Submit your intentions for 2 Holy Masses in Honor of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, August 14 and on the Solemnity, August 15.

Dear Friend, 

Eighty-one years ago, today, on the vigil of the feast of the Assumption, Father Maximilian Maria Kolbe, a Priest and Conventual Franciscan Friar, uttered his last words: “Ave Maria” as he was executed with a lethal injection of carbolic acid, while a prisoner in the German death camp of Auschwitz. 

His dedication and love of the Blessed Virgin Mary was intense. He was an active participant in the Militia Immaculata or Army of Mary. He even composed an Immaculata Prayer and helped the Friars publish Marian books, pamphlets and a magazine that had a circulation of over one million. He wanted to ‘fight for Mary’ against the enemies of the church. Today we celebrate his feast day. 

Quotes of St. Maximilian Kolbe on the Blessed Virgin Mary:

 “Let us give ourselves to the Immaculata [Mary]. Let her prepare us, let her receive Him [Jesus] in Holy Communion. This is the manner most perfect and pleasing to the Lord Jesus and brings great fruit to us." Because "the Immaculata knows the secret, how to unite ourselves totally with the heart of the Lord Jesus... We do not limit ourselves in love. We want to love the Lord Jesus with her heart, or rather that she would love the Lord with our heart.”

“The Immaculata alone has from God the promise of victory over Satan. She seeks souls that will consecrate themselves entirely to her, that will become in her hands forceful instruments for the defeat of Satan and the spread of God's kingdom.”

In a 2021 homily at the National Blue Army Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima, Cardinal Burke pointed out the powerful intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the martyrs:

 “The intercession of the Virgin Mother of God and of all the saints will give us the strength and courage in what seems an impossible battle. Remember the two angels who are pouring the blood of the martyrs upon the souls who are making their way to God. If we are seeking the way to God, we must be ever confident in the help of Our Lady and of all the saints, especially the martyrs, who obtain for us the grace which we need to be faithful and courageous.” 

Let us now pray for our needs, as well as the intentions of Cardinal Burke, that he may continue his tireless work in ministering to the faithful with good health:

O Mary, you shine continuously on our journey as a sign of salvation and hope.

We entrust ourselves to you, Health of the Sick.

At the foot of the Cross you participated in Jesus’ pain, with steadfast faith.

You, Salvation of the Roman People, know what we need.

We are certain that you will provide, so that, as you did at Cana of Galilee,

joy and feasting might return after this moment of trial

Help us, Mother of Divine Love, to conform ourselves to the Father’s will

and to do what Jesus tells us:

He who took our sufferings upon Himself, and bore our sorrows to bring us,

through the Cross, to the joy of the Resurrection. Amen. 

We seek refuge under your protection, O Holy Mother of God.

Do not despise our pleas – we who are put to the test – and deliver us from every danger, O glorious and blessed Virgin. Amen.

Do you have any new or updated intentions for the Two Holy Masses in Honor of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary?

May Our Lady of the Assumption bestow many graces upon you and your loved ones.

Yours in the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary,

Thomas McKenna

Founder and President

Catholic Action For Faith And Family
http://www.catholicaction.org/