Reflect
There is only one Church-approved apparition of Mary in the United States. Our Lady of Champion, in gleaming light among autumnal trees, appeared three times to Adele Brise in Champion, Wisconsin, in 1859. One of the most moving facts about this vision is that Adele, when a child, was the victim of an accident that left her disfigured and blind in one eye. Despite this, Adele grew up to be a woman of profound faith. Ponder what situations in your own life have left physical or emotional scars, and how you have found your way to God in spite—or even because—of them.
Pray
Our Lady Champion,
You sweetened the autumn air, blessed the branches of hemlocks and maples
with your divine light and your crown of heavenly stars.
We drink in your words, “Go and fear nothing, I will help you.”
We turn to you now, as Adele did, with our childhood wounds
exposed to the balm of your love.
We bring everything to you, hiding nothing,
Because we know you are the mother, who knows our every need.
You are the Lady who appears everywhere—
even here in America, in the woods, to a young woman who adored you.
Our Lady of Champion, pray for our healing.
Act
Look up Our Lady of Champion to learn more about her miracles and the shrine that holds her peace.
