2 offering it to St. Francis. These saints and their spiritual sons all played a role in the conversion of people throughout Central and South America. A blind priest desired to build a church at the site, and in 1764 construction began. On the day when construction was completed, Fr. John de Santa Gertrudis realized that his sight had been restored! The colors in the image, known as Our Lady of Las Lajas (Our Lady of the Rocks), have not lost any of their brilliance over the centuries. Like the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe, the image is not paint or coloring. Samples collected have proven that the color goes into the rock, and is evenly distributed and reaches several feet into the face of the cliff. Scientists cannot explain how the image got into the rock. In 1952, Ven. Pope Pius XII granted a canonical crowning of Our Lady of Las Lajas and her Divine Son. Our Lady of Las Lajas, pray for us! Our Lady From page 1 CENACLES UPDATE ALLEN, Texas Ofer Calilung wrote and told us: Our Eucharistic Apostles of The Divine Mercy Cenacle Study group formed at St. Jude Catholic Church in Allen, Texas. It is one of the Adult Study Programs that are available at St. Jude’s, and is an integral component of The Divine Mercy Ministry of the parish. It was in early 2022 when we first conducted the EADM cenacle group. I met Dr. Bryan Thatcher who happened to be in town conducting a Divine Mercy mission in neighboring parishes. The study is guided by Dr. Thatcher’s Formation Cenacle Manual; inspired by the Diary of St. Faustina; and encouraged by the teachings of the Sacred Scripture and the Catechism of the Catholic Church. We complement our study and discussions with videos and reflections from the Marian Fathers and other sources. We thank our pastor, Fr. Andrew Semler, for his gracious blessing and approval. For many St. Jude parishioners, the Diary and St. Faustina’s marvelous encounter with Jesus Christ were not unfamiliar. However, their excitement and spiritual hunger for deeper learning and understanding of The Divine Mercy message and devotion, and about St. Faustina, were phenomenal. Many have joined the study. We have inducted 38 members as Eucharistic Apostles of The Divine Mercy in our first year of the Cenacle Study. We continue to gather more new members every year. Our group realizes that the message is to be shared, and part of our commitment is service to the Church. The EADM group has been involved in various activities, including pastoral and ministerial activities; Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion and Pastoral Visitors (PV) for the homebound parishioners and hospitals, including telephone visits, Bible study, and Cenacle study extension to nursing home facilities; promotion to increase attendance in the Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament; a Spiritual Bouquet Prayer Group; and prayer offering and reciting the Divine Mercy Chaplet for the sick and dying. We are committed to fostering the Lord’s invitation and sharing the message of His Infinite Mercy to the world, by living out the sacramental life together and performing the spiritual and corporal works of mercy. Every year, the Church celebrates the two main feasts for The Divine Mercy. The Divine Mercy Sunday Feast celebration includes the nineday Novena leading to Mercy Sunday. We usually invite speakers to talk about Divine Mercy Sunday, its significance, and the relevance of Extraordinary Graces. The Eucharistic Holy Hour takes place on Mercy Sunday afternoon, and fellowship follows. In addition, we celebrate St. Faustina’s liturgical feast every Oct. 5. The celebration includes Mass, Adoration, prayer, and fellowship. I would like to pay tribute to our late beloved Deacon Ron Fejeran who was our first mentor and spiritual guide in The Divine Mercy Ministry. He had a special devotion to The Divine Mercy and he so loved the story and Diary of St. Faustina. He was so instrumental in bringing and spreading the loving mercy of Jesus Christ to all people he encountered during his 32 years of Pastoral Care duties and responsibilities at St. Jude Parish. We all have learned from him and were all so blessed with his insights, prayers, and words of encouragement every time he was in class during the EADM Cenacle study. The St. Jude Parish community as well as the people of the community he lived in and nurtured spiritually lost a holy man of God. Deacon Ron died on the Feast of the Presentation, Feb. 2, 2024. Today, we are so fortunate and equally blessed for having Fr. Ricardo Regalado as our new spiritual guide and adviser. He was assigned to the parish a year ago, and he happens to be a devotee of The Divine Mercy. We love to have Fr. Ricardo and he loves to be a Eucharistic Apostle of The Divine Mercy. Moreover, I am so grateful to the faithful and dedicated first members of our EADM Cenacle group for their untiring efforts, active participation in the Cenacle study, and support to The Divine Mercy Ministry. Their faithfulness and devotion to the Divine Mercy of Jesus Christ is so admirable and I truly appreciate it. Having The Divine Mercy Ministry at St. Jude, coupled with the EADM Cenacle study, has really brought more spiritual awareness in the parish community. Many are seeking deeper learning and understanding of trust in God and His unfathomable love and mercy. More and more parishioners are learning in the Cenacle study that helps them in their daily life, in prayer, devotion, and in spreading The Divine Mercy message. It is a reflection in their “Way of Life.” The ABCs of The Divine Mercy are so true: Ask for His mercy that you Be merciful to others, and let God be in Charge. When participants gather and learn in the Cenacle together, they tend to share a common interest which is usually mission oriented. They share their talents, time, and resources, and volunteerism is furthered.
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