July 2015 169 by EuropeAxess Media

Let Go and

Dear Friends Take a break and turn your busy life over to God, you may be very surprised at the result!

hen it’s time to rest in God. It’s not giving up. It’s not giving in to despair. Rather, it’s turning your messed up life over to God to let him fix it. He promised to do just that:

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“Come to me all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”

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(Mt. 11:28)

We were never meant to go it alone anyway. Jesus found that out firsthand when he became a human being. He depended heavily on his heavenly Father for support and guidance. When he was exhausted, he went off by himself to rest in God. We’re not used to handing control over to anyone else. We want to do it our way, on our timing. We don’t trust other people to do things exactly the way we want them, and we

Upon this Rock magazine is published monthly by EuropeAxess Media, Gibraltar. Editor: Fr. S. Chipolina: editor@uponthisrock.gi. Production Editor: A. Sargent angela@europeaxess.com. Upon this Rock magazine is entirely supported by advertising and donations. It is run in liaison with the Catholic Diocese of Gibraltar by EuropeAxess Media Ltd. as a not-for-profit project. For Advertisers: This magazine is handdelivered to homes, churches, hospitals and many businesses around Gibraltar every month. To discuss your advertising requirements, or promote your church group or charity, call Tel: +350 200 79335 email: angela@europeaxess.com. Editorial is selected by EuropeAxess Media in liaison with the Catholic Diocese of Gibraltar. Neither of these parties is responsible for the accuracy of the information contained herein, nor do the views and opinions expressed herein necessarily reflect the views and opinions of either party. Advertisers are not endorsed by virtue of advertising in this magazine. EuropeAxess Media Ltd. reserves the right to refuse space to any submissions or advertisements. Efforts have been made to establish copyright owners of images, but if we have used your material, and have not credited you, please contact us to discuss restoration. The magazine is online at uponthisrock.gi. You’ll find exclusive Christian gifts in the WebShop. COVER PIC: Diocesan Procession of Our Lady of Europe Photo: Upon This Rock

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let God have a darn hard time trusting God, either. But can you think of anyone more competent than God? Can’t the all-powerful being, who created the universe and who keeps it running, take care of your problem? When you rest in God, you don’t tell him what to do or how to do it. You take a break from your trouble. Some of us need to hit bottom before we’re willing to surrender to God’s care and protection. We still have the stubborn notion that somehow we can pull it off, that somehow we can salvage the situation on our own. We’re not smart enough yet to turn things over to the Professional Problem Solver. We think of God only as a last resort. Amazingly, he doesn’t get offended by that. He watches us bang our head into this wall and that, looking with compassion on our foolishness. We run around like hyperactive two-y ear-olds until we can’t run any more. He knows what’s coming. He knows we’ll eventually crumple, exhausted, then ask him if he could help.

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He doesn’t even seem to mind that we’ve botched things so badly that they look impossible.

For nothing is impossible with God. (Luke 1:37)

Even then, we still can’t keep our fingers out of it. We don’t completely get what it means to rest in God. It means trusting. Surrendering. Not interfering. It means having so much faith in him that we can finally have some peace. Again, by losing our life–turning it over to him completely–we gain it. We finally get it through our thick skull that he always wants what’s best for us, and no matter what happens, that’s what we’ll get. It may not appear so at the time, but he’ll make it right. He never welches on his promises. To your surprise, you’re calm. Your anxiety is gone. This resting in God business means exactly that, resting. You’re relaxed again. Stress-free. You’ll have this unexplainable assurance that everything’s going to turn out all right, even

if it does mean a loss. He’ll be with you after the loss and will take you into his rest again, anytime you want.

You could kick yourself for not coming to him sooner. Finally, though, you’re safe in the Master’s hands. You’ve learned how to let go and rest in God. God bless and have a restful and peaceful summer. You deserve it. +Fr. Stuart

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New Encyclical

Moral guidance and practical

Laudato On Care for P

ope Francis’ encyclical “Laudato Si’, on Care for Our Common Home” is a call for global action as well as an appeal for deep inner conversion. He points to numerous ways world organizations, nations and communities must move forward and the way individuals— believers and people of good will—should see, think, feel and act. Here are some of the pope’s suggestions, with references in parentheses to their paragraphs in the encyclical: l Do not give in to denial, indifference, resignation and blind confidence in technical solutions. (14, 59) l Have forthright and honest debates and policies; issues cannot be dealt with once and for all, but will need to be “reframed and enriched again and again” by everyone with plenty of different proposals because there is no one way to solve problems. (16,

