Hey!, Wanna See Some Sin?
"Cry aloud, spare not, lift up your voice like a trumpet and show my people their transgressions and . . . their sins." Isa. 58:1
5. Idolatry
Page 5.b.
Pope Pius XII Proclaims Mary as "Queen"
Pope Paul VI "Exhorts Devotion to Mary"
Liturgy of the Hours
Catholic "Celebrations", "Devotions", "Masses" and "Feasts" in honor of Mary
Annual Feasts of Mary
Daily Masses of Mary
Officially prescribed prayers to Mary
Titles of Mary (325)
Special Catholic Organizations Devoted To Mary
It is not our purpose here to judge or to condemn anyone. We all judge or condemn ourselves by our personal choices and actions. We are all answerable to God, not to one another. Our purpose here is to point out the meaning of certain words regarding the sins of idolatry. And in that context, to look at related, official church doctrines and established "traditions".
To place anything or anyone in place of, or ahead of God is to commit idolatry. Most of the world does that through materialism and the pursuit of happiness. Some commit idolatry in more than one way.
Page 5.b:The Pope Proclaimed Mary as "Queen" (1954), and made or quoted the following statements:
Mary sits "at God's right hand"
Mary "exalted above all things save God himself".
(Mary) ". . . my Sovereign, You who rule over me, . . ."
(Mary) "Ruler of all"
"(The Popes) have considered it their duty to promote by eulogy and exhortation the devotion of the Christian people to the heavenly Mother and Queen."
" . . . the sovereign King has in some way communicated to her his ruling power."
" . . . Our tongue cannot worthily praise thee, O Lady; . . ."
" . . . Hail, O Queen of the world; hail, O Mary, Queen of us all."
"O Mary, center of the whole world, . . . thou art greater than the many-eyed cherubim and the six-winged seraphim . . . Heaven and earth are filled with the sanctity of thy glory."
"Heaven and earth praise thee as a powerful Queen . . ."
" . . . meditate upon the ruling power of Mary which embraces heaven and earth, . . ."
" . . . the rosary which can be called the mystical crown of the heavenly Queen."
"God is the Lord of all things, because by His command He establishes each of them in its own nature, and Mary is the Queen of all things, because she restores each to its original dignity through the grace which she merited."
"only Jesus Christ, the God-Man, is King; but Mary, too, . . . has a share, though in a limited and analogous way, in His royal dignity."
" Mary most Holy is far above all other creatures in dignity, and after her Son possesses primacy over all. "
"Limitless is the difference between God's servants and His Mother."
"she is so beautiful and perfect, and possesses such fullness of innocence and holiness, that under God a greater could not be dreamed, and only God can comprehend the marvel."" . . . the Blessed Virgin possessed, after Christ, not only the highest degree of excellence and perfection, but also a share in that influence by which He, her Son and our Redeemer, is rightly said to reign over the minds and wills of men."
"With a heart that is truly a mother's," to quote again Our Predecessor of immortal memory, Pius IX, "does she approach the problem of our salvation, and is solicitous for the whole human race; . . . she intercedes powerfully for us with a mother's prayers, obtains what she seeks, and cannot be refused."[56] On this point another of Our Predecessors of happy memory, Leo XIII, has said that an "almost immeasurable" power has been given Mary in the distribution of graces;[57] . . ."
" Let all Christians, therefore, glory in being subjects of the Virgin Mother of God, who, while wielding royal power, is on fire with a mother's love."
"Let all, therefore, try to approach with greater trust the throne of grace and mercy of our Queen and Mother, . . . let them strive to free themselves from the slavery of sin and offer an unceasing homage, filled with filial loyalty, to their Queenly Mother. Let her churches be thronged by the faithful, her feast-days honored; may the beads of the Rosary be in the hands of all; may Christians gather, in small numbers and large, to sing her praises in churches, in homes, in hospitals, in prisons. May Mary's name be held in highest reverence, . . ."
" . . . the powerful Queen of creation, whose radiant glance banishes storms and tempests and brings back cloudless skies, . . . the Virgin, who is able to subdue violence beneath her foot,"
" Is she not . . ., the pledge of a covenant of peace? . . . the Mediatrix of peace;"
"By this Encyclical Letter We are instituting a feast . . ." " . . . let no one consider himself exempt ."
" . . . let him respect . . . the gentle urgings and commands of the Virgin Mary impel us."
The quotes above are taken from the following sections of the Pope's Encyclical:
Ad Caeli Reginam
His Holiness Pope Pius XII
Encyclical on Proclaiming the Queenship of Mary
Promulgated October 11, 1954"To the Venerable Brethren, the Patriarchs, Primates, Archbishops, Bishops and other Local Ordinaries in Peace and Communion with the Holy See.
. . .
15. Moreover Epiphanius, the bishop of Constantinople, writing to the Sovereign Pontiff Hormisdas, says that we should pray that the unity of the Church may be preserved "by the grace of the holy and consubstantial Trinity and by the prayers of Mary, Our Lady, the holy and glorious Virgin and Mother of God."[17]16. The Blessed Virgin, sitting at the right hand of God to pray for us is hailed by another writer of that same era in these words, "the Queen of mortal man, the most holy Mother of God."[18]
17. St. Andrew of Crete frequently attributes the dignity of a Queen to the Virgin Mary. For example, he writes, "Today He transports from her earthly dwelling, as Queen of the human race, His ever-Virgin Mother, from whose womb He, the living God, took on human form."[19]
18. And in another place he speaks of "the Queen of the entire human race faithful to the exact meaning of her name, who is exalted above all things save only God himself."[20]
19. Likewise St. Germanus speaks to the humble Virgin in these words: "Be enthroned, Lady, for it is fitting that you should sit in an exalted place since you are a Queen and glorious above all kings."[21] He likewise calls her the "Queen of all of those who dwell on earth."[22]
20. She is called by St. John Damascene: "Queen, ruler, and lady,"[23] and also "the Queen of every creature."[24] Another ancient writer of the Eastern Church calls her "favored Queen," "the perpetual Queen beside the King, her son," whose "snow-white brow is crowned with a golden diadem."[25]
21. And finally St. Ildephonsus of Toledo gathers together almost all of her titles of honor in this salutation: "O my Lady, my Sovereign, You who rule over me, Mother of my Lord . . . Lady among handmaids, Queen among sisters."[26]
22. The theologians of the Church, deriving their teaching from these and almost innumerable other testimonies handed down long ago, have called the most Blessed Virgin the Queen of all creatures, the Queen of the world, and the Ruler of all.
23. The Supreme Shepherds of the Church have considered it their duty to promote by eulogy and exhortation the devotion of the Christian people to the heavenly Mother and Queen. Simply passing over the documents of more recent Pontiffs, it is helpful to recall that as early as the seventh century Our predecessor St. Martin I called Mary "our glorious Lady, ever Virgin."[27] St. Agatho, in the synodal letter sent to the fathers of the Sixth Ecumenical Council called her "Our Lady, truly and in a proper sense the Mother of God."[28] And in the eighth century Gregory II in the letter sent to St. Germanus, the patriarch, and read in the Seventh Ecumenical Council with all the Fathers concurring, called the Mother of God: "The Queen of all, the true Mother of God," and also "the Queen of all Christians."[29]"
[Dict:
devotion
1 a : religious fervor : piety
b : an act of prayer or private worship -- usually used in plural
c : a religious exercise or practice other than the regular corporate worship of a congregation
2 a : the act of devoting
b : the fact or state of being ardently dedicated and loyal (as to an idea or person)]
"24. We wish also to recall that Our predecessor of immortal memory, Sixtus IV, touched favorably upon the doctrine of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin, beginning the Apostolic Letter Cum praeexcelsa[30] with words in which Mary is called "Queen," "Who is always vigilant to intercede with the king whom she bore." Benedict XIV declared the same thing in his Apostolic Letter Gloriosae Dominae, in which Mary is called "Queen of heaven and earth," and it is stated that the sovereign King has in some way communicated to her his ruling power.[31]
25. For all these reasons St. Alphonsus Ligouri, in collecting the testimony of past ages, writes these words with evident devotion: "Because the virgin Mary was raised to such a lofty dignity as to be the mother of the King of kings, it is deservedly and by every right that the Church has honored her with the title of 'Queen'."[32]
26. Furthermore, the sacred liturgy, which acts as a faithful reflection of traditional doctrine believed by the Christian people through the course of all the ages both in the East and in the West, has sung the praises of the heavenly Queen and continues to sing them.
