Dear Parishioners,

August is the month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. She is Immaculate because from the first moment of conception she is without any stain of Original Sin. Other than Our Lord Jesus, she is the only person born the way God intended her to be. Because of this unique grace, she was able to live out her vocation to the fullest as the Mother of God. When we look to Mary, we can more easily see what all our own faults are, like how we only notice if something is off-white when it is next to something that is white. This realization should not bring, despair though, since to look at her is to see the goodness of God, the God who came to redeem us.

A great Catholic writer, St. Louis de Montfort, encouraged his readers to become consecrated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. By being consecrated, one is brought to union with the Immaculate heart, to recognize one’s dependence on Jesus and Mary and recognize that we should be obedient to Jesus and Mary with the fullest generosity. This form of a consecration is supported by many saints including St. Maximilian Kolbe. If one is interested in being consecrated, then he or she should read St. Louis de Montfort’s True Devotion to Mary and follow the instructions there. It involves prayers over a 40 day period which should conclude on a Marian feast day where one prays the consecration prayer and goes to confession.

Another aspect of devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary is the First Saturday devotions in reparation for sins. The Church even offers a plenary indulgence for those who offer such devotions. In it, we recognize our own sinfulness and the need to do penance for ourselves, our society and everyone in the world.

None of these devotions take away anything from the glory of God. In fact, they enhance it be cause Mary constantly points to Jesus with her whole being and everything that she does. Growing closer to Mary allows us to love her Son even more because she loves Him, more than any other human being. Some non-Catholic Christians have a certain concern about devotions to Mary because they think that we are replacing God. While this can be a concern since we would not want to violate the commandment against false worship, when one actually looks at Marian devotions, it’s perfectly obvious we are not worshiping her. So, pray to the Blessed Virgin this month that she may lead us to Christ.

God bless!

Father Carter