:
“At 8:00 pm, when the students had finished their meal, I entered the refectory and, contrary to the established custom, and without explanation, I said ‘Deo Gratias’ to the boys, to their great surprise (this was a permission to converse, instead of continuing the spiritual reading). At several of the tables, I spoke about the events in San Francisco, California (the earthquake which had taken place two days earlier). I did so with the boys at the first table (who had made their First Holy Communion on Holy Thursday), in order to make reflections upon that event and to encourage conversation concerning the Most Holy Virgin. One of them, Jaime Chávez, raised his eyes toward a print of the Virgin of Sorrows, hanging on the wall about one and a half meters from him.
“With amazement he saw that the image closed her eyes; filled with fear, he covered his eyes with his hand and spoke of it to the boy next to him, Carlos Herrmann, who saw the same marvel. Because of this, they knelt down between the table and the bench and recited the Our Father and Hail Mary. Then they called to another boy and another, until one of them came to me and urged me with great insistence to go and see…
“At first, I admonished the one who called me to be quiet, because it appeared to me to be an illusion of the boys; but finally, at the insistence and calls of all those who were present at the prodigy, I went over to the table situated closest to the image, with the determination of solving the mystery. I carefully made sure that the electric lamps were not flickering and that there was no reflection on the image: this did not appear to be the case.
“Standing in front of the image, surrounded by the boys, I fixed my eyes upon her without blinking, and I saw that the Most Holy Virgin slowly closed her eyelids; but not believing that this was certain, I withdrew from that place. Seeing this, Brother Alberdi (the Assistant Supervisor), who was standing much closer than I had been, said to me, wondering at what had happened: ‘But Father, if it is a miracle…if it is a miracle…’ I returned again to the place where I was before; then I felt a chill come over my body as I saw, without the possibility of doubt, that the image definitely closed and opened her eyes. When this happened all the boys who were present cried with one voice: ‘Now she’s closing them; now she’s opening them; now the left eye…’ It should be noted that at times only the left eye closed, or at least did so with greater clarity than the right, and so appeared to be more closed.
“The event was repeated many times over the space of about fifteen minutes, more or less. It ceased when, seeing that we were already late for night prayers, and always fearing to give too much attention to this, I gave the order for the students to retire. Many of them did so reluctantly, since they wanted to kneel down right there and pray. I suppressed any noisy manifestations in order not to cause a disturbance, for it appeared to me that if the event were miraculous, there would not be lacking sufficient witnesses to prove it. In the beginning I believed it to be an illusion; but after I had seen it, I withdrew without giving credence to anything. At the insistence of Brother Alberdi, I returned and beheld the blinking with such clarity that it gave me a chill, and I remain convinced.”
The testimony of Brother Alberdi is in full agreement:
“One of the boys from the first tables came and informed us about the Virgin… that she was moving her eyes; we received the news with unconcern or without any enthusiasm, at least speaking for myself. I don’t know how to account for what happened to me then, but I remember that I said to Father Roesch, after I had gazed on the picture, ‘Father, it is certain;’ and he exclaimed, ‘What a prodigy!’ Then the boys started to get up from their tables and to gather around where we were looking at the holy image; little by little I moved closer to the picture, where I could see her closing and opening her eyes for about a quarter of an hour or a little longer… I remained convinced that the eyes of the holy image of the Virgin were closing and opening during that time without ceasing. The boys were saying in one, loud voice: ‘Now she is closing them; now she is opening…’ A great fear came upon the boys; I saw one boy, who was close by, trembling.
“One boy insisted on calling the Father Rector, but Father Roesch would not allow it, because there was such a commotion; therefore, he clapped his hands to signal that it was time to go to the Chapel to recite the Rosary, even though the Virgin continued to close and open her eyes. The boy said to the Father: ‘Let us carry the picture to the Chapel and pray the Rosary before her there;’ but he would not allow it.”
Typical of the testimonies of the boys is the following:
“I do not fear that I was mistaken, nor did I have a prejudice in favor of the prodigy; on the contrary, I believed it to be a joke of the little boys; but afterward, I stood at a distance of one or two yards and saw perfectly that the image opened and closed her eyes, but more so the left; and when they were closed the whites of her eyes were completely concealed.”

