The Knights of Columbus of Maryland is participating in a North American effort paying special tribute to Our Lady of Guadalupe, Patroness of the Americas, through the Silver Rose Program.
This program involves a silver rose that is carried by members of the Knights from Ontario, Canada, through the U.S. and finally to Monterrey, Mexico.
Currently, the rose is traveling through Maryland after starting July 5 in Pylesville. It will end its journey through the state in Brunswick July 26.
The route includes stops in Abingdon, Baltimore, Dundalk, Clinton, Bowie, Huntingtown, Woodstock, Towson, Jessup, Glyndon, Rockville, Olney, the District of Columbia, Ijamsville, Middletown, Emmitsburg and Walkersville.
Each stop will include a special prayer service honoring Our Lady of Guadalupe.
The program began in Ontario May 20 and concludes in Mexico Dec. 12, the feast day of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
“Through the Silver Rose Program, the Knights of Maryland show our support for the church and its bishops and priests as we pray for the continued strength to do so in these troubled times,” said Edgar Haynes, immediate past state deputy and state chairman for the Knights of Columbus Silver Rose Program.
“The Silver Rose also symbolizes our commitment to restoring the respect for the sanctity of human life from conception until natural death,” Haynes added. “As we think in terms of ‘One Life, One Rose,’ it is most important that we turn to Our Lady of Guadalupe, who made known her will through Juan Diego and the miracle of the roses.”