Faith

You can't make "coincidences" like these up. When God wants to connect people, he does it, and he makes use of everything necessary to that end.

Jaymie Stuart
Wolfe

Because St. Louis Cathedral sits on the city's main square in the French Quarter, most of the tourists who come to New Orleans take a moment to peek inside. That curiosity coupled with the cathedral's rich history provides a great opportunity to share our Catholic faith and the church's history here with visitors in a casual and welcoming way.
Tucked in a foyer alcove near a door to the cathedral that I hardly ever use, sits a large statue that registered in my mind as a traditional depiction of the Madonna and Child. That is, until I went to the cathedral to be trained as a volunteer docent.
I was assigned to Philip, one of the cathedral's most knowledgeable guides. After giving me a breathtakingly detailed tour of the nave, he took me over to the statue in the foyer. "This shows the Blessed Mother releasing a soul from purgatory," he stated. His words flashed like a bolt of lightning out of a blue sky. Suddenly, I realized that I had walked past this statue dozens of times without really looking at it. Even more startling was the recognition that I had seen this image before, and that it had been shared with me by an author I have worked with over several years, Susan Tassone, aka "the purgatory lady." After a quick online confirmation of what I suspected to be true, I snapped a photo and sent it to Susan.

That's when things got even more intriguing. The image is connected to a large shrine in Montligeon, France, a small town in rural Normandy. Our Lady of Deliverance was built by a parish priest, Father Paul Buguet, near the turn of the 20th century. The shrine is not rooted in any mystical vision or prophetic revelation, but was inspired by the very personal, yet universal, experience of grief. In 1876, Father Buguet suffered the loss of three close family members: his brother was fatally crushed by a church bell, and both his grief-stricken nieces died after the tragic loss of their father. Father Buguet responded by committing himself to praying for the poor souls and encouraging others to do so. He traveled extensively to promote devotion to Our Lady of Deliverance, offered pastoral and spiritual support for those who grieved the loss of a loved one, and gathered groups of people together to pray for the dead.
Today, Montligeon prayer groups span the globe and the apostolate for the holy souls has expanded into a ministry that offers support for the dying and consolation and hope for the bereaved. Our Lady of Deliverance embraces the unique mission of praying for the deceased. As home to the Archconfraternity of Our Lady of Montligeon, the basilica shrine is the world center of prayer for the poor souls in purgatory.
But how did the large statue of Our Lady of Deliverance land at the Cathedral of St. Louis King of France in New Orleans? Probably because of New Orleans's French cultural connection. Susan, who knows absolutely everything about purgatory and everyone whose mission is connected to the holy souls in any way, sent my photo of the statue to the current rector of the shrine in Montligeon. Evidently, he was excited to see it, promptly mentioned that Father Buguet had indeed made a trip to New Orleans and voiced an interest in making a trip here himself. He also mentioned that the feast of Our Lady of Deliverance was, coincidentally, the following day.
You can't make "coincidences" like these up. When God wants to connect people, he does it, and he makes use of everything necessary to that end. Books, statues, volunteer training: everything except sin can (and ultimately does) serve his will. As the Mystical Body of Christ, we are all connected to one another. The whole church -- militant, triumphant, and suffering -- is united. Because of that, we can hope that the holy souls will pray for us and make it a point to pray for them. And we can rely on the prayers of Our Lady of Deliverance to accompany and guide us all.

- Jaymie Stuart Wolfe is a Catholic convert, wife, and mother of eight. Inspired by the spirituality of St. Francis de Sales, she is an author, speaker, and musician, and provides freelance editorial services to numerous publishers and authors as the principal of One More Basket. Find Jaymie on Facebook or follow her on Twitter @YouFeedThem.

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