27. Ardent voices from the East sing out: "O Mother of God, today thou art carried into heaven on the chariots of the cherubim, the seraphim wait upon thee and the ranks of the heavenly army bow before thee."[33]
28. Further: "O just, O most blessed Joseph), since thou art sprung from a royal line, thou hast been chosen from among all mankind to be spouse of the pure Queen who, in a way which defies description, will give birth to Jesus the king."[34] In addition: "I shall sing a hymn to the mother, the Queen, whom I joyously approach in praise, gladly celebrating her wonders in song. . . Our tongue cannot worthily praise thee, O Lady; for thou who hast borne Christ the king art exalted above the seraphim. . . Hail, O Queen of the world; hail, O Mary, Queen of us all."[35]
29. We read, moreover, in the Ethiopic Missal: "O Mary, center of the whole world, . . . thou art greater than the many-eyed cherubim and the six-winged seraphim . . . Heaven and earth are filled with the sanctity of thy glory."[36]
30. Furthermore, the Latin Church sings that sweet and ancient prayer called the "Hail, Holy Queen" and the lovely antiphons "Hail, Queen of the Heavens," "O Queen of Heaven, Rejoice," and those others which we are accustomed to recite on feasts of the Blessed Virgin Mary: "The Queen stood at Thy right hand in golden vesture surrounded with beauty"[37]; "Heaven and earth praise thee as a powerful Queen"[38]; "Today the Virgin Mary ascends into heaven: rejoice because she reigns with Christ forever."[39]
31. To these and others should be added the Litany of Loreto which daily invites Christian folk to call upon Mary as Queen. Likewise, for many centuries past Christians have been accustomed to meditate upon the ruling power of Mary which embraces heaven and earth, when they consider the fifth glorious mystery of the rosary which can be called the mystical crown of the heavenly Queen.
36. Now, in the accomplishing of this work of redemption, the Blessed Virgin Mary was most closely associated with Christ; and so it is fitting to sing in the sacred liturgy: "Near the cross of Our Lord Jesus Christ there stood, sorrowful, the Blessed Mary, Queen of Heaven and Queen of the World."[46] Hence, as the devout disciple of St. Anselm (Eadmer, ed.) wrote in the Middle Ages: "just as . . . God, by making all through His power, is Father and Lord of all, so the blessed Mary, by repairing all through her merits, is Mother and Queen of all; for God is the Lord of all things, because by His command He establishes each of them in its own nature, and Mary is the Queen of all things, because she restores each to its original dignity through the grace which she merited.[47]
39. Certainly, in the full and strict meaning of the term, only Jesus Christ, the God-Man, is King; but Mary, too, as Mother of the divine Christ, as His associate in the redemption, in his struggle with His enemies and His final victory over them, has a share, though in a limited and analogous way, in His royal dignity. For from her union with Christ she attains a radiant eminence transcending that of any other creature; from her union with Christ she receives the royal right to dispose of the treasures of the Divine Redeemer's Kingdom; from her union with Christ finally is derived the inexhaustible efficacy of her maternal intercession before the Son and His Father.40. Hence it cannot be doubted that Mary most Holy is far above all other creatures in dignity, and after her Son possesses primacy over all. "You have surpassed every creature," sings St. Sophronius. "What can be more sublime than your joy, O Virgin Mother? What more noble than this grace, which you alone have received from God"?[52] To this St. Germanus adds: "Your honor and dignity surpass the whole of creation; your greatness places you above the angels."[53] And St. John Damascene goes so far as to say: "Limitless is the difference between God's servants and His Mother."[54]
41. In order to understand better this sublime dignity of the Mother of God over all creatures let us recall that the holy Mother of God was, at the very moment of her Immaculate Conception, so filled with grace as to surpass the grace of all the Saints. Wherefore, as Our Predecessor of happy memory, Pius IX wrote, God "showered her with heavenly gifts and graces from the treasury of His divinity so far beyond what He gave to all the angels and saints that she was ever free from the least stain of sin; she is so beautiful and perfect, and possesses such fullness of innocence and holiness, that under God a greater could not be dreamed, and only God can comprehend the marvel."[55]
42. Besides, the Blessed Virgin possessed, after Christ, not only the highest degree of excellence and perfection, but also a share in that influence by which He, her Son and our Redeemer, is rightly said to reign over the minds and wills of men. For if through His Humanity the divine Word performs miracles and gives graces, if He uses His Sacraments and Saints as instruments for the salvation of men, why should He not make use of the role and work of His most holy Mother in imparting to us the fruits of redemption? "With a heart that is truly a mother's," to quote again Our Predecessor of immortal memory, Pius IX, "does she approach the problem of our salvation, and is solicitous for the whole human race; made Queen of heaven and earth by the Lord, exalted above all choirs of angels and saints, and standing at the right hand of her only a Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, she intercedes powerfully for us with a mother's prayers, obtains what she seeks, and cannot be refused."[56] On this point another of Our Predecessors of happy memory, Leo XIII, has said that an "almost immeasurable" power has been given Mary in the distribution of graces;[57] St. Pius X adds that she fills this office "as by the right of a mother."[58]
43. Let all Christians, therefore, glory in being subjects of the Virgin Mother of God, who, while wielding royal power, is on fire with a mother's love.
47. Since we are convinced, after long and serious reflection, that great good will accrue to the Church if this solidly established truth shines forth more clearly to all, like a luminous lamp raised aloft, by Our Apostolic authority We decree and establish the feast of Mary's Queenship, which is to be celebrated every year in the whole world on the 31st of May. We likewise ordain that on the same day the consecration of the human race to the Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary be renewed, cherishing the hope that through such consecration a new era may begin, joyous in Christian peace and in the triumph of religion.
48. Let all, therefore, try to approach with greater trust the throne of grace and mercy of our Queen and Mother, and beg for strength in adversity, light in darkness, consolation in sorrow; above all let them strive to free themselves from the slavery of sin and offer an unceasing homage, filled with filial loyalty, to their Queenly Mother. Let her churches be thronged by the faithful, her feast-days honored; may the beads of the Rosary be in the hands of all; may Christians gather, in small numbers and large, to sing her praises in churches, in homes, in hospitals, in prisons. May Mary's name be held in highest reverence, a name sweeter than honey and more precious than jewels; may none utter blasphemous words, the sign of a defiled soul, against that name graced with such dignity and revered for its motherly goodness; let no one be so bold as to speak a syllable which lacks the respect due to her name.
50. In some countries of the world there are people who are unjustly persecuted for professing their Christian faith and who are deprived of their divine and human rights to freedom; up till now reasonable demands and repeated protests have availed nothing to remove these evils. May the powerful Queen of creation, whose radiant glance banishes storms and tempests and brings back cloudless skies, look upon these her innocent and tormented children with eyes of mercy; may the Virgin, who is able to subdue violence beneath her foot, grant to them that they may soon enjoy the rightful freedom to practice their religion openly, so that, while serving the cause of the Gospel, they may also contribute to the strength and progress of nations by their harmonious cooperation, by the practice of extraordinary virtues which are a glowing example in the midst of bitter trials.51. By this Encyclical Letter We are instituting a feast so that all may recognize more clearly and venerate more devoutly the merciful and maternal sway of the Mother of God. We are convinced that this feast will help to preserve, strengthen and prolong that peace among nations which daily is almost destroyed by recurring crises. Is she not a rainbow in the clouds reaching towards God, the pledge of a covenant of peace?[62] "Look upon the rainbow, and bless Him that made it; surely it is beautiful in its brightness. It encompasses the heaven about with the circle of its glory, the hands of the Most High have displayed it."[63] Whoever, therefore, reverences the Queen of heaven and earth--and let no one consider himself exempt from this tribute of a grateful and loving soul--let him invoke the most effective of Queens, the Mediatrix of peace; let him respect and preserve peace, which is not wickedness unpunished nor freedom without restraint, but a well-ordered harmony under the rule of the will of God; to its safeguarding and growth the gentle urgings and commands of the Virgin Mary impel us.
52. Earnestly desiring that the Queen and Mother of Christendom may hear these Our prayers, and by her peace make happy a world shaken by hate, and may, after this exile show unto us all Jesus, Who will be our eternal peace and joy, to you, Venerable Brothers, and to your flocks, as a promise of God's divine help and a pledge of Our love, from Our heart We impart the Apostolic Benediction.
53. Given at Rome, from St. Peter's, on the feast of the Maternity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the eleventh day of October, 1954, in the sixteenth year of our Pontificate."
REFERENCES
. . .
17. Relatio Epiphanii Ep. Constantin.: PL LXII, 498 D.
18. Encomium in Dormitionem Ssmae Deiparae (inter opera S. Modesti): PG LXXXVI, 3306 B.
19. S. Andreas Cretensis, Homilia II in Dormitionem Ssmae Deiparae: PG XCVII, 1079 B.
20. Id., Homilia III in Dormitionem Ssmae Deiparae: PG XCVII, 1099 A.
21. S. Germanus, In Praesentationem Ssmae Deiparae, 1: PG XCVIII, 303 A.
22. Id., In Praesentationem Ssmae Deiparae, n PG XCVIII, 315 C.
23. S. Ioannes Damascenus, Homilia I in Dormitionem B.M.V.: P.G. XCVI, 719 A.
24. Id., De fide orthodoxa, I, IV, c. 14: PG XLIV, 1158 B.
25. De laudibus Mariae (inter opera Venantii Fortunati): PL LXXXVIII, 282 B et 283 A.
26. Ildefonsus Toletanus, De virginitate perpetua B.M.V.: PL XCVI, 58 A D.
27. S. Martinus 1, Epist. XIV: PL LXXXVII, 199-200 A.
28. S. Agatho: PL LXXXVII, 1221 A.
29. Hardouin, Acta Conciliorum, IV, 234; 238: PL LXXXIX, 508 B.
30. Xystus IV, bulla Cum praeexcelsa. d. d. 28 Febr. a. 1476.
31. Benedictus XIV, bulla Gloriosae Dominae, d. d. 27 Sept. a. 1748.
32. S. Alfonso, Le glone de Maria, p. I, c. I, 1.
33. Ex liturgia Armenorum: in festo Assumptionis, hymnus ad Matutinum.
34. Ex Menaeo (byzantino): Dominica post Natalem, in Canone, ad Matutinum.
35. Officium hymni Axathistos (in ritu byzantino).
36. Missale Aethiopicum, Anaphora Dominae nostrae Mariae, Matris Dei.
37. Brev. Rom., Versiculus sexti Respons.
38. Festum Assumptionis; hymnus Laudum.
39. Ibidem, ad Magnificat 11 Vesp.
. . .
