Bulletins

November 3, 2013

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November has barely started and I am already thinking about next month, about December 8 to be precise. To prepare for the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, I invite you to undertake the 33-day period of spiritual exercises of St. Louis-Marie de Montfort leading to the Total Consecration to Jesus through Mary, a devotion that helped to shape the spiritual life of soon-to-be Pope Saint John Paul II. From it he took his motto "Totus Tuus", which means "All Yours".

St. Louis de Montfort breaks the 33 days into sections, each section having its own prayers and each particular day having its own brief readings, usually taken from Sacred Scripture, The Imitation of Christ or True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary.

First comes a twelve-day preparation period that consists of emptying oneself of the spirit of the world in penance and mortification. Then follow three weeks, each week having a specific focus. The first week focuses on offering up our prayers and devotions for the purpose of coming to understand ourselves and our sins. During the second week, we ask the Holy Ghost to help us better understand the Blessed Virgin. During the third week, we seek to better understand Christ.

Like making my annual retreat (which will be November 17-22, by the way) and rereading the Introduction to the Devout Life, the renewal of the Total Consecration to Jesus through Mary has been a staple of my life. The Consecration is no small thing but should be understood as a vow. There are lots of resources online to help us understand and undertake this great consecration. The website "Fisheaters" probably offers the best and easiest:

http://www.fisheaters.com/totalconsecrationmontfort.html

It contains all the prayers and all the readings, including the text of True Devotion to Mary by St. Louis de Montfort. Fr. Thompson and I will be leading those prayers at the beginning of Wednesday's Holy Hours.

In addition to the daily prayers and readings, you might find helpful the meditations contained in 33 Days to Morning Glory, a work by one of our recent speakers, Fr. Michael Gaitley, MIC, who wrote his book as an alternative method of preparing for the same Total Consecration.

Yours in Christ through Mary,

Fr. Christopher J. Pollard