The month of May in our Catholic tradition is dedicated to our Blessed Mother. This year on the first day of Mary’s month, in response to the coronavirus pandemic that we are facing, the President of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Archbishop Jose Gomez, conducted a service of re-consecration of our country to the Mother of God, praying for her protection on our nation. That evening, to unite our diocese with this Act of Re-consecration I prayed the Rosary with Kelly Moleski, her daughter Anna, parishioners of Incarnation Parish, Mantua, and Andres Arango, director of our Office of Evangelization and Hispanic Ministry. It was live streamed so others could pray along with us, which they did, and intercede with Our Lady on behalf of our suffering nation. Since May 1st fell on a Friday we prayed the sorrowful mysteries of the Rosary.Something spiritually comforting was experienced as we sat in the living room of my Residence around an image of the Blessed Mother holding the Infant Jesus which was a gift I received from my alma mater, Mount Saint Michael Academy, a Marist Brothers High School. The Marists are a religious congregation of men dedicated to Mary and to the Christian education of the young. When I was an impressionable teenager, that image of Mary tenderly holding the Infant Jesus was held out to us boys by the Brothers as a way to Jesus.
Pope Saint John Paul II wrote, “Mary always reminds us of the salvific value of the work of Jesus, our only Savior. Belief in Jesus Christ cannot dispense us from including her who was His mother in our act of faith.” Bringing Mary into our lives, into our homes, and into our faith was impressed on me by the Marists during my teenage years. How lucky I was; really, how blessed I was to learn about the maternal and personal love of the Mother of God for me. Over the years, on many occasions and in a variety of situations, I have called on Her for help and assistance and through Mary have experienced the love of Her Son, Jesus, our Lord.
Our Holy Father Pope Francis encourages us to approach Mary during this pandemic. He wrote, “It is traditional in this month to pray the Rosary at home. The restrictions of the pandemic have made us come to appreciate all the more this ‘family’ aspect from a spiritual point of view. For this reason, I want to encourage everyone to rediscover the beauty of praying the rosary at home in the month of May.”
In this time of great suffering when we are prevented from gathering in our churches, I invite the faithful of our diocese to pray the Rosary in your home, either as a family or individually, asking and even pleading with our Holy Mother to help us. Those who have children should teach them the prayers and how to pray the Rosary. It is so very sad that frequently children come for religious education programs and they do not know basic Catholic prayers. I learned my prayers at home. That is a principal duty of the domestic church and not of a parish catechist.
The Marist Brothers taught me about Mary’s maternal love for her Son and for me. She is Mother of God and my Mother. United in prayer to Our Holy Mother, she will as Pope Francis wrote “help us overcome this time of trouble.” During these days of isolation, sickness and worry, may we experience the closeness of the Lord Jesus through the maternal love of Mary.
At the conclusion of the Rosary all pray, “meditating on the mysteries of the most holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary may we imitate what they contain and obtain what they promise.” So be it for us. Amen. May the most holy Mother of God pray for us and lead us to Jesus.