This novena offers nine prayers to help us talk to God about what makes us happy, worries us or upsets us, in the light of different features that shone forth in the life of Dora del Hoyo, whose cause of canonization has been opened.
Dora del Hoyo died on January 10, 2004, just a day before turning 90 years old. Here are some examples of people who have received favors through her intercession.
The profession to which Dora del Hoyo dedicated her entire life is now the topic of an international study involving 94 countries. The Global Home Index seeks to measure the value and repercussion of domestic work.
"Daily work has the same dignity whether you are a neuro-surgeon or the lady dedicated to ironing clothes at home," writes Álvaro Sarmiento on the occasion of International Worker's Day, celebrated on May 1st.
Dora del Hoyo's example is an inspiration for the young people working in the Jahazi Conference Centre in Mombasa, Kenya. The first phase of Dora's cause of canonization was recently concluded in Rome.
On October 24 in Rome, at the closing of the first phase of the Servant of God's cause of canonization, Bishop Javier Echevarria summed up her life with these words: "serenity, peace, desires to be faithful."
Dora del Hoyo, whose cause of canonization has been opened, recalls her first memories of Saint Josemaria, in this interview done in 2000, four years before her death at the age of 90.
Knowing how to be creative with what one has at home: perhaps this example could serve as inspiration. Every year on the "Friday of Sorrows" (the Friday before Palm Sunday), the mother of Saint Josemaría, Dolores Escrivá, used to prepare a special dessert called "crespillos". It was a simple dessert that she would only make on that day, and thus the family would look forward to it. The recipe is easy to follow and inexpensive, and makes for a tasty and original dessert for your family.
I met Dora in 1995, when domestic work was far from my life and even farther from my mind. Dora and I happened to coincide on two occasions in particular in a period of about two months time. This however was enough for me to realize how she was, how she lived, for whom and why she had spent her days giving of herself to the full. There was no need for long explanations to grasp the meaning of her existence. Dora knew the meaning of her life and the path to achieve it to the full.
"Dora: Rozpalony płomień" is the title of Dora del Hoyo's biography in Polish, recently published by Editorial Apostolicum. The book, originally in Spanish and written by Javier Medina Bayo, is now available in five languages. It tells the story of the first woman in Opus Dei to dedicate her life to the work of the home, a woman who is now in process of Canonization.
The first issue of the newsletter about the Servant of God Dora del Hoyo is now in print and available for download. Its title is "Dora del Hoyo: A Professional Homemaker."
Scepter Publishers has recently published "Dora del Hoyo, A Lighted Lamp", an English translation of a biography of Dora (original title: "Dora del Hoyo, Una Luz Encendida") The book, written by Javier Medina Bayo, tells the story of Dora's life, based on the testimony of her family and those who lived with her.
