“THOUSAND REASONS TO BE DEVOTED TO MARY”

My dear friends,

Here we are in the middle of the month of May, a month which has always been dedicated to Our Lady, a month in which we prepare ourselves in every part of the world to celebrate the great feast of Mary Help of Christians.

Don Bosco in ‘THE MONTH OF MAY CONSECRATED TO MARY IMMACULATE’ reminds us that "It is true that there is no kingdom, no city, no town or house in which, if there is not an altar, there is not at least an image or statue of Mary as a sign of graces and favours received. However, the month of May is consecrated to Mary in a special way" and again in the same text, Don Bosco emphasises "there are countless reasons for all of us to be devoted to Mary. I will begin by mentioning the three main ones which are as follows: Mary is holier than all creatures, Mary is the mother of God, Mary is our mother".

The month of May is a special time, when there are many opportunities to revive our popular devotion, to intensify our prayer, to bring our requests to Jesus through Mary and to sing our praises for the benefits we obtain in our lives, especially in our spiritual lives.

There are certainly many means offered to us: praying the Rosary, participating in the sacraments, novenas and processions. Everything is offered to us, never as an external gesture but always as a means of rediscovering true devotion to and love for Mary.

St. Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort in his Treatise on 'True Devotion to Mary' guides us in this direction, telling us that "True devotion to Mary is interior; that is, it starts from the mind and the heart; it comes from the high esteem one has for her greatness and the love one has for her... True devotion to Mary is tender, that is, it is full of trust in the Holy Virgin, like the trust that a child has in his/her mother...true devotion to Mary is holy, that is, it leads the soul to avoid sin and to imitate the Virgin's virtues...true devotion to the Virgin is constant: it strengthens the soul in goodness and encourages it not to easily abandon the practices of piety...finally, true devotion to Mary is selfless: it moves the soul not to seek itself but God alone in his holy Mother."

In the tenderness of Mary who embraces and guides our Association in the world, I wish you all a holy Marian month!

Renato Valera, Presidente

ADMA Valdocco

Alejandro Guevara, Animatore Spirituale

ADMA Valdocco