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60, 185) l Reduce, reuse, recycle. Preserve resources, use them more efficiently, moderate consumption and limit use of non-renewable resources. (22, 192) l Slash pollutants and greenhouse gas emissions. Transition to cleaner and renewable energies and replace fossil fuels “without delay.” (26, 165) l Promote green construction with energy efficient homes and buildings. (26, 180) l Protect clean, safe drinking water and don’t privatize it with market-based fees for the poor. (27-29, 164) l Keep oceans and waterways clean and safe from pollutants; use biodegradable detergents at home and business. (30, 174) l Be aware that synthetic pesticides and herbicides will hurt birds and insects that are helpful for agriculture. (34)

FUNDING AVAILABLE

MIS

The Christian Mission Trust provides local Christians with donations for evangelistic SI O N TR initiatives and outreaches. The Trust is ecumenical and has provided money to many groups, individuals and churches during the last 12 years. It is run by a Board of Trustees.

We invite applications for funding from anyone who wishes to launch an evangelistic initiative or who needs support for an existing Christian missionary activity. Please write to: The Chairman, Christian Mission Trust, 4 South Pavilion Road, Gibraltar.

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l Leave room for wandering and migrating species by creating “biological corridors;” don’t let dams, highways and construction lead to their extinction. (35) l Protect biodiversity, especially wild forests, wetlands, coastal areas, mangrove swamps. (39) l Promote smart growth. Create livable communities with beautiful design and plentiful green spaces for everyone, especially the poor. Tackle noise and “visual pollution,” and save cities’ cultural treasures. Design spaces that help people connect and trust each other. (44-45, 113, 143, 147) l Put an end to “mental pollution.” Think deeply, live wisely, love generously. (47) l End the tyranny of the screen, information overload and distractions. Watch out for media-induced melancholy and isolation. Cultivate real relationships with others. (47) l Get down from the ivory tower and stop the rhetoric. Get to know the poor and suffering; it will wake up a numbed

conscience and inspire real action. (49) l Stop blaming problems on population growth. The real threat is excessive consumerism and waste. (50) l For genuine change, put the common good first. Special interests manipulate information, offer “superficial rhetoric, sporadic acts of philanthropy and perfunctory expressions of concern.” (54) l Sweat it out. Increasing use and power of air-conditioning seems “self-destructive.” (55) l Even if it doesn’t fix the world, beautification and goodwill gestures inspire and remind people that “we were made for love.” (58, 113, 212) l Get back to nature—“the caress of God”—to recharge. Be more attentive to its beauty and wonder and revisit places that left you with happy memories. (84, 97, 215, 233) l Be consistent. Pro-life, environmental and social justice movements are all connected. Protecting vulnerable species must include the unborn, endangered animals and the

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tips on climate change, the environment and how to make a better world.

Si’

Our Common Home.

Rarely has a Vatican document sparked so much Media reaction as Pope Francis invites everyone, Politicians, Industrialists, Mums and Dads, to re-focus their attention on environmental issues and finding happiness in simple things...

exploited. (91, 120) l Use technology to solve real problems and serve people, helping them have more dignity, less suffering and healthier lives. (112) l Believe in a happy future, a better tomorrow. Slow down, recover values and the meaning of life. Putting the brakes on “unrestrained delusions of grandeur” is not a call to go back to the Stone Age. (113-114, 225) l “Business is a noble vocation.” Create jobs that allow for personal growth, stability, living out one’s values. (124128) l Listen to, protect the lands of, and involve indigenous peoples. The disappearance of cultures is even more serious than losing a species. (145) l Create neighbourhood networks and improvement programs. Create welcoming spaces that help people connect and trust each other. Do something nice for your community. (148150, 152, 219, 232)

l Make public transportation a priority and a more pleasant experience. (153) l Provide essential services to rural areas. (154) l Accept and care for the body God gave you. Value sexual differences and your own gender. (155) l Join, implement and police global agreements on sustainable development, caring for the

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ecosystem, limiting greenhouse gases, handling hazardous wastes, ozone protection. Nix the “ploy” of trading carbon credits. (164, 167-171) l Politicians: don’t be afraid of long-term goals and upsetting people with measures that affect levels of consumption, financial risks. Citizens: put pressure on your representatives. (177-180) l Less is more. Stop needless

consumption. (193, 203, 222, 211) l Harness purchasing power. Examine what you buy and know that boycotts make a difference. (206) l Plant a tree. Take mass transit. Car pool. Turn off the lights when you leave the room. Chilly? Wear a sweater. Little things add up. (211) l Mums and Dads: teach

