On the Road

Written by: Denise Serafini on Wednesday, May 17, 2017

Sunday, May 15 was Mother’s Day. With all the family events being held that day there were only a few attendees at this event. Sometimes God’s plans are not aligned with what we are expecting at the moment and that was certainly the case here. As always, God had a very special plan for this event. What came to pass was a very intimate presentation of “Call from the Crucified Heart” that was intensely special for each of the individuals that did attend. Each person had their unique story and it was interesting to see the hand of God touch each of these individuals. While it’s always wonderful to have overwhelming attendance at these events, having one that demonstrates the intimate relationship God wants to have with each of us was just as significant and truly remarkable.

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Written by: Denise Serafini on Tuesday, May 16, 2017

We engaged in a presentation of “Call from the Crucified Heart” on the 100th Anniversary of the apparitions at Fatima and the canonization of Saints Jacinta and Francisco on May 13 at St. Marguerite Church in Tooele, Utah. The statue of Our Lady of Fatima was prominently displayed in the front of the church with fresh flowers, including Casablanca lilies that emitted a wonderful fragrance. In her hands, Our Lady had a scapular and a small blue rosary. That rosary ended up being a gift that was presented to me at the end of the event. It seems it was hand made by Servant of God Maria Esperanza, a Venezuelan mystic. She made that rosary while visiting friends in Tooele. What a blessing. Father Kenneth Vialpando, pastor of the parish of St. Marguerite of Alacoque, presided over the event. He did a tremendous job of reading the messages from Jesus on the Cross that are part of the theme for this year’s program. That theme is totally aligned to the story of St. Marguerite, who was chosen by Christ to arouse the Church to a realization of the love of God symbolized by the heart of Jesus.

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Written by: Denise Serafini on Tuesday, March 28, 2017

On Friday March 24th we had the opportunity to present our program at my home church here in Connecticut, Immaculate Heart of Mary Church, which is part of the Our Lady of Hope Parish. The event was well attended and our pastor, Father Ruminski, did a wonderful job of supporting us in the readings. In alignment with the name for the parish, I have to say that if nothing else, our relics and associated programs, similar to all of the traditional services and prayer devotions made available to us by the Church, are a sign of hope that God wishes to embed deep within our hearts; the hope of salvation and His eternal love. The first shrine to bear the title of Our Lady of Hope was erected at Mezieres, France in the year 930. On January 17, 1871, Our Lady of Hope appeared in the French village of Pontmain. There she revealed herself as the "Madonna of the Crucifix" and gave the world her message of "Hope through Prayer and the Cross." The basilica built at Pontmain by the Oblates of Mary Immaculate is one of the great French pilgrimage places, noted for its miracles of grace. The individuals that attend our events come to engage in prayer for the benefit of the persons and situations tied to their prayer intentions. God the Father, in His Mercy, cannot help but have pity on the soul that presents his or her supplications in the midst of remembering the suffering of Jesus on the walk to Calvary accompanied by His Mother and honoring the relics of the cruel and inhumane tortures He endured.It so happened that an individual that has long been suffering from terminal cancer came and asked to be prayed over with the relics. Father Ruminski brought the Relic of the True Cross to her and joined her in asking Jesus for relief of her sufferings. This young woman was not Catholic, but she certainly understood that Jesus is our Savior. In her knowing that she will likely be going home to the Father in the near future, she wanted to draw herself as close as possible to Him to be assured of His love for her.

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Written by: Denise Serafini on Friday, January 20, 2017

The Year of Mercy was certainly a year full of wonderful events that were hosted at many parishes, retreat centers, shrines and convents. More than 30,000 people had the opportunity to engage in our meditative program and venerate our Relics of the Passion collection in our travels across 15 states. More than 10,000 individuals added our program of meditations on Christ’s road to Calvary to their collection of prayers for ongoing devotion to His Passion. We couldn’t have been more blessed. Our new program for 2017 is entitled, "Call from the Crucified Heart". It is designed to highlight a facet of what we believe Christ’s message is to us from various scenes during His Passion. We have also made exposition of the Holy Eucharist a required part of the meditative portion of our presentation, to underscore that time-transcending gift that connects us from His Passion to His Presence with us today. As a tribute to Our Lady of Sorrows, and in honor of the 100th anniversary of Our Lady’s apparitions at Fatima, our program also highlights a perspective on Mary as she accompanied Jesus on the path to Calvary.

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