Consecration to Mary
Our Mother
With reference to the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Second Vatican Council expresses itself in these words: "She conceived, brought forth and nourished Christ. She presented Him to the Father in the temple, and was united with Him by compassion as He died on the Cross. In this singular way she cooperated by her obedience, faith, hope and burning charity in the work of the Savior in giving back supernatural life to souls. Wherefore she is our mother in the order of grace."
Without adding or detracting from the singular mediation of Christ Jesus, the Blessed Virgin Mary is acknowledged and invoked in the Church under the titles of Advocate, Helper, Benefactress, and Mediatrix. She is the model of maternal love who must inspire all those who cooperate—through the apostolic mission of the Church—in the regeneration of all humanity (cfr. LG 65).
In light of these teachings, which belong to the ecclesiology of the Second Vatican Council, the faithful are called to turn their eyes to Mary—shining example of every virtue —and imitate her as the first disciple. It is she to whom every other disciple was entrusted by Christ as she stood at the foot of the cross (cfr. Jn 19:25-27). By becoming her children, we learn the true meaning of life in Christ. -Congregation for Clergy
"The Immaculate alone has the promise of victory over Satan. She seeks souls that would consecrate themselves entirely to her, that would become in her hands forceful instruments for the defeat of Satan and the spread of the Kingdom of God". -St. Maximilian Kolbe
"The consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary is practiced essentially by a life of grace, of purity, of prayer, of penance that is joined to the fulfillment of all the duties of a Christian, and of reparation for our sins and the sins of the world". John Paul II
The importance of living our consecration to Mary
Lourdes Pinto, adapted from her letter to families.
During these times of great spiritual battle we must understand the importance of LIVING OUR CONSECRATION. During the past few months I have read two books by Fr. Kosicki, The Spirit And The Bride Say, “Come!” and Spiritual Warfare Attack Against The Woman. These two books have given me a deeper understanding of the importance of consecrating ourselves and families to Mary, and living out our consecration.
God is calling us to holiness and I firmly believe that God has a special plan for our families. But it will require each of us to RESPOND FULLY.
Fr. Kosicki writes, “We believe that consecration to Mary is an essential step toward the sovereign act needed to bring about the new Pentecost. This step of consecration is a needed preparation for Calvary where in a corporate way we will experience the crucifixion as did Jesus, our Head. The Cross is the source of the power both of resurrection and Pentecost. From Calvary we will move to the Cenacle where, as the Bride in union with the Spirit, ‘together with Mary, the Mother of Jesus, and guided by blessed Peter’ we will pray, ‘Come Lord Jesus!’” (TSBSC p.xiv)
I believe that we are each being formed and purified by our Blessed Mother to participate in the triumph of her Immaculate Heart and in helping save many souls. Fr. Kosicki explains, “What Mary is experiencing now as ‘redemptrix- with’ the Lord Jesus is a foretaste of what the whole Church is to experience. The Church is to be the effective sign (sacrament) of salvation to the whole world. What Mary is experiencing now as mother and model is the fulfillment and reality of what is in store for all of us! This ‘saving role’ now exercised by Mary is to be the role of the Church in the world. The Church, like Jesus, the Head, is to ascend Calvary and shed its blood in union with him for the salvation of the world. Mary’s role as mother is to prepare us for this ‘yes’ on Calvary.” (TSBSC p. 45)
“And further, we fulfill the command of the Lord to us on the Cross, ‘There is your mother’ as we take her as our own (Jn. 19:27). This is the scriptural foundation for consecration to Mary, and we allow Mary to fulfill the command Jesus gave to her, that is, to form us as sons (Jn. 19:26). By entrusting our lives to her we unite our ‘yes’ with her ‘yes’ of Nazareth and of Calvary. By entrusting our lives to her we draw down the Spirit and make possible the new Pentecost.” (TSBSC p. 70)
Fr. Kosicki in his book, Spiritual Warfare, explains in detail the devil’s all-out-warfare against this age and gives us the armour needed to withstand the evil pushing in on us. God has chosen Mary to defeat Satan. Through our consecration, Mary wants to make us immaculate like her. St. Paul in his letter to the Ephesians 5:27 writes, “…that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.” Mary wants to equip us with the weapons of humility and purity to defeat Satan. God reveals Himself to the pure and simple of heart; how important are these virtues for our growth in holiness. Fr. Kosicki elaborates this point for us by saying, “She will teach us and bring us to her sinlessness, her holiness and will prepare us for the victorious battle of the Cross- even as she prepared Jesus! She will bring us to His docility to the will of the Father, to His humility, to His obedience, to His forgiveness and to His love which transformed suffering into salvation. We need to enroll ourselves in her school of holiness by entrusting our lives to her by consecration. By consecration, we allow Mary to fulfill the Lord’s plans both for her and for us.” (SW p.17)
Our families and our community must be marked by LOVE, but not just any kind of love, the love revealed to us by Jesus and Mary on the Cross. A concern is often raised concerning the amount of activities that we have. We can NEVER become just a community of great activities, but rather, a community anchored in love of God and love of neighbor! We must live our consecration by helping each other carry our crosses and by allowing our Mother to lead us through the passage of Calvary as she did her Son. This is the ONLY passage that leads to Heaven and to sainthood. We must be a community of SAINTS FORMING SAINTS!!
I would like to end my letter with Jesus’ words to Conchita on the kind of love He desires: “Give Me a love like this, give Me souls who love Me in suffering, who find their joy on the Cross. My Heart thirsts for such a love, an unselfish love, an expiatory, crucified love, a sound love such as it may be said no longer exists on earth. Yet it is the only true love, the love which saves, purifies, and the love I require through My commandments. All other apparent loves do not satisfy Me; all other love is vain, artificial, often culpable, save the love which I have just shown you.” (Diary p. 154)
My love is crucified,
Lourdes