At the Daham Sevana seminary, this year’s Lent is marked by an exhibition on representations of the Virgin Mary on the continent. An occasion not to remain a mere external devotion, and for the seminarians and many visitors to discover the Virgin who walked the path to Easter with her Son.
Colombo () – At the Daham Sevana preparatory seminar in Sri Lanka, Lent this year was marked by a special initiative. It is an exhibition with a catechetical purpose entitled “The Asian Face of Mary”, which has aroused great interest and brought many believers from other parts of the country to the seminary, located in Palathota, in the South Kalutara district, in the south of Colombo. The exhibition was inaugurated on February 26 in the presence of the Apostolic Nuncio, Msgr. Brian Udaigwe, and today -close to the solemnity of the Annunciation- it will close, with a celebration presided over by the Bishop of Galle, Msgr. Raymond Wickremasinghe.
On the tour you can see different images of Mary, portrayed through the eyes of the peoples of Asia: statues and unique images such as the Virgin of Vietnam, those of Dong Lu and Sheshan in China, Our Lady of Akita in Japan or the images of the Virgin of the Christians of India. A section of the exhibition is dedicated to clearing up some misconceptions about the Virgin Mary that often circulate in society. Another sector is dedicated to Marian articles, hymns and prayers, and a third, to miraculous medals.
“We love Maria very much,” says Father Cecil Joy Perera, rector of the seminary and organizer of the exhibition. in dialogue with the priest says that “there is great devotion to her, in Sri Lanka and throughout Asia. But our knowledge of the Virgin is very limited: it is often limited to devotion. This initiative aims to help people grow in their theological, doctrinal, and historical understanding of Mary’s motherhood, Mary’s virginity, and Mary’s role in Salvation history.
“It gives us great happiness to read the words that our bishops, priests, nuns, laity and children leave written in the comment book”, continues Fr. Cecil Joy, “in addition, this initiative has also helped the young people of our seminary a lot. , which could have been formed in a different way”. In fact, it is precisely they – the 38 young students of the seminar – who present the content of the exhibition to the visitors with tours in Sinhala, Tamil and English.
Father Cecil Joy also explains the reason for the exhibition during this period of Lent: “We decided to be inspired by the Via Matris, some meditations written by the Servants of Mary in the 13th century, in Florence (Italy). They also had a rosary of the Seven Sorrows of the Virgin. Because Mary is the one who really and completely traveled the Via Crucis accompanying her Son. She is the Mother, therefore, who guides us in our life on the path to Easter “.
“Through this exhibition, we have been able to gain an in-depth understanding of the stories behind the statues and paintings of the Madonna, the deep meanings and the background of why they were created the way they were. I think it is also a very useful for us priests”, comments Fr. Cyril Gamini Fernando, editor-in-chief of the Catholic newspaper Gnanartha Pradeepaya.
“Thanks to this exhibition, the Catholic people of Sri Lanka were able to broaden their knowledge and understanding of Mary as Mother,” he told Priyashantha Warnakula, happy to have new content to offer in her service as a Sunday catechist. “We are happy to have had the opportunity to correct our mistakes about our knowledge of the Virgin and to deepen what we know,” adds Celine Fernando, a visitor from Galle.
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