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Throughout the centuries innumerable Saints, Popes, priests, religious, and holy people of all walks of life have testified to the importance and efficacy of Total Consecration to Jesus through Mary for our personal growth in sanctity and for the conversion of souls.  Whether you have already made the consecration or not, I invite you to reflect on some key elements of consecration and to seriously consider what God is calling you to do.   

 

What Consecration Is:     

 

• To be consecrated means to be set aside for God.   

 

• Jesus, Our Savior and God, has given Himself to us without reserve.  It’s a matter of justice, love, and gratitude that we should give ourselves to Him without reserve.   

 

• St. Louis de Montfort explains why Marian consecration is the greatest means to sanctity, “As all perfection consists in our being conformed, united and consecrated to Jesus it naturally follows that the most perfect of all devotions is that which conforms, unites, and consecrates us most completely to Jesus. Now of all God's creatures Mary is the most conformed to Jesus. It therefore follows that, of all devotions, devotion to her makes for the most effective consecration and conformity to him. The more one is consecrated to Mary, the more one is consecrated to Jesus.” 

 

Devotion to Mary and Consecration Is Willed by God 

 

• God chooses to send all His grace through the hands of Mary, just like He chose to be born into the world through her. 

 

• In the July 13th apparition at Fatima Mary said, “It is to save them (souls) that God wants to establish in the world devotion to my Immaculate Heart. If you do what I tell you, many souls will be saved, and there will be peace.”   

 

• God has made peace hinge on devotion to Mary and consecration.  In 1939 Sr. Lucia confirmed this.  She said, "Whether the world has war or peace depends on the practice of this devotion (First Saturdays), along with the consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.”   

 

The Importance of Reconsecration 

 

If you are already consecrated, it is important to reconsecrate yourself periodically.  A small daily or weekly consecration prayer along with a fuller, yearly consecration is a great way to do this.  Below are some of the reasons why renewing your consecration is so important. 

 

• Repetition is the key to learning. 

 

• Habits take time and repetition to become part of our lives.   

 

• We repeatedly tell those closest to our hearts that we love them.  How much more should we express our love, devotion, and gratitude towards Our Savior and Our Blessed Mother.   

 

• To be able to do something really well, we need to give it our consistent and repeated time and attention.   

 

• Spiritual truths have no end to their fecundity, so every time we reconsecrate ourselves we can go deeper in the truths of consecration.    

 

• Going deeper allows us to live our consecration more profoundly. 

 

Consecration is Critical for Our Time 

 

• Desiring to save as many souls as possible, St. Maximillian Kolbe founded the Militia of the Immaculata in 1917 dedicated to spreading Marian devotion and consecration.  He was led to choose this direction because he knew Marian consecration was the surest and quickest way to sanctity.  He reasoned that the more saints there were, the more souls would be saved.   

   

• Centuries before Kolbe, St. Louis de Montfort already foresaw the need for souls to be united to Mary in order for her to have an army to fight against evil.  “Mary must become as terrible as an army in battle array to the devil and his followers, especially in these latter times. For Satan, knowing that he has little time—even less now than ever—to destroy souls, intensifies his efforts and his onslaughts every day. He will not hesitate to stir up savage persecutions and set treacherous snares for Mary's faithful servants and children whom he finds more difficult to overcome than others.”  (St. Louis de Montfort) 

 

Our Part in the Battle 

 

The evil of our times is rampant and diabolical, but there is no reason to fear because God is never outdone.  However, He calls us to cooperate with Him in the work of saving souls.  No matter the exact particulars of our role in His saving work, we are all definitely called to consecrate ourselves to Jesus through Mary and to spread this consecration.  There is no other work that will help save more souls, or help establish a culture of life, than consecration.   

 

Ave Maria is starting a 33-day preparation for consecration on November 5th.  The Feast of the Immaculate Conception will be the day of consecration.  There is still time to join and to tell others about it.  If you miss this one, any Marian feast day can be a consecration day.   

 

Whatever the date, the most important thing is to consecrate yourself, live the consecration to the fullest extent, and tell others about it.  Our Lord wants an army dedicated to His Mother to deliver His abundant graces to the world.  Our role of spreading consecration is vital.  Your eternal destiny, as well as that of countless others, weighs in the balance.