October 12: Feast of Our Lady of the Pillar

I love to tell this story as it is a glimmer of joy in a sad time. After a lengthy, acute illness, my brother Father James King, died on October 12, 2018. As his days on earth were winding down, I had a small hope that he would be born into eternal life on a special Catholic feast day. Jim was a devout and faithful Catholic priest and I thought a date of death significant in the Church might give us all a little extra comfort and be a honor for Jim. I knew nothing special about October 12 and thought, well, Jim passed in October, the month of Mary and the month of the Rosary, so that is special enough. 

Sometime during the first year after he died, John and I were invited to a dinner with some friends. At the dinner we met a young priest, Father Giles. In talking with Father Giles, I learned that his father had recently passed on. I shared that my brother was a priest of the Peoria Diocese who recently died. "I'll pray for him," said Father. "When did he die?" October 12, I said. "Oh, that's the Feast of Our Lady of the Pillar," he said.

In a flash, I had a memory of Jim telling me about this feast day several years ago. The memory was so buried that I didn't remember any details. Father Giles filled me in. 

The Apostle St. James had traveled to Spain to spread the Good News of the Jesus Christ. He was not converting many people and he was discouraged. Mary, the mother of Jesus, appeared to him in an apparition, while she was still alive. This is the very first Marian apparition. Mary appeared on a pillar and told James not to be discouraged, that the people in Spain would become devout Christians. A church was built on this site. You can read more details about the Our Lady of the Pillar here. 

This whole encounter with Father Giles and the story of Our Lady of the Pillar was astonishing to me for so many reasons. One was that it sparked the memory of a forgotten conversation that I'd had with Jim about this. Two, St. James, my brother's patron saint, was involved in the Marian apparition. Three, Jim, like many priests, had a special devotion to Our Lady. Finally, the apparition took place in Spain and Our Lady of the Pillar is the patroness of the Hispanic people. Jim spoke fluent Spanish and much of his priestly ministry was serving the Hispanic people of the Diocese. Unbeknownst to me until this conversation with Fr. Giles, Jim did enter eternal life on a day that was special in so many ways. In sharing this knowledge, Fr. Giles gave me a big gift.

I mentioned that I had walked part of the Camino de Santiago. The Camino is a pilgrimage from France to Spain to the alleged burial place of St. James. In 2016, John, Luke, and I made a seven-week trip to Europe, which culminated in us walking the the last 110 miles of the Camino with a Catholic tour group. It was a fantastic experience.

This past spring, the same Catholic group which originates from the Bellarmine Retreat Center, had planned another pilgrimage to walk the Portugal path of the Camino. I was scheduled to go on this trip and I was planning to fly to Spain several days before the start of the pilgrimage to do my own pilgrimage. I was going to Zaragoza, Spain, where the Basilica of our Lady of the Pillar is located at the spot where St. James was encouraged by Mary. Of course this pilgrimage and all international travel was canceled due to COVID. But, God willing, I will one day make this pilgrimage in honor of my brother.