THE CHURCH INVESTIGATES
What would you have done, if you had to pass judgment upon what was being said? Of course, before proving all this, you would need to investigate. How? By interrogating the witnesses – you will say – by examining their credibility, the possibility of fraud, a collective suggestion, an optical illusion…
Well, the ecclesiastical authority did this, and with all the rigor of the “devil’s advocate.” Seven days after the event the canonical process began, without the participation of any Jesuits, it appointed a commission of scientists and another of doctors. They would take a thorough declaration from each one of the forty witnesses, and under oath. (Considering whom they were dealing with and about what they were dealing with, were the forty witnesses going to be in agreement about swearing falsely?)
At that moment, the current Vicar Capitular (a Vicar Capitular is the administrator of a vacant diocese) – the diocese was vacant – ordered on April 27th that “the aforesaid picture be concealed, and nothing be publicized in the press or from the pulpit relating to this event, as long as its validity and authenticity have not been decided.”
An ever-prudent temporary prohibition, yet for the miracle to be verified, this heartless prohibition had been maintained indefinitely. As a matter of fact, at the same time, he named the theologians and the scientists who would conduct the investigation. They were strict (meriting later the praises of the Sacred Congregation), but not too slow: they took one month.
On the 29th, in the study hall of the boarding students the instruction of the process began. The Vicar Capitular, accompanied by the Secretary of the Chancellery and of the Senior Notary, reunited the forty witnesses and commanded that each one, without communicating with the rest of the others, write what it was that he saw, in such a way that he would be able to confirm it under oath. On the first of May a canon was commissioned as instructor Judge, assisted by the Senior Notary, and on the 5th of May they appeared in person, for: 1) the examination of the written statements, 2) their ratification under oath, 3) to propose to the witnesses a series of questions: if during those days they had heard something about that matter, if there was sufficient light, if at the beginning they were afraid and later at peace, and what effect had been produced in him and his conduct.
Concerning these statements, all agreed on the reality of the phenomenon, and it seems that at the beginning they were trying not to admit it. Someone went up to the picture, another went up to the partition to see it more closely. There was enough light (the room was illuminated by four light bulbs producing 16 foot-candles each) and the exclamations in unison: “now she opens, now she closes,” lasting for more than a quarter of an hour, leave no room for doubts. “The existence of a marvelous prodigy is evident,” concluded the instructor judge of the process. All also confirmed that the movement of the eyes was always full of majesty, and when opening them her gaze remained steadfast.
Once the event had been proved, the commission of scientists, after having sworn to work truthfully and diligently, reconstructed the scene in the same place, at the same hour, with the same circumstances, and examined the picture… about which fact “the subscribers will deduce: that the aforesaid phenomenon could not have occurred as the result of the light nor other physical conditions in which the picture was located. Moreover, the movement of the eyes occurred many times in each instance, as proven by the fact that everyone present observed it at the same time; and its size is such that at the distance of the onlookers a movement of the eyelids could be perceived with no room for doubt; nor could it be an optical illusion because it was seen simultaneously by all…”
Was there something that remained to be proven? Yes, the mental health of the forty eyewitnesses, which is what the medical commission carried out. From the 17th to the 19th of May two eminent doctors examined each one separately and by himself. The examinations were lengthy, the result of which was, in brief: that they all possessed good health without any nervous illness or predisposition towards such phenomena, but it was just the opposite, as far as excluding any influence, no one tried to influence anyone, nor was it admissible that the youngest boys in particular were able to trick all the rest. The only one who would have had the power to do this, by his authority, was the one most hesitant to believe and he even took the students away from there.
After all these preceding events the committee of nine theologians studied in their turn the case and reported favorably. Finally, the Vicar Capitular, mindful of all the above, pronounced the final word:

PASTORAL RESOLUTION
“1. The incident that took place on April 20 at the College of the Jesuit Fathers is proven to be historically certain. 2. The prodigy, under the circumstances in which it took place, cannot be explained by natural laws. 3. This prodigy, as much on account of what preceded it as by what followed it, cannot be attributed to any diabolical influence. In consequence one can believe it, with a purely human faith; and one may offer the picture which occasioned it the public veneration permitted by the Church, and to pray before it with legitimate confidence. Given at the Archiepiscopal Palace on May 31, 1906.” The ecclesiastical authority officially authenticated the picture on June 10.