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your kids to use things properly; to respect, take care of others; to ask permission politely; to say, “Thank you;” to control temper; to ask forgiveness; share. (213) l Find happiness in simple things: get-togethers, helping others, honing a talent, enjoying art and music, praying. (223224, 226) l Say grace before meals. (227) l Love your enemies. (228) l Practice “The Little Way” of St. Therese. (230) l Go to Sunday Mass; receive the sacraments; encounter God in everything; rest on Sundays. (233-237) l Sing as you go. (244) l Pray. (246) Pope Francis has written the document in very modern language, it is easy to understand, accessible to all of us. To find the full text Google ‘Vatican Laudato Si’. The language on the website can be changed by clicking the two letter country codes for instance... EN, ES, IT.

Moral guidance on the environment and how to make a better world.

Laudato Si’

Most Catholics will want to learn about what the Pope has said so they can share it with others.

he title of Pope Francis new encyclical will surely strike a chord with the people of Gibraltar, for it is the title of a hymn very popular in our Churches, it is the Italian hymn of St. Francis of Assisi, “Laudato Sii, O mi Signore’ with the name repeated in Italian as its chorus, it is generally sung with great gusto. Hopefully we will hear it more often at Mass, welcoming Pope Francis’s new encyclical. There are already some good initial appraisals of the letter. One thing the Holy Father writes

Photo: A mosaic illustrating St. Francis’ Canticle of the Creatures courtesy of ofm.org

New Encyclical

early on (section 15): “It is my hope that this encyclical letter, which is now added to the body of the Church’s social teaching,

can help us to acknowledge the appeal, immensity and urgency of the challenge we face.” The letter is therefore in the tradition of papal encyclicals, beginning with Leo XIII’s Rerum Novarum in 1891, right up to Benedict XVI’s last encyclical from 2009, Caritas in Veritate (a very important text which Pope Francis liberally quotes). The Church teaches that Catholic social teaching is a branch of moral theology: papal social encyclicals like Laudato Si’ are part of the ordinary Magisterium of the Church. Vatican II’s great constitution on the Church, Lumen Gentium, makes it clear that the faithful are to adhere to all this teaching “with religious assent” (section 25). What this means is that while the Church does allow for divergent viewpoints on some issues (Laudato Si’ 61), we are simply not free to dissent from the teaching of this encyclical, any more than we are free to dissent from Catholic teaching about other moral issues. Our duty as Catholics is to learn about what the Holy Father has said and share it with others. Adapted and shortened from an article by Revd Dr Ashley Beck in the Catholic Herald. l Christian Literature l Papal Encyclicals l Lives of the Saints l Apologetics l Catholic Catechism l Open 10am - 2pm

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J o h n e t t e B e n k o v i c ’ s Wo m e n o f G r a c e

A Grace filled Graduation

n Wednesday 17 June, Msgr. Charlie Azopardi celebrated Mass at the Shrine of Our Lady of Europe, a group of six ladies received their Graduation certificates after successfully completing the Women of Grace Foundational Study Course. The group, representing the third intake in Gibraltar, is evidence of the continuing demand for a deeper knowledge of our faith and God’s special

plan and purpose for Women. The Graduates were Denise Duo, Dinah Ferro, Gaynor Lester, Lourdes Lester, Joanna Lett and Jeannine Simmonds, who had completed the course with the assistance of Facilitators Christine Grech, Davina PorroGafan and Merche Imossi. Two other Women of Grace courses were completed during the academic year 2014/15 in La Linea de la Conceptión and Nuevo Guadiaro run by Facilitators from Gibraltar. Plans are in place for further groups to commence in September this year, if you would like to register your interest please contact Monique Risso Mob: 56001313 or email: mrissofertilityspice@ hotmail.co.uk

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SPONSORED WALK FOR FUNDRAISING

In addition to praying for those who had sponsored them the walkers prayed ‘Pass it Forward’ Rosaries to help Emmaus Youth Group with their WYD campaign.

The Women of Grace are hoping to be able to host another retreat with Johnnette Benkovic, the founder and president of Women of Grace apostolate. To this end, fifteen ladies undertook a sponsored Rosary Walk at 9am on Saturday 30 May at St. Theresa’s Church. After a short time of prayer, Rosaries from the Gibraltar Youth Ministry’s ‘Pass it Forward’ campaign were distributed, most ladies took two or three Rosaries, these were prayed for the young people who the Emmaus Youth Group will encounter when they go to World Youth Day in Poland next year. The rosaries will be handed out as the Spirit dictates with a note explaining that they

have been prayed in advance, for that special moment of Grace. During the walk the ladies also prayed for the intentions of those who had sponsored them, all fifteen ladies completed the 7 km walk to the Shrine of Our Lady of Europe, and hope to do it again!

