BISHOP NOLL INSTITUTE HOLDS FIRST MASS FOR FEAST OF OUR LADY OF GUADALUPE
The Bishop Noll community celebrated Mass for the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe on Monday, the first time, at least in recent history, this feast was observed at BNI with an all-school Mass.
Dec. 12 marks the anniversary of one of several apparitions of the Virgin Mary witnessed by an indigenous Mexican man named Juan Diego in 1531. Before Mass, Bishop Noll students read the story of Juan Diego in English and Spanish.
This Mass was especially important for BNI Principal Lorenza Jara Pastrick and Chaplain Father Jeff Burton, said organizer Ana Acosta Hicks, BNI Spanish teacher.
“They want the large Hispanic community of BNI to be represented, and what better way than through the Virgen de Guadalupe who is venerated by so many,” she said.
The Mass included a rose procession of students from BNI’s three Hispanic clubs – Multicultural Club, Spanish National Honor Society and Hispanic Student Union.
“The rose procession is important, because it represents the miracle of the Virgin's appearance to Juan Diego,” Acosta Hicks said. Each processing student and some special parent guests presented roses to the statue of the Virgin. Parents who donated the statue had it shipped from Mexico to BNI at a cost of about $3,000.
Dancers from St. Thomas More’s Ballet Folklorico troupe, led by Ms. Gaby Diaz, also performed.
“They too are a new group/addition to St. Thomas More, and we look forward to working with them closely, possibly bringing the ballet to BNI in the future.”
Following Mass, all students received hot chocolate and pan dulce (sweet bread), purchased by BNI’s Campus Ministry.
Many students, parents, clubs and BNI staff members helped bring this special Mass to fruition, including BNI’s Multicultural Club, which aims to highlight the diverse community at the school. BNI musicians, under Mr. Rocco Carioto, worked hard to prepare music for the Mass.
“I hope that we continue this Mass yearly, but that we incorporate many many more people,” Acosta Hicks said.
Published: Dec. 13, 2022