This is short retelling of how Enrica Mallard with Rosslyn Blundell and Angela Fagan responded to a calling to create Notre Dame du Monde in Australia. Their hope is to create a place for all to be with this beautiful Black Madonna – a perpetual opportunity to awaken our own divinity and reflect that love in the world.

My narrative on how Notre Dame du Monde came into being

by Rosslyn Blundell

One day, I’m not certain when that day was, but I heard Enrica’s voice loud and clear at first and then what she was saying started trailing off somewhere into a distant world.

What she said was … ‘we need to make our own statue and she wants to be called Notre Dame du Monde’.

I think I said “are you sure she doesn’t want to be called Notre Dame of Melbourne or even Australia – that might work”, but no, she was to be called ‘of the world’.

I thought to myself, “that’s interesting…”  then came the … “what… how on earth do we do that… in what way and by what means”. In other words, where do you begin to even imagine this process?

I thought that this idea might just go back to sleep for a while and the panic and responsibility of this manifesting task might slow down. Well, not likely, she was awakened and began taking form with energy to fierce to stop.

Within weeks, Enrica had secured a large section of magnificent cypress wood, she found a Japanese sculpturer with a big chainsaw and, with a few guidelines on design, she began to awaken from her wooden grotto.

Her emergence took on a pure form, she is strong, solid, contemplating, and deliberate. Her gaze is potent.

Like all the Madonnas we have studied, albeit black or white, they have a message and are known to have a particular miracle assigned to them.

Some have cured eyesight issues, been thrown into rivers to stop drought, carried onto battle fields, hidden in trees, and even buried to preserve them during war, and all have a passionate following.

I have always wondered what our Lady has yet to show us.

Given the state of the world at present, I suspect that some words might be compassion, faith, kindness, humanity.

For me, when I gaze upon her, she brushes my heart awake with a feather.

I will never underestimate the power of conviction which is what I learn from Enrica’s passion to give birth to our Notre Dame du Monde, the world is who she is, and the world awaits. Enrica’s vision and trust in a little man with a chainsaw has always touched me very deeply.