Totus Tuus - Totus 2us

Somethings about Mary in May 2011

_{Many, many thanks to Annie, Anu, Augusto, Christine, Claire, Daniel, Daniel, Diana, Dorota, Ellie, Eric, Father George, Jerusalem, Kamel, Kelechi, Marguerita, Maria, Sister Maria-Jose, Sister Maria-Silvia, Mary, Mary, May, Monique, Odette, Piotr, Rafael, Rema, Simon, Sister Stefania, Wanda & Yana for contributing to Something about Mary in this her month of May.}

_{You can subscribe to this Totus2us podcast here on itunes or here on the RSS feed. Plus, you can download the free mp3 audio recordings individually by right/double clicking on the play buttons} 

_{The Feast of Our Lady of Fatima on 13th May this year was the 30th anniversary of the assasination attempt on Pope John Paul II.
Many thanks to Mgr Leo Maasburg, who was in Rome at the time, for his beautiful 3 2us reflection    
"And then a very, very slow, a real suffering voice came across "Totus tuus ego sum." A long silence; it took him I guess at least 3 minutes to pronounce these words. And then he said "I have forgiven the man who made an attempt on my life." I believe this is exactly what the message of Fatima wants to tell us: are we ready to offer our lives, are we ready to offer our sufferings, in order to be able to forgive?"}

_{Father Marcus Holden gave an ace Sunday Evangelium homily on Mary in this her month of May}      

_{If you'd like to give Our Lady a metaphorical bunch of flowers by saying your something about Mary, please do get in touch with the Totus2us team :o)}

1st May - Divine Mercy Sunday & beatification of John Paul II - Ellie       

_{"My husband and I have been on an amazing journey together, falling in love really with the Virgin Mary .. and through prayer and through her mercy we have been blessed with a beautiful child."}

_{Ellie is from England.}

2nd May - Daniel      

_{"It wasn't until about 2 years ago I had a dream with Mother Teresa of Calcutta and she was in this beautiful, sparkling like altar and she was telling me to pray a lot to the Blessed Virgin Mary. I woke up the following day and told my wife "Wow. I had this amazing dream." I never had anything to do with Mother Teresa; how strange I had a dream about her telling me about the Blessed Virgin Mary and to pray a lot to her and to ask her for help ... This is my journey to the love that grew from my heart to Our Blessed Virgin Mary and I want to share it with everybody. It is just amazing, it is so wonderful that since then I have been absolutely crazy and in love for her and for Our Lord Jesus Christ. So I didn't even know how to do the rosary, and she taught me, little by little I started to do the rosary. And the experience was that I was desperate to finish work, to go home to do the rosary, and I couldn't do it in the car because I didn't know it by heart, but I was so eager to learn it."}

_{Daniel is from Venezuela; he gives his algo de María in English & Spanish.}

Our Lady's message to Mirjana, Međugorje, 2 May 2011:

_{""Dear children, God the Father is sending me to show you the way of salvation, because He, my children, desires to save you and not to condemn you. That is why I, as a mother, am gathering you around me, because with my motherly love I desire to help you to be free of the dirtiness of the past and to begin to live anew and differently. I am calling you to resurrect in my Son. Along with confession of sins, renounce everything that has distanced you from my Son and that has made your life empty and unsuccessful. Say 'yes' with your heart to the Father and set out on the way of salvation to which He is calling you through the Holy Spirit. Thank you. I am especially praying for the shepherds, for God to help them to be alongside you with a fullness of heart."}

3rd May - Father George      

_{"Our Lady is a special woman in the sense that she is the one through whom God gave us His Son, His only Son. And she is an exemplary Christian mother in the home. We see in her a humility which no other woman had ever shown and lived. She is duty conscious and prayerful. She does everything with humility."}

_{Fr George Nze Muoba is from Nigeria; he is currently the Provincial Chaplain for the Divine Mercy Devotion and Archdiocesan Chaplain for the Catholic Charismatic Renewal of Nigeria. He has written '50 Days with the Holy Spirit (my greatest friend)'.}

4th May - Dorota      

_{"Maria for me is very important because she is the mother of Jesus .. She takes care of all Polish people, of all mothers, of all children and all older people, and everybody who wants to get some help from her."}

_{Dorota is 23 and from Poland. She gives her coś o Maryi in English & Polish.}

5th May - Maria      

_{"I would like to say to Our Lady how wonderful she is. I pray to her and it just comes from out of my heart. I treasure her, I love her and she is always with me."}