46. Festum septem dolorum B. Mariae Virg., Tractus.
47. Eadmerus, De excellentia Virginis Mariae, c. 11: PL CLIX, 508 A B.
. . .
52. S. Sophronius, In annuntianone Beatae Mariae Virginis: PG LXXXVII, 3238 D; 3242 A.
53. S. Germanus, Hom. II in dormitione Beatae Mariae Virginis: PG XCVIII, 354 B.
54. S. Ioannes Damascenus, Hom. I in Dormitionem Beatae Mariae Virginis: PG XCVI, 715 A.
55. Pius IX, bulla Ineffabilis Deus: Acta Pii IX, I, p. 597-598.
56. Ibid. p. 618.
57. Leo Xlll, litt. enc. Adiumcem populi: ASS, XXVIIl, 1895-1896,p.130.
58. Pius X, litt enc. Ad diem illum: ASS XXXVI, 1903-1904, p.455.
. . .
62. Cf. Gen. IX, 13.
63. Eccl. XLIII, 12-13.
http://www.newadvent.org/docs/pi12ac.htm (emphasis ours)
------------------------"APOSTOLIC EXHORTATION FOR THE RIGHT ORDERING AND DEVELOPMENT OF DEVOTION TO THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY
MARIALIS CULTUS
OF HIS HOLINESS PAUL VI, FEBRUARY 2, 1974
To All Bishops in Peace and Communion with the Apostolic See"
5. "The Christmas season is a prolonged commemoration of the divine, virginal and salvific motherhood of her whose "inviolate virginity brought the Savior into the world."[16] In fact, on the Solemnity of the Birth of Christ the Church both adores the Savior and venerates His glorious Mother. On the Epiphany, when she celebrates the universal call to salvation, the Church contemplates the Blessed Virgin, the true Seat of Wisdom and true Mother of the King, who presents to the Wise Men, for their adoration, the Redeemer of all peoples (cf. Mt. 2:11). On the Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph (the Sunday within the octave of Christmas) the Church meditates with profound reverence upon the holy life led in the house at Nazareth by Jesus, the Son of God and Son of Man, Mary His Mother, and Joseph the just man (cf. Mt. 1:19).
In the revised ordering of the Christmas period it seems to us that the attention of all should be directed towards the restored Solemnity of Mary the holy Mother of God. This celebration, placed on January 1 in conformity with the ancient indication of the liturgy of the City of Rome, is meant to commemorate the part played by Mary in this mystery of salvation. It is meant also to exalt the singular dignity which this mystery brings to the "holy Mother...through whom we were found worthy to receive the Author of life."[17]
6. "To the two solemnities already mentioned (the Immaculate Conception and the Divine Motherhood) should be added the ancient and venerable celebrations of March 25 and August 15."
. . ."With regard to Mary, these liturgies celebrate it as a feast of the new Eve, the obedient and faithful virgin, who with her generous "fiat" (cf. Lk. 1:38) became through the working of the Spirit the Mother of God, but also the true Mother of the living, and, by receiving into her womb the one Mediator (cf: 1 Tm. 2:5), became the true Ark of the Covenant and true Temple of God. These liturgies celebrate it as a culminating moment in the salvific dialogue between God and man, and as a commemoration of the Blessed Virgin's free consent and cooperation in the plan of redemption.
The solemnity of August 15 celebrates the glorious Assumption of Mary into heaven. It is a feast of her destiny of fullness and blessedness, of the glorification of her immaculate soul and of her virginal body, of her perfect configuration to the Risen Christ, a feast that sets before the eyes of the Church and of all mankind the image and the consoling proof of the fulfillment of their final hope, namely, that this full glorification is the destiny of all those whom Christ has made His brothers, having "flesh and blood in common with them" (Heb. 2:14; cf. Gal. 4:4). The Solemnity of the Assumption is prolonged in the celebration of the Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary, which occurs seven days later. On this occasion we contemplate her who, seated beside the King of ages, shines forth as Queen and intercedes as Mother.[18] These four solemnities, therefore, mark with the highest liturgical rank the main dogmatic truths concerning the handmaid of the Lord."
7. "After the solemnities just mentioned, particular consideration must be given to those celebrations that commemorate salvific events in which the Blessed Virgin was closely associated with her Son. Such are the feasts of the Nativity of Our Lady (September 8), "the hope of the entire world and the dawn of salvation"[19]; and the Visitation (May 31), in which the liturgy recalls the "Blessed Virgin Mary carrying her Son within her,"[20] and visiting Elizabeth to offer charitable assistance and to proclaim the mercy of God the Savior.[21] Then there is the commemoration of Our Lady of Sorrows (September 15), a fitting occasion for reliving a decisive moment in the history of salvation and for venerating, together with the Son "lifted up on the cross, His suffering Mother."[22]""The feast of February 2, which has been given back its ancient name, the Presentation of the Lord, should also be considered as a joint commemoration of the Son and of the Mother, if we are fully to appreciate its rich content. It is the celebration of a mystery of salvation accomplished by Christ, a mystery with which the Blessed Virgin was intimately associated as the Mother of the Suffering Servant of Yahweh, as the one who performs a mission belonging to ancient Israel, and as the model for the new People of God, which is ever being tested in its faith and hope by suffering and persecution (cf. Lk. 2:21-35)."
8. "The restored Roman Calendar gives particular prominence to the celebrations listed above, but it also includes other kinds of commemorations connected with local devotions and which have acquired a wider popularity and interest (e.g., February 11, Our Lady of Lourdes; August 5, the Dedication of the Basilica of St. Mary Major). Then there are others, originally celebrated by particular religious families but which today, by reason of the popularity they have gained, can truly be considered ecclesial (e.g., July 16, Our Lady of Mount Carmel; October 7, Our Lady of the Rosary). There are still others which, apart from their apocryphal content, present lofty and exemplary values and carry on venerable traditions having their origin especially in the East (e.g., the Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin, celebrated on the Saturday following the second Sunday after Pentecost).9. Nor must one forget that the General Roman Calendar does not include all celebrations in honor of the Blessed Virgin. Rather, it is for individual Calendars to include, with fidelity to liturgical norms but with sincere endorsement, the Marian feasts proper to the different local Churches. Lastly, it should be noted that frequent commemorations of the Blessed Virgin are possible through the use of the Saturday Masses of our Lady. This is an ancient and simple commemoration and one that is made very adaptable and varied by the flexibility of the modern Calendar and the number of formulas provided by the Missal."
11." As we examine the texts of the revised Missal we see how the great Marian themes of the Roman prayerbook have been accepted in perfect doctrinal continuity with the past. . . ."12. "The Lectionary is one of the books of the Roman Rite that has greatly benefited from the post-conciliar reform, . . . . The logical consequence has been that the Lectionary contains a larger number of Old and New Testament readings concerning the Blessed Virgin. This numerical increase has not however been based on random choice: only those readings have been accepted which in different ways and degrees can be considered Marian, . . ."
*13. "The Liturgy of the Hours, the revised book of the Office, also contains outstanding examples of devotion to the Mother of the Lord. These are to be found in the hymns -- which include several masterpieces of universal literature, such as Dante's sublime prayer to the Blessed Virgin[34] -- and in the antiphons that complete the daily Office. To these Iyrical invocations there has been added the well-known prayer Sub tuum praesidium, venerable for its antiquity and admirable for its content. Other examples occur in the prayers of intercession at Lauds and Vespers, prayers which frequently express trusting recourse to the Mother of mercy. Finally there are selections from the vast treasury of writings on our Lady composed by authors of the first Christian centuries, of the Middle Ages and of modern times."
14. "The commemoration of the Blessed Virgin occurs often in the Missal, the Lectionary and the Liturgy of the Hours -- the hinges of the liturgical prayer of the Roman Rite. In the other revised liturgical books also expressions of love and suppliant veneration addressed to the Theotokos are not lacking. Thus the Church invokes her, the Mother of grace, before immersing candidates in the saving waters of baptism[35]; the Church invokes her intercession for mothers who, full of gratitude for the gift of motherhood, come to church to express their joy[36]; the Church holds her up as a model to those who follow Christ by embracing the religious life[37] or who receive the Consecration of Virgins.[38] For these people the Church asks Mary's motherly assistance.[39] The Church prays fervently to Mary on behalf of her children who have come to the hour of their death.[40] The Church asks Mary's intercession for those who have closed their eyes to the light of this world and appeared before Christ, the eternal Light[41]; and the Church, through Mary's prayers, invokes comfort upon those who in sorrow mourn with faith the departure of their loved ones.[42]"
25. ". . . From this point of view worship is rightly extended, though in a substantially different way, first and foremost and in a special manner, to the Mother of the Lord and then to the saints, in whom the Church proclaims the Paschal Mystery, for they have suffered with Christ and have been glorified with Him.[68] "
"Certain practices of piety that not long ago seemed suitable for expressing the religious sentiment of individuals and of Christian communities seem today inadequate or unsuitable because they are linked with social and cultural patterns of the past."
