The Mother of God’s Call
Fr. Ed was ordained to the priesthood in May 2000 for the Archdiocese of Boston. He held three different parish assignments in the Archdiocese from 2000-2010 before his appointment to the Faculty of Saint John’s Seminary as Dean of Men and Director of Pastoral Formation from 2010-2022. In 2022, Fr. Ed was appointed Chaplain to the Catholic School Office, and then Administrator of Sacred Heart Parish in Waltham, MA. In 2025, he was appointed Rector of the Lazarus Center for Healing Shrine in Wakefield, while remaining the Spiritual Director & Liaison for the Office for Homeschooling for the Archdiocese of Boston, and Spiritual Director for the World Apostolate of Fatima within the Archdiocese. He is a perpetually professed member of the Institute of Jesus the Priest of the Pauline Family.
This past week I traveled on pilgrimage with fifty-five pilgrims to the small village of Medjugorje in the country of Bosnia and Herzegovina (southeastern Europe), where tens of millions of pilgrims have visited from the four corners of the world since 1981. Many of these pilgrims have come with a desire to see the Gospa (‘Our Lady’ in the Croatian language), some with doubts and concerns, but most undoubtedly with a simple yearning to draw closer to her Son, Jesus Christ.
Over the 42 years of this phenomena, many young and not-so-young, believers and non‑believers, well and sick, have been touched by the grace of GOD in some way: conversions, spiritual healings, physical and mental healings, reconciliation with family members, vocational clarity, or simply edified by the faith of others present during their days of pilgrimage.
Whether the Catholic Church approves, disapproves or continues without a statement at all, the alleged apparitions (appearances) of our Blessed Mother to six then-children / now-adult Croatians, will be left to the discernment of the Holy See, but for sure one general reality ‘rises’ from the hills surrounding Medjugorje (the word literally means ‘between mountains’): many people are searching for GOD, for meaning in their lives, and a renewed hope in humanity and the world. Even if one were not to travel halfway around the world, he or she could still experience what many millions of pilgrims have on pilgrimage to Medjugorje: peace!
The most famous words spoken in Medjugorje are ‘Mir, Mir, Mir’ or Pray, Pray, Pray (in the Croatian language). Much like the approved apparitions of Fatima, the request of prayer for peace is to be brought about through the daily recitation of the holy rosary. Yet, the consistent request of Our Lady in any of the Church-approved apparitions is conversion and turning back to GOD. Although every notable apparition of Our Lady throughout the centuries has held unique aspects depending upon the century, region of the world, and to whom she appears, the messages are consistent in their call: to turn back to her Son, Jesus!
Answering this call is the great work of every Christian, every disciple of Jesus. It must be done with greater and greater faith, hope and love. It’s this call that many of us know little Christina Dangond answered with her whole being, quite often echoing the words of Our Lady herself, the first of her Son’s disciples: “Thy will be done.” The request of the Mother of God, is no less an expectation for each of us her children: “Do whatever He tells you.”
Little Christina’s life-tome – “Jesus, I Trust in You!” – is the epitome of a life built on faith. It is a life built on hope. It is a life built on the ‘rock foundation’ of the Church itself. Maybe this is why she could always be seen with a smile on her face despite the suffering she endured throughout much of her illness. Building up the faith in Jesus Christ became her earthly (and now heavenly) mission, which is being fulfilled through the foundation she inspired and established in her lifetime: to literally to ‘build up’ the faith of the Church in many countries by building churches, convents, and retreat centers, and offering youth and adults the opportunity to deepen their faith.
To build up the Church, the Body of Christ, is to build it with ‘living stones’ – the people of God. This great work is to help others to become holy, innocent, pure and undefiled. It is to bring peace and joy into the hearts of all who yearn to encounter the One True GOD, and this great work is always under the mantle of Mary, the Mother of God.
One can say that the Build the Faith Foundation is little Christina’s answer to the call of the Mother of God. It is already bringing tens of thousands of people to Jesus. Now, of course, whether the Blessed Mother ever appeared to little Christina is not known to me and was never necessary for her to live out such a radical call to evangelization: to build the faith. Yet, I can say, when visiting little Christina in the hospital just 48 hours before her death and while praying the holy rosary with her family, I truly felt the presence of the Mother of God like no other time in my life; but that, too, will remain for the Church to discern – maybe sooner than later.
