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Prayer
Our mother who from Czestochowa has wanted
to come share our neighborhoods
lovingly understand our social reality and make it possible
that we may please you, so that in this way we improve each day,
and make your Son, Jesus Christ, happy.
We ask you, Oh, Lady, that you protect and bless us
As well as our homes and our friends who, from this moment on
we place in your arms and in the protection of your divine embrace.
Extend to us, Oh, Mother, your celestial protection
to our brothers who are imprisoned and who also
have families, and make it possible, very beloved Protectorate
that those families do not disintegrate during their time spent waiting
for earthly justice to be made.
We ask you with all our hearsts, and with all our strength,
and all our souls, for those children interned in the hospital
and for their parents; given them strength and patience, and may the light
and hope never be extinguished in that place.
Also we ask that you extend your protection to those doctors and
people that work in those special cases; iluminate them
in their professions and their paths so that they may
live a true "Vocation".
Lastly, Queen crowned with virtues, protect our Pope,
bishops and priests so that the evil of this world
not drown their inner gardens, being able instead in time
to flower and in this way reach one day your beloved Son.
The Virgin With A Name from A Distant Land
She has a darkened skin tone and a serious and sad countenance marked by two scars...
They say that the darker skin color on the painting came with the passing of time from all the incense
lit by her beloved children for more than a thousand years, the darkened tone
that this el bizantine artwork has, painted on the wood of a liden tree, by hundreds of thousands of
pilgrims that come to visit her during the month of August.
They call her the Black Virgin of Poland. The wounds are in reality two cuts that
some thiefs made to the painting when they robbed the convent. No one has been able to restore
the painting, and in this way, the Lady... with these two scars on her face
accentuates the pain in her expression.
Czestochowa is the little town where the image of the virgin is
venerated, situated 250 kilometers from the polish capital Varsovia.
There, in the heights of a hill rises the basílica, where the pilgrims go to
pray to the virgin. This small hill is called Jasna Gora (clear mountain) which is
also another name of the image, Our Lady of Jasna Gora (Nuestra Seņora de Claramonte).
And here, in this humble village in the south of our city
(Buenos Aires), she came and brought us her darkened
countenance, her injured face and her polish name to accompany
us. Polland has in Argentina one of the most numerous immigrant
communities (ranked third in global importance) and catholics
have with the deceased Pope John Paul II the first polish
person to fulfill that role.
The image comes from far away, yet its presence is here,
very close to our hearts; the Virgin Mary extends her
mantle to all of America (the continent), which calls
her in her own name within each corner of this earth.
Mary is the mother, and we call her:
• Virgin of Luján (Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay)
• Virgin of Gualadupe (Mexico),
• Our Lady of Itati (Corrientes, Argentina),
• Our Lady of the Valley (Catamarca, Argentina),
• Our Lady of Copacabana (Brazil)
... and many more presences.
Closing Words by
Father Francisco (Pancho)
"It is certain that your mother is singing above with the angels,
and cares for us up there with her candor."
Letters dedicated to
Ginamaría, Mother and Grandmother
on Behalf of her Inmediate Family
Newton (Boston), February 10-11, 2006
Read during Mass by the Father
For the beloeved participants of the mass for abuelita, Virginia Rosaura Hidalgo,
artistically known as Ginamaría Hidalgo:
from Elliott, her grandson:
In this day, like all, we draw close to our live memories of our beloved grandmother,
who gave us so much; her constant presence, love, attention and care.
We pray not only for her soul but also for her life, which we feel vibrant inside our hearts.
from Isabella, her granddaughter:
I miss those moments at night before going to bed when mi Abuita slowly combed my
braids with so much love, and I remember how she let me play with her makeup,
how I tried on her hats and I modelled for her; how she laughed seing me so small with those hats
so big on me... and how we talked about clothes, about "womenly" things... I miss her enornous
smile, her warmth and her love.
from Lisa, her daughter-in-law:
For my husband Jan Paul and I, Ginamaria is with us all the time. We feel her
presence at every moment. We touch her soul, we listen hto her wisdom and her spirit that shares
in our lives. She protects and inspires us, giving us the ability to know each time more and more
how to share her music and her mission in her life. She continues to live inside of each one
of us; we see her prsent in all things, and above all in our hearts..
She is working through us, guiding and teaching us how to share love and piety to all those
that we touch in our lives, and with our thoughts.
from Jan Paul, her son:
My wife was able to capture with her words everything we feel. There are moments when at the dinner table
for example her presence is almost physical. We always turn to her soul during difficult moments, and
we know that she is very close at every moment, doing everything possible to give us protection and
solace. Maybe it is difficult for some to believe, but it is undoubtable that we feel her love
and presence fully, that her essence has not passed away, that she is kept alive with our constant
prayer of love and peace, that is so necessary to maintain in this conflicted world.
We have tremendous pride and happiness to at least be able to contribute and support her legacy, her mission, and
her gifts to the rest of the world that did not have the oppporunity to know her while physically alive.
Many, many thanks for this opportunity to share these words and for your love and support. May God bless and
protect you always. Amen.
COMBATE DE LOS POZOS 1952
(In Front of the Childrens' Hospital Prof. Dr. Juan P. Garrahan)
BARRIO DE SAN CRISTOBAL
BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA
Tel.: (054-11)4306-1587
Virgin of Czestochowa
The town of Czestochowa
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