"30. Today it is recognized as a general need of Christian piety that every form of worship should have a biblical imprint. The progress made in biblical studies, the increasing dissemination of the Sacred Scriptures, and above all the example of Tradition and the interior action of the Holy Spirit are tending to cause the modern Christian to use the Bible ever increasingly as the basic prayerbook, and to draw from it genuine inspiration and unsurpassable examples. Devotion to the Blessed Virgin cannot be exempt from this general orientation of Christian piety[92];"
32."Because of its ecclesial character, devotion to the Blessed Virgin reflects the preoccupations of the Church herself. Among these especially in our day is her anxiety for the re-establishment of Christian unity. In this way devotion to the Mother of the Lord is in accord with the deep desires and aims of the ecumenical movement, that is, it acquires an ecumenical aspect. This is so for a number of reasons."
"In the first place, in venerating with particular love the glorious Theotokos [Mother of God] and in acclaiming her as the "Hope of Christians,"[94] Catholics unite themselves with their brethren of the Orthodox Churches, in which devotion to the Blessed Virgin finds its expression in a beautiful lyricism and in solid doctrine. Catholics are also united with Anglicans, whose classical theologians have already drawn attention to the sound scriptural basis for devotion to the Mother of our Lord, while those of the present day increasingly underline the importance of Mary's place in the Christian life. Praising God with the very words of the Virgin (cf. Lk. 1:46-55), they are united, too, with their brethren in the Churches of the Reform, where love for the Sacred Scriptures flourishes."
" She is worthy of imitation because she was the first and the most perfect of Christ's disciples. All of this has a permanent and universal exemplary value.""40. We have indicated a number of principles which can help to give fresh vigor to devotion to the Mother of the Lord. It is now up to episcopal conferences, to those in charge of local communities and to the various religious congregations prudently to revise practices and exercises of piety in honor of the Blessed Virgin, and to encourage the creative impulse of those who through genuine religious inspiration or pastoral sensitivity wish to establish new forms of piety. For different reasons we nevertheless feel it is opportune to consider here two practices which are widespread in the West, and with which this Apostolic See has concerned itself on various occasions: the Angelus and the Rosary.
41. What we have to say about the Angelus is meant to be only a simple but earnest exhortation to continue its traditional recitation wherever and whenever possible. The Angelus does not need to be revised, because of its simple structure, its biblical character, its historical origin which links it to the prayer for peace and safety, and its quasi-liturgical rhythm which sanctifies different moments during the day, and because it reminds us of the Paschal Mystery, in which recalling the Incarnation of the Son of God we pray that we may be led "through his passion and cross to the glory of his resurrection."[109] These factors ensure that the Angelus despite the passing of centuries retains an unaltered value and an intact freshness. It is true that certain customs traditionally linked with the recitation of the Angelus have disappeared or can continue only with difficulty in modern life. But these are marginal elements. The value of contemplation on the mystery of the Incarnation of the Word, of the greeting to the Virgin, and of recourse to her merciful intercession remains unchanged. And despite the changed conditions of the times, for the majority of people there remain unaltered the characteristic periods of the day -- morning, noon and evening -- which mark the periods of their activity and constitute an invitation to pause in prayer."
. . .53. . . . "It is fitting...that the family, as a domestic sanctuary of the Church, should not only offer prayers to God in common, but also, according to circumstances, should recite parts of the Liturgy of the Hours, in order to be more intimately linked with the Church."[118]
*54. "But there is no doubt that, after the celebration of the Liturgy of the Hours, the high point which family prayer can reach, the Rosary should be considered as one of the best and most efficacious prayers in common that the Christian family is invited to recite. We like to think, and sincerely hope, that when the family gathering becomes a time of prayer, the Rosary is a frequent and favored manner of praying."
"The Church's devotion to the Blessed Virgin is an intrinsic element of Christian worship. . . ..
Devotion to Mary recalls too her mission and the special position she holds within the People of God, of which she is the preeminent member, . . ."57. "Christ is the only way to the Father . . . But . .. .
The Blessed Virgin's role as Mother leads the People of God to turn with filial confidence to her who is ever ready to listen with a mother's affection and efficacious assistance.[121] Thus the People of God have learned to call on her as the Consoler of the afflicted, the Health of the sick, and the Refuge of sinners, that they may find comfort in tribulation, relief in sickness and liberating strength in guilt. For she, who is free from sin, leads her children to combat sin with energy and resoluteness.[122] This liberation from sin and evil (cf. Mt. 6:13) -- it must be repeated -- is the necessary premise for any renewal of Christian living."
"Devotion to the Mother of the Lord becomes for the faithful an opportunity for growing in divine grace, and this is the ultimate aim of all pastoral activity."
"Contemplated in the episodes of the Gospels and in the reality which she already possesses in the City of God, the Blessed Virgin Mary offers a calm vision and a reassuring word to modern man, torn as he often is between anguish and hope, defeated by the sense of his own limitations and assailed by limitless aspirations, troubled in his mind and divided in his heart, uncertain before the riddle of death, oppressed by loneliness while yearning for fellowship, a prey to boredom and disgust. She shows forth the victory of hope over anguish, of fellowship over solitude, of peace over anxiety, of joy and beauty over boredom and disgust, of eternal visions over earthly ones, of life over death."
"We rejoice that the Lord has given us the opportunity of putting forward some points for reflection in order to renew and confirm esteem for the practice of the rosary.""Dear Brothers, while we express the hope that, thanks to your generous commitment, there will be among the clergy and among the people entrusted to your care a salutary increase of devotion to Mary with undoubted profit for the Church . . ."
"Given in Rome, at Saint Peter's, on the second day of February, the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, in the year 1974, the eleventh of our Pontificate."
Paulus PP. Vl.
http://www.papalencyclicals.net/Paul06/p6marial.htm (emphasis ours)
*"The Liturgy of the Hours (also known as the Divine Office) is the richest single prayer resource of the Christian Church. It provides prayers, psalms and meditation for every hour of every day. It has existed from the earliest times, to fulfil the Lord's command to pray without ceasing. Never monotonous, always new, it provides the means for the whole world, united, to pray together and sanctify every hour of every day of every year. All over the world, hundreds of thousands of priests and religious have vowed to pray the Liturgy daily, and all over the world they do, in public and in private, in tin shacks and cathedrals, in palaces and in prison camps.
But the Liturgy's very richness is also its weakness. The liturgical calendar, the four-week cycle of psalms, the celebrations of saints - all these interact in an intricate dance of prayer that requires some 6,000 pages of small print in 3 or 4 volumes. The complete books (the Breviary) are expensive to buy, heavy to carry, and, except for the really dedicated, complex to use. Thus many people with a busy life in the world are unable to undertake the project of praying the liturgy, and so it remains shamefully unused."
“The purpose of the Divine Office is to sanctify the day and all human activity.”
“The Office is... the prayer not only of the clergy but of the whole People of God.”
-- Apostolic Constitution, Canticum Laudishttp://www.universalis.com/
Liturgy of the Hours
"Two aspects of the Liturgy of the Hours were established very early on: the praying of the Psalms, and the consecration of every hour to God.
Taking this literally meant that prayer of some kind was offered every three hours, day and night, and confined the full implementation of such a liturgy to hermits, enthusiasts, and dedicated religious orders.
At times, their achievements seem to us to be more heroic than spiritual, and this is certainly what we would feel if we went through all 150 psalms every week, or even every day (but that may say more about us than about the people who did this). Human frailty, too, demanded that one sleep more than two and a half hours at a stretch, and so, in various reforms and adjustments through the ages, the schedule has been made rather more human - though even today some of the stricter contemplative orders stay close to the original ideal.
The last batch of reforms, completed in 1970 and revised in 1985, has made the Liturgy of the Hours usable not only by priests and religious but also by lay people who have a living to earn and a life to lead.
Here is the basic structure:
Lauds
Also known as Morning Prayer. It is meant to be said first thing in the morning. There is a hymn, two psalms (or bits of psalms if they are long), an Old Testament canticle (basically a psalm that happens not to be in the Book of Psalms), a short reading, and prayers of intercession. In public celebration, it is possible for Mass to follow straight on from this Hour.
The Little Hours
These are also known as Prayer through the Day: Terce (the third hour in Roman reckoning, or mid-morning), Sext (the sixth hour: noon), and None (pronounced to rhyme with "moan", this is the ninth hour, or mid-afternoon). These hours are short, so as not to be too much of an interruption, but because they still are an interruption, most lay people won't want to bother with them.
Vespers
Also known as Evening Prayer or Evensong. This Hour takes us from the bustle of the day to the calm of evening. There is a hymn, two psalms, a New Testament canticle (usually a hymn from St Paul or a song of triumph from the Apocalypse), a short reading, and prayers of intercession.
Sundays and important feasts are considered to start the night before (like the Jewish Sabbath) and have so-called "First Vespers" on that night: . . ."
Compline
Also known as Night Prayer, and sometimes combined into the public celebration of Vespers. It is the last prayer of the day, and sums up all that went before, as we examine our consciences and offer the actions of the day to God.
