devotion Archives - Shepherd of Faith

Mary, Undoer of Knots!

Mary, Undoer of Knots! I can’t remember when I was first introduced to this devotion or how. It was probably after I read 33 Days to Morning Glory. I remember reading about it and praying the novena once several years ago, but since then I hadn’t paid much attention to it. Then I heard Pope Francis has a special devotion to Mary, Undoer of Knots. It piqued my interest again so I downloaded the app to my android phone.

As I navigated the app, I came across a “video gallery” option which led me to YouTube. What a beauty! There, on YouTube, are videos and audio for each day of the novena. You can follow along with all the prayers. The part that’s so beautiful and moving is the video consists of various icons and art for each of the decades of the rosary. As each prayer is recited a different image pertaining to the particular mystery or prayer pops up on the screen.

For the Our Fathers, an image of God is displayed, for the Glory Be an image of the Trinity, for the Fatima prayer, an image of St. Michael and for the Hail Marys 10 different images of the mystery you are contemplating. Well done! The images alone are enough to meditate on but the special prayers unique to the novena are comforting. Click here to check it out.

If you are experiencing a difficult time or simply want to entrust Mary with the task of relieving you of something that keeps you from remaining Christ centered, this will help and give you comfort. God bless you!

“Woman behold your son!”

Devotion versus worship. This is usually a topic of conversation when discussing the Blessed Virgin Mary. Yesterday the Catholic Church celebrated the memorial of the Presentation of Mary. I was reminded by one of my sisters in Christ that yesterday was also the anniversary of our consecration to the Blessed Mother four years ago. I can’t help but believe that my growth in the past few years is a result of my consecration, which I have renewed every year since that first time. When I think of Mary I think of her humility and grace and I am in awe. I can only hope! I imagine her gently guiding me, as a mother does, toward her Son. The subtle tenderness of a mother who only wants what is best for me. Wow, thank you and Amen!

Many people don’t understand the importance of Mary’s role in salvation history and what devotion to her means. Some simply refuse to “worship” Mary because it goes against what the Bible teaches and that IS true. But devotion to and worship are two totally different things.

I came across this meditation produced by RCSpirituality.org. It so beautifully explains what devotion to the Blessed Mother is all about. Please take the time to watch and meditate on what it shares and consider making your consecration to the Blessed Virgin Mary. It will change your life! God bless you!

P.S.: As you prepare for Advent, maybe you might want to consider getting Fr. Michael Gaitley’s book, 33 Days to Morning Glory and use that retreat guide (less than 2 pages a day required reading) and end with the consecration around Christmas time. I think this is a perfect way to settle down once a day and get away from the craziness of the season. Remember the reason!