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Have you thought about following a vocation within the Church?

Catholic Communications Network

Numbers of Nuns Rising The number of women entering convents in England and Wales has hit a 25-year high.

rom a low point of just seven in 2004, the numbers have steadily increased to a high point of 45 in 2014. Religious life is an attractive choice for an increasing number of educated and dynamic young and older women. Sr. Cathy Jones, Religious Life Vocations Promoter at the National Office for Vocation explains why she thinks this is so: “A key reason for this increase is the growth of a culture of vocation in the Church. Young Catholics are asking themselves ‘What is God’s plan for my life?’ and they are availing themselves of opportunities to meet with experienced guides, to consider their future in the context of prayer, discussion and scripture. “It is also significant that in recent years many religious congregations have grown in confidence in proposing their way of life, both through

offering taster weekends and by participating in youth festivals, enabling potential ‘discerners’ to easily encounter religious and take the first steps to find out more about religious life.” Fr. Christopher Jamison, Director of the Vocations Office adds: “There is a gap in the market for meaning in our culture and one of the ways in which women may find that meaning is through religious life.” Theodora Hawksley, 29, until recently a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Edinburgh, joined the Congregation of Jesus a couple of months ago. She is now living in their house in North London and is taking the first steps towards making vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. She says: “Entering religious life was a decision born of love. It was an acknowledgement that my life has slowly and concretely

rearranged itself around the love of God, and around that relationship as the one I prize above all else.” The Congregation of Jesus is an apostolic order working outside the cloister in a wide variety of different fields – in education, healthcare, evangelisation and more besides. Both ‘enclosed’ or ‘contemplative’ and ‘apostolic’ orders are on the rise in terms of numbers – there has been a nine-fold increase in the number of active religious sisters and a fourfold increase in the number of enclosed sisters in England and Wales. The General Superior of the Congregation of Jesus, an Englishwoman, Sister Jane Livesey–Theodora’s boss–says about the rise and the role of women religious: “We have been delighted in the English province to have admitted a postulant at the start of this year and to have a further candidate actively discerning her vocation with us at the moment, both attracted in particular by our Ignatian charism and by our foundress the Venerable Mary Ward, the pioneer of women’s apostolic religious life, who

as long ago as 1612, told her earliest members that ‘women in time to come will do much’.” Mary Ward’s vision of an active, apostolic role for women in the Church met with opposition during her lifetime, but it finds an echo now in Pope Francis’ call for women to play a more ‘incisive’ role in the Church. In The Joy of the Gospel, he writes:

“The Church acknowledges the indispensable contribution which women make to society through the sensitivity, intuition and other distinctive skill sets which they, more than men, tend to possess.” Sr. Jane believes that religious life is one place where women can make just such an incisive contribution: “It is historically the case that it is religious life that has given women a clear and recognised place in the Church and an opportunity to contribute very

The Spirituality of THE FOUNDER OF

LORETO

‘In the Presence of God’ Mary Ward’s Spirituality KINDLE edition £4.84 Available online from uponthisrock.gi Proceeds to the IBVM Ireland. 8 www.uponthisrock.gi

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PWEorAldCMEissiVonIGIL with

fully to the Church’s mission to be at the service of the people of God – whether ‘churched’ or ‘unchurched’. In our case in this country our current ministries include university and seminary teaching, hospital chaplaincy, spiritual accompaniment of all kinds, child psychotherapy and others besides. And we are only one group – there are many other congregations making equally significant contributions who are as grateful to God as we are that he continues to call women and men to follow him in the consecrated life, which, at the invitation of Pope Francis, the Church is honouring and celebrating in particular during 2015, the ‘Year of Consecrated Life’.” To find out more about Catholic vocations, first contact your Parish Priest in Gibraltar or in UK, the National Office for Vocations T: 0044 20 7901 4829 Catholic Communications Network, Catholic Trust for England and Wales, London

Ro ry Candlelit Adoratiosa n Ethiopia S yr ia Ukraine Colombi a Nepal Ir aq Nigeria Peru Somalia

