Happy Feast of Our Lady of Begoña

My mother, Miren Begoña, and me, María Begoña. Miren is Maria in Basque.

Today is the feast day of a little known Marian devotion, Our Lady of Begoña. She is called Amatxu, mother, to the people of Biscay. This is special to me because I am named after the Blessed Virgin Mary under this title. You may know me as María, but family and close friends call me by my true name, the name I was called by my mother, Begoña. That explains why my social media is a variation of Bego.

My mother is also named Begoña. Her parents, Basques from Guipuzcoa, fled the strife of the Spanish Civil War, and settled in Cuba. When my mother was born, she was named after their beloved, amatxu. When I was born, I was given the same name.

A Name Isn’t Just a Name

I never gave much thought to why I carry this name, but with maturity comes the opportunity for some introspection. I understand why my mother bears this name, a way for my grandparents to hold onto their homeland and perhaps give a piece of it to their daughter born abroad. And I understand that I carry that piece of them, too.

I am a continent and two countries separated from their home of Legazpi. Who knew that one day their grandchildren would be in the United States, with children and grandchildren of their own. I didn’t always love my name because others thought it was “hard to pronounce” and too easy to default to Maria, but as I grew older, I think that perhaps I grew into it. There is nothing sweeter than being called by that name now.

The Story of Our Lady of Begoña

The origins of this devotion trace back to the early 16th century, though local legend suggests that the image of the Virgin Mary associated with Begoña dates to much earlier times. According to tradition, the Virgin appeared to a shepherd on the hillside of Begoña, near Bilbao, and a chapel was built in her honor.

The small chapel quickly became a pilgrimage site, as people from the surrounding Basque region flocked to seek the intercession of the Virgin Mary. Over the centuries, the site underwent several transformations, with the current basilica, built in Gothic style, constructed between the 16th and 17th centuries.

Throughout history, the devotion to Our Lady of Begoña has been a source of consolation and strength, especially for the Basque people. In times of war, plague, and hardship, many turned to her for protection. During the Spanish Civil War, the basilica was damaged by shelling, yet the faithful continued to venerate the Virgin. Her statue, housed within the basilica, has become a symbol of the enduring faith of the people.

A Little Update

We Moved AND I Have a New Book Launching in Spring 2025!

It has been some many months since I reach out to you. 2023 proved to be a very challenging year for us, starting with a couple of health crises that overwhelmed us. We came to the difficult decision of selling our beautiful home on Mobile Bay and leaving dear friends and a lovely parish community to move closer to our children and grandchildren. I don’t need to say how this has been a wonderful boon in our lives!

We’ve been spending this year settling into our new home in the Washington, DC area, in north Virginia, and we love it. I’ve started doing some gardening as the weather has warmed up, and I am hoping to be enjoying the summer with the grandkids with plenty of pool time.

I’ve also returned to a deeper writing life. You may know that I have been working at CatholicMom.com as an editor for a couple of years, and have been podcasting more for the Momcast and Prayercast. I am encouraged to return to my personal podcast.


ALSO, I am DELIGHTED to share with you first that I am under contract with Ave Maria Press for a new book that launches in Spring 2025. It is a follow-up to the award-winning My Badass Book of Saints. The new book is the logical next step in our lives, where I talk about the excitement and challenges we face as we enter mid-life and beyond and seize the opportunity for a Second Act, a daring exploration of what we can do next with the gifts and experiences God has given us in our lives. I hope you’ll stay tuned for more news as we get closer to launching this fun new book.

In the meantime, Badass is featured on Ave Maria Press’s Summer Reading Sale, so if you’ve never read it, I invite you to join the fun and discover a bold and beautiful saint-companion. Use DISCOUNT CODE: SUMMER2024 for $5 off your order! You might want to pick up Super Girls and Halos and Our Lady of Charity, too!

Review: My Life with the Jedi

In this insightful book, My Life with the Jedi: The Spirituality of Star Wars, author Eric A. Clayton takes us on an Ignatian journey around the Star Wars universe.

A little self-disclosure, I saw Star Wars when it was first released. I was a teenager soaking up all the Sci-Fi I could get my hands on, so you can imagine I fell instantly in love with these heroes and villains. The unique gift of the Star Wars universe is how subsequent generations have delved into the adventure. Parents have introduced it to the children, and it has become a multigenerational experience for the family. What better opportunity to also use it for a little evangelization and instruction?

As Catholics, we always enjoyed the inside joke response anytime we heard “ May the Force be with you.” We cleverly kept up with the new translation, too, just in time for new generations to join in the fun. so it comes as no surprise that Clayton would delve into Ignatian spirituality in concert with the many iterations of the Star Wars canon. After all, Star Wars is an epic adventure that takes us across the universe, only to take us interiorly in a study of The Human Condition. 

We’re familiar with the battle of Good versus Evil–and all the gray that fills the space between the two extremes, but Clayton explores all the many stories that make up the canon. While I have seen all three of the trilogies, and read a good many of the books, I haven’t watched all of the new series. I will, however, express my opinion that “The Mandalorian” is the best of the best.

Nevertheless, you don’t need to be familiar with all the characters; Clayton does a fine job of providing context for his exploration of Ignatian spirituality through the lens of Star Wars. It works.

Clayton sets the framework of his spiritual discussion within the narratives, analyzing motives and growth with a parallel discussion of the Ignatian perspective. The sections end with an examen-like exercise that encourages the reader to put into action the lessons learned.

I enjoyed the book, as I imagine many Star Wars fans would, but you don’t have to be a super-fan to enjoy how Clayton weaves the spiritual exercises of St. Ignatius through a storyline that already explores the human condition. 


  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Loyola Press (February 27, 2024)
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 240 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0829457011
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0829457018

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