Somethings about Mary
in August 2018
Many, many thanks to Aurelis, Beatrice, Coral, Craig, Deacon David, Father George, Helen, Megan, Michael, Pankaj, Peter, Philip, Friar Philomeno James, Pushpa and Somaeoih for giving their 'something' about Mary this month.
This beautiful icon of Our Lady with baby Jesus is in Romania.
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1st August - Feast of St Alphonsus Liguori - Aurelis 
"Our Lady, she is the Mother of God, of Jesus Christ. .. If we pray to her, she sends our prayers to God and she intercedes for us to God. She's really kind. She helped Jesus Christ in his teenage years .. she's the best."
Aurelis is 14 and from India.
Our Lady's message to Mirjana Soldo, Medjugorje, 2nd August 2018:
"Dear children, with a motherly love I am calling you to open hearts to peace; to open hearts to my Son, so that in your hearts love for my Son may sing, because only out of that love peace comes in the soul. My children, I know that you have goodness, I know that you have love - a merciful love, but many of my children still have a closed heart. They think that they can do it without directing their thoughts towards the Heavenly Father who illuminates - towards my Son who is always with you anew in the Eucharist and who desires to listen to you. My children, why do you not speak to Him? The life of each of you is important and precious, because it is a gift from the Heavenly Father for eternity. Therefore, do not ever forget to keep on thanking Him: speak to Him. I know, my children, that what is to come afterwards is unknown to you, but when your hereafter comes you will receive all the answers. My motherly love desires that you be ready. My children, by your life keep putting good feelings in the hearts of the people whom you meet, feelings of peace, goodness, love and forgiveness. Through prayer, hearken to what My Son is saying and act accordingly. Anew, I am calling you to prayer for your shepherds, for those whom my Son has called. Remember that they need prayers and love. Thank you."
2nd August - Feast of St Eusebius of Vercelli - Helen 
"Our Lady, she's everything: she’s our mother, she’s always there to intercede for us. So whenever I pray I call upon her to intercede for me and she has never ever failed me. Never!"
Helen is from Nigeria.
3rd August - Megan 
"For me Mary is like a mother figure but maternal in the way that she leads us by good example. So instead of being motherly in that she can give us hugs and offer us advice, she is always there to keep us on the straight path. She's the mother of all mothers ... and I think that she's a really great example for modern day women of how you can be a role model for someone, also aim to be as sinless as possible and just keep your eyes firmly focused on God."
Megan is 21 and from South Wales.
4th August - Feast of St John Mary Vianney - David 
"Mary has made a big impact in my life .. I noticed the priests with a Marian devotion, particularly Fr Patrick Peyton .. he just had a great love in his eyes when he spoke about Mary, so I said to her 'I want to get to know you before seminary.' I ended up being invited to Lourdes and I shared a room with a great man who spoke about Mary a lot and gave me 'True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin', St Louis de Montfort's book. With classics like that I usually find them a bit difficult but I just devoured it. It's really full on but being our mother I think we can be full on with her because she loves us. Some of the insights that St Louis de Montfort gives us just made so much sense. .. We can go to her and she molds us. And the power of the rosary, the holy rosary. It's a simple prayer but it's so nourishing and it has it all really. "
David is 34 and a deacon from Northampton diocese in England.
5th August - Feast of Our Lady of the Snows - Beatrice 
"I think our Mary, Our Lady, is like our mother. She takes care of us and looks after us, and she looks after everyone. So even people who don't have a mother they actually have one because she is our mother. Having her like our Mary is like having a full heart.
Penso che Maria, Nostra Madonna, sia punto la mamma di tutti noi .. ci guarda sempre, si prende cura di noi. È un punto fondamentale e come se fosse qualcosa di prezioso che abbiamo."
Beatrice is 25 and from Genova in Italy.
6th August - Feast of the Transfiguration - Pankaj 
"I'm Indian, I'm a Hindu, but I've had a good experience with Mary because I believe she helps those people nobody will help. She also can get to Jesus faster than anybody because he is the son. I did tell her in fact that my wife is having a cough problem so help her please. So she must have gone to Jesus and said to him 'These people need help and you're not helping. I'm your mother, I'm directing you to help his wife.' Jesus helped because she believes in her son as well and she knows. No words can describe what I think of her because she is the Mother of God. ... I wish all the people: believe in her from your heart, not pretending, and it will happen. Mountains can be moved with belief."
Pankaj is from India.
7th August - Feast of St Cajetan of Tiene - Pushpa 
"It's very difficult to say something about the Mother of the Son of God, as he is known ... My cough is 70% down because of her .. She has blessed us, she has helped me .. We went to Lourdes and I had a dip in the water. It is very difficult to describe the feeling I had. Wonderful, not describable!"
Pushpa is from India.
8th August - Feast of St Dominic - Peter 
"Saying the family rosary, things just go sweet! As soon as you take Our Lady out of the equation and the mysteries and all of that and you think that you can just do it on your own strength, in our family it comes apart, no question, every time."
Peter is 38 and from England.
9th August - Feast of St Teresa Benedicta of the Cross - Fr George Mary 
"Our Lady is the secret. She's going to win the battle that is going on now but we all have to pray and sacrifice, and especially pray the rosary."
Father George Mary Roth FI, from America, is a Franciscan of Mary Immaculate and St Francis.
11th August - Feast of St Clare of Assisi - Somaeoih 
"Mary is my dream. I wish I can be the same as her a little bit."
Somaeoih is from Iran.
12th August - Coral 
"My blessed mother means everything to me ... she's my eternal mother and I depend on her, I turn to her, and I love her and I thank her so much."
Coral is from Bombay / Mumbai, India.
14th August - Feast of St Maximilian Kolbe - Friar Philomeno James 
"I am a Marian Franciscan. We follow the rule of St Francis but we have a special, beautiful love of Our Lady. Normally in religious life you have three vows (poverty, chastity and obedience) but our first vow is to the Blessed Virgin. This is a radical consecration that was given to us by Maximilian Kolbe who died as an act of charity, a martyr for charity, in Auschwitz. He came up with this idea of this total self-giving consecration ... According to Maximilian Kolbe we must be the absolute property of the Blessed Virgin Mary because when you are absolute property you maintain nothing for yourself .. So this is our love for Our Lady. "
Friar Philomeno James from England is a Marian Franciscan currently based in Gosport.
15th August - Solemnity of the Assumption - Craig 
"Our Lady guides me. Everything I've done in life, through my decision to be a teacher, all through her, I keep praying."
Craig is 28 & from England.
Our Lady's message to Marija Pavlović, Medjugorje, 25 August 2018
"Dear children! This is a time of grace. Little children, pray more, speak less and permit God to lead you on the way of conversion. I am with you and love you with my motherly love. Thank you for having responded to my call."
“Queridos hijos! Este es un tiempo de gracia. Hijitos, oren más y hablen menos, y dejen que Dios los guíe por el camino de la conversión. Yo estoy con ustedes y los amo con mi amor maternal. Gracias por haber respondido a mi llamado."
"Cari figli! Questo è tempo di grazia. Figlioli, pregate di più, parlate di meno e lasciate che Dio vi guidi sulla via della conversione. Io sono con voi e vi amo con il mio amore materno. Grazie per aver risposto alla mia chiamata."