Find some great resources to help you get started, along with two prayers from Maximilian Kolbe that you can pray as a family.
During the past century, several Popes practiced consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary such as Saint Pius XII and Saint John Paul II. Even a few years ago, Pope Francis consecrated the entire world to this devotion. Before the crowd gathered at St. Peter’s for the consecration, he explained that Mary “takes us by the hand, like a mother, in the shelter of the Father, the Father of mercy.”
The consecration to the Blessed Mother reminds us of the close connection that Mary has with Jesus and how she treasured everything she saw “in her heart” (cf. Luke 2, 19 and 51).
Mary and Jesus, always together
Pope Benedict XVI reflected on this profound mystery during the feast of the Sacred Heart of Mary , when he said:
“The heart that most resembles that of Christ is, without a doubt, the heart of Mary, his immaculate Mother, and precisely for this reason the liturgy proposes them together for our veneration.”
Marian consecration is an external manifestation that expresses our inner desire to follow God’s will and unite our hearts with His.
Preparation
33 Days to a glorious dawn . This book written by Father Michael Gaitley will guide you through five-minute readings to prepare your heart for consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Based on the writings of Saint Louis de Montfort and is simplified so that everyone can participate.
True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin and Preparation for Total Consecration . Saint Louis Mary de Montfort is considered the main promoter of what he calls “Total Consecration to Jesus through Mary.”
This is the traditional approach used by many others since the saint’s death. These works include numerous prayers, litanies and readings necessary for the preparation of the Total Consecration.
Consecration.com (English). A website prepared by the Militia of the Immaculate , an international association of faithful erected by the Holy See; It is a great resource for total consecration to Mary Immaculate, the central axis of the spirituality of Saint Maximilian Kolbe.
Prayers of Consecration
After having prepared yourself and your family for the consecration. Here are some sentences you could use. Optionally, in front of an image of Mary.
Family consecration to Mary following the spirit of Saint Maximilian Kolbe
Oh Immaculate, Queen of Heaven and Earth,our life, sweetness and hope, on this day we, the family (family surnames), come before you to consecrate ourselves as your possession and property.We praise God for having brought us together to give ourselves to you, our Mother,because we trust in the words of Jesus on the Cross. “Behold your Mother!”
We need you, Mary, Mother of God,to help us be a true Catholic family.Be part of our family life.Repeat to us the words you spoke in Cana: “Do whatever He tells you.”
Help us to ignore the faults of others,to forgive as Jesus forgave usand to love our neighbors as Our Lord asked us to love.
Please use our family to crush the snake’s head.Ask your Husband, Saint Joseph, Protector of the universal Church,to keep us in heart and mind together with the Vicar of your Son, Pope __________.Today you become Queen of our hearts and our home.May our home be a “City of the Immaculate”,where the Sacred Heart of Jesus reigns forever.Amen.
Consecration to Mary Immaculate of Saint Maximilian Kolbe
Oh Immaculate, Queen of Heaven and earth,refuge of sinners and our most loving Mother,to whom God entrusted the economy of mercy.I…… unworthy sinner, I prostrate myself before you,begging you to accept my entire being as your thing and possession.
To you, oh Mother, I offer all the difficulties of my soul and my body,all life, death and eternity.Also, if you wish, use my entire being, without any reservation,to fulfill what has been said about you:”She will crush your head” and “You have defeated all the heresies in the world.”In your most pure and merciful hands,make me a useful instrument to introduce and increase your gloryin so many lukewarm and indifferent souls, and in this way,increase as much as possible the blessed Kingdom of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
Where you enter, oh Immaculate, you obtain the grace of conversion and sanctification,since all grace that flows from the Heart of Jesus to usreaches us through your hands.
Help me to praise you, oh Holy Virginand give me strength against your enemies.