Notre Dame, Blessed Lady, Vierge Noire
You awaken in us that which we do not know.
From the mystery and history you call to us
reminding us that all is not as it seems.
You stand watch for the true truths.
There is a Mother. A good mother.
No matter how they have silenced your story.
You stand watch and we sing to you.
Those who can hear your voice
have reached for you through the night
and protected your stories and would
not allow your skin to be whited out
the way the stories
have tried to be whited out.
We have survived this.
Vierge Noire Bonne de Delivrance
teach us how to survive these times
when the world seems to have gone mad.
When I think of you
I think of
of fertile rich soil, seeds ready to sprout
living water flowing for our children,
laughter and times of harvest
and the creation of good stories
that want to be told for generations.
When I think of you I think of this good earth.
I think of justice.
I come to give you praise today
and I am sorry…
but what falls from my lips are
gasps for help…help!
save our wheat
save our water
save our wombs
and breasts and organs
save our lands
save our true cultures
save our families
save our art and our songs.
Teach us the language of
the wise and gentle Mother
and the power of the child who rises from death.
You know about victory.
You have witnessed the overcoming
of that which is killed coming back to life.
Teach us your wisdom
Show us this:
How to keep reaching for the Divine in life
and how to not lose hope
when sickness is falling on the land,
caused by those who do not heed
your voice or the voice of reason or true dreaming.
From the cross your son said:
Forgive them, for they know now what they do.
But this time, they do know what they are doing.
Our leaders have lost their way.
The invaders have come into our earth home
and we don’t know how to stop them.
Our crops are killing us
instead of sustaining us.
When I think of you I think of
red poppies in fields of green.
of a flock of doves, each with an olive branch,
of the sea teaming with fish.
I think of unconditional love and good deliverance.
I think of you giving birth in a cave.
I feel you place a rose in my hair
and wipe the tears from my cheeks.
Show us the pathway
to a revolution that saves.
Many of us do hear your voice calling
so please pour out your heart to us.
We are listening here at your door,
sitting on the steps of your temple,
inclining our ear to your call
and reaching for your hand.
We are here at the gates singing to you
and calling upon your saving child.
Lead us in a
a pour out your heart revolution.
We are truly ready.
Votre,
Shiloh Sophia
I wrote the poem above last year when I first got the gift of coming into contact with the Black Madonnas. If you haven’t ever seen one it is hard to say how it feels, the transmission, both ancient and futuristic moving through space and time to your heart.
Funny thing is I forgot I wrote the poem or call for help at all – just forgot. Yet there it is – with me talking about not silencing her or the stories that have tried to be ‘whited out’ – I didn’t even know how true that would become.
I wrote the letter below while I was in Paris on my recent trip about my experience with her.
Whether you have a connection to her or not it is worth considering, pondering, what have you heard and why? What comes up for you? My relationship to her and the feminine is strong and ever changing and moving like a river to the sea…winding it’s way around. And yes a great mystery.
Signed in HOPE above all HOPE, the kind that won’t go away on hard days,
Shiloh SophiaREGISTER FOR THE OUR BLACK MADONNA STREAM HERE
The Lady of the Pillar was different this year, instead of being Black, she was white. I still find it difficult to speak about the impact this restoration had on me, and on many of the students traveling with me. So we are exploring her in our paintings….
As a Christian Orthodox woman, I get the gift of living consciously and openly with the Great Lady and her child Jesus, since she is very present in many skin colors in my tradition and she also holds the red thread. I am intimately connected with the Lady and have been for close to twenty years but still find myself rather speechless to try to explain the intricacies of my relationship with Her and plus it changes and breathes. However, when we paint Her, she comes to life in our hearts – She makes an appearance in our hearts and finds home there within us. There is solace here. I invite you to spend the day with me, and in the presence of the Great Lady in Her form as none other than the Black Madonna.
There are close to 500 Black Madonna’s all over the world – and her next appearance is in your heart.
