by Veronica Szczygiel
When my husband Arthur and I travelled to Iceland to visit our friend Father Damian Wyzkiewicz, he took us on a tour to show us the local sights.
While we experienced many memorable things (including tasting putrefied shark!), the most profound part was finding Mary in the wilderness.
We parked on a dirt road in a rural village. Stepping out, we were surrounded by a magnificent view: To our right, jagged cliffs met angry ocean waves. To our left, a mountain rose into the fog-lined sky. When the clouds broke, I spied a glacier at its peak.
We followed Father Wyzkiewicz through fields of grass, and I couldn’t help but think of the time Jesus led his disciples through the wheat field. Jesus said to them, “I tell you, something greater than the temple is here” (Matthew 12:6), and I knew that, indeed, we would come upon something truly great.
The narrow footpath wound through muck and meadow. Arthur and I walked in relative silence: We were overwhelmed by the beauty of it all.
From a distance, I spotted a gleaming white speck against the brown and green backdrop of a mossy hillface. The whiteness was so pure, it practically glowed — in a word, it was immaculate. I shouldn’t have been surprised that this was the case. After all, this was the statue of Mary we had been searching for.
When we finally arrived at the statue, I was taken aback by her small stature. I was expecting something a little more grand, perhaps.
Father Wyzkiewicz told us that the statue here at Maríulind marked a Marian apparition. In 1230 A.D., Guðmundur góði biskup (Bishop Guðmundur the Good) — who had a less-than-holy reputation because the locals were not pleased with his gluttonous habits — was visited by Mary at this very hillside. She asked him to strike the ground, and henceforth, a spring of water flowed.
From that day, visitors who have touched the water have reported experiencing miracles of renewed eyesight, among other healings.
Finding Mary in the Icelandic wilderness was a beautiful reminder of our Church’s universality. Even in places where the Church is still finding a foothold, grace exists. Holiness is there. God and his sacred presence are everywhere.
We only have to find him.
Veronica Szczygiel, Ph.D., is the Communications Director at Semper Fi & America’s Fund.