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KOLBECARE
MI RENEWS
MIRACULOUS MEDAL 200TH ANNIVERSARY
MIRACULOUS MEDAL 200TH ANNIVERSARY
PREPARATION FOR THE MISSION OF THE IMMACULATA
SAINT MAX ONCE SAID, "THE CLOSER WE COME TO THE IMMACULATA THE HOLIER WE BECOME AND WHAT IS MORE IN A EASY (LITTLEST) WAY."
In the year of 1830 the Medal of the Immaculate Conception came to us in a series of heavenly apparitions. One hundred years later a Franciscan Friar by the name of
St. Maximilian M. Kolbe would leave Poland in order to begin a new Catholic mission in the Orient, so as to spread this Marian medallion to souls who yet to have faith in Jesus Christ. Now that the year of 2030 quickly approaches, which of coarse marks the two-hundredth anniversary, we are looking million ways to draw attention to this same medal which was design and given to us by our Blessed Mother herself. souls who yet to have faith in Jesus Christ. Now that the year of 2030 approaches, which would mark the two-
the two-hundredth anniversary, we are looking million ways to draw attention to this same medal which was design and given to us by our Blessed Mother herself. souls who yet to have faith in Jesus Christ. Now that the year of 2030 quickly approaches, which of coarse marks the two-hundredth anniversary, we are looking million ways to draw attention to this same medal which was design and given to us by our Blessed Mother herself.
—THE EVENTS TOOK PLACE ON NOVEMBER 27, 1830, IN PARIS the Most Holy Virgin (Mary Immaculate) appeared to Sister Catherine Labouré, a member of the Daughters of Charity, founded by St. Vincent de Paul. Our Lady was standing, dressed in dawn-white silk, her feet on a small globe; from her extended hands rays of light issued forth. "This globe," the Virgin explained to Sister Catherine, "stands for the entire world and every soul."
The brilliant rays "are the symbol of the graces that I bestow on all those who ask for them." Then the Most Blessed Virgin (Mary Immaculate) was surrounded by some kind of oval frame, on which appeared the following inscriptions in letters of gold: "O MARY CONVEIVED WITHOUT SIN, PRAY FOR US WHO HAVE RECOURSE TO THEE."
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Sister Catherine heard a voice saying to her: "Have a medal struck according to this medal. All those who wear it will receive great graces, especially if they wear it around their necks. I shall bestow many graces on those who will wear it with faith." At that point, the image turned over and on the other side Sister Catherine saw the letter M, in the center of which stood a cross. Below the monogram of the Most Blessed Virgin (Mary Immaculate) there were two Hearts: the Heart of Jesus surrounded by a crown of thorns and the Heart of Mary pierced by a sword; twelve stars surrounded the centerpiece.
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Sister Catherine Labouré was born in 1806 and died in 1876. She was canonized by Pope Pius XII in 1947.
M.I. Pamphlet: Story of the Miraculous Medal
THE MEDAL WAS STRUCK, NOT WITHOUT MANY OBSTACLES, and spread throughout the world. So many marvels and good things happened that the people began to call it, the “Miraculous Medal.” One of the most notable wonders was the instantaneous and unexpected conversion of Alphonse Ratisbonne, a nonbelieving Jew. He reluctantly agreed to wear the medal to make a friend happy. As he visited the Roman church of
M.I. Pamphlet: Graces
Sant’Andrea delle Fratte, the Virgin appeared to him: “Stately, bright, full of majesty and kindness, as depicted on my medal. An irresistible force drove me toward her. The Most Holy Virgin with her hand beckoned me to kneel. She never spoke to me at all, but I understood everything.” It was January 20, 1842. He became a Catholic and eventually a priest and a fervent apostle.
THE MIRACULOUS MEDAL IS NOW UNIVERSALLY KNOWN, but many overlook that the appearances of Our Lady in Paris, in the Rue du Bac chapel, prepared for the great Lourdes events. Saint Bernadette, who wore the Miraculous Medal, declared, “The Lady of the grotto appeared to me as in the Miraculous Medal.”
M.I. Pamphlet: Lourdes and the Miraculous Medal
Statue of Our Lady of Lourdes
• Contemplating the Medal, Christians will be able to find in it a summary of Catholic doctrine about the providential role of Our Lady in the plan of salvation, especially her universal mediation.
• As Lourdes is a continual source of graces so, too, the Miraculous Medal is the instrument of Our Lady’s constant love toward sinners and troubled persons
Grotto of the apparition site
Lourdes, France
M.I. Pamphlet: St. Maximilian Kolbe and the Miraculous Medal
ST. MAXIMILIAN KOLBE, a contemporary saint, Marian apostle and martyr, was very attentive to the apparitions of Our Lady to St. Catherine Labourè. Through the light of the Holy Spirit, he understood each of the elements of the Medal. He was also deeply touched by the conversion of Alphonse Ratisbonne, which became a confirmation of the Marian mission to which he felt called.
As he witnessed a deluge of evil, Fr. Kolbe wrote: “There are still many souls astray, deceived, seduced, unhappy, enslaved by the devil, who cry out and are not even able to recognize their misery. To offer our hand to these souls, to be a guide to many, many souls and lead them all to God through our Immaculate Queen, is a beautiful mission for which it is worthwhile to live, suffer, work and even die.”
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For this reason, on October 16, 1917, he founded the Militia of the Immaculata (MI), a Marian association whose core spirituality is total consecration to Our Lady. Each of us may be consecrated to the Immaculata so as to be led by her along the journey of life. To be consecrated to Our Lady means to welcome the gift of Jesus Himself from the Cross (cf. Jn 19:26), to look at her in order to imitate her and to have recourse to her in our striving for holiness. It means to offer to her our actions, prayers, sacrifices and sorrows, so that she may use them for our salvation and for that of our brethren. Entrusting ourselves completely to the Immaculata we also find a powerful help against the temptations we all face each day and enjoy her maternal support in giving witness to the Faith in the world.
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Fr. Kolbe wanted the Miraculous Medal to be the sign of MI total consecration to Mary and he added a special invocation to the original ejaculatory prayer.
If you love the Immaculate Virgin and trust in her powerful intercession, then,
✓ Wear or carry always the Medal as a reminder to live in the Grace of God and enjoy the protection of the Immaculata.
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✓ Recite each day the Miraculous Medal prayer, as edited by St. Maximilian Kolbe: “O Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to you, and for all those who do not have recourse to you, especially the enemies of Holy Church and all those recommended to you.”
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✓ Spread the Medal around you. Offer it especially to the sick and the afflicted.