Pope Francis and the Month of Mary

On May 1, Pope Francis in his General Audience spoke both of St. Joseph the Worker and the Virgin Mary.  This post does not contain the entire audience, just the references to Mary.  Let's take a look at the Marian references.

Today, the 1st of May, we celebrate St. Joseph the Worker and begin the month traditionally dedicated to the Virgin Mary.

Pope Francis acknowledges this longstanding tradition of the Church to honor Mary during the month of May. 

The second thought: in the silence of his daily activity, St. Joseph shared with Mary a single, common focal point of attention: Jesus. They accompany and guard, with dedication and tenderness, the growth of the Son of God made man for us, reflecting on everything that happens. In the Gospels, Luke points out twice the attitude of Mary, which is also that of St. Joseph: "She treasured all these things, and pondered them in her heart" (2:19.51).

Remember that Pope Francis has invoked Mary's protectress role and the role of Joseph protecting the Church from the first days of his papacy.  

And in this month of May, I would like to recall the importance and the beauty of the prayer of the Holy Rosary. Reciting the Hail Mary, we are led to contemplate the mysteries of Jesus, to reflect, that is, on the central moments of his life, so that, as for Mary and for St. Joseph, He may be the center of our thoughts, our attention and our actions. It would be nice if, especially in this month of May, you would pray together as a family, with your friends, in the parish, the Holy Rosary or some prayer to Jesus and the Virgin Mary! Praying together is a precious moment for making family life and friendship even more stable! Let us learn to pray more in the family and as a family!

It is nice to see Pope Francis recommending the prayer of the holy rosary for families and parishes.  The pope acknowledges that Jesus is at the center of the rosary prayer.  This is, of course, evidenced by the name of Jesus at the center of the Hail Mary.  Pope Francis' comment also helps us to call to mind the rosary priest Fr. Patrick Peyton's saying, "the family that prays together, stays together."

Dear brothers and sisters, let us ask St. Joseph and the Virgin Mary to teach us to be faithful to our daily commitments, to live our faith in everyday actions and to give more space to the Lord in our lives, to stop to contemplate his face.

As I mentioned in a recent post, Pope Francis speaks about specific actions of the Madonna.  He has spoken often about her protection, help, and today he tells us that she can teach us to be faithful to our daily commitments.  Also, Pope Francis speaks about contemplating Christ's face.  Pope John Paul II in his Apostolic Exhortaiton, Rosarium Virginis Mariae, referred to the rosary as an aid to contemplating the face of Christ in the school of Mary.  It seems that Pope Francis is inviting us to contemplate the face of Christ through the rosary.