The Office of Readings
This is a splendid innovation of the latest reforms. Unlike the other Hours, it can be said at any time of day at all, whenever time and energy and circumstances allow you to pray and meditate. Moreover, it contains more substantial material for meditation, in the form of a solid Bible reading of a chapter or so . . . . Then comes the glory of the whole Liturgy - a second reading, which is not biblical but is taken from the earliest centuries of the Church, or from old homilies whose very authors have been forgotten, or from the writings or biographies of the saints. . . .
The Invitatory Psalm
The Invitatory Psalm acts as a kind of introduction to the entire Divine Office for the day. When you say it therefore depends on which hour you recite first. If you start with Lauds, say it at the beginning of Lauds; if you start with the Office of Readings (which, you will recall, can be recited at any time of the day), then say the invitatory psalm at the beginning of the Office of Readings. If all that you recite in the day is Vespers, then say the invitatory psalm at the beginning of Vespers. This site lets you view versions of Lauds and the Office of Readings both with and without the invitatory psalm.
What has happened to Matins?
Matins was originally the office of Vigils, prayer offered in the middle of the night, but understandable human weakness moved it to the early morning; nevertheless, it retained its character of a night prayer, even being subdivided into between one and three parts called "nocturns". This office was the longest one of the day, containing between nine and eighteen psalms, plus readings from the Old and New Testaments and from the Fathers. While such an office is reasonably suited to religious orders, who can order their day round their prayer, it is less well adapted to people who are living in the world, for whom first thing in the morning may not necessarily be the best time to study and meditate in depth. Accordingly, the latest reforms have transformed Matins into the Office of Readings and removed its specifically nocturnal character. It has, instead, the most meditative psalms and those that narrate the course of salvation history; and it can be said at any hour of the day or night.
What has happened to Prime?
It has been abolished. It was, in any case, a relatively recent innovation, being introduced after the other hours had already been established. The manner of its introduction was this: around the year 382, in one of the monasteries near Bethlehem, a problem arose, because after the night offices (which coresponded to the more modern Matins and Lauds), the monks could retire to rest. The lazier ones then stayed in bed until nine in the morning (the hour of Terce) instead of getting up to do their manual work or spiritual reading. The short office of Prime, inserted a couple of hours before Terce, solved the problem, by calling them together to pray and sending them out to their tasks."
http://www.universalis.com/office.htm#hours (emphasis ours)
----------------------------------------------------
Catholic "Celebrations", "Devotions", "Masses" and "Feasts" in honor of Mary:"The Litany of Loreto"
" . . . the Loreto text was introduced elsewhere, and even reached Rome, when Sixtus V, who had entertained a singular devotion for Loreto, by the Bull "Reddituri" of 11 July, 1587, gave formal approval to it, as to the litany of the Holy Name of Jesus, and recommended preachers everywhere to propagate its use among the faithful."
" At Rome the Litany of Loreto was introduced into the Basilica of S. Maria Maggiore by Cardinal Francesco Toledo in 1597; and Paul V, in 1613, ordered it to be sung in that church, morning and evening, on Saturdays and on vigils and feasts of the Madonna. As a result of this example the Loreto Litany began to be used, and is still largely used, in all the churches of Rome."
The Litany of Loreto:
"Lord, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.
Christ, hear us.
Christ, graciously hear us.
God the Father of heaven, have mercy on us.
God the Son, Redeemer of the world, have mercy on us.
God the Holy Ghost, have mercy on us.
Holy Trinity, one God, have mercy on us.
Holy Mary, pray for us.
Holy Mother of God, pray for us.
Holy Virgin of virgins, pray for us.
Mother of Christ, pray for us.
Mother of divine grace, pray for us.
Mother most pure, pray for us.
Mother most chaste, pray for us.
Mother inviolate, pray for us.
Mother undefiled, pray for us.
Mother most amiable, pray for us.
Mother most admirable, pray for us.
Mother of good counsel, pray for us.
Mother of our Creator, pray for us.
Mother of our Saviour, pray for us.
Virgin most prudent, pray for us.
Virgin most venerable, pray for us.
Virgin most renowned, pray for us.
Virgin most powerful, pray for us.
Virgin most merciful, pray for us.
Virgin most faithful, pray for us.
Mirror of justice, pray for us.
Seat of wisdom, pray for us.
Cause of our joy, pray for us.
Spiritual vessel, pray for us.
Vessel of honor, pray for us.
Singular vessel of devotion, pray for us.
Mystical rose, pray for us.
Tower of David, pray for us.
Tower of ivory, pray for us.
House of gold, pray for us.
Ark of the covenant, pray for us.
Gate of heaven, pray for us.
Morning star, pray for us.
Health of the sick, pray for us.
Refuge of sinners, pray for us.
Comforter of the afflicted, pray for us.
Help of Christians, pray for us.
Queen of angels, pray for us.
Queen of patriarchs, pray for us.
Queen of prophets, pray for us.
Queen of apostles, pray for us.
Queen of martyrs, pray for us.
Queen of confessors, pray for us.
Queen of virgins, pray for us.
Queen of all saints, pray for us.
Queen conceived without original sin, pray for us.
Queen assumed into heaven, pray for us.
Queen of the most holy rosary, pray for us.
Queen of peace, pray for us.
Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world, spare us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world, graciously hear us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world, have mercy on us.
V. Pray for us, O holy Mother of God.
R. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.Let us pray
Grant, we beseech Thee, O Lord God, unto us Thy servants, that we may rejoice in continual health of mind and body; and, by the glorious intercession of Blessed Mary ever Virgin, may be delivered from present sorrow and enjoy eternal gladness. Through Christ Our Lord. Amen."Catholic Information Network
http://www.cin.org/prayers/litany-loreto.html (emphasis ours)
The Totals:
Lines addressing God, Christ, or the "Trinity" 12
Lines addressing Mary by various titles. 51
The closing addresses God by the "intercession" of Mary.
------------------------Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, August 15
"This holy day of obligation follows the tradition of recognizing Mary's death and resurrection. According to legend, when Mary was 73 years old and on her death bed, all the apostles except St. Thomas gathered with Mary as she passed on. When Thomas arrived he asked to see her body but the body was not there for it too had been resurrected.While the apostles watched, a cloud descended over Mary and transported her body to Jerusalem. Meanwhile, the Angel Gabriel took her spirit to Heaven. Both her body and spirit were reunited once again in her tomb in the Valley of Jehoshaphat.
This holiday has been celebrated for many years by Christians. Some believe the date of August 15 was set to coincide with popular pagan harvest festivals of the time. It wasn't for many centuries of popular request, before Pope Pius XII declared Mary's assumption to be dogma or a fundamental belief of Catholics. This declaration occurred on November 1, 1950. "
http://www.holidayorigins.com/html/assumption_of_mary.html
---------------------------------------------
Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary or simply "Lady Day.", March 25
Observed by Catholics, Wiccan
"While the Vernal Equinox occurs around March 20th of each year, the Roman Catholics have named March 25th to be the day of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary or simply "Lady Day." Astronomically, the Vernal Equinox is the day the sun passes the equator in the earth´s ecliptical orbit around the sun. This phenomon results in exactly 12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of darkness and signifies the changeover from darkness to light.To Wiccans, it is a time of conception and new growth.
As with a number of Christian holidays, they were fashioned after Pagan holidays and rituals to convert and unite common people from Pagan worship to Christianity. "
http://www.holidayorigins.com/html/lady_day.html
-----------------------------------------
Candlemas, February 2
Observed by Roman Catholic, Anglican, and Wiccans
"The celebration of Candlemas comes from two separate events including the presentation of the Christ Child in the temple and the purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It is 40 days after the celebration of the birth of Christ which under the Law of Moses was the first time after conception a mother could enter the temple. (Leviticus 12:6-7) When Joseph and Mary entered the temple, both Simeon and Anna recognized the divinity of the Child.Today it is recognized primarily by Roman Catholic and Anglican churches.
To Wiccans, this day is known as Brigantia, Oimelc, Brigid, Brigit, or Imbolc. It marks the end of winter and the beginning of spring--a day when newborn lambs begin to nurse and buried dormant seeds begin to stir within the earth. The pagan Irish called it Brigit after the goddess of smithcraft, healing, and poetry while the Norse and Saxons referred to her as Birgit, the lusty, spring-loving consort of Ullr, the god of winter..
