As we prepare to start the month of Our Lady in May, our local church invites us to celebrate the feast of Our Lady, Mother of Africa. The origins of this feast are connected with the Basilica of Our Lady of Africa (pictured) in Algiers, Algeria, where from the mid-nineteenth century a statue of Our Lady under this title has been the object of devotion on the part of Christians as well as members of other religions including Moslems. The construction of this impressive basilica was inspired by the dogmatic definition of the Immaculate Conception of Our Lady by Pope Pius IX in 1854. The church began to be built in 1858, the same year that St Bernadette had the visions of Mary in Lourdes in which the Holy Virgin proclaimed: “I am in the Immaculate Conception.” This devotion and shrine have been prominent in recent days due to the visit there on 13th April by Pope Leo XIV. In an address devoted in part to inter-religious harmony, the Holy Father stated: “this very basilica is a sign of our desire for peace and unity. It symbolizes a Church of living stones, where communion between Christians and Muslims takes shape under the mantle of Our Lady of Africa.” (click here for the full text).
