May devotion to Mary, the emissary of our Lord to mankind

As early as the 16th century the stand of the Philippine Roman Catholic Church was to accept the doctrine of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary as an article of faith even while it was still permissible to question Anne’s sinless conception of Mary. In 1578 Pope Gregory XIII endorsed the building of the Manila Cathedral consecrated to the “Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary”. After Pope Paul V declared that the doctrine was no longer open to question or public rebuttal, the first national celebration of the feast of Immaculate Conception was held in the Philippines in 1619 on December 8, the first day of the 15-day event during which were held at the Manila Cathedral such as choral concerts, masquerades, drama and carnivals. Fireworks and pealing of church bells set off the revelry.

In 1760 Pope Clement XIII authorized the celebration of the feast having proclaimed Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception “the principal patroness of Spain and the Indies.” In 1854 Pope Pius IX defined the dogma of the Immaculate Conception.

Mary’s mother, Anne, was childless for 20 years

 The Blessed Trinity planned to train a Chosen People to serve and worship God in a religion taught them by the prophets. Of this Chosen People of Israel, among the faithful who served the Lord in humility and detachment from the world were St. Joachim and St. Anne. St. Anne was born of a rich family in Sephoris, Nazareth. The pious Joachim was 43 years old when he married 24-year-old Anne. Of every harvest each year, they would give a third to the church, a third to the poor and keep the remainder for themselves.

To purify them, they were given a cross — that of remaining childless for 20 years. This was considered the greatest misfortune and a social disgrace. They bore this burden patiently and continued to pray for a child, vowing to place the child after three years in Temple for the service of God.

In the “The Life of Mary as Seen by the Mystics,” Elizabeth of Schoenau (1127-1164) noted the Angel Gabriel saying to Anne, “The Lord has heard thy petition. If He delays their fulfillment, it is in order to prepare thee and to give much more than thou asketh.” And Mary was conceived immaculately when Anne was overshadowed by the Holy Spirit.

Mary’s fiat

The child Mary lived under the guidance of the Priest Simeon and the Priestess Ana until the age of 13 1/2 when Mary was commanded by divine authority to marry. The good man Joseph whom God found worthy was born of a well-off family. He and his five brothers had an elderly tutor. He was often at prayer and performed manual work. Both Mary and Joseph made their vows of chastity even before their espousal.

Mary’s Fiat or submission to God’s will shows her, from the moment of the Nativity and the rest of the Lord’s 33 years on earth, adoring her Son with the greatest reverence and respect, while closely working with Him and the apostles. She offered herself to share the pains and sorrows of His passion and crucifixion, earning for her the title of “Co-redemptrix.” After His resurrection, she chose to stay and continue to help the new Church for another 15 years.

Blessed Mother teaches us to pray

Through her messenger, Annie Kirkwood of Texas, Blessed Mother states in the book Mary’s Message to the World. “I have asked that all people pray, but I realize that you on Earth do not always understand prayer. You think of it as pleading or begging. Prayer is many ways to communicate with the Creator God. I will give you some of the ways you should pray.”

I. “Understand that the very act of desiring closeness with God the Father is the very best prayer.... true prayer is communion with Father God. It is as essential to your well being as air or water. Every person on earth calls on a higher power to help, in times of extreme anxiety. Often, you are not even aware of this distress call because it comes from deep within your being.”

II. “All people talk to themselves. The chatter within your mind and heart is prayer when you link it to God.” (An example would be, “Oh Lord, I goofed again. Forgive me.... What a wonderful opportunity. Thank you Lord.... Lord, I am so confused....”)

III. Cleansing our “inner self” is needed to pray effectively. One’s cleansing is done by removing bad thoughts about others. “Cleanse from your heart and mind in any feeling of envy, jealousy, anger, unforgiving, prejudice and such hard emotions. These emotions deplete your energy and your life. I speak of inner life.” If you worry instead of pray, then be aware that worry becomes your prayer. By worrying, you are actually praying for the very thing you are worrying over.”

IV. “Gratitude is prayer. When you enter a mental or emotional state of gratitude, you are asking of God. As the Provider, God replenishes your life with what you are. When you think of a person and are grateful for the friendship, know that this is a prayer for the friend and for the friendship. When you are happy and grateful for some item or condition in your life, this is prayer.”

Filipinos Must Return To Prayers To Achieve Unity

The constant message of Blessed Mother to Filipinos in the “Trinity of Shrines’ is that there is lack of unity, largely due to the urgent need for inner transformation. We may think that we are religious because churches are always filled up on Sundays. Sad to say, that it is usually “pakitang tao” or a mere show. Most of us lack the sense of God’s intimate and constant presence. Thus Mother Mary assures us that this spiritual transformation is possible - with prayers.