Lourdes On August 22, we honour the Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This liturgical feast was instituted by Pope Pius XII on October 11, 1954. That year marked a centenary of proclamation of the dogma of the Immaculate Conception. As the Holy Father stated: “We do not wish to propose a new truth to be believed by Christians, since the title and the arguments on which Mary's queenly dignity is based have already been clearly set forth, and are to be found in ancient documents of the Church and in the books of the sacred liturgy.” As the Church honours the Queen of heaven and earth she also professes that Mary is Queen because her Son, Jesus Christ is King. It is noteworthy that the Pope linked this new feast day to Mary’s Immaculate Conception. Our Lady doesn’t need a promotion but her life exemplified perfectly the message of Jesus’ Kingship. Jesus is the King who came to serve not to be served and in the life of his sinless Mother we can see an example of service offered to God and to the human race. Her whole life was the life of service, that’s why she can be called Queen as she reflected the way Jesus exercised his Kingship.
From the early days of Christian Faith there has been a strong believe that Mary is Queen. St Efrem in the 3rd century wrote: “Majestic and Heavenly Maid, Lady, Queen, protect and keep me under your wing lest Satan the sower of destruction glory over me, lest my wicked foe be victorious against me.”
St. Alphonsus Ligouri, after researching ancient traditions of the Church wrote: "Because the vVirgin 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 honoured her with the title of 'Queen'.
From the 11th century Catholics have been singing Salve Regina (Hail Holy Queen) while Regina Coeli (Queen of Heaven) was introduced in the 12th century.
This belief has been also expressed in the tradition of crowning some images of Our Lady. In 732, Pope Gregory III offered a golden crown for an image of Mary in Rome. St John Paul II just before his death blessed the crowns for Our Lady of Czestochowa in Poland as his gratitude for Mary’s protection.
In the same encyclical letter Ad Caeli Reginam Pius XII also wrote: “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.”
I would like to share with you the consecration prayer St John Paul II prayed in 1984 in front of the Statue of Our Lady of Fatima brought for the occasion to Rome:
“O Mother of all men and women, and of all peoples, you who know all their sufferings and their hopes, you who have a mother's awareness of all the struggles between good and evil, between light and darkness, which afflict the modern world, accept the cry which we, moved by the Holy Spirit, address directly to your Heart. Embrace with the love of the Mother and Handmaid of the Lord, this human world of ours, which we entrust and consecrate to you, for we are full of concern for the earthly and eternal destiny of individuals and peoples. In a special way we entrust and consecrate to you those individuals and nations which particularly need to be thus entrusted and consecrated. ‘We have recourse to your protection, holy Mother of God!' Despise not our petitions in our necessities."
From the early days of Christian Faith there has been a strong believe that Mary is Queen. St Efrem in the 3rd century wrote: “Majestic and Heavenly Maid, Lady, Queen, protect and keep me under your wing lest Satan the sower of destruction glory over me, lest my wicked foe be victorious against me.”
St. Alphonsus Ligouri, after researching ancient traditions of the Church wrote: "Because the vVirgin 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 honoured her with the title of 'Queen'.
From the 11th century Catholics have been singing Salve Regina (Hail Holy Queen) while Regina Coeli (Queen of Heaven) was introduced in the 12th century.
This belief has been also expressed in the tradition of crowning some images of Our Lady. In 732, Pope Gregory III offered a golden crown for an image of Mary in Rome. St John Paul II just before his death blessed the crowns for Our Lady of Czestochowa in Poland as his gratitude for Mary’s protection.
In the same encyclical letter Ad Caeli Reginam Pius XII also wrote: “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.”
I would like to share with you the consecration prayer St John Paul II prayed in 1984 in front of the Statue of Our Lady of Fatima brought for the occasion to Rome:
“O Mother of all men and women, and of all peoples, you who know all their sufferings and their hopes, you who have a mother's awareness of all the struggles between good and evil, between light and darkness, which afflict the modern world, accept the cry which we, moved by the Holy Spirit, address directly to your Heart. Embrace with the love of the Mother and Handmaid of the Lord, this human world of ours, which we entrust and consecrate to you, for we are full of concern for the earthly and eternal destiny of individuals and peoples. In a special way we entrust and consecrate to you those individuals and nations which particularly need to be thus entrusted and consecrated. ‘We have recourse to your protection, holy Mother of God!' Despise not our petitions in our necessities."
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