Lesson 23: Renewal of our Baptismal Promises and Consecration to Mary
1. What does it mean to renew our baptismal promises?
We renew our baptismal promises by renouncing sin and Satan, and by professing our faith in the Holy Trinity, and renewing our commitment to follow Christ.
2. What is the best way to renew our baptismal promises?
The best way to renew our baptismal promises is through consecration to Mary.
3. What is consecration to Mary?
When we consecrate ourselves to Mary we give her all that we are (our body and our soul) and all that we have (our material and spiritual goods, our life, death, and eternity) without reserve. We beg of her to take over.
- Why do we give Mary everything?
- Mary purifies all the actions, thoughts, and words of our lives. All that we do, enve when we do the best we can, is stained. Mary makes it immaculate She then offers in to Jesus.
- This gives God the greatest glory possible.
- This is the shortest, surest, and most perfect way of becoming holy, in other words of becoming an image of Jesus, and someone who is deeply united to Jesus.
- This is the best possible way of helping to save and sanctify our neighbor. Mary uses us as her instruments. We do not know what she is doing. But we allow her to use all of our sufferings, works, and prayers for what she knows to be most important.
- When we get to heaven, we will have no merits, because we will have given everything to her. She will then clothe us in her merit.
The following is a comparison. There was once a man who had spent years begging. In his years of begging he had acquired thousands of seeds in a huge bag. He was dressed in ragas. One day in the distance he saw the beautiful carriage of the Queen approaching. He realized that this was his lucky dy. When the carriage approached, it stopped. The carriage opened and the Queen reached her hand out. Instead of giving something to him, she held out her hand, as if begging. At that moment he began to feel stingy. HE had spent years collecting those thousands of seeds. HE reached into his bag, and he gave her just one withered seed. She took the seed, and closed the door of the carriage. After a short pause, the carriage opened again, and she held out her hand. In her hand was the seed he had given her. It had turned into a diamond. HE took the diamond and the carriage went off. As the carriage was moving down the road, he thought, “If only I had given her everything.” When we give all to Mary, she does marvelous things with our life. She will never be outdone in generosity.
5. How in practice do we live out our consecration to Mary?
Living out our consecration to Mary, like the Christian life itself is a process. We have to keep growing. The following practices though will help us to keep growing in it.
- Make the act of consecration to mary every morning, and try to renew it throughout the day. We can do so by merely telling Mary, “I am all yurs and all I have is yours.” “This activity is all yours Mary. “ “Mary, what do you want me to say, or do?” “Mary, take over completely!” “Mary, lead me and guide me!” – and similar statements.
- Say the rosary every day, reflecting on how Mary lived.
- Read things about Mary that will increase your trsut and love for her like: Tur Devotion to Mary, The Secret of Mary, the Secret of the Rosary, all by St. Louis de Montfort; or the life and writings of St Maximilian Kolbe; or stories of Our Blessed Mother’s apparitions at Fatima and Lourdes; or the story of Our Lady of Guadalupe; or the Brown Scapular.
- Before beginning an action, renounce your own habits and patterns of doing things, and reflect on how Mary would do it; then seek to imitate her. For instance, how would Mary receive Holy Communion? How would Mary deal with her parents? Reflect on how she would do things, and then imitate her.
- Wear a miraculous medal or brown scapular. She is always praying for us when we wear these with love and confidence.
- When you begin to do these things, you will start to be inspired to prya more, go to Mass and Confession more, and to live a better life. Obey these inspirations. Don’t waste them. They are great graces.
True Devotion to Mary by St Louis de Montfort (1673-1716)
This book speaks about consecration to Mary. It has become a spiritual classic. St. Louis de Montfort himself realized the tremendous importance of this little work. Because of the great good that it would do he predicted that the devil would cause the book to be “hidden in the darkness and silence of a chest and so prevent it from seeing the light of day.” This prediction was fulfilled. The book was not discovered until 1842, well over a century later, having been hidden in a chest because of the French Revolution. Since its discovery it has been translated into many languages and gone through many editions. It has been praised by many Popes and theologians, and has inspired and spiritually formed many saints and holy Catholics.
