In an encyclical, Pope Paul IV encourages Catholics "in their churches and their homes, to offer the Virgin Mother more fervent and loving acts of homage and veneration" during the month of May (Mense Maio, 1965).
In honor of the pope's call, the following prayers, field trips, and even garden ideas bring the Blessed Virgin Mary alive this May for the whole family.
Why May is Mary's Month
Catholics have celebrated May as Mary's month since the 13th century, when the Church gave the pagan festival of May Day a Christian meaning by associating it with the Blessed Virgin.
The new life of spring in early May reflects the new life of Jesus which Mary bore. Since then, May is traditionally the month when Catholics celebrate the life and ministry of Our Lady, Mary, Mother of God.
Honor Virgin Mary's Month in the Home
Invite the Virgin Mary into the daily life of family and friends this May with an addition to the fridge, home, or garden.
- Create a shrine to the Virgin Mary in one's home, with Mary statues, crosses, or other religious items of significance. Create a makeshift altar area where family members can either light small candles in honor of Mary or write down their prayers to her and lay them before her.
- Start a Mary garden, either outside or in pots. Encourage children and other family members to select flowers of special meaning to Mary. Medieval Catholics believed all flowers and trees that bloomed in May honored Mary. Flowers, over time associated with Our Lady, include marigolds (Mary's gold), lilies, roses, violets (Our Lady's Modesty), columbine (Our Lady's Shoes), mint (Our Lady's Herb), Lily of the Valley (Our Lady's Tears) and many others.
- Find a statue or plaque of Our Lady to make an already existing outdoor garden a Mary Garden. Invite children and other family members to decorate the statue with flowers, and offer group prayers to the Virgin Mary.
- Encourage children to draw pictures of Mary and how she serves the church and the world. Display pictures prominently in the home; they can also be scanned into the computer and made into cards or postcards that children can send to family, friends, and the parish priests and staff in honor of Mary.
Honor Mary's Month with Prayer
The Vatican encourages several Mary prayers for May including:
- Reciting the rosary;
- Medals, blessed objects that symbolize a veneration for Mary and act as physical reminders of Mary's love;
- The Regina Coeli, or Queen of Heaven, an Easter prayer that rejoices in God's gift through Mary, and;
- The Litanies of the Blessed Virgin Mary, repeated prayers that tell of Mary's relationship with God and the world. These prayers work well said slowly as a meditation or with a small group.
Other prayer ideas invite Mary into one's daily life more deeply. Consider the following:
- Set aside a special time or times a day to offer devotions to Mary.
- Take time to research the many ways Mary has appeared to the world since Biblical times – Lourdes, Guadalupe, and others;
- Re-read the Gospels to see how God works through the Blessed Virgin to glorify all creation, and;
- Give up a bad habit, such as yelling at other drivers or eating sweets, and substitute Hail Mary's until the desire goes away.
Honor the Blessed Virgin Mary's Month with Field Trips
Celebrate Mary in the world with a field trip in her honor.
- Visit a local monastic community that accepts visitors, take a tour, attend mass with the religious, and look for signs of Mary in the monastery. Spend some time in the chapel, grotto, or other holy place praying to Mary or enjoying her in silence.
- Enjoy a local park or state park and look for flowers and other signs of spring that honor Mary.
- Take children to a local florist shop or botanical garden and enjoy some of the flowers that bloom in honor of Mary.
This May, spend some time praying, landscaping, or enjoying nature with Mary to enhance faith and nurture a deeper relationship with the Blessed Virgin Mary.
To learn more about why Mary is important to Catholics, one might enjoy Feast of the Assumption: Meaning and Purpose. Those interested in a new way to pray with a classic Mary prayer may also enjoy the Hail Mary Guided Meditation.
Sources:
Directory on Popular Piety and the Liturgy. Vatican, 2001. Available online through the Vatican's website.
Mary's Gardens, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1995.
"Mense Maio," Encyclical of Pope Paul VI, "On Prayers During May For Preservation of Peace, April 29, 1965." Available online through the Vatican's website.
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