The month of May is a special one for Catholics as we honour The Blessed Virgin Mary, mother of our God and Lord, Jesus Christ.
Many people still have the tradition of erecting a May Altar in the hallway or front window-sill of their home. Other prefer to receive the Rosary either individually, or as a family. It is lovely when people from a locality come together to offer the rosary in Church or at a cemetary.
The Church has – from the very beginning – had a devotion to Our Lady, and the Irish Church often has gone ‘the extra mile’ in honouring Mary. One of the great organisations to spring from this was the Legion Of Mary, which formed in 1921.
For this year, we are offering a nine-day Novena to our Lady of the Miraculous Medal. It will happen at the evening Masses during May, in the parishes of Monasterboice & Togher;
- Friday 3rd (Tenure @ 7pm) or at the weekend Masses
- Monday 6th (Togher @ 7pm)
- Friday 10th (Tenure @ 7pm)
- Monday 13th (Togher @ 7pm)
- Friday 17th (Tenure @ 7pm)
- Monday 20th (Togher @ 7pm)
- Friday 24th (Tenure @ 7pm)
- Monday 27th (Togher @ 7pm)
- Friday 31st (Tenure @ 7pm)
At these Masses the Novena Prayers will be recited and medals will be blessed and distributed (€2 for a Novena book and medal).
The Novena began following the appeared of The Blessed Virgin to a Sister of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul in Paris. On July 18, 1830, Sister Catherine Laboure was awakened by a young angelic child standing at the end of her bed calling for her to come, “The Blessed Virgin is waiting for you” he said.
Sister Catherine followed the boy to the Chapel where she knelt at the altar rail and waited. She heard the rustling of material before she saw the Blessed Mother come and sit in the priest’s chair. Sister Catherine ran to her and, resting her hands on the knees of Mary, listened for hours as she was instructed about how to act in times of trials that she would soon encounter.
On November 27, 1830, while in the chapel in meditation with other sisters, Sister Catherine again heard the rustling of material and the Blessed Virgin appeared standing on a globe and holding a smaller globe on top of a cross she seemed to offer to God. When the globe disappeared Mary lifted her hands that were covered with jewels. From some of the jewels, rays of light shown which she said were symbols of the graces that would be given to all who asked for them. The jewels that had no rays were symbols of unclaimed graces. An oval frame outlined the figure bearing in gold letters the words “O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee.” When the frame revolved, on the back the letter M was surmounted by a cross with a crossbar underneath; and beneath that, the Sacred Heart of Jesus surrounded by a crown of thorns and the Sacred Heart of Mary pierced by a sword. She asked Catherine to have a medal made after the model and to spread devotion to the medal around the world.
Stories of cures an conversions made the medals popular and resulted in them being called “miraculous.”
To spread the devotion, Father Aladel (Sister Catherine’s Spiritual Director) formed confraternities or sodalities of the Children of Mary which did indeed spread all over the world. A statue of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal was placed over the main altar in the chapel where Mary appeared to Sister Catherine.
Today, the devotion to the Miraculous Medal is still one of the most powerful prayers we can pray this side of Heaven.
Please come and join us for the nine nights in May to honour the Miraculous Medal and ask Our Blessed Lady’s intercession at this time.
Monasterboice Parish 