As with a number of Christian holidays, they were fashioned after Pagan holidays and rituals to convert and unite common people from Pagan worship to Christianity."
http://www.holidayorigins.com/html/candlemas.html (emphasis ours)
----------------------------------------------
All Saint´s Day, November 1
"All Saints' Day is first mentioned in the fourth century to honor Christian martyrs. In the early 600's AD, Pope Boniface IV dedicated the Pantheon to the Virgin Mary and to Martyrs thus creating a holiday with the same venue. For several hundred years, All Saints' Day was celebrated on May 13, the day of the Pantheon dedication.In 835 AD, Pope Gregory IV changed the date to November 1 probably for the purpose of Christianizing the superstitious pagan festival of the same time. Unfortunately, today, Halloween, the remnants of the pagan holiday seem to attract more attention even though All Saints Day remains a holy day of obligation for Roman Catholics.
http://www.holidayorigins.com/html/all_saint_s_day.html (emphasis ours)
-----------------------------------------------
Feast of the Immaculate Conception, December 8
"The doctrine of Immaculate Conception was cannonized on December 8, 1854. It declared that Mary, the mother of Jesus was the only person born free from original sin and with no inclination to sin. It was also made [a] Holy Day of Obligation.This feast originated in the seventh century in Palestine and gradually spread through the region. However, the doctrine of Mary's sinless state was not widely accepted by Catholic scholars nor was belief in the doctrine compulsory until the 1854 decree."
http://www.holidayorigins.com/html/immaculate_conception.html
--------------------------------------------------------
Act of Entrustment to the Blessed Virgin Mary, St. Peter's, Rome, Pope John Paul II, October 8, 2000" . . . Christ did not diminish but affirmed anew the role which is his alone as the Saviour of the world. You are the splendour which in no way dims the light of Christ, for you exist in him and through him. Everything in you is fiat: you are the Immaculate One, through you there shines the fullness of grace."
" 4. Therefore, O Mother, like the Apostle John, we wish to take you into our home (cf. Jn 19:27), that we may learn from you to become like your Son. "Woman, behold your son!" Here we stand before you to entrust to your maternal care ourselves, the Church, the entire world. Plead for us with your beloved Son that he may give us in abundance the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of truth which is the fountain of life. Receive the Spirit for us and with us, as happened in the first community gathered round you in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost (cf. Acts 1:14). May the Spirit open our hearts to justice and love, and guide people and nations to mutual understanding and a firm desire for peace. We entrust to you all people, beginning with the weakest: the babies yet unborn, and those born into poverty and suffering, the young in search of meaning, the unemployed, and those suffering hunger and disease. We entrust to you all troubled families, the elderly with no one to help them, and all who are alone and without hope.
5. O Mother, you know the sufferings and hopes of the Church and the world: come to the aid of your children in the daily trials which life brings to each one, and grant that, thanks to the efforts of all, the darkness will not prevail over the light. To you, Dawn of Salvation, we commit our journey through the new Millennium, so that with you as guide all people may know Christ, the light of the world and its only Saviour, who reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit for ever and ever. Amen."
http://www.cin.org/pope/act-entrustment.html (emphasis ours)
-----------------------------------------------
Daily "Masses, Devotions or Celebrations" to Mary
"Further, we must note the almost universal custom of leaving legacies to have a Mary-Mass, or Mass of Our Lady, celebrated daily at a particular altar, as well as to maintain lights to burn continually before a particular statue or shrine."
"Still more interesting were the foundations left by will to have the Salve Regina [see prayers to Mary, below] or other anthems of Our Lady sung after Compline [the last "hour" of daily activity] at the Lady altar, while lights were burned before her statue.
The "salut" common to France in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries formed only after development of this practice, and from these last we have almost certainly derived our comparatively modern devotion of Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament.The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume XV, Copyright © 1912
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/15459a.htm (emphasis ours)
Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament
"One of the most generally popular of Catholic services is Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament, known in France as Salut and in Germany as Segen. It is ordinarily an afternoon or evening devotion and consists in the singing of certain hymns, or litanies, or canticles, before the Blessed Sacrament, which is exposed upon the altar in a monstrance and is surrounded with lights. At the end, the priest, his shoulders enveloped in a humeral veil, takes the monstrance into his hands and with it makes the sign of the cross (hence the name Benediction) in silence over the kneeling congregation. Benediction is often employed as a conclusion to other services, e. g. Vespers, Compline, the Stations of the Cross, etc., but it is also still more generally treated as a rite complete in itself."
"It is easy to recognize in our ordinary Benediction service, the traces of two distinct elements. There is of course in the first place the direct veneration of the Blessed Sacrament, which appears in the exposition, blessing, "Tantum ergo", etc. But besides this we note the almost invariable presence of what at first sight seems an incongruous element, that of the litany of Loreto, or of popular hymns in honor of Our Lady."
The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume II, Copyright © 1907
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/02465b.htm (emphasis ours)
----------------------------------"BLESSED VIRGIN MARY , Annual Feasts"
1 January - Mary, Mother of God [ SOLEMNITY OF MARY, MOTHER OF GOD]
23 January - Espousal of the Virgin Mary
2 February - Purification of Mary
11 February - Our Lady of Lourdes
25 March - Annunciation by Saint Gabriel
25 April - Our Lady of Good Counsel (at Genazzano)
26 April - Our Lady of Good Counsel (elsewhere)
13 May - Our Lady of Fatima
13 May - Our Lady of the Most Blessed Sacrament
24 May - Mary, Help of Christians [Auxilium Christianorum]
31 May - Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces
31 May - Visitation
9 June - Mary, Virgin Mother of Grace
27 June - Our Lady of Perpetual Help
2 July - Visitation by Mary to Saint Elizabeth
16 July - Our Lady of Mount Carmel
17 July - Humility of the Blessed Virgin Mary
2 August - Our Lady of the Angels
5 August - Our Lady of the Snow [ad Nives]
5 August - Our Lady of Copacabana
13 August - Our Lady, Refuge of Sinners
15 August - Assumption into Heaven
21 August - Our Lady of Knock
22 August - Immaculate Heart of Mary
22 August - Queenship of Mary
8 September - Nativity of Mary
8 September - Our Lady of Charity
12 September - Most Holy Name of Mary
15 September - Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows
24 September - Our Lady of Mercy
24 September - Our Lady of Walsingham
1 October - Holy Protection of the Mother of God
7 October - Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary
11 October - Maternity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
16 October - Purity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
21 November - Presentation of Mary at the Temple
8 December - Mary's Immaculate Conception
12 December - Our Lady of Guadalupe
18 December - Expectation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Moveable Feasts:
Our Lady, Queen of the Apostles - Saturday after Ascension
Our Lady, Health of the Sick - Saturday before the last Sunday in August
Our Lady of Consolation - Saturday after the Feast of Saint Augustine (28 August)
Mary, Mother of Divine Providence - Saturday before 3rd Sunday of Novemberhttp://www.catholic-forum.com/saints/saintbvm.htm
Month-long Feasts of Mary:
May --The month of May is consecrated to the Blessed Virgin by special observances.October -- The Rosary is to be recited every day during the month of October, the "month of the Holy Rosary".
The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume XV, Copyright © 1912
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/15459a.htmTotals:
Days 37
Full months 2
Feasts 45
Total days 37 + 31 + 31 = 99The Pope encourges even more days to be devoted to Mary:
" . . . it should be noted that frequent commemorations of the Blessed Virgin are possible through the use of the Saturday Masses of our Lady. This is an ancient and simple commemoration and one that is made very adaptable and varied by the flexibility of the modern Calendar and the number of formulas provided by the Missal."
APOSTOLIC EXHORTATION FOR THE RIGHT ORDERING AND DEVELOPMENT OF DEVOTION TO THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY
MARIALIS CULTUS
OF HIS HOLINESS PAUL VI, FEBRUARY 2, 1974
To All Bishops in Peace and Communion with the Apostolic See
http://www.papalencyclicals.net/Paul06/p6marial.htm (emphasis ours)
-----------------------------------------------------More Feasts of Mary
Pius VII.extended "the feast of the Seven Dolours [sorrows] of Mary (third Sunday in September) to the universal Church, . . . "
The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume XI, Copyright © 1911
"Feasts of the Seven Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin Mary
There are two such days:
Friday before Palm Sunday, major double;
third Sunday in September, double of the second class.""The object of these feasts is the spiritual martyrdom of the Mother of God and her compassion with the sufferings of her Divine Son."
The seven sorrows of Mary:
-at the prophecy of Simeon;
-at the flight into Egypt;
-having lost the Holy Child at Jerusalem;
-meeting Jesus on his way to Calvary;
-standing at the foot of the Cross;
-Jesus being taken from the Cross;
-at the burial of Christ.
The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume XIV, Copyright © 1912
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/14151b.htm
Catholic Feasts to God or Christ
How many Feast days are dedicated by the Catholic Church to God or Christ? It varies according to time, nation and diocese.
"What is a Holy Day of Obligation? - In addition to each Sunday, the universal Church recognizes ten special holy days. Canon Law lists Christmas (Dec 25), Epiphany (Jan 6), the Ascension (40 days after Easter), the Body and Blood of Christ (Thursday after Trinity Sunday), Mary, Mother of God (Jan 1), the Immaculate Conception (Dec 8), the Assumption (Aug 15), St. Joseph (Mar19), the Apostles Peter and Paul (Jun 29) and All Saints (Nov 1). Easter and Pentecost are not mentioned, since they are always on Sunday.
Canon Law permits national bishops' councils to designate days of obligation for the people, and national councils may allow local bishops to choose for their diocese. In the U.S. Epiphany and the Body and Blood of Christ (Corpus Christi) are celebrated on the closest Sunday, and the feasts of St. Joseph and Sts. Peter and Paul are not days of obligation."
http://www.dsj.org/prayer/obligation.htm (emphasis ours)
Catholics rate religious feast days in descending order of importance, as "Solemnity, Feast, or Memorial".