A Christian Youth Cell Initiative

for

Cathedral St. Mary Crown ed Wednesday 10 June

ADORATION

sgr. Paul Bear led a Peace Vigil at the Cathedral of St. Mary the Crowned last month. The event was well attended with approximately 150 people coming along. People had found the singing of the Chaplet of the Divine Mercy particularly powerful, and were very moved as participants lit candles for suffering Christians all over the World. The Christian Youth Cell organisers said they had been inundated with requests to repeat the event. It was the Venerable Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen who first inaugurated the World

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8.30pm

Pope Francis called for religious freedom: “In our day, men and women are imprisoned, condemned and even slaughtered for the simple reason that they are believers or engaged in promoting justice and peace.” The Holy Father asked for the right of religio us freedom to spread throug hout the world.

Mission Rosary in 1951. “We must pray, and not for ourselves, but for the world. To this end, I have designed the World Mission Rosary.” Praying this Rosary, Archbishop Sheen said, would “aid the Holy Father and his Society for the Propagation of the Faith by supplying him with practical support, as well as prayers, for the poor mission territories of the world.” What do the colours signify?

Each decade of that World Mission Rosary calls to mind an area where the Church continues her evangelizing mission: green for the forests and grasslands

for Praying edom, s Fre Relig iou Chris tians d e! Persecute ns Everywher sio Mis and

of Africa; blue for the ocean surrounding the islands of the Pacific; white symbolizing Europe, the seat of the Holy Father, shepherd of the world; red calling to mind the fire of faith that brought missionaries to the Americas and yellow, the morning light of the East, for Asia. Archbishop Sheen himself linked this Rosary to the missionary work of the Church and to the Holy Father. “When the Rosary is completed, one has…embraced all continents, all people in prayer,” he added. “Won’t you please make a tour of the world on your World Mission Rosary?”

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Infertility

H H

The cross of rere is our story... The cross of infertility is a heavy one. Ten years into our journey, I can still feel its weight upon my shoulders. It is not a cross easily shared with others. For Catholic women it can feel even heavier when they see the success that some people have with Churchopposed artificial means of reproduction. Just going to Sunday Mass, with beautiful and fertile families abound, can be heart breaking. No one wants to become bitter or angry over infertility, but waiting patiently month after month, or year after year for one of God’s greatest blessings to man, can be the most difficult cross a couple will ever have to bear. I underwent a laparoscopic surgery to remove endometriosis that was apparently unsuccessful in curing our infertility. Three

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years into our journey to parenthood, God led us to adoption. At that point we felt that we had tried everything we could, that was Church approved, to achieve pregnancy. We reached a point where we no longer had the energy or desire to actively achieve pregnancy. I put my charts away, hid my thermometer, and vowed to never take another negative pregnancy test again. We were done, and it felt good. In fact, it felt very good to move to adoption. I took all those desires for pregnancy and biological children and I put them in a box that I buried deep in my heart. It wasn’t even all that difficult. For with adoption there is a very reasonable expectation that in the end you

will be a parent. I knew that one day I would be somebody’s mother. The adoption process is tedious and long but it is also exciting and joyful. I got to talk about things like baby names and nursery themes. I still had a hard time around pregnant women and little resentments would creep up in my heart from time to time, but in general I was very happy and my soul was beginning to heal. Less than a year after we decided to research adoption, our daughter was born. We were in the waiting room as her birth mother delivered her into this world. I held her when she was just moments old, gave her her first bath, named her and we took her home from the hospital with us. Finally we were parents;

Image: Jill and her family

How Jill learned to let go of her pain and let God lead the way

I was somebody’s mother. Our daughter, Ava, became the light of our world. We had fought infertility and survived. I wouldn’t have changed a thing, or she would not be our daughter. We were living in the beautiful haze of new parenthood that lasted for years. When Ava was two and a half we decided to adopt again. Once again the process moved with lightning speed and she was a big sister shortly after her third birthday. This time, though, we were no longer naïve. Our son was born almost six weeks early and had little prenatal care. By the grace of God, he was healthy but for the first time that little box that I had stored deep in my heart began to leak. I felt resentment for the nine

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from catholicinfertility.org

My faith and love for God grew during these years of trial.

