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The month of May is a month set aside by the mother church to honour our Holy Mother Mary for the special role she played in the salvation of mankind. May Devotion is the special Marian devotion held in the Catholic Church during this special month.
According to Pope John Paul 11, the importance of Marian Devotions includes the fact that Mary is of all creatures, the most comformed to Jesus Christ. This follows that among all devotions, that which consecrates and conforms a soul to our Lord Jesus Christ is devotion to Mary.
May Devotion entails the Parish coming together in the evening to say the rosary, recite the Litany of the Blessed Virgin Mary and then, conclude it with the benediction.
Certain denominations accuse catholic faithful of worshipping Mary instead of Jesus Christ. Some do not believe that the Blessed Virgin Mary deserves all the adulation she gets from Catholic Faithful. It is however necessary to let them understand that Mary is not being worshipped by the Catholics but honoured, not just for the part she played in the salvation of mankind, but also, the position she occupies in the Catholic church.
Mary is the daughter of God the father, mother of God the son, and the mystical spouse of the Holy spirit. She is the Queen of angels and saints of heaven and earth. This was why St Louis De Montfort acclaimed her the Queen of all hearts and masterpiece of God’s creation.
Some of the ways by which Catholics the world over manifest their love and devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary in the month of May include by praying every morning, a prayer of consecration to Jesus through the Immaculate Heart of Mary; by praying the Angelus three times a day, thereby ensuring that we sanctify the morning hours, afternoon hours and evening hours through her Holy presence; by consecrating the home and family to the Immaculate Heart of Mary through novenas; Consecration of self to Jesus by actively being a part of the May Devotion; emulating Mary by imitating her virtues of humility, lively faith, blind obedience, unceasing prayer, self denial, purity, patience, kindness and heavenly wisdom.
We should look up to Mother Mary as a perfect model to imitate and as a powerful helper to rescue us in trying times. The Blessed Virgin Mary has a powerful presence in the mystical body of Christ which is the Holy Catholic Church. Since the end purpose of the Holy Mass is to praise and worship God the father through the offering of God and son and through the power of the Holy Spirit, she has a special place in the Masses.
Mary is the mother of God, the Church and our mother in the Order of Grace. She is the Mediatrix of all graces. Let Catholics be in charge of their faith and endeavour to actively participate in the 2009 May Devotion while stand firm in it, knowing that the Blessed Virgin Mary is a throne of Grace through which we are rescued in troubled times.