_{Maria is from Panama; she gives her algo de María in English & Spanish.}

6th May - Yana      

_{"Maria is the name of my grandmother and I connect her with Saint Maria who is the symbol for something good, for love, for everything."}

_{Yana is 27 and from Bulgaria; she gives her Ах, тази Мери in English & Bulgarian.}

7th May - Simon      

_{"Saint Mary means for me love - extraordinary love which is going in your body and going through your body. It's love, for me it's pure love."}

_{Simon is 28 and from Poland; he gives his coś o Maryi in English & Polish.}

8th May - 3rd Sunday of Easter - Sister Stefania      

_{"For me, Mary is my refuge and my protector. She is our heavenly Mother whom we can trust and whom we can count on."}

_{Sister Stefania is from the Philippines.}

9th May - Eric      

_{"To me, Our Lady, she is my mother."}

_{Eric is 24 and from Sweden.}

10th May - Monique      

_{"Mary is my mother in love. Marie, c'est l'amour."}

_{Monique is from France; she gives her quelque chose de Marie in English & French.}

11th May - May      

_{"For me, Mother Mary is a source of hope, a guiding light. I can relate to her. I speak to her every day - when I'm happy, when I'm sad, when I have troubles. I know she can hear me and she is always there to help me and to love me. I believe she is a huge part of my life and I am very grateful for her being there for me always."}

_{May, from Singapore, is currently studying in Spain.}

12th May - Marguerita      

_{"The Virgin Maria is very special. She is my protection in all things."}

_{Marguerita is from Ecuador; she gave her algo de María in English & Spanish (in St Peter's Square after the thanksgiving Mass for Blessed John Paul II on 2nd May).}

13th May - Feast of Our Lady of Fatima - Sister Maria-Silvia      

_{"The Virgin Mary is my mother, my dear mother."}

_{Sister Maria-Silvia is from Brazil; she gives her algo sobre Maria in English & Portuguese.}

14th May - Christine      

_{"I prayed the rosary as a child every day with my family and when I went to college I quit praying my rosary. After I was married for many years I came back to the rosary because some special prayers were answered through the recitation of the rosary and my husband got a job. After that I had much hope and much joy in Our Lord Jesus because His Blessed Mother was like my mother."}

_{Christine is from the USA.}

15th May - 4th Sunday of Easter - Piotr      

_{"Mary is a perfect woman and Mary is a Queen. She is a queen to all of us, she is a queen to Poland, to Polish people, and she is a queen for me, and I would like to be her knight and to serve her and God."}

_{Piotr is 21 and from Poland; he gives his coś o Maryi in English & Polish.}

16th May - Jerusalem      

_{"When I think and believe in Mary, she brings me strength and also love."}

_{Jerusalem is 20 and from Eritrea; she gives her something about Mary in English & Tigrinya.}

17th May - Claire      

_{"Mary, the Mother of God, to me is my spiritual mother whom I love very much and I try and pray the rosary every day. I love to visit her places in the world, her shrines and oratories, churches that are devoted to Mary. I feel a lot of help from Mary on a daily basis and I try to offer my work to be pleasing to God through Mary."}

_{Claire is from England.}

18th May - Odette      

_{"Our Lady is an inspiration to us all and a big example to us that we can accept the will of God, whatever He wants us to do."}

_{Odette is from Cameroon.}

19th May - Sister Maria-Jose      

_{"The Blessed Virgin Mary for me is really the Virgin; a virgin and a mother; my heavenly mother."}

_{Sister Maria-Jose is from the Philippines.}

20th May - Diana      

_{"Oh! Gracias Virgen Santa por permitirnos tener la Pasion de Cristo y volver a recordar nuevamente, "Que es la muerte para nosotros" para perdonarnos nuestros pecados. Amen."}

_{Diana is from Panama; she gives her algo de María in Spanish.}

21st May - Annie      

_{"There is a special little ceremony that any child, any little group, can do and that is the crowning ceremony of Our Lady to honour her as Queen of the May."} 

_{Annie is from England and she ends her description of the crowning ceremony of Our Lady, by singing the hymn:}

_{Bring flowers of the rarest, bring blossoms the fairest,
from garden and woodland and hillside and dale;
our full hearts are swelling, our glad voices telling
the praise of the loveliest flower of the vale.}

_{O Mary, we crown thee with blossoms today,
Queen of the Angels and Queen of the May. (x2)}

