Blogs
In the News: July 5, 2016
By Michael Duricy
Read recent items about Mary in both Catholic and secular news. Also see International Marian Research Institute news and updates.
Marian Library/International Marian Research Institute Features
Updates
IMRI Professor, Father David Fleming, S.M., is celebrating the sixtieth anniversary of his profession as a Marianist. He will teach Marianist Topics at the International Marian Research Institute in Dayton, Ohio from July 11-15, 2016. Here are a few comments that he shared for the occasion:
"I grew up in the heartland of America, but somehow (surely by a wonderful education and maybe by grace), I also felt attracted to cultural diversity. Over the years, I have enjoyed meeting and working closely with people of varies ages, backgrounds, and experiences, and I sometimes have felt challenged, but always enriched by them. Increasingly, I have experienced my work as one of bridge-building: between different cultures, languages and continents, and also between different generations, within the Marianist family in its broadest dimensions--religious and lay."
Along similar lines, Brother John Samaha, S.M., informed us that The Valley Catholic mentioned the anniversaries and birthdays of several Marianists from the San Jose area. Click here to view this issue (June 21, 2016).
Mary in Media: Books, Films, Music, etc.
A very comprehensive book on the rosary is now available! Endorsed by the Master General of the Dominicans, four cardinals, and more than thirty bishops, Champions of the Rosary: The History and Heroes of a Spiritual Weapon is the perfect book for the upcoming centennial anniversary of the Fatima apparitions.
Order today at www.fathercalloway.com/books or by calling the Marian Helpers Center in Stockbridge, MA (1-800-462-7426).
From the Marian Treasure Chest
Brother John M. Samaha, S.M., sent us the text below with the following comment: "Longfellow's tribute to Mary and the USA"
The Blessed Mary's Land by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow [An excerpt from Christus: A Mystery]
This is indeed the blessed Mary's land,
Virgin and mother of our dear redeemer!
All hearts are touched and softened at her name,
Alike the bandit with the bloody hand,
The priest, the prince, the scholar, and the peasant,
The man of deeds, the visionary dreamer,
Pay homage to her as one ever present!
And even as children, who have much offended
A too indulgent father, in great shame,
Penitent, and yet not daring unattended
To go into His presence at the gate
Speak with their sister, and confiding wait
Till she goes in before and intercedes;
So men, repenting of their evil deeds,
And yet not venturing rashly to draw near
With their requests an angry father's ear,
Offer to her their prayers and their confession,
And she for them in heaven makes intercession.
And if our faith had given us nothing more
Than this example of all womanhood,
So patient, peaceful, loyal, loving, pure,
This were enough to prove it higher and truer
Than all the creeds the world had known before.
Marian Events
The Ecumenical Society of the Blessed Virgin Mary USA August 2016 Conference on Mary in Scripture
Date: August 4-6, 2016
Location: Mount St. Mary College in Newburgh, NY
Come and join us for three full days of thought-provoking, scholarly presentations and lively dialogue!
This year's presenters include Dr. Mary Frances McKenna, Chair of the Dublin branch of the Ecumenical Society of the Blessed Virgin Mary, as well as scholars from Oxford, Cambridge, the International Marian Research Institute, St. Tikon's Orthodox Theological Seminary, and Mount St. Mary College. A special panel of local clergy from Reformation traditions and a performance by the choir of Christ Lutheran Church round out the program.
For more information and to register, email esbvmeditor@hotmail.com.
(Please write "2016 Conference" in the subject line.) Registration deadline is July 15, 2016.
The Ecumenical Society of the Blessed Virgin Mary USA (ESBVM USA) exists to advance the study of Mary, the Mother of Christ, in Christian biblical and spiritual perspectives, and in the light of such study, to promote ecumenical interchange and prayer. Its aim is to show that in Mary, Christians of many traditions may find a focus in their search for unity.
Keynote speaker, Dr. Adam DeVille, is associate professor and chairman of the Department of Theology at the University of Saint Francis in Fort Wayne, IN. His long list of publications includes Orthodoxy and the Roman Papacy: Ut Unum Sint and the Prospects of East-West Unity. Dr. DeVille's keynote address will shed light on the ecumenically controversial topic, "East-West Agreement on the Ecclesiological and Ecumenical Impact of the Dogmatic Definition of the Immaculate Conception."
N.B. Father Sebastien Abalodo, S.M. and Michael Duricy will travel from the International Marian Research Institute in Dayton, Ohio to make presentations at this conference.
TOPMary in the Catholic Press
French Martyr Moves Closer to Sainthood from Zenit May 10, 2016
Yesterday afternoon, Pope Francis received Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, Cardinal Angelo Amato. During the audience, he authorized the promulgation of decrees concerning the following causes, including that of French martyr, Father Solomon Leclercq. In the late nineteenth century, when religious orders were outlawed during the French Revolution, the priest went into hiding. During the September Massacres of 1792, he was martyred, along with nearly two-hundred others.
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MIRACLES
– Blessed Ludovico Pavoni, Italian priest, founder of the Congregation of the Sons of Mary Immaculate, known as the ‘Pavoniani,’ which is committed to the human and Christian education of children, especially needy boys, with the goal of teaching them useful professions (1784-1849)
-Blessed Solomon Leclercq (born William-Nicholas-Louis), of the Brothers of the Christian Schools, Martyr (1745 – 1792)
HEROIC VIRTUES
– Servant of God Raffaele Emanuele Almansa Riaño, diocesan priest, formerly professed of the Order of Friars Minor (1840-1927). In the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, the late priest ministered in Colombia.
Click here to read the complete article.
Mary in the Secular Press
The director and editors of All About Mary under the auspices of the International Marian Research Institute do not necessarily endorse or agree with the events and ideas expressed in this feature. Our sole purpose is to report on items about Mary gleaned from a myriad of papers representing the secular press.
Conference at Mount Saint Francis will Examine Marian Devotion (Colorado Catholic Herald) May 6, 2016
This year, the Mariological Society of America (MSA) will hold its 67th Annual Conference at the Franciscan Retreat Center in Colorado Springs from May 17-20. The conference theme, "Devotion to the Heart of Mary: Theological Foundations," is in anticipation of next year's centennial.
"As the Church prepares to celebrate the 100-year anniversary of the apparitions of Our Lady to three children in Fatima, Portugal, in 1917, the conference will be an important moment to deepen our reflection on the Marian devotion that is central to the message of Fatima," said Holy Cross Father, James Phalan. Father Phalan serves as executive councilor of the Mariological Society, which is an academic society that promotes theological reflection on the role of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Christian theology.
Most of the talks given at the conference will examine popular devotions to the heart of Mary, such as the devotions from Fatima, from a theological standpoint. For example, one talk will examine the teachings of St. Louis De Montfort, a French priest who popularized consecration to Mary in his book "True Devotion to Mary." Another talk looks specifically at the messages given to St. Margaret Mary and also at Fatima regarding Eucharistic Reparation to the hearts of Jesus and Mary. On May 19 at 4:30 p.m., local authors Dr. John and Rebecca Jackson will speak on the apparitions of Mary in Zeitoun, Egypt....
Click here to read the complete article.