Dedicated To Mary
“God wills that all his gifts should come to us through Mary.” ~ St. Bernard
There are two months dedicated to the memory of the Blessed Virgin Mary: May and October. As we begin the month of May today, our Church is turning to the Blessed Virgin Mary in a special way in the midst of this COVID-19 pandemic.
Archbishop Jose Gomez of Los Angeles and President of the USCCB will be offering a prayer of consecration to the Blessed Virgin Mary on behalf of the whole nation this afternoon. The consecration is offered by “U.S. and Canadian Catholic Bishops to Seek Intercession of Mary, Mother of the Church, for Strength in Struggle Against COVID-19.”
Bishop McClory will be leading this prayer in the Cathedral at the same hour (2:00 pm) as Archbishop Gomez will lead this prayer. The Renewal of the Consecration of the United States of America to the Blessed Virgin Mary will be broadcast on all diocesan platforms. The diocesan website is www.dcgary.org.
St. Bernard might sound a bit histrionic claiming that “God wills that all his gifts should come to us through Mary.” Yet, if you think about it, they do. After all, God’s greatest gift, one that could never be topped, was the gift of His Son, Jesus. And He came to us, literally, through Mary.
Mary did not understand what the angel Gabriel was asking of her. She made that quite clear. However, she also made it quite clear that she was the handmaid of the Lord and that, if God wanted anything of her, God was going to have it. So she said yes.
We might not understand everything that is going on right now in the midst of this pandemic. Hopefully, we all feel the same way as Mary did: we are God’s servants. We might not understand; but, we place our trust and hope in Him, through the intercession of our beloved Mother, Mary.
FAITH ACTION: Pray the prayer of dedication along with the Church in the United States
Mary, Mother of the Church,
you are enthroned as queen at your Son’s right hand:
we ask your intercession for the needs of our country,
that every desire for good may be blessed and strengthened,
that faith may be revived and nourished,
hope sustained and enlightened,
charity awakened and animated;
guide us, we pray, along the path of holiness.
Mary our Mother,
bring everyone under your protection
and entrust everyone to your beloved Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.