Pilgrimage to Our Lady Queen of Peace Shrine
Editor’s Note: Joey Neuhauser joined Liberia Mission's team as a missionary this past October. In today’s blog post, he reflects on the Mission’s recent pilgrimage to Our Lady Queen of Peace Shrine that took place on December 10.
Thousands of faithful Liberian Catholics make an annual pilgrimage to Our Lady Queen of Peace Shrine, located in Virginia, Liberia (where freed slaves from the state of Virginia settled). They walk for miles while reciting the rosary and contemplating the Stations of the Cross, until they arrive at the shrine, which was established after the civil war by the late Archbishop Michael Francis. He chose the location in Virginia because thousands of people sought refuge there during the war and, even as the rebels made their way through the area, no one was killed. It is the national Marian shrine of Liberia. It is also an important day of prayer for Liberia Mission, and we always make the effort to join the church on this unique day.
1-3 AM:
The day begins as early as possible with the cooking of lunch. Because of spoilage, the cooks graciously consented to cooking their rice and fried chicken masterpiece in the middle of the night.
5:30-6:30 AM:
The scramble begins in typical fashion; the kids are up, and we adults need to get ourselves ready for the day. I get up to rub my eyes clear of the night before and see that the entire dining hall is full of activity. The kids are sitting around, chatting, and having a raucous time as the truck is getting packed for the day ahead of us. The food, utensils, and water are put away, and we are off. The kids are going in a yellow school bus, the faith community in a van, and John (our Mission Director) and I are off in the truck with the food. On the way out, we see that over a dozen members of the faith community are ready to join us, and we couldn’t be happier to see them.
8:30 AM -10:00 AM:
Prayer begins in earnest at the shrine, as thousands of people begin to gather for the stations of the cross. Many have come from hundreds of miles away simply to stand together with their fellow Catholics and begin the prayerful journey.
We begin with the rosary, and after 20 minutes of devotion, the Apostolic Administrator begins to guide us through the stations of the cross. The stations are marked by 14 separate 10-foot-high white crosses that peer down upon us as we contemplate their story. The numbers continue to swell as the stations progress and soon the prayers begin to rumble like thunder into the hearts of the gathered masses. At the end of the stations, we find ourselves in front of the shrine to Mary Queen of Peace. The humble, yet elegant statue graciously invites us into the nearby cement amphitheater, where we will be participating in Mass.
10 AM -11 AM:
Before Mass can start, the priests begin holding confession for all who wish to observe the sacrament. John, myself, and many others partake and free our bodies of earthly sin so that we might be able to take communion on such an important day. The set up for reconciliation is far from conventional. Behind the amphitheater, there is a field, and in this field has been placed pairs of white lawn chairs for people to sit upon and confess their sins to the priest. The priests are conversing in groups, and so one must simply indicate one’s intention and the priest happily obliges to help.
11:00 AM -2:00 PM
Mass is held, and it is truly a special one. The clergy form a semicircle around the altar that resembles paintings of angelic choirs. The crowd is on tenterhooks, waiting for the divine word. Then, the Mass begins in earnest, as the Papal Nuncio and the Apostolic Administrator both speak on the importance of the day and soon the whole crowd is being doused in holy water, blessed by the Nuncio himself.
The liturgy is continued, and the homily is riveting. All known rhetorical skill is thrown into every phrase as the Apostolic Administrator speaks admonishments, praise, encouragement, and hope into the souls of his audience. Then the liturgy continues as normal, but the songs are sung with a little more force, and the dancing is done with a little more spirit. It was a Mass I will not soon forget, a mark of the strength of the Roman Catholic Church in Liberia.
2:-00 PM -3:00 PM:
The lunch that was prepared 12 hours earlier is enjoyed by all of us, and we fill our stomachs to near bursting. The kids proceed to explore and enjoy themselves until we all finish our meals. With stomachs and spirits fully sated, the children proceed back to the school bus, and the faith community to the van so that we might make it back in time for the World Cup games, as we kept being reminded by the older boys.
Final Thoughts:
The pilgrimage went well. So much can go wrong in transporting 60 people 2 hours away, especially when one needs to make sure transportation is timely and food is accounted for. However, John planned the whole thing very well, and it allowed for all of us at the Mission, me included, to have a wonderful spiritual experience.