Often people ask us, priests, what to do in order to deepen their spiritual life. We all can come up with different answers and there are certainly many ways to greater spiritual life. There is, however, a more proven method that has helped many Christian Catholics to be on the fast track to holiness and to better understanding of spiritual life. It is the total consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, or as originally proposed by Saint Luis Grignon de Montfort back in the XVII century, the Total Consecration to Jesus through Mary. After St. Luis there were many others that followed in his footsteps. Among some of the most known saints were Pope Pius X, St. Maximilian Kolbe, and St. John Paul II. These saints recognized that Mary played a vital role in the life of the early Church and that the Blessed Mother still plays an important role in the Church of our times.
This devotion may also be spiritually beneficial to parishes, prayer groups, and individuals. It relies on the realization that when we cultivate an authentic devotion to Mary, we come closer to Christ and grow in greater appreciation for the Church and the sacraments. While commenting on the role of the Mary and Marian devotions St. John Paul II stated:
“In this process of being conformed to Christ in the Rosary, we entrust ourselves in a special way to the maternal care of the Blessed Virgin. She who is both the Mother of Christ and a member of the Church, indeed her “pre-eminent and altogether singular member”, is at the same time the “Mother of the Church”. As such, she continually brings to birth children for the mystical Body of her Son. She does so through her intercession, imploring upon them the inexhaustible outpouring of the Spirit. Mary is the perfect icon of the motherhood of the Church.” (JPII, Rosarium Virginis Marie, 15)
Thus, I would like to propose to you a 33-day challenge, or rather an in-home retreat, as a preparation to the Total Consecration to Jesus through Mary. You can start on February 20th to complete it on the solemnity of the Annunciation, on March 25th. There are many materials for reading and prayer that you can find online or buy a book. You can buy the book by Luis Grignon de Montfort at Amazon or use other free of charge mediations. You will find a few links below. We are going to post a pdf file at our website as well. There are also various videos and talks available on YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook. If you complete this 33-day spiritual challenge, I can promise you that you will feel spiritually renewed and be positively charged with more apostolic zeal. Please let me know if you decide to do it, so we can do an official consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, and through Her to Jesus, following the evening mass on March 25th.
Have a blessed week. Fr. Janusz Mocarski, pastor
Useful links for 33-day preparation to the Total Consecration to Jesus through Mary:
https://www.fatherboniface.org/wordpresshome