Somethings about Mary in April 2015
Many, many thanks to Père Ambroise, Aramatou, Fr Belisario, Chris, Cummar, Eileen, Elena, Elias, Elise, Emily, Fadia, Florian, James, John, Sr Josephine, Juan Gustavo, Judith, Sr Marie-Rosa, Maxwell, May, Mercy, Nico, Norbert, Oliver, Philip, Br Ruben, Teresa, Tim, Ursula & Virginia for giving their 'something' about Mary this month.
This photo is of the painting behind the alar in the church at the Franciscan convent in Sießen, Germany.
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1st April - Elena 
"As Mary is the perfect mother, she both wants the absolute best for us and also knows what the best for us is. Which is why she constantly points towards Jesus and gives us her help in order to find God's will for us, and she rejoices in our joy in Him. So she is a real gift to us all and I feel very blessed to have a relationship with her as a Catholic."
Elena is 21 & from England.
2nd April - Maundy Thursday & 10th anniversary of JPII's death - Aramatou 
"Christ comes to save everybody, for by him dying on the Cross he forgives everybody's sin so everybody don't have to say in life 'O, I'm a sinner, who can forgive me?' But I think if you have sin, you go to Jesus and ask for forgiveness. So what is the role of Mary in that? Because Mary brings Christ into the world, so I think she's part of that as well… So she's important to the Church and she's important in my life too."
Aramatou is 25 & from the Ivory Coast.
Our Lady's message to Mirjana Soldo, Medjugorje, 2nd April 2015:
"Dear children, I have chosen you, my apostles, because all of you carry something beautiful within you. You can help me to have the love, for the sake of which my Son died and then resurrected, win anew. Therefore, I am calling you, my apostles, to try to see something good in every creature of God, in all of my children, and to try to understand them. My children, you are all brothers and sisters through the same Holy Spirit. You, filled with love for my Son, can speak of what you know to all those who have not come to know that love. You have come to know the love of my Son, you have comprehended his Resurrection, with joy you cast your gaze towards him. My motherly desire is for all of my children to be united in love for Jesus. Therefore, I am calling you, my apostles, to live the Eucharist with joy, because in the Eucharist my Son gives himself to you anew and with his example shows the love and sacrifice towards the neighbour. Thank you."
3rd April - Good Friday - Cummar 
"Mary for me is everything, is my life. I'm always trusting her and every day, she's in my prayer every day."
Cummar is from Qaraqoush in Iraq & gives her response in English & Aramaic.
4th April - Holy Saturday - Sister Marie-Rose 
"La Madonna è una Mamma."
Sœur Marie-Rose is from Madagascar.
5th April - Easter Sunday - Fadia 
"I see Mariam as a pure, beautiful lady who I always tend to go back to whenever I feel the need to cry out to my Mum. I always pray for her to protect me and bless me and be near me and guide me."
Fadia is 27 & Iraqi Chaldean; she gives her response in English & Arabic.
6th April - Easter Monday - Oliver 
"Because of her yes, we have Jesus, and Mary is the first disciple and that's why we honour her. She's our mother too and that's a great consolation. At the foot of the Cross, Jesus, after giving us everything that he could have given, he gave us his mother and so we always need to take great consolation in that: that's she's always there, praying for us and wanting to support us there and, as Pope Francis says, to wrap us in her holy mantle and to guide us to Jesus, because she had a front row seat. She raised Jesus and as a result she's the perfect mother and so we must never be afraid to turn to her."
Oliver is 20 & from London.
7th April - Easter Tuesday - Elise 
"For me Mary is a mother who cares so much for all of us and who loves us."
Elise is 20 & from Canada.
8th April - Easter Wednesday - Chris 
"Mary for me is a woman and a mother that I didn’t think I needed but now I know I absolutely need."
Chris is 29 & from Baton Rouge, Louisiana in the United States.
9th April - Easter Thursday - Eileen 
"I've seen that Mary intercedes for us to her son so we can go through Mary to Jesus. She will always bring us to her son."
Eileen is from Ireland.
10th April - Easter Friday - Juan 
"In God I trust .. I pray always to the Virgin and Jesus for everything in our life."
Juan is from Venezuela & makes a prayer to the Virgin Mary in Spanish for peace in Venezuela.
11th April - Easter Saturday - Père Ambroise 
"Dans notre spiritualité populaire la Vierge est 'Maman' - elle est Mère de Jesus, elle est Mère de Dieu et elle est notre Mère. Nous avons une affection profonde pour la Vierge Marie ... Dans la Vierge nous contemplons toutes les promesses de Dieu faites à l'humanité, tous ce que Dieu veut faire a chacun d'entre nous, voila, ce qu'il a fait à la Vierge. Il nous la met devant pourque la contemplant nous pouissions avoir la certitude qu'Il nous aime et qu'Il veut faire de nous des chefs-d'œuvre comme Il a fait à Marie. Marie est notre miroir mais aussi elle est notre avocate, elle est notre mère qui prie pour nous, que intercéde pour nous.
La Madonna per noi è sculoa di santità. Possiamo imitarla e possiamo contare sulla sua intercessione."
Père Ambroise is from the diocese of Cotonou in Benin & currently on mission in Rome. He gives his something about Marie in French & Italian.
