At the annual Mass in honor of the Immaculate Conception of Mary – La Purisima, Father Henry Silva, spoke movingly of the time when “the signs of life will be stronger than the signs of death and desolation.”
Mary, under the La Purisima title, is the patroness of Nicaragua.
“We discover the call to hope, and the call to conversion,” Father Silva, principal celebrant and visiting priest from Managua, Nicaragua, said during Sunday’s Spanish Mass at St. Patrick’s Cathedral, citing the messages of hope and conversion as delivered by the prophet Isaiah and John the Baptist in the day’s readings.
“Brothers and sisters, there can be no hope for humanity if we do not return to God with our hearts, listening to the voice of the Son,” Father Silva said. “Let us look at the world that suffers, that makes us realize that more than ever we need to open our hearts to hope. In this moment that we are living in the entire world, we need to hear that the day will come when there will be no more wars among the habitants of the earth, and there will be understanding between nations.”
“The signs of life will be stronger than the signs of death and desolation. It would be good news, brothers and sisters, that someone would tell us that there will be no more acts of revenge, not between persons, not between communities; that there will be dialogue and comprehension; that no one will go hungry or thirsty, or lack the resources to live with dignity,” he added.
Citing the significance of trusting in God and Mary’s intercession, Father Silva said that “we Christians continue to trust in a better future.” He noted the importance of praying to Mary in her La Purisima title and all her Marian titles, adding that Christ “is the reason for our hope.”
The Prayer of the Faithful included praying for immigrants seeking a new start in the United States, and peace in countries trying to cope with war and unrest.
Nicaragua continues to experience political unrest and social tension following widespread deadly protests that erupted in April 2018, including demonstrations against government tax and benefit policies.
The annual La Purisima Mass began at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in 1996.
La Purísima is a Nicaraguan celebration of “The Purest Conception of the Virgin Mary,” taking place on December 8 and coinciding with the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception. The gatherings occur from late November into most of December. Purísimas are made for devotion or for gratitude for miracles attributed to the Blessed Virgin Mary.
This title of Mary is associated with a carved wooden image and is venerated by Nicaraguan faithful, who trace the image’s origins to the former ownership of St.Teresa of Avila, and brought by her brother Rodrigo Ahumada from Spain to Nicaragua in the mid-16th century.