Bringing Mother Mary Home

Lilia Grundy describes how she was excited and humbled to bring the Pilgrim Parish Lady to her home, seeking special graces during her birthday week. 

The Pilgrim Parish Lady 

As I placed her in my car, I strapped the seatbelt firmly to ensure she was safe and secure. I wrapped two fluffy blankets around her too, because of course I wanted to make Mother Mary comfortable! After all, I was bringing her home. 

My parish offers a beautiful apostolate called the “Pilgrim Parish Lady” and today was my special day. This program is dedicated to our Blessed Virgin Mother where her title, Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, is featured on a statue that visits one home each week during the year, totaling 52 weeks. Parishioners sign up via an online form and are blessed to bring her to their homes. 

The program is popular, and most weeks are booked in advance. Hoping for some extra graces during my upcoming birthday week, I jumped on the electronic form and scrolled to find openings. While many were slots already taken, lo and behold, my birthday week was free! I took this as a signal grace from Mother Mary and quickly snagged the open slot.  

Then he said to the disciple, "Behold, your mother." And from that hour the disciple took her into his home. (John 19:27) 

Humble My Heart 

Carrying the statue alone is an act of humility for me. While she is not incredibly heavy, I would certainly encourage anyone carrying it and its protective case, to be cautious while walking from the church to their parked car in the lot. I was careful. I walked slowly, and I mentally prepared a place for her arrival to my home beforehand.  

It occurred to me that my actions were just the things I needed to prepare my heart for accepting Mary’s graces. Having her actual presence in my house only amplified my soul’s desire to behave!  Given I had selected our family room prayer table as the Parish Pilgrim Lady’s placement for the week, I couldn’t escape her gaze.  

By having her “present” in our home, I was motivated to pray more. So much so, I quickly purchased a kneeler to accompany the table so I could partake in a more devout form of prayer while Mother was visiting. 

It was humbling to see Mary face to face each day that week. And with family members coming and going, I observed we were more reverent too.  

To be humble is to be in the truth. (Saint Teresa of Ávila, Chapter 10 of Book VI, The Interior Castle) 

Home is Our Domestic Church 

One evening, while praying the Rosary and looking up at the lovely face of the Mary statue, it struck me that so many families have prayed with her as well. I learned this Parish Pilgrim Lady apostolate had been started by a parishioner back in 2001 — that’s 24 years of Mary visiting parish homes.  

It was heartwarming to reflect upon the thousands of prayers that had been prayed with our Parish Pilgrim Lady and in this moment, I felt grateful to be a part of the one apostolic Church. 

The family is the ‘domestic church’ where God’s children learn to pray as ‘the church’ and to preserve in prayer. (Catechism of the Catholic Church 2685) 

Bringing the Parish Pilgrim Lady home was a great birthday present. And one that I could share with my family too. I hope you get the opportunity to participate in the gift of bringing Mother Mary home to your domestic church! 

Try This at Your Parish

Does your Parish have a statue of Mother Mary that can travel? If not, did you know that all you need is a donation to purchase a statue, a protective case, and a parishioner willing to set up a sign-up sheet? Spread the word and share Mother Mary’s blessings! 

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Copyright 2025 Lilia Grundy
Images: copyright 2025 Lilia Grundy, all rights reserved.