Month of Mary Wraps Up with the Fire of the Holy Spirit & A Look Towards June

Matthew Harrison

June 2, 2009
b16Pentecost had an added Marian flavour this year, as the great solemnity fell on May 31st -- the last day of the month dedicated to Mary, and also the feast of the Visitation. Pope Benedict XVI tied the Vistiation into his Regina Caeli address in St. Peter's Square:
The young Mary who, carrying Jesus in her womb, forgets her own needs and runs to help another is a beautiful image of the Church in the perennial youthfulness of her Spirit, of the missionary Church of the incarnate Word, called to carry that Word into the world and to bear witness to it, especially through the service of charity.
A day earlier, the Holy Father gave an address in the Vatican Gardens to conclude the month of Mary. Again, the Holy Father tied in Pentecost:
At Pentecost, the Virgin Mary appears again as Bride of the Spirit, having a universal maternity with respect to those who are born from God through faith in Christ. This is why Mary is for all generations the image and model of the Church, who together with the Holy Spirit journeys through time invoking Christ's glorious return: "Come, Lord Jesus" (cf. Revelation 22:17, 20).
I found particularly interesting the Pontiff's comments on the Holy Spirit working in Mary's life, and the example of docility and openness to the Spirit that she gives to all of us. I recommend taking a look at the address HERE.
Now we welcome June -- a month traditionally associated with the Sacred Heart of Jesus. The Easter season is done, but there is still Trinity Sunday and Corpus Christi in the coming weeks. The feast of the Sacred Heart will be June 19th, the same day also that marks the beginning of the Year of the Priest. There's certainly lots of things liturgically to keep us focused -- and Pope Benedict's monthly intentions can give us an extra focus in our prayers this month. June's general prayer intention is:
That international attention towards the poorer countries may give rise to more concrete help, in particular to relieve them of the crushing burden of foreign debt.
His mission intention is:
That the particular Churches operating in regions marked by violence may be sustained by the love and concrete closeness of all the Catholics in the world.