On the same May 31, the Vicar Capitular gave an exhortation to the faithful:
“The occurrence of which we treat,” he was saying, “has presented itself with so many and such serious motives of rational credibility that although one can cease to believe it without sin, it seems difficult for anyone to reject it without straying from the norms of the most rigorous criteriology.”
And he commented, “It is not possible to pass over in silence certain circumstances. The youths are witnesses to that fact that they begin to live in a world trying to deny the supernatural and at the very time when attempts are increasing to uproot from the hearts of the youth every vestige of the faith.
“On the other hand, the marvelous phenomenon is caused by a simple and pious image of the Sorrowful Virgin, a favorite advocation of Ecuadorians, and especially during times of calamities it appeals to the devotion and the heartfelt sympathy of all the faithful. God has sought to make known what is not useless, but that supplication has been heard quite literally with which we so many times invoke the Heart of Mary saying to her, ‘Turn thy eyes of mercy towards us.’ She has indeed turned them, so tearful and tender; she has shown herself a Mother, because mothers have the secret of communicating with a look, of speaking with their eyes to their children, of teaching them, of encouraging them, of admonishing them, with just a look. Will it be a look of affection or of sad forebodings which Mary has directed to our youth?”

THE EFFECTS OF THE MIRACLE
The look of our Mother was not of sad forebodings. In the first place, for the seers it was a great spiritual impulse. They themselves declared that they had noticed it in their conduct and piety. Some were not falling asleep when reciting the rosary, others had made the resolution of avoiding sins, and to communicate more frequently. Father Prefect also noticed it: “The effect that was produced upon the children was for the better: They have formed a group or association that aims at combating bad conversations, and they did this spontaneously, and their fervor and good conduct has greatly improved.” The very next day, April 22, they made a collection for putting a better frame on the picture.
Fervor was not only in those students, but in all their followers, being greatly devoted to the Sorrowful Mother of the College. And overflowing the College, it spread throughout all Quito, through all Ecuador, where her image is found on most of the hearths, and finally through all the world, especially in England, Ireland, Scotland, Spain, the United States, Columbia, Panama, Australia, Africa… Pope Saint Pius X approved the process and requested a copy of the image, which he placed on the desk in his office.
It is enough that the Mother of God opened and closed her eyes for the city to have felt itself shaken and the government bewildered. The decree of expulsion of the Jesuits went to the wastebasket. And did the rulers convert? There are some, like the brothers of the rich man, who do not convert even if the dead rise again from the dead, according to Christ’s words. It is the mystery of obstinate hardness of heart, of persistence in sin, and the refusal of grace.

THE MIRACLE IS REPEATED
The Most Holy Virgin wished to respond to the wave of enthusiasm that rose up towards her: 1) On Thursday June 7, the boarding students and several priests were in the church after supper praying the Rosary before the Sacred Image, and when they finished, they once again saw the prodigy. The bell was rung and the whole community gathered. The prodigy lasted for a quarter of an hour. Moreover, the picture of the Virgin sometimes displayed profound sadness, and at other times even happiness. On the 11th, declarations were taken in the Archiepiscopal Chancellery from those who saw it. 2) On the 13th, two others say that they have seen it: Doctor Emmanuel María Salazar and his brother Nicholas. The former, who was converted, recounts in his sworn declaration that the face of the image was transformed with expressions of mildness, sweetness and love, and that “what is greater than the movement of the eyes is that she deeply moved my heart.” 3) On Sunday the 24th, at 5:30 in the afternoon the prodigy repeated itself in the presence of Father Bernard, Brother Miranda, four students of the College and five students from the Christian Schools. 4) On the 26th two Dominican priests saw it. 5) On Tuesday, July 3, many people saw the miracle. 6) On July 5th, Father Alphonsus Laenen, well known and remembered in Manabi (a western province of Ecuador on the coast), says that he saw the Virgin crying, but he is the only witness who speaks of crying.

