Corpus Christi is Consecrated to Jesus through Mary!

06-05-2016Weekly ReflectionFr. Chad King

On Tuesday, May 31st the Church celebrated the Visitation of Mary (and Jesus) to Elizabeth (and John). Along with members of the parish staff, pastoral council, and Morning Glory prayer group, I consecrated our parish to Jesus through Mary. We used Fr. Gaitley's 33 Days to Morning Glory, a do-it-yourself retreat in preparation for Marian Consecration. If you have never personally consecrated yourselves to Jesus through Mary, then I strongly encourage you to do so, especially in solidarity as a member of the parish. 33 Days to Morning Glory is a great means to do so. In it, Fr. Gaitley calls upon the Marian insights in the hea r ts of Saints Louis de Montfort (through whom consecration became popular), Maximillian Kolbe, Mother Theresa, and Pope John Paul II. Each one of these people had a special devotion to Mary. Is it any wonder they are all Saints?! After all, as Fr. Gaitley quotes St. Louis de Montfort, "Total Consecration to Jesus through Mary is the surest, easiest, shortest, and most perfect means to becoming a Saint."

Mary was the first and the only perfect disciple and follower of our Lord. As we are all on our journey to becoming better disciples of our Lord, we can ask for Mary's guidance and intercession. We prayed that every parishioner, and everyone who comes through our Church doors, will become disciples and follow our Lord more and more completely in their (our) lives. May she teach us to say "Yes!" to doing the will of God in our lives so that, as disciples we may, as Jesus commands, "Go and make disciples of all nations," starting with our families and neighbors.

On Tuesday we prayed that, through the Holy Spirit, we may rejoice and leap for joy at the coming of our Lord through Mary, just as John the Baptist leapt in Elizabeth's womb when he heard Mary's greeting with Jesus in her womb. We can proclaim with Elizabeth, "how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?" What a gift that Mary comes to us as well. What a gift it is that God, not only planned all along for Mary to be the mother of His Son, but also that she would become the Spiritual Mother of the Church and all who, as Christians, bear His name. As Jesus upon the Cross gave His mother to John, and to all disciples thereafter, may we "take her into our homes," (our hearts and lives).

We also prayed that Mary, who gives birth to Corpus Christi—the Body of Christ—as Mother of the Eucharist, would conform this parish of Corpus Christi and make us into the Corpus Christi we are meant to be.

Finally, take a moment and reflect on what God did through Mary in the Person of Jesus Christ for the salvation of all the world. May this parish of Corpus Christi also be conceived in a new way by the Power of the Holy Spirit and be nourished and grow within Mary's motherly care. Through her, may we be born to be an instrument of Salvation for all the world, beginning with our families and neighbors. AMEN!