A silver rose on a nine-month pilgrimage will be the centerpiece of a special prayer service at St. Agnes Church in Arlington on Sunday, Aug. 11, at 2 p.m. The program is sponsored by Knights of Columbus Arlington Council #109 to honor Our Lady of Guadalupe and express both international unity and dedication to the sanctity of human life.

The journey of the Silver Rose begins each year in March and ends on Dec. 12, the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. During that time, Silver Roses travel from town to town along eight routes throughout North America. Several of those routes begin in Canada and end in Mexico.

"It is a special honor to be able to bring the Silver Rose pilgrimage to Arlington," Nicholas Gallo, Grand Knight of Arlington Council #109, told The Pilot. "I am eager to celebrate Our Lady of Guadalupe and to spread the word about the Marian apparitions that took place in Mexico almost 500 years ago. To me, this event exemplifies the key facets of being a Knight of Columbus: Love for our Holy Mother, our families, our church, and our community."

The Silver Rose Program began in 1960, when the first rose -- a real cut flower -- was blessed by a bishop in Ontario. The rose then traveled to New York and then to Texas, where it was taken across the border into Mexico. The rose ended its pilgrimage at the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Monterrey on Dec. 12, the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. To better ensure future annual trips, a silver rose was ultimately made. Today, due to the popularity of the program throughout the North American continent, eight silver roses travel unique routes.

In 2001, when Carl Anderson, Past Supreme Knight of the Knights of Columbus, expanded the Silver Rose Program, he commented: "Through (the Silver Rose Program), we honor not only Our Lady of Guadalupe and express the unity of the (Knights of Columbus), but we also reaffirm the order's dedication to the sanctity of human life. It is to the Blessed Mother that we turn in prayer as we work to end the culture of death that grips our society. As we think in terms of 'one Life, one Rose,' it is most appropriate that we turn to Our Lady of Guadalupe who made known her will through Juan Diego and the miracle of the roses."

Gallo said that devotion to the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe has a special place in his family. The image is hung in his home, and he and his sons, ages four and seven, say their prayers in front of it each night.

"Art has such a special way of speaking to us, drawing us in, and expressing so much each and every time we view it," he said.

All members of the community are encouraged to join the Knights of Columbus Arlington Council #109 at St. Agnes Church in Arlington on Sunday, Aug. 11, at 2 p.m. to pray for a civilization of love and culture of life in our own country and throughout the world.

In addition to the event in Arlington, while in Massachusetts, the Silver Rose will make stops with Knights' councils in: Wayland on Aug. 7; Ashland/Hopkinton, Aug. 8-9; Dracut on Aug. 10; Weymouth on Aug. 13; Braintree on Aug. 14; Clinton on Aug. 15; Westminster, Aug. 17-18; Chelmsford on Aug. 21; Athol, Aug. 24-26; Sutton on Aug. 27; Millbury on Aug. 28; Ludlow, Aug. 29-Sep. 1; and Holliston on Sep. 5.

Contact local councils for details on event times and locations.