Roman Catholic Marian Movements and Societies

Throughout the centuries the devotion to and the veneration of the Blessed Virgin Mary by Roman Catholics has both led to, and been influenced by a number of
Roman Catholic Marian Movements and Societies. These societies, form part of the fabric of Roman Catholic Mariology since they contribute to the sensus fidelium

Sensus fidelium

The concept of sensus fidelium in Roman Catholic teachings can be implicitly traced back to the early Fathers of the Church...

, a century-old sense of the faithful, shared by the Magisterium

Magisterium

In the Catholic Church the Magisterium is the teaching authority of the Church. This authority is understood to be embodied in the episcopacy, which is the aggregation of the current bishops of the Church in union with the Pope, led by the Bishop of Rome , who has authority over the bishops,...

. Popular membership in Marian organizations grew significantly in the 20th century, as apparitions such as Fátima

Our Lady of Fatima

Our Lady of Fátima is a famous title given to the Blessed Virgin Mary as she appeared in apparitions reported by three shepherd children at Fátima in Portugal. These occurred on the 13th day of six consecutive months in 1917, starting on May 13...

gave rise to societies with millions of members, and today many Marian societies exist around the world. This article reviews the major Marian movements and organizations.

Sodality of Our Lady

The Sodality of Our Lady

Sodality of Our Lady

The Sodality of Our Lady The Sodality of Our Lady The Sodality of Our Lady (also known as the Sodality of the Blessed Virgin Mary (in Latin, Congregationes seu sodalitates B. Mariæ Virginis) is a Roman Catholic Marian Society founded in 1563 by young Belgian Jesuit, Jean Leunis (or Jan), at the...

was formed in 1563 in Rome by members of the Society of Jesus

Society of Jesus

The Society of Jesus is a Catholic male religious order that follows the teachings of the Catholic Church. The members are called Jesuits, and are also known colloquially as "God's Army" and as "The Company," these being references to founder Ignatius of Loyola's military background and a...

and has remained the official Marian society of the Holy See

Holy See

The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, in which its Bishop is commonly known as the Pope. It is the preeminent episcopal see of the Catholic Church, forming the central government of the Church. As such, diplomatically, and in other spheres the Holy See acts and...

for centuries. In 1584, Pope Gregory XIII

Pope Gregory XIII

Pope Gregory XIII , born Ugo Boncompagni, was Pope from 1572 to 1585. He is best known for commissioning and being the namesake for the Gregorian calendar, which remains the internationally-accepted civil calendar to this date.-Youth:He was born the son of Cristoforo Boncompagni and wife Angela...

issued a Papal Bull

Papal bull

A Papal bull is a particular type of letters patent or charter issued by a Pope of the Catholic Church. It is named after the bulla that was appended to the end in order to authenticate it....

commending this Sodality, granting it indulgences and establishing it as the mother Sodality. The Bull Gloriosae Dominae
Gloriosae Dominae
Gloriosae Dominae is an Apostolic Letter by Pope Benedict XIV issued on September 27, 1748.In this Apostolic Letter Pope Benedict XIV called the Blessed Virgin Mary "Queen of heaven and earth," stated that the sovereign King has in some way communicated to her his ruling power....

of Pope Benedict XIV

Pope Benedict XIV

Pope Benedict XIV , born Prospero Lorenzo Lambertini, was Pope from 17 August 1740 to 3 May 1758.-Life:...

increased the privileges of the sodality and the 1948 Apostolic Constitution

Apostolic constitution

An apostolic constitution is the highest level of decree issued by the Pope. The use of the term constitution comes from Latin constitutio, which referred to any important law issued by the Roman emperor, and is retained in church documents because of the inheritance that the canon law of the...

Bis Saeculari

Bis Saeculari , is an Apostolic Constitution, of Pope Pius XII on the Sodality of Our Lady. It reminisces the two hundredth anniversary of the Papal bull Gloriosae Dominae of Pope Benedict XIV in 1748....

of Pope Pius XII

Pope Pius XII

The Venerable Pope Pius XII , born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli , reigned as Pope, head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of Vatican City State, from 2 March 1939 until his death in 1958....

summarized the historical and contemporary relevance of the sodality.

