On Saturday, Our Lady continued Her pilgrimage through Belgium from Banneux to the historic city of Gent. It is a Flemish City, where the famous painting of "The Adoration of the Mystic Lamb" from 1432 AD can be found. It is considered to be one of Belgium’s most famous masterpieces.
The Icon of Our Lady arrived a little bit late to participate in the prayer for life, which takes place every First Saturday of the Month, from 10:00 am until 12 noon, in front of the abortion clinic in Gent. It was very cold and it was raining, but when Our Lady arrived at 10:45 am, the rain stopped suddenly and a blue sky appeared.
Something special happened that morning. A young man, who lives right next to the entrance of the abortion clinic, always mocked and showed his disregard towards those who would come to pray here. That day, it seemed that he had a change of heart. A few people noticed that he appeared to be very touched by the presence of Our Lady of Czestochowa. A similar impression was noticeable on the faces of several people, who were passing by the praying group in front of the clinic.
However, the peregrination still being in progress, Our Blessed Mother had to leave immediately after the prayer for life and travel to the beautiful Basilica of Our Lady in Dadizele. In a sense, we can say that this is the most pro-life Basilica in the northern part of Belgium.
The Belgian pro-lifers and pro-family organizations have been making their pilgrimage here for many years now. Our Blessed Mother in the Icon of Czestochowa was welcomed with a very solemn, traditional Latin Mass, which was celebrated by Father Hygonnet. The Basilica was filled with a large crowd of praying faithful. The people were given printed images of Our Lady of Czestochowa and Our Lady of Guadalupe, as well as brochures about the March for Life to take place on March 24, 2013, in Brussels.
After the celebration of the Holy Eucharist, an all-night silent veneration ensued in the Emmaus Room of the Institute of St. Dominic Savio in Gits. The veneration lasted from 9:00 pm until 5:00 in the morning, the next day. The Emmaus Room is located near a small Chapel of Perpetual Adoration, in which the prayers in the intention for bishops, priests, and the unborn continue since the year 2000.
