Our Lady of Mariapocs, part 4

Last night I worked a little on the angels in the Mariapocs icon.  Since the copies of Our Lady of Mariapocs I found were a little ambiguous as to the color of the angels, I chose to make the angels seraphim.  The red, in regard to these angels, indicates the the color of flame and divine love.  The Seraphim stand before God to honor Him, and it was also a seraph who carried the purifying coal to Isaiah's lips.

In the last week I have undergone some fire.  Monday night I started having symptoms of miscarrying our third child.  When I went into the doctor's office, the first thing she said was: "So, I understand that you already have two young children?"    

"Yes," I replied, "A two and half year old and one year old."

"Wow. And you and your husband are happy about this new one?"

 And it struck me, that we live in such a society in which the first response isn't "Congratulations on your new little one," but "Oh, poor you!  How could such a mistake have happened?!"  With Gabriel it was a doctor asking me over and over if I wanted to "terminate" the pregnancy.  After all, my eldest daughter wasn't even one at that point, and who would want TWO babies?  With Anne it was a doctor explaining why I would want to abort her for sure if she had any disability.  

All last week I was in torment, torn between one side which was filled with hope and faith in God that my baby was not dead.  The other-side was the side that wept when the nurse called to tell me: "the doctor says that you are almost certainly having a miscarriage."  But, still I couldn't believe it.  And thanks be to God, after a series of tests, a different doctor called Saturday to tell me that my little one is still alive.  

In a discussion, my mother-in-law pointed out that child sacrifice and worship of sex have always gone together in history.  That was Jericho's sin.  Sodom and Gomorrah.  The people who died in the flood during Noah's time.  And each of these nations were wiped out.  God gave up on them, so to say, the people were so corrupt that He could not let them live.  The entire society was destroyed.   And yet, worship of sex and child sacrifice are indeed the sins of our society today.  We contracept and abort our children so we can live as we wish to, having sex without the responsibility of begetting and raising children.  

It is an oddity to see a mother with six kids in a grocery store.   How sad.  How much life and joy we are losing.

Is it time for America to be wiped out?  No, it is time for us to repent like Nineveh.  There are still many good people, people who are fighting for life, goodness and Truth.  America is still giving God children for the Kingdom of Heaven.  God is still blessing us with the lives of our children.  Let us stand in the presence of God with the Seraphim and say: "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; heaven and earth are full of His glory." (Isaiah 6:3) 

Gabriel adores Our Lady

Our Lady of Mariapocs!  Give me the strength and peace of God today!

Anne explains why Our Lady is her favorite part of the icon.