12th April - Divine Mercy Sunday - Father Belisario 
"What can I say about the Blessed Virgin Mary? That she's everything for me, she's everything for all of us: we are her children, she is our mother, she loves us and we remain always in her heart. We should grow in our devotional love for her and belonging to her is particularly true of consecration - she will protect us and she will guide us always to love more and more Jesus Christ her son.
¿Qué digo de la Virgen María? Que es todo. Gracias a ella he tenido toda mi conversión."
Padre Belisario Gonzales is a priest from the Missionaries of Charity Fathers & from Costa Rica.
13th April - Tim 
"I’ve been in the Legion of Mary for the last three years and I’ve learned that Our Lady is my protector. And also I've learned to love her and the importance of Our Lady - that the world needs to recognise her as well as recognising Jesus."
Tim is from Ireland.
14th April - Florian 
"I think Mary is the exemplary man how he is thought by God, and I love her very much, and I think everyone should be in contact with her, like Jesus was connected with her. "
Florian is from Bavaria in Germany and gives his response in English & German (impressively simultaneously!).
15th April - Ursula 
"I want to say to Mary 'I'm so thankful that you said yes to the angel.'"
Ursula is from Germany and gives her response in English & German.
16th April - Teresa 
"For me Our Lady is someone who Our Lord cannot refuse, and I feel whatever one asks of her eventually, one way or another, will be granted for our good."
Teresa is from London.
17th April - John 
"I pray to Our Lady night and day, and I prayed to her a lot when I lost my son three years ago with cancer. And things when I pray to her seem to always come right. I believe in her with a prayer in the morning and a prayer at night."
John is from Northern Ireland.
18th April - Brother Ruben 
"Our Lady is the one in whom we can find that tender love that all of us are looking for in our lives. So all of us we can trust that in her we find that love that we search for."
Hermano Ruben is a brother from the Missionaries of Charity Fathers of Mother Teresa & from Honduras; he gives his something about Mary in English & Spanish.
21st April - Emily 
"Our Lady is a virgin and I say prayers to her as well."
Emily is from Tipperary.
22nd April - Nico 
"Per me, la Madonna è l'unico essere umano che può avere contatto diretto con Dio, un esempio."
Nico is from Rome.
23rd April - Elias 
"For me Mary is the highest example after Jesus.
Maria è massimo esempio dopo Gesù e la prima cristiana."
Elias is from Italy.
24th April - Mercy 
"Our Lady is amazing. Her grace is infinite. I don't know how to say it. She's a wonderful mother ... I love her so much, she has done great things for me in my life which I cannot express."
Mercy is from Nigeria.
Our Lady of Medjugorje's message to Marija Pavlović, 25 April 2015:
"Dear children! I am with you also today to lead you to salvation. Your soul is restless because your spirit is weak and tired from all worldly things. You, little children, pray to the Holy Spirit that He may transform you and fill you with His strength of faith and hope, so that you may be firm in this battle against evil. I am with you and intercede for you before my Son Jesus. Thank you for having responded to my call."
“Queridos hijos! También hoy estoy con ustedes para guiarlos hacia la salvación. Su alma está inquieta porque el espíritu está débil y cansado de todas las cosas terrenas. Ustedes, hijitos, pídanle al Espíritu Santo que Él los transfigure y los llene con su fuerza de fe y de esperanza, a fin de que estén firmes en esta lucha contra el mal. Yo estoy con ustedes e intercedo por ustedes ante mi Hijo Jesús. Gracias por haber respondido a mi llamado."
"Cari figli! Sono con voi anche oggi per guidarvi alla salvezza. La vostra anima è inquieta perché lo spirito è debole e stanco da tutte le cose terrene. Voi figlioli, pregate lo Spirito Santo perché vi trasformi e vi riempia con la sua forza di fede e di speranza perché possiate essere fermi in questa lotta contro il male. Io sono con voi e intercedo per voi presso mio Figlio Gesù. Grazie per aver risposto alla mia chiamata.”
26th April - 4th Sunday of Easter, World Day of Prayer for Vocations - Sister Josephine 
"Our Lady, she's my mama, I call her 'Mama'. .. To me she's just wonderful. I speak to her ALL the time. .. She brings me to her son any time, especially when I'm doubting things or wondering what's going on."
Sister Josephine is in St Patrick's parish, Chiselhurst, in London.
27th April - Judith 
"Mary is the mother of all the whole world I think and she has to be considered very important for the world. So we all have to follow her, love her and bless her and have a strong belief in her."
Judith is from Grenada.
28th April - Feast of St Louis de Montfort & St Gianna Molla - May 
"Our Lady has a special peace for me."
May is from Ireland.
29th April - Feast of St Catherine of Siena - Virginia 
"Back home we have a grotto of the Blessed Mother and then I gather little children and I taught them to sing and then every six o'clock I get one of my tenants to pray the Angelus. O my God, you can't believe it, the children easily learn it! 'The angel of God declared unto Mary and she conceived of the Holy Spirit.' They easily learn that and then they sing a song to Jesus."
Virginia is from the Philippines.
30th April - Feast of St Joseph Cottolengo - Philip 
"I've prayed the rosary almost every day of my life. Every Friday and Sunday I go to the church and pray to Mary. I pray for my family, friends and everybody, the whole world - to be peaceful. The whole world is most important, not only for myself."
Philip is from the Philippines.