A Bolivian Vine

It was time to harvest the sugar cane, which for many was the one job they had all year. The
people of Chane Rivero, Brazil worked hard, under a very hot sun, accompanied by thousands of blood sucking insects. They carried their unique stories of sadness, misery, disillusionment, and the daily fight to get enough bread to feed their often numerous children. It is difficult to explain the amount of sorrow and suffering, because these often do not have a voice - no matter how eloquently one speaks.

 When we arrived, we promptly began going house to house, family to family, meeting a bit of difficulty at first. The people were resistant to welcoming us in their little homes of the barrio. It was a "novelty".... but little by little, day by day, they opened theirs doors and hearts to sincere and friendly dialogue.

We invited everyone to trust and invoke the Madonna, so that they might have the strength in such difficulties and, above all, that she might help them begin a new life. Many, many times we encouraged this new life to begin through the sacrament of Marriage. We invited them to the Church to celebrate their union before God and the Universal Church.

On September 8, together with the people, we renewed our Total Consecration to Mary: "Little Mother, these people suffer, they need grace!"

The hour of Mass was approaching, when the marriages would be celebrated. No one was there. Then, little by little, a few presented themselves. In a short time, they were nine convinced couples ready to receive the Sacrament.

The proprietor of the area arrived. He had been promising for years to give the town an image of Our Lady, in order to have her as patroness.  He arrived with his whole family, came near to the altar, and before all the people he confessed: "For 25 years I have been living in sin, without Marriage, without Confession, without Holy Communion. This is the moment: I have traveled day and night to Cochabamba and back to give to you and the Madonna this gift. Instead, I have received something greater: peace of heart and grace in my soul."

In the end, it was a place of reunion and prayer. The ceremony was externally impoverished, in the open air, simple clothes, and dusty feet. But faces revealed radiant hearts, kissed by Grace.

After the Holy Mass we stopped awhile to give thanks and praise to Mary, for the marvelous work! At this point we spoke of the great vastness of the Lord's field, how great was His vineyard! Spontaneously, in our hearts, we prayed:

"Lord, give light and strength to the young people called to follow you, so that the place assigned to them in the vineyard may not remain empty!"