"Feast Days, or Holy Days, are days which are celebrated in commemoration of the sacred mysteries and events recorded in the history of our redemption, in memory of the Virgin Mother of Christ, or of His apostles, martyrs, and saints, by special services and rest from work. . . . [Christ] is born in our hearts at Christmas; on Good Friday we nail ourselves to the cross with Him; at Easter we rise from the tomb of sin; and at Pentecost we receive the gifts of the Holy Ghost. Every religion has its feasts, but none has such a rich and judiciously constructed system of festive seasons as the Catholic Church. The succession of these seasons form the ecclesiastical year, in which the feasts of Our Lord form the ground and framework, the feasts of the Blessed Virgin and the Saints the ornamental tracery."
The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume VI, Copyright © 1909
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06021b.htm
"Within the two classes mentioned the feasts of Christ take the first place, especially those with privileged vigils and octaves (Christmas, Epiphany, Easter, Pentecost, and Corpus Christi); then follow the feasts of the Blessed Virgin, the Holy Angels, St. John the Baptist, St. Joseph, the Apostles and Evangelists, and the other saints."
The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume VI, Copyright © 1909
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06021b.htm
"In the city of Rome the following feasts are of double precept (i.e. hearing Mass, and rest from work): Christmas, New Year's Day, Epiphany, Purification, St. Joseph, Annunciation, Ascension, St. Philip Neri (26 May), Corpus Christi, Nativity of the B.V.M., All Saints, Conception of the B.V.M., St. John the Evangelist."The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume VI, Copyright © 1909
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06021b.htm
[Note: B.V.M. represents Blessed Virgin Mary.]
"Supremi disciplinæ- Motu Proprio of Pius X, promulgated 2 July, 1911, relating to Holy Days of obligation. On Holy Days of precept a twofold duty is incumbent on the faithful, of hearing Mass and of abstaining from servile work. Owing particularly to the high cost of living and to the necessity of caring in due season for crops, fruits, etc., the discipline of the Church has tended to lessen the number of Holy Days in certain countries. Pius X deemed it advisable to extend this policy to the Universal Church, thus effecting greater uniformity. Aside, then, from all Sundays, the obligation of hearing Mass and abstaining from servile work is now confined to eight days: Christmas, New Year's Day or the feast of the Circumcision, Epiphany (6 Jan.), the Ascension of Our Lord, the Immaculate Conception (8 Dec.), the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin (15 Aug.), the feast of Sts. Peter and Paul (29 June), and, finally, the feast of All Saints (1 Nov.)."
The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume XIV, Copyright © 1912
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/14342a.htm (emphasis ours)
U.S. Catholic "Days of Obligation"
National Conference of Catholic Bishops
United States of AmericaDecree of Promulgation
On December 13, 1991 the members of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops of the United States of America made the following general decree concerning holy days of obligation for Latin rite Catholics:
In addition to Sunday, the days to be observed as holy days of obligation in the Latin Rite dioceses of the United States of America, in conformity with canon 1246, are as follows:
January 1, the solemnity of Mary, Mother of God;
Thursday of the Sixth Week of Easter, the solemnity of the Ascension;
August 15, the solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary;
November 1, the solemnity of All Saints;
December 8, the solemnity of the Immaculate Conception;
December 25, the solemnity of the Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ.Whenever January 1, the solemnity of Mary, Mother of God, or August 15, the solemnity of the Assumption, or November 1, the solemnity of All Saints, falls on a Saturday or on a Monday, the precept to attend Mass is abrogated.
This decree of the Conference of Bishops was approved and confirmed by the Apostolic See by a decree of the Congregation for Bishops (Prot. N. 296/84), signed by Bernardin Cardinal Gantin, prefect of the Congregation, and dated July 4, 1992.
As President of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops, I hereby declare that the effective date of this decree for all the Latin rite dioceses of the United States of America will be January 1, 1993, the solemnity of Mary, Mother of God.
Given at the offices of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops in Washington, DC, November 17, 1992.
+ Daniel E. Pilarczyk
Archbishop of Cincinnati
President of the National Conference of Catholic BishopsRobert N. Lynch
General Secretaryhttp://www.nccbuscc.org/liturgy/q&a/general/obligation.htm
The following list was compiled from various Catholic sources:
1. Christmas - The Mass of Christ
2. New Year's Day, "Octave of Christmas" - "Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God"
"When Christmas was fixed on 25 Dec., New Year's Day was sanctified by commemorating on it the Circumcision, . . ." Rated "Solemnity".
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/11019a.htm[Note: Jan. 1st is the seventh day from Dec. 25th. Jewish circumcision is done on the eighth day (Gen. 17:12). It is called the Octave, or Eighth day of Christmas as Catholic tradition is that the year begins on Dec. 25th.]
3. Epiphany, "January 6 observed as a church festival in commemoration of the coming of the Magi as the first manifestation of Christ to the Gentiles . . ." Rated "Solemnity".
http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary
"On the Epiphany, when she celebrates the universal call to salvation, the Church contemplates the Blessed Virgin, . . ." -- Pope Paul VI
http://www.universalis.com/
4. Baptism of our Lord - Sunday after January 6, Rated as "Feast".
http://www.cwo.com/~pentrack/catholic/romcal.html
5. Candlemas - "Also called: Purification of the Blessed Virgin (Greek Hypapante), Feast of the Presentation of Christ in the Temple. Observed 2 February in the Latin Rite." Rated "Feast".
The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume III, Copyright © 1908
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/03245b.htm
6. Annunciation, "March 25 observed as a church festival in commemoration of the announcement of the Incarnation to the Virgin Mary." Rated "Solemnity".
http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary
7. Good Friday - "the Friday on which the Church keeps the anniversary of the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ." Rated "Feast".
8. Easter - "Easter is the principal feast of the ecclesiastical year. Leo I (Sermo xlvii in Exodum) calls it the greatest feast (festum festorum), and says that Christmas is celebrated only in preparation for Easter. It is the centre of the greater part of the ecclesiastical year. The order of Sundays from Septuagesima to the last Sunday after Pentecost, the feast of the Ascension, Pentecost, Corpus Christi, and all other movable feasts, from that of the Prayer of Jesus in the Garden (Tuesday after Septuagesima) to the feast of the Sacred Heart (Friday after the octave of Corpus Christi), depend upon the Easter date."
The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume V, Copyright © 1909
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/05224d.htm[Always on a Sunday, it is a Day of Obligation, so it is not rated.]
9. Ascension - "The fortieth day after Easter Sunday, commemorating the Ascension of Christ into heaven, . . ." Rated "Feast".
The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume I, Copyright © 1907
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01767b.htm
10. Pentecost (Whitsunday)A feast of the universal Church which commemorates the Descent of the Holy Ghost upon the Apostles, fifty days after the Resurrection of Christ, on the ancient Jewish festival called the "feast of weeks" or Pentecost (Exodus 34:22; Deuteronomy 16:10). Whitsunday is so called from the white garments which were worn by those who were baptised during the vigil; Pentecost ("Pfingsten" in German), is the Greek for "the fiftieth" (day after Easter).
The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume XV, Copyright © 1912
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/15614b.htm
[Always on a Sunday, it is a Day of Obligation, so it is not rated.]
11. Holy Trinity, Trinity Sunday - First Sunday after Pentecost. Rated "Solemnity".
The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume XV, Copyright © 1912
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/15058a.htm
12. Sacred Heart of Mary - Friday following Second Sunday after Pentecost. Rated "Solemnity".
http://www.cwo.com/~pentrack/catholic/romcal.htmlAlso called "Immaculate Heart of Mary".
13. Maundy Thursday, or Feast of Corpus Christi, (Feast of the Body of Christ) "This feast is celebrated in the Latin Church on the Thursday after Trinity Sunday to solemnly commemorate the institution of the Holy Eucharist." Rated "Solemnity".
The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume IV, Copyright © 1908
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/04390b.htm
14. Feast of the Transfiguration of Christ - Observed on August 6 to commemorate the manifestation of the Divine glory recorded by St. Matthew (Chapter 17). Rated "Feast".
15. Feast of Christ the King - Last Sunday in *"Ordinary Time". Rated "Solemnity".
*"Seasons of the Liturgical Year - The seasons of the liturgical year begin with Advent, a time of preparation for the Christmas season. The Christmas season celebrates the birth of Jesus (on December 25) and continues until the Baptism of Our Lord. This is followed by the first of two periods of Ordinary Time, which continues until Ash Wednesday. Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of the season of Lent, a time of penitence leading to the Paschal Triduum after the Lord's Supper on Holy Thursday. The Triduum is the three days before Easter. Easter Sunday marks the start of the Easter season, which continues as a time of celebration until Pentecost Sunday. Pentecost Sunday marks the start of the second period of Ordinary Time, which continues until the Advent season begins again."
http://www.easterbrooks.com/personal/calendar/rules.html
16. Palm Sunday - "The sixth and last Sunday of Lent and beginning of Holy Week, a Sunday of the highest rank"
The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume XI, Copyright © 1911
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/11432b.htm
17. Ash Wednesday - "The Wednesday after Quinquagesima Sunday, which is the first day of the Lenten fast."
The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume I, Copyright © 1907
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01775b.htm
So, according to Catholic sources, how many "holy days, feasts, memorials, days of obligation, or days of solemnity" are dedicated to God and Christ? It varies according to definition, nation, diocese, and period of history. The most we can see at the present time is 12 but three of those give equal emphasis to Mary and two others are primarily about Mary, leaving 7 dedicated to Christ.