_{Their Lady they name thee, their mistress proclaim thee.
Oh, grant that the children on earth be as true
as long as the bowers are radiant with flowers
as long as the azure shall keep its bright hue.}

_{Sing gaily in chorus, the bright angels o'er us
re-echo the strains we begin upon earth;
their harps are repeating the notes of our greeting,
for Mary herself is the cause of our mirth.}

22nd May - Mary      

_{"I have a particular devotion to Our Lady of Guadalupe .. the story of Guadalupe is a story of hope and it's always something I like to remember when I have worries or concerns; it's also a particularly beautiful image of Our Lady."}

_{Mary is 24 and from Australia.}

23rd May - Augusto      

_{"Maria means very much to me. I pray to Maria a lot and she is an example to young people."}

_{Augusto is 21 and from Ecuador; he gives his algo de María in English & Spanish.}

24th May - Rafael      

_{"I think Mary is a big mother: mother of Jesus and mother of God."}

_{Rafael is 25 and from Poland.}

25th May - Kelechi      

_{"For me, Our Lady is my mother, she is my intercessor, she is always there for me in any time I am in trouble or need."}

_{Kelechi is from Nigeria.}

Our Lady of Medjugorje's message to Marija, 25 May 2011:

_{"Dear children! My prayer today is for all of you who seek the grace of conversion. You knock on the door of my heart, but without hope and prayer, in sin, and without the Sacrament of Reconciliation with God. Leave sin and decide, little children, for holiness. Only in this way can I help you, hear your prayers and seek intercession before the Most High. Thank you for having responded to my call."}

_{"Cari figli, la mia preghiera oggi è per tutti voi che cercate la grazia della conversione. State bussando alla porta del mio cuore ma senza speranza e senza preghiera, nel peccato e senza il sacramento della riconciliazione con Dio. Lasciate il peccato e decidetevi figlioli, per la santità. Soltanto così posso aiutarvi, esaudire le vostre preghiere e intercedere davanti all’Altissimo. Grazie per aver risposto alla mia chiamata."}

_{"¡Queridos hijos! Mi oración hoy es para todos ustedes que buscan la gracia de la conversión. Llaman a la puerta de mi Corazón, pero sin esperanza ni oración, en el pecado, y sin el sacramento de la Reconciliación con Dios. Abandonen el pecado y decídanse, hijitos, por la santidad. Solamente así puedo ayudarlos y escuchar vuestras oraciones e interceder ante el Altísimo. ¡Gracias por haber respondido a mi llamado!"}

26th May - Anu      

_{"I've never thought specifically about Mary, but the whole idea of spirituality is just something that hits you in a place like a church, where everything else seems so much smaller and insignificant, and you can just come to terms with yourself and what's going on; everything just seems far more peaceful."}

_{Anu is 19 & from England.}

27th May - Kamel      

_{"In my country Maria is a very special person because we have a lot of prayers to her. Maria is very important in my life because she was with me when I was burnt and in hospital in Poland with a picture of Maria. I remember that I have a lot of stories with Maria in my memory. I very usually go to our Church with Maria in Czestochowska and I have a lot of time to spend with pictures of Maria and I usually go to the special celebrations of Maria so I am very close with Maria."}

_{Kamel is 17 & from Poland; he gives his coś o Maryi in English & Polish.}

28th May - Rema      

_{"I think what Mary means to me is obviously a mother figure and someone who brought Jesus into this world, but not only that but brought life."}

_{Rema is 20 & from Singapore.}

29th May - 6th Sunday of Easter - Daniel      

_{"Mary is the mother of God and the path to go to Jesus and I think she is full of tenderness.
Marie est pour moi la mère de Dieu, elle est le chemin qui me mène à Jésus et elle est pleine de tendresse pour tout son peuple et pour toute notre famille."}

_{Daniel is from France.}

30th May - Mary      

_{"My favorite quote is from Our Lady of Medjugorje when she says 'If you knew how much I loved you, you'd cry for joy.'"}

_{Mary is 21 and from the USA.}

31st May - Feast of the Visitation - Wanda      

_{"Maria is for me an ideal, perfect woman. She is not only the mother of Jesus Christ, but she is the mother of all people of the world. I know that some say that everything is not well in the world, I know that she loves me and that she loves everyone in the world. I think she is for a woman a leader and I thiink she should be leader for all women in all the world. John Paul II said, "Totus Tuus Maria, Totus Tuus" and I think it should be our slogan in our life - Totus Tuus Maria."}

_{Wanda is from Poland; she gives her response in English & Polish.}