Celebrating the Blessed Virgin Mary for the Year of Mercy

Friday, Sep. 11, 2015

SALT LAKE CITY  —  The 5th  annual  Intercultural Marian Celebration this year will celebrate the Virgin Mary for the Year of Mercy.

Pope Francis announced an extraordinary jubilee, a Holy Year of Mercy, to highlight the Catholic Church’s “mission to be a witness of mercy.” He has consecrated the world to the Blessed Mother for the year, which will begin Dec. 8 and will continue through Nov. 20, 2016.

“We are all under our Holy Mother’s cape,” said Maria Cruz Gray, director of the Office of Hispanic Ministry of the Catholic Diocese of Salt Lake City, who organizes the annual Marian celebration.

Every year during this intercultural  celebration, members of the different cultures within the diocese gather to celebrate their traditions of the Virgin Mary.

Africans, Koreans, Hispanics, Tongans, Filipinos, Samoans, Croatians, Poles, Anglos and Germans, among other cultural groups, participate in the procession, carrying their country’s flag and by images of their culture’s representations of the Virgin Mary.

“This occasion is a very joyful one where we can all show our love for Our Lady. …What we all have in common is our love for her,” said Gray.

The event will start with the recitation of the Divine Mercy chaplet, followed by the rosary, which will be prayed in six languages. Then a multicultural Mass will be celebrated by Father Joseph Frez, pastor of Saint Therese of the Child Jesus Parish;  Father Jose Barrera, parochial vicar, will concelebrate.

“This year we are preparing ourselves for the Year of Mercy that will start on Dec. 8,” said Gray, adding that participating in the Marian celebration will be a great way “to prepare to welcome mercy in our hearts. ... This Year of Mercy will be based on the Works of Mercy.”

The Catholic Church recognizes 14 Works of Mercy, seven of which are corporal and seven of which are spiritual. 

The Corporal Works of Mercy are feeding the hungry, giving drink to the thirsty, clothing the naked, sheltering the homeless, comforting prisoners, visiting the sick, and burying the dead.

The Spiritual Works of Mercy are teaching the ignorant, praying for the living and the dead, correcting sinners, counseling those in doubt, consoling the sorrowful, bearing wrongs patiently, and forgiving wrongs willingly.  

“We are not only to receive the mercy of God, but to use it by being merciful to everyone through our actions, our words, and our prayers; in other words, through love, not interests,” said Gray. “We have to help each other no matter what color of skin we have or what language we speak, and in this celebration we are all together the People of God.”

Everybody is welcome to participate in the Marian celebration. They are encouraged to dress in traditional regional costumes. Rosaries will be available to those who want one “so we can all pray together,” said Gray.

A small reception will follow the Mass, at which dishes from the different cultures will be served.

WHAT: Intercultural Marian  Celebration

WHERE: Saint Therese of the Child Jesus Catholic Parish, 624 Lennox St. (7870 South) Midvale

WHEN: Sunday, Sept. 27 at 3:30 p.m.

For information, call the Office of Hispanic Ministry, 

801-328-8641 ext. 361 or 332.