The statue of Our Lady of Walsingham is to begin a two-year tour of England’s Catholic cathedrals. Each visit will take place between a Thursday and a Sunday and involve a three-day triduum of prayer. There will be talks on the Dowry of Mary, an evening of Adoration, and a day set aside for visits from primary and secondary schools. The tour, which begins with a visit to Liverpool’s Metropolitan Cathedral in June, is intended to help prepare Catholics spiritually for England’s rededication as the Dowry of Mary in 2020.
The term “Dowry of Mary” is thought to have originated in the 11th century. It means that England has been “set apart” for Mary. In 1350 a mendicant preacher remarked in a sermon that “it is commonly said that the land of England is the Virgin’s dowry”. An artwork known as the Wilton Diptych depicts the 14th-century King Richard II setting aside England as Mary’s “dos”, or donation or dowry.
Source: Catholic Herald
