WALSINGHAM (CNS): An estimated 530,000 English Catholics rededicated their country as Mary’s Dowry “in the eye of the storm” of the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic. The first dedication was carried out in 1381 by King Richard II amid great domestic turmoil.
People watched livestreaming services from parishes, churches and the National Shrine and Basilica of Our Lady of Walsingham, Norfolk. The volume of traffic was so high by noon of March 29 that it caused the website of the Walsingham shrine to crash, along with the livestreams in cathedrals and parishes provided by Churchservices.tv, a technology firm offering media platforms within churches. Viewers were redirected to YouTube instead.
In his homily, Monsignor John Armitage, rector of the Walsingham shrine, said, “Today we undertake this dedication in the eye of the storm. In the face of the peril that we find ourselves in today, in addition to the physical resilience we need to protect ourselves, a stronger spiritual resilience will be needed to survive the ordeal ahead and to rebuild our society in the coming days.”
