It is that time of year again… we are counting down to a new year in the Church! September 1st is the beginning of the new Church year for Byzantine Catholics. You can read about why this is in our previous article about the Church New Year here. In that article I also included some ideas for Church new year’s resolutions. However, I have a more specific suggestion and challenge to share for this year.
“Make straight our path, fortify us in Your fear, guard our life, make secure our steps, through the prayers and supplications of the glorious Theotokos and ever-virgin Mary” – a silent prayer during Divine Liturgy
Discovering the Theotokos
Although devotion to the Mother of God exists in all lungs of the Church, there is something about Byzantine devotion to the Theotokos that shines brightly beyond what is clearly visible in the west. In fact, I hardly understood why we called Mary the Mother of God before becoming immersed in Byzantine Liturgy. (One nice thing about the Byzantine Divine Liturgy is catechists occurs simply by following the prayers of the liturgy). So, although there are great resources about the Mother of God in the west, it took the guiding light of the east for me to find them!
During the Divine Liturgy we sing “Through the prayers of the Mother of God, O Saviour, save us.” We are all saved through the prayers of the most Theotokos. Whether we love her or not, whether we acknowledge her or not, she intercedes for us to God, and to Christ her son. Such is the love of a mother for her children. To have God for a Father means to have Mary for a Mother. One the cross when Jesus said “Behold your mother,” He wasn’t just talking to St. John.
Jesus gave us two great gifts in that moment. He gave us His life, and He gave us His mother. From this moment we learn that we have a mother who will always care for us. And that we should follow Christ’s example and honour Mary as our own mother too.
Consecration to the Theotokos
Regardless of your liturgical rite, devotion to the Theotokos is incredibly important. So how can we live out this devotion? By consecrating ourselves to the Mother of God. In consecrating ourselves to the Theotokos, we relinquish to her care all our interior and exterior goods. Our interior goods refer to our spiritual goods. And so we give Mary all our merits, virtues, and good works. We give these to her knowing that she will keep them safe (as we are liable to lose and destroy these goods so easily). But we also give them to her to do with as she pleases. (Which is also good, because she always perfectly follows the will of God).
You’ll notice though, that we do not just give Mary our interior goods. We also relinquish to her care our exterior goods. We offer the Theotokos our mind and body, and our health and our relationships. And we give her all our possessions, and all the things that are given to us, whether it be things we obtained through our own work, or things we received as gifts. The Eparchy of Phoenix has a Byzantine prayer of Consecration to the Theotokos, which you can access as a PDF here.
Fair Warning
When talking about Consecration to the Theotokos, a Byzantine Catholic Priest-monk bid us to remember something from the Acts of the Apostles. This was the story of Ananias and Sapphira, a married couple who sold their land to give the proceeds to the Church. However, when they sold the property they decided to save some of the money for themselves instead of giving all of it like they had promised.
“Ananias,” Peter asked, “why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back part of the proceeds of the land? While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, were not the proceeds at your disposal? How is it that you have contrived this deed in your heart? You did not lie to us but to God!” Now when Ananias heard these words, he fell down and died.” – Acts 5 3-5
The interesting part here is that Peter acknowledged when the property was unsold, the couple was free to do whatever they wanted with the land and the proceeds. But after they offered it to God, it belonged to God. And so God took the gift seriously. Just as God takes our consecration to the Mother of God seriously.
Benefits of Consecration
Now, the point of consecration to Mary is to follow Christ’s example and honour His mother, our mother. And by growing in love and devotion to Mary we are actually growing closer in love and devotion to her Son. By consecrating ourselves to Mary we actually give ourselves entirely to God. She aids us in our imitation of Christ, and provides many special blessings to those who call upon their mother. There is one prayer that summarizes the need of this devotion to Mary
“Remember, O most gracious Virgin Mary, that never was it known that anyone who fled to thy protection, implored thy help, or sought thine intercession was left unaided. Inspired by this confidence, I fly unto thee, O Virgin of virgins, my mother; to thee do I come, before thee I stand, sinful and sorrowful. O Mother of the Word Incarnate, despise not my petitions, but in thy mercy hear and answer me.”
Everyone who seeks the Mother of God is protected, cared for, and saved from great perils. Not a single soul is lost who turns to her for help at the hour of death. Who could refuse such perfect protection as that offered by the Theotokos?
Devotion to the Theotokos
There are many great prayers to the Mother of God, and many great books which can aid us in loving her and understanding here. The books and prayers recommended below are chosen not because of any particular rite of the church, but because of the excellence of these books and prayers in admiring the incredible mystery of the gift God has given to us in the most holy Theotokos. Also, this selection includes recommendations from TheBadgerDad. Books
- True Devotion to Mary by St. Louis DeMontfort
- The Admirable Heart of Mary by St. John Eudes
- The Life of the Virgin Mary by St. Maximos the Confessor
- Three Sermons on the Assumption by St. John Damascene
- Against those who are unwilling to confess that the Holy Virgin is the Theotokos by St. Cyril of Alexandria
- The Immaculate Conception by Rev. Dr. Christiaan Kappes
- Jesus and the Jewish Roots of Mary by Dr. Brant Pitre
Prayers
- Byzantine Rosary
- Prayer Rule of the Theotokos
- “O Most Holy Theotokos, save us” on prayer rope
- Akathist to the Mother of God
- Akathist to the Dormition of the Theotokos
- Canon of Repentance to the Theotokos (St. Theodore the Studite)
Note: The message of today’s blog article is inspired primarily by the homily for Dormition by an anonymous good and holy Byzantine priest-monk
The Byzantine Life
Thank you for checking out this week’s article. Check out our articles on the Church New Year, or Byzantine + Fatima, or the Byzantine Rosary.
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