For the past several days in Florida we have been cautiously watching the reports, and now, as we are watching the videos that show the absolute devastation that has been wrought on the Bahamas we are feeling uncertain and fearful at what may lie ahead. But before we allow ourselves to become afraid, let us turn to Our Dear Blessed Mother . Let us once again pray for the intercession of Our Lady of the Storm. Asking that God watch over each of us, especially those who are staring into the darkness of the approaching storm. God bless.

Way back in the late 1800’s off the coast of Florida, near the nation’s oldest city of St. Augustine, a ship had come under fire form a terrible storm. The captain of the ship ordered that all of the extra cargo be dispersed from the ship as to balance out the weight, and prevent the ship from being toppled in the high waves of the storm. As the crew members searched through the cargo area of the ship, a large statue of the Blessed Mother was found. No one knew where it had come from, immediately the captain had everyone aboard pray for the intercession the the Madonna. Leading the prayer he said, “Dear Lady, if this storm passes,and we arrive safely in port, we will place your statue with the first Christian family we meet.”

The storm passed and the crew and the ship made it to land unharmed, and the captain kept his promise, giving the statue to a family in St. Augustine. The statue is still enshrined in a wooden cabinet, placed behind a pane of glass. Through the years, when storms have threatened the coast, families have prayed for the Blessed Mother’s intercession, and through the years, St. Augustine has been spared from the blunt force of a hurricane’s blows. Last year, even with hurricane Matthew, the storm was projected to come further inland and was diverted further out to sea. And even though damage was done, and buildings were flooded…the damage could have been so much worse….

So as we watch  as hurricane Dorian pounds the Bahama Islands, churning the waters and bringing high winds dangerously close to south Florida, let us invoke the intercession of the Blessed Mother, under the title of Our Lady of the Hurricane and ask for God’s mercy for all of those affected… We pray for peace and calm for all of those who are wrought with fear of the unknown…

Prayer for Safety in Hurricane Season

O God, Master of this passing world, Hear the humble
voices of your children. The Sea of Galilee obeyed Your
order and returned to its former quietude. You are still
the Master of the land and sea. We live in the shadow of
a danger over which we have no control: the Gulf, like a
provoked and angry giant, can awake from its seeming
lethargy and overstep its conventional boundaries, invade
our land and spread chaos and disaster.
During this hurricane season, we turn to You, O loving
Father. Spare us from past tragedies whose memories
are still so vivid and whose wounds seem
to refuse to heal with the passing of time. O Virgin, Star of
the Sea, Our Beloved Mother, we ask you to plead with
your Son in our behalf, so that spared from the calamities
common to this area and animated with a true spirit of
gratitude, we walk in the footsteps of your Divine Son to
reach the heavenly Jerusalem where storm-less eternity
awaits us. Amen

+The Most Reverend Maurice Schexnayder
2nd Bishop of Lafayette