Bring flowers of the fairest

There are so many reasons to love the month of May: Mother’s Day, springtime weather, Memorial Day, but perhaps best of all— it’s the month dedicated to the Blessed Mother! In this issue of The Cause of Our Joy, we’ll talk about lots of pertinent things, but we’ll definitely have a focus on Our Lady. 

So, without further ado, let’s get into this.

5 First Saturdays Devotion
Perhaps you have heard about the 5 first Saturdays devotion as asked by Our Lady of Fatima but really don’t know much about it. Since today is the first Saturday of May and the Feast of Our Lady of Fatima is later this month on the 13th, we thought it might be a nice time to provide something that explains it all. To learn more about what Our Lady asked and her promise to those who observe the devotion, click here

Crowned and Ready for Battle
Sometime in early May, it is traditional to crown a statue of the Blessed Mother and bring her flowers. Her coronation is the final mystery in the rosary and a powerful statement about her role in God’s plan for salvation. As Queen of the Church and queen of our hearts, her job is to defeat the enemy and lead us to her Son. For more on this, check out this article

Month of Our Lady
Why is May the month of Our Lady? There are a few great Marian feasts this month and Mother’s Day happens to be in May, but is that the only reason we celebrate Mary particularly this month? To find out how the tradition began, check out this article from The National Catholic Register!

Marian Minute

So, we have looked into why this month is dedicated to Mary and what her role is in our life, but what can we do to increase our devotion to her (knowing that her main goal is to take us to her Son). Well, Fr. Ed Broom has some suggestions for things we can do this month! Some of them you may already be doing but there may be one or two you could try! 

Saint Spotlight
We mentioned above that today is the feast day of St. Athanasius. We have heard of him being described as a “one-man wrecking ball.” But, we were unsure of what that meant until we read about his life. What a stalwart witness to the Church’s teachings in a time of uncertainty and confusion! (Sounds a little like our time, eh?) His defiant defense of the Church against Arianism got him exiled 5 times and earned him titles like “father of orthodoxy” and “true pillar of the Church.” To read more about this doctor of the Church, check out this article

Nifty News
Because of restrictions amid the current coronavirus landscape, we have seen priests go to innovative and sacrificial ways to make confession available to their flock. This story is a little different. Turns out, Chinese food delivery can lead to absolution as well! Check out this story about a serendipitous meeting between priest and penitent! 

Kids’ Corner
Many of us have a statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary in our home, but are wary of letting our kids handle it because they’re so fragile (and expensive!) We, ourselves, have statues in our homes that we keep in high places for this reason. In this project, you can print a paper statueof Our Lady that the kids can color and carry around and put wherever they want! 

Sunday Readings
The readings for the fourth Sunday of Easter can be found here and a great reflection from Dr. Scott Hahn can be found on the St. Paul Center for Biblical Studies website. It provides a great mediation on the readings before Mass tomorrow! 

Marian Center Update
The Marian Center is happy to open our doors for anyone to visit. We simply ask for you to give us a call ahead of time. Customers must maintain a safe distance of 6-feet away from each other and wear a mask. We also hope to start our exhibit on Marian Apparitions on June 1 — but without any pilgrim buses. This date remains tentative.    

Normally, the Marian Center gets a boost of revenue in March and April from the sale of First Communion and Confirmation gifts. But obviously our store hasn’t been open for over a month. As a reminder, no one here at the Marian Center earns a salary; all money goes to pay for programs and expenses. While we don’t have any programming expenses right now, we still have to pay for heating, electricity, and insurance.  

We have a generous donor who has agreed to match all monthly donations up to $4,000 total.   

That means if you make a monthly recurring gift of $10, the donor will give the Marian Center $120 immediately — and your family will be recognized as a sponsor of a Marian Apparition panel.

Please prayerfully consider donating $10 a month. You can do it securely online and it takes only two minutes. Click here to donate securely online.
 Jesus, we trust in you!

To Christ Through Mary, 

Katie Moe and Lori Mercer


P.S. Please forward this email to friends and encourage them to sign up for our email newsletter.  

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