Over several centuries the organization listed many saints, several popes and various royal figures as members. Until the Second Vatican Council

Second Vatican Council

The Second Vatican Council addressed relations between the Roman Catholic Church and the modern world. It was the twenty-first Ecumenical Council of the Catholic Church and the second to be held at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican. It opened under Pope John XXIII on 11 October 1962 and closed...

in 1965, the Sodality of Our Lady or the Children of Mary as it was known, was a well-known part of the life of Catholic Communities worldwide. After the Second Vatican Council

Second Vatican Council

, many sodalities were transformed by the Jesuits, who redirected their policies towards social concern. Since then, the number of active sodalities has dwindled, as other Marian organizations have grown.

Marians of the Immaculate Conception

Also known as the Congregation of Marian Fathers

Congregation of Marian Fathers

The Congregation of Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary is a Roman Catholic male clerical religious congregation founded, 1673, in Poland...

of the Immaculate Conception of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary, this is a community of more than 500 Roman Catholic priests and brothers in 19 countries on 6 continents. They are an Institute of Consecrated Life

Institute of Consecrated Life

Institutes of consecrated life are canonically erected institutes in the Roman Catholic Church whose members profess the evangelical counsels of chastity, poverty, and obedience by vows or other sacred bonds...

and pledge support to the Pope. Their aim is to spread devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary as the Immaculate Conception

Immaculate Conception

The Immaculate Conception of Mary is a dogma of the Roman Catholic Church, according to which the Virgin Mary was conceived without any stain of original sin. It is one of the four dogmata in Roman Catholic Mariology...

, pray for the soul

Soul

A soul in certain spiritual, philosophical, and psychological traditions is the incorporeal essence of a person or living thing or object. Many philosophical and spiritual systems teach that humans have souls, and others teach that all living things and even inanimate objects have souls. The...

s in purgatory

Purgatory

Purgatory is the condition or process of purification or temporary punishment in which, it is believed, the souls of those who die in a state of grace are made ready for Heaven...

and undertake a variety of apostolic work. Marians were the first Catholic men’s religious order dedicated to the honor of Mary’s Immaculate Conception.

The organization was formed by in 1673 by Blessed Stanislaus Papczyński

Stanislaus Papczynski

Blessed Stanislaus of Jesus and Mary Papczyński , a priest of the Roman Catholic church, a member of the Piarist Order, the founder of the Congregation of Marian Fathers; beatified by the Roman Catholic Church in 2007. Son of Tomasz Papka—a blacksmith—and Zofia née Tacikowska...

(beatified in Licheń

Lichen Stary

Licheń Stary is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Ślesin, within Konin County, Greater Poland Voivodeship, in west-central Poland. It lies approximately south-east of Ślesin, north-east of Konin, and east of the regional capital Poznań. The village has a population of 1,100.The...

, Poland in 2007). Pope Innocent XII granted his approval for the Order in 1699 with solemn vows under the French Rule of the Ten Virtues of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Over the next 200 years, the Order was caught up in the wars and turmoil in Europe and was saved in 1909 by Blessed George Matulaitis-Matulewicz

Jurgis Matulaitis-Matulevicius

Jurgis [George] Matulaitis was a Roman Catholic Bishop of Vilnius from 1918 to 1925 and founder of the Sisters of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary. On 28 June 1987, Pope John Paul II beatified him as the Blessed Jurgis Matulaitis-Matulewicz.-Biography:Matulaitis was the son of...

who as a youth had been brought up in a village where Marians staffed the local parish. The experience had left him with a lifelong respect and admiration for the Marian Fathers.

The new Constitutions for the order was approved by Pope Pius X in 1910, and it grew thereafter.

Although it is now an international organization, the Marians still have strong roots in Poland, (e.g. the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Licheń

Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lichen

The Basilica of Our Lady of Licheń is a Roman Catholic church located in the village of Licheń Stary near Konin in the Greater Poland Voivodeship in Poland. It was designed by Barbara Bielecka and built between 1994 and 2004...

) and place a great deal of emphasis on spreading the messages of Divine Mercy

Divine Mercy

The Divine Mercy is a Roman Catholic devotion to the merciful love of God and the desire to let that love and mercy flow through one's own heart towards those in need of it...

of Saint Faustina Kowalska. Their role in spreading the Divine Mercy

Divine Mercy

The Divine Mercy is a Roman Catholic devotion to the merciful love of God and the desire to let that love and mercy flow through one's own heart towards those in need of it...

message was acknowledged by Pope John Paul II

Pope John Paul II

Blessed Pope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005, at of age. His was the second-longest documented pontificate, which lasted ; only Pope Pius IX ...

in a Papal Blessing in 2001, the 70th anniversary of the revelation of the Divine Mercy Message and Devotion. Marian Fathers are well known as Official promoters of the authentic Divine Mercy message since 1941.