John Paul II (Pope from 1978-2005)
Before entering the seminary John Paul II, then Karol Woytyla, read True Devotion to Mary by ST Louis de Montfort. He said that before reading that book he had been a little afraid that ary might e an obstacle between him and Jesus. It was in reading that book that he learned that Mary, far from being an obstacle, brings us even coser to Jesus. On the cross, Jesus gave Mary to all those who want to get coser to Him. He told St John and each of us: “Behold your mother.” (John 19:26) When he became Pope his papal emblem was inspired by St Louis de Montfort. The emblem has a Cross, with the M (for Mary) below it, and his motto is “Totus Tuus.” (Mary, I am totally yours.) On October 8, 2000 he enrusted the whole world and the third millennium of the Christian era to her material care. He has invited the whole world, and each of us to consecrate ourselves to Mary, so that she can lead us to Jesus.
The Venerable Maria Teresa Quevedo (1930-1950)
Teresita did a retreat at the age of 11. Her resolution that was later found I her notebook from that retreat was, “I have decided to become a saint.” At the age of 13 she consecrated herself to Our Lady using the formula composed by St Louis de Montfort. Her motto became, “Mother, may all who look at me see you.” Like St Therese of Lisieux her short life was filled with little things. She did those little things with grat love for Our Lady. She was elected the captiain of her basketball team, which won the school championship in 1947. She was a good dancer and enjoyed doing most of the things that normal SPnish girl did at that time; nonetheless she always fought toavoid sin and practice virtue. Tennis was Teresita’s favorite game. In her senior year she was expected to win the championship. After the game Teresita returned home with such an expression of joy that her mother was convicnec that she had won. Theresita said, “If you consider one who has a spirutal victory a champion, then you have your champ, but not a tennis cham.” Before the game Teresita was worried that the victory migt make her pround. Teresita entrusted the game to Our Ldy, and asked for whatever result would please Jesus. Then she played her best but she came in second >On the way hom,e Teresita stopped at the church to tell Our Lady that he understood the decision.
There at the church she found aholy card, which said, “Love makes all things easy. “In early 1947, with the consent ofher confessor, she entered the Carmelites of Charity. Throughout her formation she triend hard to overcome her smallest faults for Our Layd and Our Lord. The other sisters know her for her spirto of praye rand charity. In May of 1949 she developed a bronchial disorder, which caused her to suffer much. She accepted her sufferings with much patience and love. She offered everything to Our Blessed Mother. She predicted that she was not going to be much longer in this orld, and that ave her much joy. Whne asked why she was in such a hurry to get to Heaven, she stated: “In Heaven, nothing will separate me from Jesus and Mary. Besides, I am of very little use here, but from Heaven you will see how busy I shall be.” Right before her death she suddenly smiled and looked up, saying, “How beautiful, O Mary, how beautiful you are.”
St Maximillian Kolbe (1894-1941)
St Maximilian Kolbe was not content with being consecrated to the Immaculata (his special name for Mary). He wanted the whole world to be consecrated to her – and that “as soon as possible.” He was convicned that no one who belonged to the Immaculata would ever be lost, since all the graces of the Sacread Heart of Jeuss come to us through her hands. And thus he wanted e eryone in the world tobelong to her, He founded a spiritual movement called the MI (Militia of the Immaculata) that would promote this ideal. Those who belong to this movement (the Knights of the Immaculata) are consecrated to the Immaculata totally and without reserve. They offer themselves to her, so that she might use them as her instruments to crush the head of the serpent, overcome heresies, and draw other people to love her, so that through her Jesus might come to reign in their hearts. Total consecation to her is the essence of being a member of the MI. Those thus consecrated then wear a miraculous medal as an exterior sign of their consecration. By the end of his life there were over a million members of the MI. He ended his life as a martyr for charity, giving his life so that another man could live, while in the Nazi prison camp in Auschwitz during the Second World War.