I believe that God took from me my greatest desire to be a mother and used it to teach me to trust in Him alone. In my moment of deepest despair I finally had to say, “I can’t do this on my own, I give it all to you.” I remember the moment perfectly and I remember the peace I felt immediately afterwards. This peace is what led us to our daughter and our son. However, I felt that peace start to darken slowly in the months following our son’s birth. My desire for more children had never felt stronger and yet I knew that another adoption was not feasible in the near future. We had financed both adoptions with loans and were nowhere near having them paid off. My box began to leak more and more. One night when Thomas was still a baby, the box exploded. I think my husband was too shocked to even speak. I was crying uncontrollably and saying things I am almost too ashamed to admit. I was feeling so much self-pity for the experiences I had lost and would probably never have. I was resentful and jealous of everyone and all I wanted was what I couldn’t have. I wanted the opportunity to announce a pregnancy, have my husband fawn all over me because I was carrying his child,

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Image: ‘A woman being carried by birds in a box’ Courtesy GraphicPhoto

months of my children’s life that I had missed. I realized just how differently I would have cared for my son if he had grown in my womb. I was and am eternally grateful for the decisions both my children’s birth families made but I felt guilty that our joy came from their pain. I struggled with how God’s plan worked. Did He really mean from all eternity for these two precious souls to be our children? If so, what does that mean for their birth parents? Why then were they not just born to my husband and me?

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I wanted nine months of people asking me when I’m due, but mostly I wanted to push my child out of my womb in all its pain and glory and look into that child’s eyes that were half mine, half my husband’s and know that no other woman in this world could claim him as her own. I wanted to be my child’s only mother. And for those of us who are Catholic, we know how silly that is. Our children don’t belong to us. They belong to our Father, the Creator. They are only ours for a short time on earth and our mission as parents is to get them

to Heaven. We all have the most perfect mother in Heaven already, the Mother of God herself. These are the thoughts that the Holy Spirit put in my mind even as I was having my breakdown. Soon my words seemed heartless and I began to feel ashamed of myself. I calmly apologized to my husband. I assured him that I know how blessed I am to have two of the most amazing children ever born to earth. I apologized to God for dropping my cross and swiftly put it back on my shoulder. However, this time I didn’t box up those emotions. I left them on my heart to offer

up to God whenever the sadness reappeared. And it did and does often. I still desire a large Catholic family. I still wonder why God gave me the cross of infertility. And at times, I forget to let God lead me and I spend hours searching the internet trying to find ways to finance adoption or learning more about cures for endometriosis. Right now I’m practicing the virtue of patience. I’m waiting on the Lord to show us the way. That cross is still there but it is lighter now. By God’s grace, it will lead me home. Jill

If this article has raised issues with you about Catholic Church approved natural fertility systems, infertility or endometriosis, Dr. Monique Risso may be able to help. Dr. Risso MB ChB MRCGP General Practitioner. The Creighton Model Fertility Care System Practitioner, and NaPro Technology Physician. The Specialist Medical Clinic, Unit 7, First Floor, ICC Building, Casemates Square, Gibraltar. Tel: +350 200 49999. www.ladyofeuropefertilitycare.com

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Our Lady of Europeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Procession to the Shrine

A Bastion of M oorish troops, successfully captured Calpe in AD 710. In keeping with their practices, and in thanksgiving to Allah, the troops built a fortress and constructed a mosque with a minaret at the southernmost part of Gibraltar. Once consolidated here, they marched into mainland Europe, conquering most of the Iberian Peninsular.

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Six hundred years later, in 1309, Spanish King Ferdinand IV captured Gibraltar and expelled the Muslim troops back to Africa. The King converted the ancient mosque into a Christian Shrine where the first statue of Our Lady of Europe was venerated. Conscious of its importance, the Muslims recaptured Gibraltar 24 years later in 1333 until Spanish King Henry IV, grandson of

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Christianity Ferdinand IV, recaptured Gibraltar in 1462 and restored the devotion to Our Lady of Europe initiated by Ferdinand, and once again transformed the ancient mosque into a Christian Shrine. There followed a period during which devotion to Our Lady of Europe spread throughout the Mediterranean. Gibraltar was captured by Anglo-Dutch forces in 1704, during the War of Spanish Succession. The Shrine was again plundered by the invading troops who stole all the valuables and mutilated the statue of Our Lady, severing her head and throwing the pieces over the cliff. These were later found, salvaged and taken to

Algeciras. The Shrine remained in military hands until it was returned to the Church on 17th October 1961. The building was in a desperate state of disrepair, having been used as a store room, guard room and prison. A long process of restoration was ahead, before the statue of Our Lady of Europe and her Shrine were to meet. The procession held in May every year commemorates this homecoming. And every year we pray for Our Ladyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s continuing protection, for our Rock, for the whole continent of Europe, and for Christians around the world.

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