On our first mission to Ireland we heard from clergy, religious and laity alike that, “Catholic Christendom in Ireland is over. Perhaps for the first time since the days of St. Patrick, Ireland is once again mission territory.” At Guadalupe Missions we are working towards and praying for the re-evangelization of Catholic Ireland with permission/invitation from local clergy and under the patronage of Our Lady.
We frequently encounter people who initially wonder what Our Lady of Guadalupe has to do with anyone who isn’t in or from Mexico. In truth, she is the patroness of all the Americas. To know her story is to know that she brought together disparate cultures – the Spanish Catholics and Aztecs - that seemed to be so diametrically opposed that no one could image how they could ever come together.
Our Lady of Guadalupe brought about the largest conversion event in recorded history, nearly nine million people were baptized Catholic Christians in less than a decade. Surely when we are speaking of the re-evangelization of a people, such an example should be considered relevant.
Further, Our Lady of Guadalupe is the patroness of the unborn and a loving but powerful figure in fighting against secularism and the culture of death – both of which have grown exponentially over the last few decades in Ireland.
For over two years, we have been praying about and for the Catholic Church in Ireland; a country and a people with such a long-standing Catholic culture and such a historical impact that it precedes by centuries the existence of our own country here in the U.S.
So many countries owe a debt of gratitude to the generations of Irish missionary priests and religious that served all over the world. It is a shock to see how participation in church life and supernatural faith has declined so rapidly. Although it must be said that there are many wonderfully devoted individual witnesses with a heart for Our Lord among both clergy and laity all over the country.
Witnessing this decline both in person and through conversations with Irish Catholics across the country it stirred a powerful inclination to help in some way. Bringing this desire of the heart to prayer and spiritual direction as well as our board of directors, we discerned that we ought to move forward.
We contacted local clergy and organizations; we were invited by all to meet in person.
We allowed for a considerable period to fundraise for our first visit to Ireland and the expenses we would incur; our generous donors exceeded our required budget quickly.
When we arrived in Ireland, we thought we might have scheduled too long of a trip for the small number of scheduled meetings; by the third day we had so many referrals and thus so many requests that we knew we wouldn’t be able to fulfill the requests on the first visit and began planning subsequent missions before we had even left our first.
I mention this with all humility, as the doors were most certainly opened not for us, but for Our Lady. But I do mention these things because they confirmed this discernment. The interest and the spiritual hunger there were striking.
Never in my eight years as a missionary had I to that point experienced such a warm welcome and such a passionate interest in a potential new mission field…to serve the spiritually poor, and to bring the hope and joy of Our Lord through Our Lady to those who are overwhelmed or worn-out in their ministerial efforts.
The work that we feel the Lord has called us to in Ireland is to bring about the reevangelization of Catholic Ireland by bringing the gift of Our Lady of Guadalupe from the New World back to the Old.
We would like to thank you for your ongoing prayerful support.
