Our hearts were filled with joy when we learned of the decision of the State of Colorado to dedicate an annual holiday on the first Monday in October to Mother Cabrini, the Patron Saint of Immigrants, [especially during] this Hispanic pride month! We felt even more joy when the Hispanic people themselves took the initiative to celebrate Cabrini Day at the Mother Cabrini Shrine in Golden, CO – in a manner, of course, in compliance with the norms dictated by the pandemic.
It was a beautiful and heartfelt celebration in which our Bishop Jorge Rodríguez spoke to us, as Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, of our commitment as daughters of the great Mother Cabrini in today’s world. In his remarks he said, we pray in the Eucharist to our ‘dreamers’ who have DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) and to the four of the fifteen countries with TPS (Temporary Protected Status) who are in danger of having to leave our country soon. We also remember the children who have lost their lives trying to reach this country, that one day the doors will be opened to so many.
At the celebration, there was the presence of the Consuls of El Salvador and Peru along with the participation of the Provincial of “Friar Servants of Mary” and the parish priest of “Nuestra Señora Del Monte Carmelo”, a parish where Mother Cabrini first arrived in Colorado with our sisters.
The Mexican folklore could not be missing! It was an afternoon full of color, gratitude, and hope in the Patron Saint of Immigrants. There was a beautiful cake with the image of Mother Francesca Cabrini and a toast in honor of our immigrants and refugees from all over the world.
At the Shrine there was also a ‘Cabrini Church’ – a caravan of cars that let it be known through several streets of nearby towns that we were celebrating this great woman. The school children met us with banners emblazoned with the Patron Saint of Immigrants and shouting full of sincerity and hope: PRAY FOR US!
We do not doubt that if Mother Francesca were alive today, she would be walking with this Hispanic town in the State of Colorado.
May this event be an opportunity for many more to draw closer to the person of Mother Cabrini and for many young women to feel inspired to respond like Mother Cabrini to the Lord, who calls them to follow Him.