Company of Mary

The Company of Mary

Company of Mary

The Missionaries of the Company of Mary is a missionary religious congregation within the Latin Church one of the 23 sui iuris churches which compose the universal Catholic Church. The community was founded by Saint Louis de Montfort in 1705 with the recruitment of his first missionary disciple,...

, also called the Montfort Missionaries is the earliest Marian society based on the influence of Saint Louis de Montfort

Louis de Montfort

St. Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort was canonized in 1947. He was a French priest and known in his time as a preacher and author, whose books, still widely read, have influenced a number of popes....

. The organization was formed in 1705 by Saint Louis himself with just one missionary disciple, Mathurin Rangeard.

Five months after his ordination, in November 1700, St Louis wrote: "I am continually asking in my prayers for a poor and small company of good priests to preach missions and retreats under the standard and protection of the Blessed Virgin".

During the intervals between his missions Montfort wrote the Rule of the Company of Mary (1713). After he died in 1716, two young priests and sometimes collaborators, Father Adrien Vatel and Father Rene Mulot continued his mission. From 1718 till 1781 the "Mulotins", although few in number, gave over 430 missions throughout western France, most of which lasted a month.

After the French Revolution

French Revolution

The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...

Montfort's community was reorganized by Father Gabriel Deshayes, elected superior general in 1821. He received from Pope Leo XII

Pope Leo XII

Pope Leo XII , born Annibale Francesco Clemente Melchiore Girolamo Nicola Sermattei della Genga, was Pope from 1823 to 1829.-Life:...

a brief of praise for the Company of Mary and for the Daughters of Wisdom

Daughters of Wisdom

Daughters of Wisdom is a Catholic contemplative organization founded by Saint Louis de Montfort and Blessed Marie Louise Trichet.While he was temporary chaplain of the hospital of Poitiers in 1707, he associated into a little community some pious but afflicted girls, and gave them a rule of life,...

, which had also been formed by de Montfort with the help of Blessed

Beatification

Beatification is a recognition accorded by the Catholic Church of a dead person's entrance into Heaven and capacity to intercede on behalf of individuals who pray in his or her name . Beatification is the third of the four steps in the canonization process...

Marie Louise Trichet

Blessed Marie Louise Trichet also known as Marie-Louise de Jésus was a French Catholic figure who, with Saint Louis de Montfort, founded the Congregation of religious women called Daughters of Wisdom and since the age of seventeen devoted her life to caring for the poor and the sick. She is also...

. The company has since grown to an international congregation of missionary priests and brothers serving in nearly 30 countries and numbering near 1,000 men.

Marianists

The Marianists, also called the Society of Mary

Society of Mary (Marianists)

The Society of Mary, a Roman Catholic Marian Society, is a congregation of brothers and priests called The Marianists or Marianist Brothers and Priests. The Society was founded by Blessed William Joseph Chaminade, a priest who survived the anti-clerical persecution during the French Revolution. ...

was founded in 1801 by Blessed

Beatification

William Joseph Chaminade

William Joseph Chaminade or Guillaume-Joseph Chaminade, now called by his liturgical title of Blessed Chaminade , was a French Roman Catholic priest who survived persecution during the French Revolution. He founded the Society of Mary, also called the Marianists, in 1817...

, a priest who survived the persecutions of Catholics during the French Revolution

French Revolution

. There are currently 500 priests and over 1,500 religious in the organization.

The Society is one of the four branches of the Marianist Family

Marianist Family

The Marianist Family is a group of four Roman Catholic organizations which trace their origins to Blessed William Joseph Chaminade and Mother Adèle de Batz de Tranquelleon...

. Along with the other branches, the Marianist Brothers and Priests look to Mary as a model for faith and spirituality, and they feel that the best ways to live a spiritual life are to share their faith with others, work with the poor, and educate and nourish the mind, the body, and the soul.

Marianists can be classified as priests, teaching brothers, or working brothers, but, regardless of classification, most members of the order work in schools or programs for young people. In all of their educational institutions, the Characteristics of Marianist Education guide the curriculum.

