Brazilians residing in Rome are organizing to celebrate a gift received 300 years ago, when the mother of God was given the name of Nossa Senhora Aparecida. After taking note of the program for the Marian Year in Brazil, it was decided to form a team to plan some activities. One of these is to bring the image of Our Lady of Aparecida to all the houses of religious communities and members of the Madonna della Luce Community in Rome, Brazilians gather for the celebration of the Eucharist. To officially open the Marian Year on February 19, about 90 people, lay and religious, attended a retreat and a mass celebrated by Cardinal Dom João Aviz. A commemoration for the close of the Marian Year is scheduled for October 15, with a Eucharistic Celebration presided over by the Bishop of Rome, Pope Francis, in Saint Peter\�s Basilica.

The Marian Year, proposed by the National Conference of Bishops in Brazil (CNBB), celebrating 300 years of the discovery of the image of our Lady of Aparecida in the waters of the Parnaíba do Sul River, began on  October 12,  2016 and will be completed on October 11, 2017. The preparation for this major national event started in 2014, with the visit of the image of Our Lady to all the dioceses of the country, through the cities and suburbs. According to Sérgio Rocha, President of the Brazilian Bishops, the Marian Year aims to invite Brazilians to return to the heart to our Lady. The Brazilian Church expects that the Marian year can be a time of intense evangelization through Mary, helping to regenerate hope. The Church, the people of God, wants a church inspired by the example of Mary to go forth as a merciful, maternal and missionary Church, a church that meets brothers and sisters to share the joy of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. This initiative is also a result of the Pope\�s visit to Brazil in 2013. On this occasion, the nation was already in the midst of a great crisis causing dismay, confusion and hopelessness. In his preaching, speaking about the event of Aparecida, Francis emphasized that Mary is the door of hope. Through Mary, one learns to follow Jesus, to live discipleship. It is to Mary that the Marian Church, the people of God, addresses itself when searching for Christ, knocking on the door of his mother and asking, "Show us Jesus".  We have hope, the Pope said, because "God offered Brazil his own mother".

The celebration of the Marian year does not want to remember the story of the appearance of Our Lady of Aparecida for itself, but wants to regain the sense of hope and the lesson about the Mission of the Church and of Christians in the world. In Mary, the people retrieve the hope that God will not abandon them. Hope opens new horizons, and makes people able to dream the unthinkable.  Hope leads people through the darkness of an uncertain future to walk in the light. The virtue of hope creates a new dynamism and inspiration that gives strength to the journey of life. The event of Aparecida teaches that missionary work does not rely on many resources. Evangelization is an act of love, of trust, of perseverance and of deep faith. One does not hold the gift received, but shares it with neighbors. Evangelism is sharing the graces received.

For Brazilians resident in Rome, the institution of the Marian Year is, “bringing a lot of hope that it is possible to be a church in a permanent state of mission" (Father Marcondes Martins Barbosa, College Pio Brasileiro). For me, this is a privileged time of hope, because I believe that Mary directed her Son to us, and her insistent request is, "Do whatever he tells you". (John 2:5). What Jesus wants is a world that is good, just, and possible for everyone.

Sister Ieda Maria Tomazini (General Councilor)