On July 16, 1251, Our Lady of Mount Carmel appeared to St. Simon Stock and gave him the brown scapular, a symbol of protection and a sign of trust in God. On July 16, 1858, in the final apparition at Lourdes, Mary appeared as Our Lady of Mount Carmel. On July 16, 1945, the first atomic bomb, code named Trinity was detonated at White Sands Missile Site in New Mexico.
The Nuclear Age is seventy-five years old this summer – an anniversary not to be celebrated with anything but sorrow, regret and penance. There is much to be considered in our look at history. Usually the date for the start of the Nuclear Age is July 16, 1945 when the first atomic bomb was detonated at White Sands Missile Range. However the dawn of the disaster began earlier with the eviction of 110 farm families from their ranches in New Mexico in 1942.
Mary, as Servant of the Lord, influenced by the Spirit, hastens to visit Elizabeth, her cousin. Saint Ambrose of Milan says that Mary went with haste because inspirations of the Holy Spirit cannot be delayed.[i] Luke shows in his Visitation narrative then that God’s visitation to Mary and God’s Word planted within her womb are experiences to be communicated and shared with another person.