The society has many affiliated organizations, such as: the Daughters of Mary Immaculate and the Marian Alliance. The society has branches on every continent.

Marists

The Marists

Society of Mary (Marists)

The Society of Mary , is a Roman Catholic religious congregation or order, founded by Father Jean-Claude Colin and a group of other seminarians in France in 1816...

were founded by (later) Father Jean-Claude Colin

Jean-Claude Colin

The Venerable Jean-Claude Colin, S.M. was a French priest who became the founder of the Society of Mary ....

and a group of other seminarians in France in 1816. Jean-Claude Courveille (1787–1866) had the original insight for the congregation but it was brought to fruition by Colin.

Pope Gregory XVI

Pope Gregory XVI

Pope Gregory XVI , born Bartolomeo Alberto Cappellari, named Mauro as a member of the religious order of the Camaldolese, was Pope of the Catholic Church from 1831 to 1846...

, approved of the order in 1836. The Little Brothers of Mary and the Sisters of the Holy Name of Mary, commonly called Marist Brothers and Marist Sisters, were reserved for separate institutes. Father Colin was elected Superior General in 1836, and on that same day the first Marist professions took place, Saint Peter Chanel

Peter Chanel

Pierre Louis Marie Chanel, known in English as Saint Peter Chanel was a Catholic priest, missionary, and martyr.-Early years:Chanel was born in La Potière near Cuet in the area of Belley, Ain département, France....

, Colin, and Saint Marcellin Champagnat

Marcellin Champagnat

Saint Marcellin Joseph Benedict Champagnat was born in Rozet, village of Marlhes, near St. Etienne , France...

being among those professed. Saint Peter Chanel, was later martyred on the island of Futuna

Futuna Island, Wallis and Futuna

Futuna is an island in the Pacific Ocean belonging to the French overseas collectivity of Wallis and Futuna. It is one of the Hoorn Islands or Îles Horne, nearby Alofi being the other...

.

The society's name derives from the Blessed Virgin Mary whom the members attempt to imitate in their spirituality and daily work. The post-nominal initials of the Society are S.M., which sometimes leads to confusion with another religious order of the same name (Society of Mary), but known as the Marianists

Society of Mary (Marianists)

.

Outside France, their first field of labour was the Vicariate Apostolic of Western Oceania, comprising New Zealand, Tonga, Samoa, the Gilbert

Gilbert Islands

The Gilbert Islands are a chain of sixteen atolls and coral islands in the Pacific Ocean. They are the main part of Republic of Kiribati and include Tarawa, the site of the country's capital and residence of almost half of the population.-Geography:The atolls and islands of the Gilbert Islands...

(now known as Kiribati) and Marshall Islands, Fiji, New Caledonia

New Caledonia

New Caledonia is a special collectivity of France located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and about from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of...

, New Guinea

New Guinea

New Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...

, the Solomon and the Caroline Islands

Caroline Islands

The Caroline Islands are a widely scattered archipelago of tiny islands in the western Pacific Ocean, to the north of New Guinea. Politically they are divided between the Federated States of Micronesia in the eastern part of the group, and Palau at the extreme western end...

. The society has since grown to an international organization. and there are around 1000 Marists worldwide.

Marist Brothers

The Marist Brothers

Marist Brothers

The Marist Brothers, or Little Brothers of Mary, are a Catholic religious order of brothers and affiliated lay people. The order was founded in France, at La Valla-en-Gier near Lyon in 1817 by Saint Marcellin Champagnat, a young French priest of the Society of Mary...

are a religious order

Religious order

A religious order is a lineage of communities and organizations of people who live in some way set apart from society in accordance with their specific religious devotion, usually characterized by the principles of its founder's religious practice. The order is composed of initiates and, in some...

of brothers and affiliated lay people founded near Lyon

Lyon

Lyon , is a city in east-central France in the Rhône-Alpes region, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located at from Paris, from Marseille, from Geneva, from Turin, and from Barcelona. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais....

in France in 1817 by Saint Marcellin Champagnat

Marcellin Champagnat

Saint Marcellin Joseph Benedict Champagnat was born in Rozet, village of Marlhes, near St. Etienne , France...

, a young French priest of the Marist Fathers

Society of Mary (Marists)

The Society of Mary , is a Roman Catholic religious congregation or order, founded by Father Jean-Claude Colin and a group of other seminarians in France in 1816...

