Blogs
Mary in the News: March 8, 2021
By Michael Duricy
Marian Library and International Marian Research Institute Features
Updates
Marian Consecration
Dr. Gloria Dodd provided the information immediately below.
"Here is a playlist of Father Christopher Roberts' series of videos that are entitled True Devotion to Mary from Day 1-35 although it's really the Preparation for Total Consecration. The videos are basically 3-5 minutes each."
On a related note, she also mentioned a "new composition for English version of Ave Maris Stella for St. Louis de Montfort's 33-day preparation."
Mary in Media: Books, Films, Music, etc.
Marian Book for Lent
Sophia Institute Press published A Lenten Journey with Mother Mary, a book written by Father Edward Looney, a member of the Administrative Board of the Mariological Society of America (MSA). I am using this daily devotional myself during this Lenten season and can offer my personal recommendation.
Other books by Father Looney include: A Heart Like Mary's (Ave Maria Press); A Rosary Litany (Our Sunday Visitor); and Our Lady of Good Help: A Prayer Book for Pilgrims (Tan Books). He also hosts the podcast, How They Love Mary. You may follow him on social media: @FrEdwardLooney.
Marian Events
Title: Marian Forum
Theme: Annunciation and Contemporary Challenges
Date: March 25, 2021
Time: 12:30-4:30 p.m. Eastern time (USA)
Location: Online
University Libraries and the College of Arts and Sciences will co-host a Marian Forum March 25 that will explore the theme Annunciation and Contemporary Challenges: Be Not Afraid (Luke 1:30). Presenters will explore connections between the scriptural story of the Angel Gabriel announcing to Mary that she would be the mother of God's son, and contemporary challenges of racism, immigration, and the pandemic.
- 2:30 p.m.: Livestream of Mass for the Solemnity of the Annunciation
- 2-3 p.m.: "The Annunciation and Contemporary Injustices" (Father Sebastien Abalodo, S.M.; Corinne Daprano; Miranda Cady Hallett)
- 3-3:30 p.m.: 3 o'clock prayer, followed by music and art presentation
- 3:30-4:30 p.m.: "The Annunciation and the Pandemic" (Roger Crum; Mary Connor; Fred Tenover)
Mary in the Catholic Press
Pope Francis will Bless this Virgin Mary Statue Desecrated by Islamic State [Catholic News Agency] March 4, 2021
Iraqi Catholics have asked Pope Francis to bless a statue of the Virgin Mary that was desecrated by the Islamic State.
The Marian statue was decapitated in the Christian village of Karamles, between Mosul and Erbil, during the Islamic State's occupation of the villages in the Nineveh Plains from 2014 to 2017.
Father Samir Sheer, director of Radio Mariam in Erbil, told the Italian news agency SIR that the statue remains "without hands because they were cut off by the terrorists." ...
Mary in the Secular Press
The Year of Saint Joseph (Catholic Telegraph), March 1, 2021
In March 2020, the world as we knew it came to a stop with little time to prepare. However, through faith, initial fear turned into action and acceptance of how we must change going forward. Such fear and anxiety surely gripped St. Joseph when God called him to take Mary as his wife and the world as he knew it came to a stop. Through his strong faith, St. Joseph overcame his fear and accepted what was to be, taking on the role to protect his young family from the dark times ahead.
And, so it is fitting Pope Francis has called upon St. Joseph to be our role model, guide, counselor, and intercessor during our own dark times. The pope declared the Year of St. Joseph from December 8, 2020 through December 8, 2021.
"In his Apostolic Letter Patris corde, the Holy Father explains that this proclamation was motivated by two reasons," said Archbishop Dennis M. Schnurr. "First of all, it is a celebration of the 150th anniversary of the proclamation of St. Joseph as the Patron of the Universal Church by Blessed Pope Pius IX in 1870.
Secondly, Pope Francis hopes that St. Joseph may serve as an inspiration and guide to all of us as we undergo the crisis of the ongoing pandemic. He writes, "Each of us can discover in Joseph--the man who goes unnoticed, a daily, discreet and hidden presence--an intercessor, a support, and a guide in times of trouble. St. Joseph reminds us that those who appear hidden or in the shadows can play an incomparable role in the history of salvation." ...