The American list is actually shorter, with two days for Christ: Easter, and the Nativity (Christmas) in which Mary has a prominent role.
Total Feast Days:
Christ 1 (based on U.S. list, above. Otherwise, up to 8)
Christ and Mary 1
Mary 100
---------------------------------
Prayers to Mary
Act of Consecration to Mary
Akathist Hymn in Honor of the Mother of God, The
Aspirations to Mary St Alphonsus Liguori
Canticle of Mary (the Magnificat)
Chaplet of the Seven Sorrows of Mary
...of Entrustment to the Virgin Mary
Hail, Holy Queen
Hail Mary
Hail Thou Star of Ocean
...in Honor of the Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin Mary
...of Our Lady of all Nations
...to Immaculate Mary - Blessed Father Annibale Di Francia
Immaculate Queen of Peace
Kondakion
...to Mary, Mother of Grace Saint Athanasius
...to Mary, Queen of Apostles Saint Pallotti
...to Mary, Queen of Heaven
Marian Prayer for the Easter Season
Memorare Saint Bernard
...to Our Lady Saint Bernard
...to Our Lady, Health of the Sick
...to Our Lady Immaculate
...to Our Lady, Mother of Mercy St Augustine of Hippo
...to Our Lady of Lourdes
...to Our Lady of Perpetual Help
...to Our Lady of Sorrows
...to Our Mother of Perpetual Help I
...to Our Mother of Perpetual Help II
...to Our Mother of Perpetual Help III
...to the Sorrowful Mother for the Church and the Pontiff
Salve Regina
Stabar Mater Dolorosa
Feast of Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary I
Feast of Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary II
Feast of Mary, Mother of God - I
Feast of Mary, Mother of God - II
Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe,
Litany of Our Lady of Lourdes,
Litany of Our Lady of Seven Sorrows,
Litany of the Blessed Virgin Mary,
http://www.catholic-forum.com/saints/saintbvm.htm
Daily Prayers to Mary
The "Rosary" (see above) -- Recited once a day.
"The Angelus" -- Recited three times a day.
The Angelus is traditionally recited morning (6:00 a.m.), noon and evening (6:00 p.m.) throughout the year except during Paschal time, when the Regina Coeli is recited instead.V. The Angel of the Lord declared unto Mary.
R. And she conceived of the Holy Spirit.
Hail Mary, etc.V. Behold the handmaid of the Lord.
R. Be it done unto me according to thy word.
Hail Mary, etc.V. And the Word was made Flesh.
R. And dwelt among us.
Hail Mary, etc.V. Pray for us, O holy Mother of God.
R. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.LET US PRAY
Pour forth, we beseech Thee, O Lord, Thy grace into our hearts, that we to whom the Incarnation of Christ Thy Son was made known by the message of an angel, may by His Passion and Cross be brought to the glory of His Resurrection. Through the same Christ Our Lord. Amen.
http://www.geocities.com/Vienna/2983/Angelus.html
----------------------------------------------
Titles
Titles used for the Blessed Virgin Mary [325 titles]A few of her "325" titles:
Bride of the Father
Conceived Without Original Sin *[implying a virgin or divine birth?]
Co-Redemptrix
Deliverer From All Wrath
Deliverer of Christian Nations
Destroyer of Heresies
Fountain of Living Water
Inventrix of Grace
Life-Giver to Posterity
Mary, Mother of God
Mary, Queen of Peace
Mediatrix
Mediatrix and Conciliatrix
Mediatrix of All Graces
Mediatrix of Salvation
Mediatrix of the Mediator
Morning Star
Mother of Divine Grace
Mother of God
Mother of Jesus Christ
My Body's Healing
My Soul's Saving
Nourisher of God and Man
Only Bridge of God to Men
Our Lady, Gate of Heaven
Our Lady Mediatrix of All Grace
Refuge in Time of Danger
Refuge of Sinners
Reparatrix
Reparatrix of Her Parents
Reparatrix of the Lord World
Victor Over the Serpent
Virgin Most Powerful
Wedded to God
Woman Clothed With the SunTheotokos **(Gk., lit. "God-bearer", used by Catholics to mean "Mother of God")
Another 290 titles can be found at:
http://www.catholic-forum.com/saints/mary0000.htm
* "It is regrettable that the immaculate conception, not to be confused with the virginal birth of the Saviour, is a concept of the Mother of God which the Roman Church assumed in 1854 and with which the Orthodox Church is in total disagreement. This concept holds that Mary was born without the stain of original sin brought upon all mankind by Adam and Eve. But the Orthodox position holds that since Jesus Christ is God, he is, therefore the only one who is without the original stain. The point could be argued endlessly; but in spite of dogmatic differences, there is no lessening in the adoration of Mary as the Mother of God. There can be no doubt that she was made pure on the day of the Annunciation when told by Gabriel she was going to be the Virgin Mother of the Messiah. The Orthodox position stems from the concept that if the immaculate conception is taken literally, then Mary would assume the stature of goddess alongside God. The popularity of the name of Mary attests to the glorification of the Virgin Mary. The Greek Orthodox can feel exultation from calling out the name "Panagia" which means 'All-Holy' and is the Greek word for the most sacred figure in Christianity, aside from the Son she mothered."
The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia
http://home.it.net.au/~jgrapsas/pages/Nativity.html** "The name "THEOTOKOS" means God-Bearer, and is derived from the Greek words "Theos," meaning God, and "Tokos," bearer. The Council of Ephesus in 431 settled a dispute where the Patriarch of Constantinople, Nestorius, held that the Blessed Virgin Mary was the Mother of Christ but not the Mother of God. The Council bishops held that Tradition had always referred to Our Lady as "Theotokos", and thus defined Mary as the Mother of God."
http://www.homebusinesslink.com/mary.html
--------------------------------
Special Catholic Organizations Devoted To Mary
"Another manifestation of great importance, which also like the last followed close after the Council of Trent, was the institution of sodalities of the Blessed Virgin, particularly in houses of education, a movement mainly promoted by the influence and example of the Society of Jesus [Jesuits], whose members did so much, by the consecration of studies and other similar devices, to place the work of education under the patronage of Mary, the Queen of Purity."
The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume XV, Copyright © 1912
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/15459a.htm (emphasis ours)Sodality
"The sodalities of the Church are pious associations and are included among the confraternities and archconfraternities. It would not be possible to give a definition making a clear distinction between the sodalities and other confraternities; consequently the development and history of the sodalities are the same as those of the religious confraternities."
"These sodalities aim at making genuine Christians of their members by a profound devotion to, and childlike love of, the Blessed Virgin; the members are not merely to strive to perfect themselves, but are also, as far as their social position permits, to seek the salvation and perfection of others and to defend the Church of Jesus Christ against the attacks of godless men (cf. tit. I, reg. 1)."
The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume XIV, Copyright © 1912
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/14120a.htm (emphasis ours)
"A confraternity or sodality is a voluntary association of the faithful, established and guided by competent ecclesiastical authority for the promotion of special works of Christian charity or piety. The name is sometimes applied to pious unions . . . , but the latter differ from confraternities inasmuch as they need not be canonically erected and they regard rather the good of the neighbour than the personal sanctification of the members. Confraternities are divided into those properly so called and those to which the name has been extended. Both are erected by canonical authority, but the former have a more precise organization, with rights and duties regulated by ecclesiastical law, and their members often wear a peculiar costume and recite the Office in common. When a confraternity has received the authority to aggregate to itself sodalities erected in other localities and to communicate its advantages to them, it is called an archconfraternity."
"Indulgences are communicated to confraternities either directly by the pope or through the bishops, . . ."
The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume IV, Copyright © 1908
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/04223a.htm
Archconfraternity
"A confraternity empowered to aggregate or affiliate other confraternities of the same nature, and to impart to them its indulgences and privileges."
"Some of the more widely known the archconfraternities are those of the Holy Name, the Blessed Sacrament, the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the Precious Blood, the Holy Face, the Holy Rosary, Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Sodality of the Blessed Heart of Mary for the Conversion of Sinners, the Cord of St. Francis, Christian Doctrine, Bona Mors, Christian Mothers."
The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume I, Copyright © 1907
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01692a.htm (emphasis ours)Some of the better known archconfraternities of Mary:
Vox Populi Mariae Mediatrici - Catholic Organization that is obtaining signatures to petition the Holy Father to define as dogma that the Virgin Mary is Mediatrix of All Grace, Co-Redemptrix and Advocate. Site contains many articles, including various theological texts that have been prepared to support the teachings.
The Blue Army of Our Lady of Fatima
Crusade of Mary Immaculate
Fatima Family Apostolate
Fraternity of Mary
Gospa Missions
Immaculate Heart of Mary Ministries
The Legion Of Mary
The Marian Movement of Priests
The Marian Servants of Divine Providence
The Mary Foundation
Missionary Image of Our Lady of Guadalupe
Perpetual Help Confraternity
Rosary Confraternity - A worldwide fraternity of people who promise to say the Rosary every day.
The Saint Michael Center for the Blessed Virgin Mary
The Sodality of the Children of Mary - Organization for young children.