VENERATION OF OUR LADY OF QUITO
Veneration of Our Lady of Quito, which is more properly called the Sorrowful Heart of Mary (and so it is entitled within the movement directed to her Heart advanced by herself in the last times), began immediately. On Sunday June 3, 1906, a great procession was already made, with more than 10,000 people attending besides some 35,000 spectators.
On July 2 the first great Novena of Our Lady of Quito began, which is repeated every year on April 11 so as to finish on the eve of the festive anniversary of the miracle, and has always gone on growing in fervor. Not content with the annual novena, the practice was established, in Quito and in other cities, of celebrating special devotions in honor of Our Lady of Quito on the 20th day of each month. Also, in 1932 the Bulletin of Our Lady of Quito was founded, a monthly publication to propagate the devotion to her.
Particularly noteworthy were the honors given to Our Lady of Quito in 1931, the silver anniversary of the miracle, which shook the entire nation; and the first Ecuadorian Marian Congress was held. The chronicles of the celebration fill four volumes. In 1934 the picture went on pilgrimage to Riobamba and other cities for the first time, generating unusual enthusiasm and tremendous excitement. The pilgrimages have been repeated. Another pilgrimage was made to Riobamba in 1938, then to Guayaquil, and to the north, to Pasto (Columbia). In 1947 the picture went to Cuenca where it remained a whole month.
In 1956, the golden anniversary of the miracle, there was a Canonical Coronation of Our Lady of Quito. Pope Pius XII in the Brief of the Coronation said: “Having consulted the Sacred Congregation of Rites, we grant by our apostolic authority and in virtue of this brief to our beloved son, Carl María de la Torre, Cardinal Priest of the Holy Church, Archbishop of Quito, that he impose in our name and with our authority, a Crown of gold upon the image of the Most Holy Virgin, the Sorrowful Mother of the College, AS QUEEN OF THE CATHOLIC EDUCATION IN ECUADOR.” Dr. Camillus Ponce Enríquez, President of the Republic,(he was the first conservative candidate elected to the presidency after 64 years of liberal government. He had studied in the College of St. Gabriel for his high school studies and was president of the Republic of Ecuador from 1956-1960) thanked God and Our Lady of Quito, in front of 40 diplomatic delegations, for his electoral victory.
In 1956 the golden anniversary of the miracle, there was a Canonical Coronation
by Carl Maria de la Torre on behalf of Pope Pius XII.

The relocation of the College of St. Gabriel to a new building was made. With the College the Picture of Our Lady of Quito will also be moved.
On December 30 the National Shrine of the Sorrowful Mother is blessed and dedicated.
This year marked the diamond anniversary of the miracle. In these seventy-five years, churches dedicated to our Queen and Mother have been built such as in Riobamba, Cotacachi and Ibarra. Colleges have been founded as in Loja and schools as in Llano Grande with her name. In other cities and parishes, Congregations function in her honor as in Otavalo, to beg for the children and for the Ecuadorian youth.
“Once again the miraculous picture is traveling throughout the whole Republic, in towns, hospitals… The enormous interest and national fervor are impressive. Novenas, Rosaries at dawn, and popular missions in preparation for the arrival of the Virgin take place, which increase the number of Confessions and Communions, with solemn Masses.
One sign of the national response is the resolution of the Very Illustrious City of Ante. The following is their resolution in their own words:
“Considering that it is the duty of the City to exteriorize the religious and Marian sentiment of the people that it represents, it is resolved:
[1] To render homage of admiration and honor to the Sorrowful Mother of the College on the diamond anniversary of the miracle of the tears shed for the country.
[2] To give the keys of the city as a symbol of respect and admiration to the Queen of Heaven.
[3] To recommend to all the Christian people, and particularly to the youth, devotion and love to the Sorrowful Mother of the College.
[4] To be officially present as a group at the solemn act of her reception.”

