Revered Marian painting crowned

- WCR photo by Ramon Gonzalez Archbishop Adam Exner gazes upon a painting of Our Lady of Perpetual Help that he crowned Oct. 8 at Edmonton's Holy Rosary Church.

By RAMON GONZALEZ
WCR Staff Writer
Edmonton

Because she gave an unconditional yes to God and then gave us Jesus, Mary was crowned like a queen before a crowd of more than 600 Polish Catholics at Holy Rosary Church Oct. 8.

Retired Vancouver Archbishop Adam Exner performed the blessing and the crowning of a large image of Our Lady of Perpetual Help. The crowning consisted of placing a golden crown over the head of both Mary and Jesus.

Crowning is a Polish custom going back to 1650 but this is apparently the first time a crowning has been performed in Canada.

Several priests assisted the archbishop in the brief ceremony and the Mass that followed.

Oblate Father Wieslaw Nazarak, who is now back in his native Poland, painted the 4x6-foot image in the late 1990s. Parishioners have been praying to the image and many report to have received blessings.

Grazyna Maslowska has been suffering with cancer for several years. Last April she was given a week to live but she recovered after praying to Nazarak's painting of Mary.

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