Rosary Vespers for Blessed Mother will be conducted in the evening of Saturday 5th October at 6.30 pm, in the Shrine of Our Lady of Katunayake, before the Statue of Blessed Mother, placed in the Shrine Ground, is removed from its present location. The Blessed Mother Mary, who has appeared in various countries in the world, has appeared in Sri Lanka, for the 1st time, in the Shrine of Our Lady of Katunayake. The Rosary Vespers, which will be offered to the Blessed Mother, will be presided over by the Holy Apostle, His Holiness Rohan Lalith Aponso, The Only Apostle, who is presently living in this world.
The Blessed Virgin Mary appeared in person for the 1st time, on 5th February 1975. The uniqueness of her appearance, is from there onwards, she has so far, appeared in this Shrine of Our Lady of Katunayake, for 23 occasions.
Holy Apostle, His Holiness, Rohan Lalith Aponso, initially blessed this Statue of Blessed Mother, on 12th February 1984, and crowned it with a Golden Crown and offered a Golden Rosary into her Sacred Arms. From there onwards, this Statue of Blessed Mother Mary was binding the hearts of the people without any religious differences, and as a customary, those who are walking on the road in front of the Shrine, who are devoted to the Blessed Mother, used to pray, by kneeling at the feet of this Statue of Mother of God and from the day this Statue was blessed by the Holy Apostle, all those who are entering and leaving the Shrine did not forget to stand before this Statue of Mother of God, for a moment.
It is also not a secret that many people have received immense blessings by praying before this Statue of Mother of God. The Shrine of Our Lady of Katunayake is well-known as a Miraculous Ground, where Blessed Mother Mary has appeared. These days, modernization of Our Lady of Katunayake’s Shrine is in progress. Therefore, this Statue of Blessed Mother, placed in the Shrine Ground, for a period of close upon to 30 years, has to be removed from its present location to pave the way for the modernization program. Devotees believe that the Rosary Vespers, which will be offered to the Blessed Mother, before the removal of this Statue of Mother of God from its present location, will be a new experience for them. Rosary Vespers will be offered to the Blessed Mother, in the evening of Saturday, 5th October at 6.30 pm.
The Blessed Mother has made a request to recite the Holy Rosary at the feet of this Statue for 9 days, before it is removed from the location where it is placed now. Therefore, according to her request, devotees commenced to offer the Holy Rosary at the feet of this Statue of Mother of God. The 1st day of recitation of the Holy Rosary was commenced in the evening of 3rd August 2013. From there onwards, the Holy Rosary was recited for 09 consecutive Saturdays. The 9thand the final day of recitation of the Holy Rosary, was conducted on Saturday, 28th September. Therefore, arrangements have been already finalized to remove this Statue of Blessed Mother from the location where it is placed now, after offering the Rosary Vespers to the Blessed Mother, in the evening of 5th October 2013.
Holy Apostle participated in the 9th day of recitation of Holy Rosary, which was held in the evening of 28th September 2013. Holy Apostle participated in the recitation of Holy Rosary from the podium of the garden of Apostles Sts. Peter and Paul, and the devotees who joined the Holy Apostolic Father, participated in the recitation of Holy Rosary, at the feet of this Statue of Blessed Mother. These photos show various segments of that occasion.
