May is the month of Mary.

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MAY IS THE MONTH OF MARY.

 

In the Catholic Church the month of May is Mary’s month. It’s the month we honour Blessed Mary as the Mother of Jesus and our Heavenly Mother.  It was  a common practice in Catholic Schools to take part in the “May crowning” in the beginning of May–where a wreath of flowers was placed on the head of the statue of Mary as prayers were said. This ritual was a way of demonstrating our love for Mary.

 Although historians are unclear as to why May was chosen to honour Mary, many believe that May being the month when spring is in full bloom has a lot to do with it. May is the height of spring–gardens everywhere are alive with blooming flowers and trees are filling their branches with leaves. This new beginning and new birth in nature reminds us of the life Mary gave to Jesus. Without Mary giving birth to Jesus, all the events that followed: Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection wouldn’t have happened. So, it’s believed that May (when nature is showing signs of life) is the ideal month to honour the woman who gave life to our Saviour.

This reason of course is suitable for the northern hemisphere and although it is good to remember and honour Mary with this connection in mind, it does not suit the Southern Hemisphere or does it?   In May, the southern Hemisphere is in the middle of autumn- a time when the leaves of the trees change colour.  It shows a different sign of life for nature. It can still remind us of Mary giving birth to Jesus- a pregnant young woman becoming a mother. Not just any mother but the mother of God and remaining always a virgin.

Another belief as to why May was chosen to honour Mary dates back to the ancient Greeks and Romans. In the ancient Greek world, May was dedicated to Artemis, the goddess of fertility and life. Roman culture linked the month of May to Flora, the goddess of bloom and blossoms. The Romans celebrated ludi florales (floral games) as a preparation for entering into the month of May and to celebrate the beginning of spring. (The month of May was the official beginning of spring in the Roman culture). Over time, the ancient tradition of celebrating life and fertility in the May led Christians to adopt May as the month to honour the Mother of Jesus.

The custom of dedicating the month of May to Mary dates back to the 13th century. But it might come as a surprise to know that it wasn’t until the 18th century when this practice became popular. The practice became common among the members of the Jesuit Order in Rome. Because of the far reach of the order’s schools, the devotion took hold, and by the 1700’s it began to spread worldwide.

Purpose of Crowning Mary

Mary mother of God
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It’s a Catholic tradition to honour Mary during the month of May by crowning her statue with flowers. The reason why we crown Mary is best summed up by Pope Paul VI who wrote in 1965 that May is an occasion for a “moving tribute of faith and love which Catholics in every part of the world pay to the Queen of Heaven.” The crown symbol is attributed to Mary because she is the Mother of the Son of God, who is our Heavenly King.

Suggested Ways of Honoring Mary during May.

1.    Say the Rosary each day during May personally and/or in your parish.  If you have not said the Rosary in a while and you feel it is not your type of prayer or you have negative associations with it from the past, then why not commit to one decade each day for the month.  Then you could say 2 decades next month and so on.  In other words, warm yourself up to it. 
I have found this method to be effective myself.  I had not said the Rosary on a consistent basis for some time but I started again last year during the pandemic and started with one decade said slowly and with a scripture quote for that mystery. I added another decade when I felt I was ready and within a short amount of time, I was saying the 5 decades of the Rosary regularly. 
I have found this method to be effective myself.  I had not said the Rosary on a consistent basis for some time but I started again last year during the pandemic and started with one decade said slowly and with a scripture quote for that mystery. I added another decade when I felt I was ready and within a short amount of time, I was saying the 5 decades of the Rosary regularly. 

2.    Honour Mary with a crowning ceremony in the parish:
This is a great way of getting children involved and helping them appreciate Mary as their heavenly mother from an early age.

3.    Honour Mary with some flowers:  We may not be able to crown Mary by a crowning ritual as was held in the past but placing some flowers in front of Our Lady either in our parish church (if your parish allows fresh flowers) and/or at home in front of the statue of Mary.

4.    Honour Mary by attending Mass in May daily/as often as possible.  When attending Mass, you could pray for pregnant women, those women who struggle with their sexuality, those women who had an abortion, and of course for all mothers.

5.    Honour Mary by Singing hymns.   There are many hymns to Mary.  Some of the lyrics of past hymns may seem unusual for our present day but why not research some hymns to Mary and gain an appreciation of some of the church repertoire.

My goal this month is to compose a hymn to Mary. When I have done it, I will include the link for you. I will make a start today.

Honour Mary by getting to know Mary and what the Church teaches:  You may wish to test your knowledge with the  'Mary quiz' and/or take up the study recommended The Bible and the Virgin Mary.

Honour Mary during May in whatever way you can sometime each day.  Mary is our heavenly mother.  We owe part of our salvation to Mary as she said Yes to God to be the mother of Jesus. Jesus whilst He was dying also gave us Mary to be our mother too.