FAITHFUL PARTICIPATE IN 24-HOUR PROCESSION WITH OUR LADY OF GUADALUPE

01/10/2018

From left, Sara Oros, Father Michael Kesicki, Jessie Badach Hubert and Sara Nesbitt participate in "Love
Knows No Borders: a 24-hour Procession with Our Lady of Guadalupe" on Dec. 12.

The faithful are taking up the banner for Our Lady of Guadalupe — literally.

Supporters of peace and social justice are carrying a banner emblazoned with the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe around the federal courthouse in downtown Erie today, participating in a 24-hour prayer procession for immigrants and asylum seekers stopped at the U.S.-Mexico border.

“Love Knows No Borders: a 24-hour Procession with Our Lady of Guadalupe” began at 5 p.m. Wednesday and will continue until 5 p.m. today. The event was organized by Erie Benedictines for Peace.

Our Lady of Guadalupe, patroness of the Americas, is a model and symbol of hope and protection, especially for the vulnerable, said Sister Anne McCarthy, OSB.

"Walking outside in the elements really reminds us in a small, physical way of the suffering of those fleeing violence but who are being blocked at the U.S. southern border from applying for asylum," Sister Anne said. "Walking behind the banner of Our Lady of Guadalupe reminds us of the tender care and mercy God has for the vulnerable, especaily those who are poor and opressed.

"Parents fleeing with thier chidlren from their lives are being stopped when our faith and Our Lady of Guadalupe reminds us that we are to welcome them, that we are sisters and brothers, that God's love has no borders."

Patrice Swick, left, director of the Diocese of Erie's Social Justice and Life Office, said
the procession was a way to "wrap our brothers and sisters in prayer."

Gannon University junior Sara Oros carried the banner during the 9 a.m. hour Thursday with Sara Nesbitt, program coordinator for Gannon’s Center for Social Concerns; Jessie Badach Hubert, director of the Center for Social Concerns; and Father Michael Kesicki, associate vice president for Mission and Ministry at Gannon and rector of St. Mark Seminary.

“I just want to support people who need it and might not have a voice right now,” said Oros, a political science major and student ambassador for Catholic Relief Services.

“This is just one way we can be in solidarity” with migrants and asylum seekers, Hubert said. “The discomfort of being in the cold, the vulnerability of being in the public eye, those are small, concrete measures of sacrifice. It’s one example of being in solidarity with people making much greater sacrifices while being detained at the border.”

Patrice Swick, director of the Diocese of Erie's Social Justice and Life Office, took part in the procession with several groups. The event is a way to "wrap our brothers and sisters in prayer" and educate people about the plight of migrants and asylum seekers.

The Erie event is one of many faith-based efforts aimed at supporting migrants and asylum seekers taking place at the southern border and around the United States between Dec. 10, Human Rights Day, and Dec. 18, International Migrants Day.