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Every time we profess the Nicene Creed, we affirm our belief that Jesus Christ is inseparably true God and true man. "For us men and for our salvation he came down from heaven; by the power of the Holy Spirit, he became incarnate of the Virgin Mary, and was made man."

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On Sunday, October 13th, Pope Francis will consecrate the entire world to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.  How do we prepare ourselves for such an awesome event?

Many of you may already be using the 33 Day Preparation described in True Devotion to Mary or perhaps you are using Fr. Gaitley's outstanding program, 33 Days to Morning Glory to get ready for this special day.

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Writing in “Mother of the Redeemer,” Pope John Paul says this about the call of woman in the world today:

The figure of Mary of Nazareth sheds light on womanhood as such by the very fact that God, in the sublime event of the Incarnation of his Son, entrusted himself to the ministry, the free and active ministry of a woman. It can thus be said that women, by looking to Mary, find in her the secret of living their femininity with dignity and of achieving their own true advancement. In the light of Mary, the Church sees in the face of women the reflection of a beauty which mirrors the loftiest sentiments of which the human heart is capable: the self-offering totality of love; the strength that is capable of bearing the greatest sorrows; limitless fidelity and tireless devotion to work; the ability to combine penetrating intuition with words of support and encouragement.¹

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One of the real graces that comes through our radio broadcast, Women of Grace Live (EWTN Radio, its affiliates, and Sirius 130, 11:00 AM ET) are the number of people who call in to give help and assistance to other callers. It is not infrequent that our listeners provide the very answer our callers most need to hear. What grace!

Following is just such an example. A woman called in and asked if I had a prayer to consecrate a baby to Mary. I quickly looked on line and gave her a suggestion or two but shortly after our broadcast, this beautiful prayer of consecration was sent in by one of our listeners. It had been printed in her parish bulletin that very week. Now that is the Holy Spirit at work!

Consecrating a baby to the Blessed Virgin is an ancient tradition as is consecrating oneself to Mary. When such a consecration is made, it is always with the understanding that it is to Jesus through Mary that the consecration is intended.

Following is the prayer submitted by our listener. I especially like it because it implores the help and assistance of each member of the Holy Family. The instructions printed with the prayer encouraged parents to pray the consecrations below for each of their children at least once during their lives. It reminded them that parents "can render no greater service to their children than to implore their salvation, and indeed, they will of necessity render almighty God an account of their efforts in this regard."

 

CONSECRATION OF ONE’S CHILDREN TO JESUS, MARY AND JOSEPH

(Adapted from a prayer by St John Eudes and other sources.)

O Jesus, only Son of God, only Son of Mary, I come to Thee as an unworthy parent, and I humbly consecrate to thy Most Sacred Heart, now and for eternity, the soul of my child N. I surrender him/her to Thy sweet yoke and place him/her at the foot of Thy Cross. I offer Thee for him/her the most loving Heart of Thy Most Holy Mother Mary, which is more precious and pleasing to Thee than all hearts, and I beg Thee by her merits to show Thyself to him/her a Savior.

O Mary, Mother of Jesus, I come to Thee as an unworthy parent, and I humbly consecrate to thy Most Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart, now and for eternity, the soul of my child N. I offer Thee for him/her the most adorable Heart of Thy Son Jesus, who is the life, love and joy of Thy own Heart, and I beg Thee by the infinite merits of the Divine Son, Thou who art our Mother in the order of grace, to obtain the grace of salvation for my child.

O glorious St. Joseph, I come to thee  and ask thee to take under thy special protection my child N. I consecrate him/her to thee today, that through this consecration he/she they may become your foster child. Guard him/her, guide his/her steps in life, and form his/her heart after the Hearts of Jesus and Mary. O glorious St. Joseph, who felt the tribulation and worry of a parent when the child Jesus was lost, protect him/her for time and eternity. May you be his/her father and counselor. Preserve him/her from the corruption of this world, and obtain for us the grace to be united in heaven forever. Amen.

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Today on the radio program, we had several callers who are struggling this Christmas season.  For those beset with the problems and reversals of life, the holidays can be a time of great sorrow.

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As you know, Women of Grace is consecrated to Our Lord Jesus Christ through the beatitude of the Blessed Mother under her title of Our Lady of Guadalupe.

