The traveling Silver Rose of the Knights of Columbus, a pro-life initiative that pays homage to Our Lady of Guadalupe, came to St. Patrick Cathedral in Harrisburg on Sept. 27.
The life-size rose, one of 13 that travels throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico, commemorates Our Lady’s appearance to Juan Diego on Tepeyac Hill in Mexico on Dec. 9, 1531.
Following the celebration of Mass at the Cathedral, Bishop Ronald Gainer led the congregation in praying the Rosary as part of the Knights’ Silver Rose Prayer Service.
The Silver Rose Program offers a Rosary-centered occasion for parishioners to pray for respect for all human life. The initiative began in 1960, when a group of Columbian Squires in Monterrey, a youth organization of the Knights of the Columbus, began taking a rose to the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Eventually, the Squires invited other groups from around the world to participate, and a silversmith crafted a silver rose to make a worldwide pilgrimage each year. Today, there are 13 silver roses that the Knights take on pilgrimage throughout the world.
Learn more about the Silver Rose Program and its pilgrimage at https://www.kofc.org/en/what-we-do/faith-in-action-programs/life/silver-rose.html?1tab=1tab0.
By Jen Reed
The Catholic Witness
(Photos by Chris Heisey, The Catholic Witness.)