FAVORS OF OUR LADY OF QUITO
Our Mother is she who always begins to give us things, and to love us. “God hath first loved us” (I Jn. 4, 10), but when we come to Her, then she does her utmost, even with miracles. There would be no end in recounting all her gifts and favors. The vast majority we will know only in heaven. God wishes that His “feats” or extraordinary interventions be told (Cf. Is. 12; Ps. 9, 77, 85, 104, 117, 144 etc.) and this is an act of worship. There is no room for doubt that, like a good sermon, it makes an impression upon the faithful, it helps them to be better, and to go to God. That “superior” attitude that “disregards” miracles, by making them seem related to one’s inadequate education, is part of the global strategy of the prince of this world to hunt down such nuisances: by disparaging all that which is traditional, “gratifying the ears with novelties,” and desecrating and pernicious novelties at that, without Confession or Eucharistic life, nor penances, nor miracles, not consequently asking them from God. We are going to listen to some accounts:

In 1927 a boy, Oswald Romero, was run over by the main part of a wagon full of rocks. When falling he remembered the Mother of Sorrows. That day, after fainting and vomiting blood, he stayed asleep and afterwards was healed without medicine. He later became a priest in the United States.

In England, where she is known under the name of “Our Lady of Quito,” her devotion grew greatly due to the innumerable favors that she worked during the World War, saving the houses that had her image, from the damage produced by the aerial bombardment. Even the Protestants themselves placed an image of the Sorrowful Mother in their houses and churches. Soldiers, marines, and airmen carried with them small pictures so as to feel her maternal protection. Deeds such as the ones we transcribe below repeat themselves at each step.

An officer wrote to his wife, “I have just narrowly escaped death by a real miracle in North Africa. I was crossing our lines in my car in full battle. I had to travel some two miles on the open highway. A car in these circumstances is an easy target for the enemy air force. Indeed, soon after, out of some low clouds four aircraft emerged that immediately began to pursue me. They came flying at a low height behind me. At once I felt engulfed by a rain of artillery fire and machinegun fire. Suddenly, as the first result of the attack, a howitzer shell pierced the back part of the car, and after tearing my shirtsleeve and grazing my arm just below the shoulder, smashed the windshield and went on to kill a poor man who was trying to take refuge in a hole, about a hundred yards ahead. Another bullet pierced my cap, and a third snatched away from me my binoculars from my back. An artillery shot demolished one of the doors of the car, and finally it went into the ditch, pierced by six shots of artillery and riddled by gunshots; it stayed there like a sieve, but the driver and I were unhurt. Truly God has been good to me. Tell my mother that I was carrying the picture of Our Lady the Sorrow Mother of Quito in my pocket.

She is also known in Australia, where many hundreds of small pictures of the Sorrowful Mother of Quito have been distributed. There they have felt, just as in Ecuador, the compassionate hand of this Blessed Mother in the multitude of favors, such as the following, which occurred in Melbourne in 1948. A little girl fell from a balcony onto a cement floor. Having been taken to the hospital, her condition became serious. The father and mother of the girl prayed before the image of the Sorrowful Mother of Quito. She heard their prayers and in a short time the girl was completely cured.

And Mr. Ripalda likewise tells of a favor of the Virgin: “A contract with the Government of several million sucres (the currency of Ecuador was formerly in sucres) obliged me to rent an airplane from Ateca, in order to bring to Quito the commodity that had arrived from Guayaquil. Although it seemed imprudent to me to undertake the flight after six o’clock in the afternoon, because of the insistence of my friends I had to yield. When I crossed the mountains, I saw that there was a torrential rain, which disturbed me; but my uneasiness was greater when I was informed in the cabin that the motors were failing, and we were in serious danger. In order to save the plane, we thought of throwing the cargo to the ground, but the door did not open. I was thinking about the crash of the plane and about the ensuing death. Amidst the shadows of my distress, I placidly remembered the Sorrowful Mother of the College, to whom with the faith of a child I began to pray the Hail Holy Queen. Shortly after, a there was a tremendous jolt of the plane followed by groans of sorrow and cries of despair. I did not cease to beg the help of the Virgin, in the midst of the most complete darkness. I looked for the exit door, which gave way easily. This was the first miracle that I attributed to the Sorrowful Mother. But I believe I saw a deep abyss at my feet. Again, I began to cry out to the Sorrowful Mother for help and protection. An immense wave entered into the plane, without me getting submerged within it. The plane had plunged into the Guayas River and was sinking slowly. I jumped into the water fully clothed, even wearing my hat. I thought that I was in the sea. A small boat that was providentially passing by the place of the accident saved me. By my directions the other passengers, although injured, were also rescued. The pilot and the manager of Ateca lost their lives. Days later, I thanked the Sorrowful Mother for this favor. Starting today,” I said, “I believe in the Catholic religion, I believe in miracles; I would like to do something for the Sorrowful Mother in the material order; I would like above all to be henceforth a practicing Catholic. I promise to confess and receive Communion.”