Following is the prayer we used on October 3, 2003 at our first national conference held in Doylestown, PA at the Shrine of Our Lady of Czestochowa:

Lord Jesus Christ, Savior and Redeemer of all mankind; Incarnate Wisdom,

At the hour of Your death, You gave to us the Blessed Virgin Mary and willed her to be the Mother of the Church, the mother of us all.

Before this blessed Missionary Image of Our Lady of Guadalupe, which signifies her presence among us, I do formally consecrate Women of Grace its mission, and its outreach to the Immaculate Heart of Our Lady of Guadalupe.

I humbly request the fruit of this consecration be conversion, healing, reconciliation and salvation. I further petition Our Lady of Guadalupe to instill in the hearts of her daughters an ever deepening understanding and appreciation of the feminine genius, and I ask that through her motherly influence and maternal intercession Our Lady of Guadalupe would lead her daughters to the Sacred Heart of her Son, Jesus Christ.

Hear my prayer, Lord Jesus, through the powerful love of the Immaculate heart of Our Lady of Guadalupe. I make this consecration with thanksgiving and trust, and for the spiritual welfare of women everywhere, especially those who are Women of Grace.

May this consecration deepen the virtues of faith, hope and charity. May it bring an awesome reverence for the gift of life, physical and spiritual life, and for Your Real Presnece enthroned in the Eucharist. May it help us bear witness to the Gospel and live the teachings of the Catholic Church.

And finally, may this consecration help to bring us all to the joy of Your kingdom where You live and reign with the Father and Holy Spirit; one God forever and ever. Amen.

(For more information on Our Lady of Guadalupe, click on her image in the slide show presentation on our website.)

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This month is dedicated to Our Lady of the Rosary. A poignant title of Our Lady replete with meaning. As you will discover on our home page (click this title of Our Lady on our slideshow), it is rooted in another title of the Blessed Mother -- Our Lady of Victory. This is a deeply inspiring title and reminds me of yet another title of Mary -- Our Lady of Grace (Feast Day, May 31). Her words to Saint Catherine Laboure, full of promise, echo in my heart. They are words for us to ponder anew in this our day and time.

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Today on Women of Grace Live, Father Edmund Sylvia, C.S.C. shared this beautiful prayer to Our Lady of Victory. I promised our listeners I would put it on our WOGBLOG. I pray it blesses you abundantly!

Prayer to Our Lady of Victory

O sweet and gentle Lady, Immaculate Mother of God,

we beg you to be our Mother now and all the days of our life.

shield us Mother Mary with your holy mantle that nothing of the

enemy could harm or molest us.

Ask your Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ to spare us

from any calamities that will cause our life misery.

Pray for us that we may lead a life pleasing to Him,

and when our end comes present us to Him and

may we live in His kingdom forever and ever,

Amen.

Our Lady of Victories, please pray for us.

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Today is the Feast of the Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary.  This Feast was established by Pope Pius XII in 1954 and concludes the octave of the Feast of the Assumption.  Pope Pius XII stated that,

 "Jesus Christ alone, God and Man, is King in the full, proper, and absolute sense of the term.  Mary also, in a restricted and only analogous way, shares in royal dignity as the Mother of Christ who is God, as His associate in the work of Redemption, in His conflict with the enemy, and in His complete victory.  From this association with Christ the King, she obtains a height of splendor unequaled in all creation" (Ad Caeli Reginam, no. 25).

Wow! What a Queen Mother we have!  When we place ourselves in her caring hands, she continually draws us ever more closely to Jesus, Our King.  I hope that you will entrust yourself, your family, and all of your needs to the loving intercession of Mary, Our Queen.  Please enjoy this beautiful prayer of Pope Pius XII:

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Here at Women of Grace® we L-O-V-E Our Lady.  She is the model whom we look to as THE woman of grace.  In fact Mary is at the core of our Foundational Study Full of Grace: Women and the Abundant Life.  What is it about Our Mother Mary that makes her the exemplar of what it means to be a disciple AND a woman of grace?  Today's Feast of the Annunciation highlights her greatest attribute, her complete and total "Yes" to God.  A passage from the book Full of Grace briefly summarizes the greatness of Mary's fiat and how we as women are to follow her example:

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