Tota Pulchra Tota pulchra es Maria, et macula originalis non es in te. Tu gloria Ierusalem, tu laetitia Israel, tu honorificentia populi nostri, tu advocata peccatorum. O Maria! O Maria! Virgo prudentissima, Mater clementissima, ora pro nobis, intercede pro nobis, ad Dominum Iesum Christum. You are all beautiful, Mary, and the stain of original sin […]
Iconography of the Immaculate Conception – Part 2
The traditional iconography of the Immaculate always depicts Mary as a young woman. Her youthfulness represents the fact that she is only creature conceived without original sin. Therefore, Mary’s youthful features in the images of the Immaculate Conception indicates that she did not suffer the consequences of original sin. Mary Most Holy is the […]
Novena to the Immaculate Conception: Day 2 Et macula originalis non est in te
Tota Pulchra Tota pulchra es Maria et macula originalis non es in te. Tu gloria Ierusalem, tu laetitia Israel, tu honorificentia populi nostri, tu advocata peccatorum. O Maria! O Maria! Virgo prudentissima, Mater clementissima, ora pro nobis, intercede pro nobis, ad Dominum Iesum Christum. You are all beautiful, Mary, and the stain of original sin […]
Iconography of the Immaculate Conception – Part 1
The traditional iconography of the Immaculate Conception depicts Mary dressed in white and blue. White, the color of purity, represents the candor that the Virgin enjoys, as she is unstained by original sin. The light white robe is then covered by the deep blue mantle, the color of the sky. Blue, therefore, becomes a […]
Novena to the Immaculate Conception: Day 1 Tota Pulchra es Maria
Tota Pulchra Tota pulchra es Maria, et macula originalis non es in te. Tu gloria Ierusalem, tu laetitia Israel, tu honorificentia populi nostri, tu advocata peccatorum. O Maria! O Maria! Virgo prudentissima, Mater clementissima, ora pro nobis, intercede pro nobis, ad Dominum Iesum Christum. You are all beautiful, Mary, and the stain of original sin […]
May Christ’s Kingdom Come! The Solemnity of Christ the King
On the last Sunday of the Church’s liturgical year we celebrate the Solemnity of Christ the King. Pope Pius XI instituted the Feast in 1925 with the Encyclical Quas Primas so that the Church may honour Christ’s kingship and meditate on what it means to be subject to His ‘sweet’ rule. Indeed, the feast is […]
Prayer for the Solemnity of Christ the King
In the encyclical Quas Primas, Pope Pius XI proclaimed the Solemnity of Christ the King for the Universal Church. To celebrate the Solemnity, the Holy Father requested that mankind be dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus because Christ must reign in the hearts of men so that His Kingdom may come on earth. The […]
9th November Feast of the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica Rome: “Mater et Caput”
St John Lateran’s Basilica in Rome is the “Mater et Caput”, ‘Mother and head’, of all churches in Rome and the world. This fact is solemnised by the relief that adorns the entrance to the Basilica. The name “Lateran” is derived from the fact that this Basilica was constructed on the territory that belonged to […]
The Saints Teach us to Pray for the Holy Souls
November is the month when we remember the Holy Souls in purgatory. The Church calls on us to pray and offer ‘suffrages’ or prayers for the Holy Souls who have died in God’s grace but require final purification before entering Heaven. Over the centuries, countless Saints have called on the faithful to pray for these […]
In the Name of Mary
Pope Innocent XI instituted the feast of the Holy Name of Mary on the 12th September to thank Our Lady for the victory of the famous battle of Vienna against the Ottoman Empire on the 11th September 1683. On this day, Europe found itself on the brink of distruction. The Ottoman forces had invaded Vienna […]