Better known, by the public narrations of the protagonist himself, was the following: on Thursday June 5, 1941, the North American Captain Burguess and the Ecuadorian officials Second Lieutenant Dávalos and Lieutenant Louis Arias departed from Esmeraldas for Salinas. This last man, even after very many years, remembers with all the details the tragedy while the students listen with growing emotion: “I asked the captain if they had loaded the gasoline. He assured me that even the auxiliary tanks had been filled. With this certainty I began the flight. It was four o’clock in the afternoon; we went into a storm so thick that the ends of the wings could not be seen. The motor started to stall. My fear was realized: there was no gasoline!
“Beneath my feet was the sea. The plane shook indecisively; it began to descend slowly, irremediably… I heard a hiss, a screech, a bang… We slid open the laminated windows, we took off our clothes, and put on the life jackets. The water was flooding the cabins, and so we had to abandon the plane. I found myself in the depths of the sea, surrounded by sharks and with my companions hanging on me because they did not know how to swim. The captain was driven insane out of terror, and he died at about ten o’clock. We both were perhaps hoping for the same thing.
“A splendid day dawned, and it enabled me to realize that the coast was within sight. We swam with all our strength. Dávalos began to despair; finally, he was silent; then, a gasp… He was dead! I clung with anxiety to the corpse. No one can imagine how useful the company of a human being is, even if it be a corpse.
“I continued like this. It was getting dark. I still kept up my morale, but my strength was diminishing. The sharks were hounding ahead threatening the corpse. Very soon a strong tug pulled us down… I could do no more… I let go of the corpse. I swam desperately; I was getting weak.
“But suddenly, as if to make my agony less painful, the picture of the Sorrowful Mother came to mind, the picture of the Virgin whom I loved so much in the College. And in the midst of the confusion, I besought her; I begged God that He would not let me perish if I could still serve Him. I thought of my mother, of my brothers, and I turned to that which gives strength to a man: the faith.
“I found myself finally about 400 yards from the cliff of the coast. The undercurrent was pulling me, and after six hours of efforts, I did not succeed to get to the shore. One gigantic wave that carried me on its crest was going to break upon it. I felt that my feet were touching something; it was a rock. I grabbed on to it and left the water. My body exhausted, mangled, scorched, I did not resist any more: I fell down dismayed.
“Then another day dawned. A splash of water restored me to my senses, and I despaired. I could do no more. For a moment I was overcome by desperation. I reacted. I looked around and saw a fisherman. I wanted to shout, but my voice would not come out. The fisherman being suspicious was looking at me like a monster or a lunatic: naked, staggering, and desperate. Finally, he came near. Another fisherman appeared. I was saved, thanks to the Sorrowful Mother of the College.
“Now in Quito, my only concern was to publish the miracle in which the Sorrowful Mother wished to make it evident that we have in her a true Mother.”

Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary, pray for us.

AVE MARIA!
Father Joseph Poisson

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Consecration of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel to Immaculate Heart of Mary
http://ourladyofmountcarmelusa.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Consecration-to-Immaculate-Heart-by-Our-Lady-of-Mt.-Carmel-SSPX-Marian-Corps.pdf

Featured Sermon
Given By His Excellency Bishop Pfeiffer

Posted in Newsletters and tagged Father Joseph Poisson, September 2021