Did you know that Roman Catholics have a brand new feast day for Mary?

Early this year, Pope Francis announced that the Monday after Pentecost Sunday every year will be dedicated to celebrating Mary as Mother of the Church. This year, the feast falls on June 1st.

Although not a Holy Day of Obligation, the feast is definitely one your family should introduce into your liturgical living!

And what’s even better…we have a special, FREE way for your family to grow closer to Mary this Pentecost. Scroll to the bottom to learn more!

First, here is what the Catechism of the Catholic Church has to say about Mary as Mother of the Church. Hint: this entire passage is wonderful for mom and dad and teens to meditate on throughout the days leading up to this feast day!

“Mary’s role in the Church is inseparable from her union with Christ and flows directly from it. “This union of the mother with the Son in the work of salvation is made manifest from the time of Christ’s virginal conception up to his death”; it is made manifest above all at the hour of his Passion:

Thus the Blessed Virgin advanced in her pilgrimage of faith, and faithfully persevered in her union with her Son unto the cross. There she stood, in keeping with the divine plan, enduring with her only begotten Son the intensity of his suffering, joining herself with his sacrifice in her mother’s heart, and lovingly consenting to the immolation of this victim, born of her: to be given, by the same Christ Jesus dying on the cross, as a mother to his disciple, with these words: “Woman, behold your son.”

After her Son’s Ascension, Mary “aided the beginnings of the Church by her prayers.” In her association with the apostles and several women, “we also see Mary by her prayers imploring the gift of the Spirit, who had already overshadowed her in the Annunciation.”

Finally the Immaculate Virgin, preserved free from all stain of original sin, when the course of her earthly life was finished, was taken up body and soul into heavenly glory, and exalted by the Lord as Queen over all things, so that she might be the more fully conformed to her Son, the Lord of lords and conqueror of sin and death.”The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin is a singular participation in her Son’s Resurrection and an anticipation of the resurrection of other Christians:

In giving birth you kept your virginity; in your Dormition you did not leave the world, O Mother of God, but were joined to the source of Life. You conceived the living God and, by your prayers, will deliver our souls from death.

By her complete adherence to the Father’s will, to his Son’s redemptive work, and to every prompting of the Holy Spirit, the Virgin Mary is the Church’s model of faith and charity. Thus she is a “preeminent and…wholly unique member of the Church”; indeed, she is the “exemplary realization” (typus) of the Church.”

Her role in relation to the Church and to all humanity goes still further. “In a wholly singular way she cooperated by her obedience, faith, hope, and burning charity in the Savior’s work of restoring supernatural life to souls. For this reason she is a mother to us in the order of grace.”

This motherhood of Mary in the order of grace continues uninterruptedly from the consent which she loyally gave at the Annunciation and which she sustained without wavering beneath the cross, until the eternal fulfillment of all the elect. Taken up to heaven she did not lay aside this saving office but by her manifold intercession continues to bring us the gifts of eternal salvation …. Therefore the Blessed Virgin is invoked in the Church under the titles of Advocate, Helper, Benefactress, and Mediatrix.”

Mary’s function as mother of men in no way obscures or diminishes this unique mediation of Christ, but rather shows its power. But the Blessed Virgin’s salutary influence on men . . . flows forth from the superabundance of the merits of Christ, rests on his mediation, depends entirely on it, and draws all its power from it. “

CCC 964-970

In other words, Mary’s cooperation with God’s plan, including her “Yes” at the Annunciation, is the same obedient attitude we should take as members of the Church! What a great example she is for parents and children everywhere!

In honor of this new feast day, we at Holy Heroes have created a BRAND NEW NOVENA!

That’s right! We’ve put together a way for you to meditate on Mary as Mother of the Church for 9 days, ending on her new feast day!

While many people pray a Novena to the Holy Spirit around the same time (ending on Pentecost Sunday), this Novena to Mary Mother of the Church will start a day later, so as to end on the correct day.

We wanted to make it easy for you to add another novena into your family routine while also making certain that it will prepare you well for Pentecost and Mary’s feast day the next day).

So, the novena is simple…

Every day, we will be praying a decade of the Rosary that pertains to Mary’s role as Mother of the Church. We will conclude each decade with a prayer which Pope Francis wrote to Mary (he included it at the end of his encyclical Lumen Fidei).  

Want to participate? It’s easy!

Just enter your email to subscribe to our blog and you will be alerted when each day’s prayer is posted!

We’re going to publish each prayer on our blog the night before the day you will pray it. So this year, Day 1 will be uploaded on May 23rd.

Join us! And may God bless you!