Someone asked me the other day: "Where did the statue of Our Lady of Norwalk come from?" I replied that I wish that I could say that she flew here like Our Lady's house flew to Loreto by a miracle. But I can say that Our Lady of Norwalk flew here, not carried by angels, but rather on an airline flight from Belgium. I had been searching for an antique image of Our Lady holding the Child Jesus for a while in anticipation of our first patronal festival celebration last year. My search brought me to an antique dealer in Belgium who was selling an antique statue dated about 1850 that came from a parish church in a Belgian town. When I saw the statue I was captivated by the serene beauty of Mary's face and the lovely original vestments she wore. I knew that I had found the image for which I was searching. She flew here to Norwalk and made herself at home in her adopted town of Norwalk.
But, people ask, why is she Our Lady of Norwalk? Because we made her our own! It is an ancient custom especially in Europe for towns and villages to adopt a particular image of the Blessed Virgin and make her their own Mother Mary whose presence blesses their town or village. We in this country often associate an image of the Virgin Mary with one of the Marian apparitions like Lourdes and Fatima. But throughout Europe and Central and South America, there are images of Our Lady that express who she is, like Our Lady of Grace and Our Lady of Perpetual Help, and Our Lady of Good Success. Other titles reflect where the image is located like Our Lady of Czestochowa.
St. Mary's is one of the oldest parishes in the diocese and is truly a Mother church. May Mary's presence in our church under the title of Our Lady of Norwalk bless us all and all of the people of our diocese. We will carry her in procession on August 19 as we celebrate our Patronal Festival. I pray that you will all be there at 4 p.m. for the Solemn Mass, Procession and celebration to thank Our Lady for the many graces she has bestowed on each of us in our lives.
Fr. Richard G. Cipolla
Pastor
