15th April 2025 with Cardinal Lavigerie
Link with the PDF 20250415 A Year With CML200
The history of the statue of Our Lady of Africa
Before the feast of Our Lady of Africa on the 30th of April, we wanto to share the history of the statue of Mary in the Basilica of Algiers. Her story starts in 1840… On 5 February 1840, Bishop Dupuch, since 1839 the first Bishop of Algiers went to France to find priests and resources for his new diocese. When he arrived in Paris, he visited the Sisters of the Sacred Heart and there he saw the statue of the Virgo Fidelis, by Edme Bouchardon, King Louis XV’s sculptor. He was immediately won over and asked for a copy. In July 1907, the Sisters of the Sacred Heart were expelled and went into exile. The property in Villeurbanne was divided up into lots. In 1937, the White Fathers were able to buy the lot which included the chapel and made it their procure. A copy of the statue was made thanks…