.

The Marist Brothers are not clerics, but are devoted to educational work throughout the world and now conduct primary and secondary schools, academies, industrial schools, orphanage

Orphanage

An orphanage is a residential institution devoted to the care of orphans – children whose parents are deceased or otherwise unable or unwilling to care for them...

s and retreat houses in 77 countries on five continents: Europe, Africa, America

Americas

The Americas, or America , are lands in the Western hemisphere, also known as the New World. In English, the plural form the Americas is often used to refer to the landmasses of North America and South America with their associated islands and regions, while the singular form America is primarily...

, Asia, and Oceania.

The Marist Brothers have had ministries in over 100 different nations. Presently there are approximately 4300 brothers in 76 countries on 5 continents, working directly and sharing their mission and spirituality with more than 40,000 lay Marists, and together educating close to 500,000 children and young people.

In 2007, the Holy See

Holy See

beatified

Beatification

47 Marist Brothers from the dioceses of Burgos, Cartagena, Girona, Lleida

Diocese of Lleida

The Diocese of Lleida is located in north-eastern Spain, in the province of Lleida, part of the autonomous community of Catalonia. The diocese forms part of the ecclesiastical province of Tarragona, and is thus suffragan to the Archdiocese of Tarragona.The diocese of Lleida was created in the 3rd...

, Palencia, Pamplona and Tudela, San Sebastian, Solsona, Terrassa, Teruel and Albarracin

Diocese of Teruel and Albarracín

The Diocese of Teruel and Albarracín is a Roman Catholic ecclesiastical territory located in north-eastern Spain, in the province of Teruel, part of the autonomous community of Aragón...

, Urgell

Diocese of Urgell

The Diocese of Urgell is a Roman Catholic diocese in Catalonia, Spain, with origins in the fifth century AD or possibly earlier. It is based in the region of the historical Catalan county of Urgell, though it has different borders...

and Vic who died in the Spanish Civil War

Spanish Civil War

The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...

Schoenstatt Movement

The Schoenstatt Movement

Schoenstatt Movement

The Apostolic Movement of Schoenstatt is a Roman Catholic Marian Movement founded in Germany in 1914 by Father Joseph Kentenich. Fr. Kentenich saw the movement as being a means of spiritual renewal in the Catholic Church...

was founded in Germany in 1914 by Father Joseph Kentenich

Joseph Kentenich

Father Joseph Kentenich was a father of the Pallottines and founder of the Schoenstatt Movement...

as a means of bringing spiritual renewal to the Catholic Church. It is named after a small village near Koblenz

Koblenz

Koblenz is a German city situated on both banks of the Rhine at its confluence with the Moselle, where the Deutsches Eck and its monument are situated.As Koblenz was one of the military posts established by Drusus about 8 BC, the...

, Germany. Schoenstatt emphasizes a strong devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary, upholding her as a perfect example of love and purity. Schoenstatt seeks to invite the Blessed Virgin (and, hence, her divine Son, Jesus Christ), into the home by establishing a spiritual Covenant of Love with her. It encourages its members to have the faith and purity of children, and to think of Mary as their mother.

A central point in the movement dynamics and faith is the devotion to the Shrine, based on the first shrine in Schoenstatt where the movement started with a special devotion to Mary and of which there are dozens of replicas around the world. The movement is now active in several countries besides Germany, especially in South America and India and it is involved in various apostolic

Apostolic

Apostolic may refer to:An Apostle meaning one sent on a mission*The Twelve Apostles of Jesus, or something related to them, such as the Church of the Holy Apostles...

actions, including missionary

Missionary

A missionary is a member of a religious group sent into an area to do evangelism or ministries of service, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care and economic development. The word "mission" originates from 1598 when the Jesuits sent members abroad, derived from the Latin...

work, charity, and education.

Many groups have been formed within the movement where people can join anything from loose groups with sparse meetings to religious orders. The organization reports that there are hundreds of Schoenstatt youth groups throughout the world and that overall it has close to one million followers.

Militia Immaculata

Founded by St. Maximilian Kolbe

Maximilian Kolbe

Saint Maximilian Maria Kolbe OFM Conv was a Polish Conventual Franciscan friar, who volunteered to die in place of a stranger in the Nazi German concentration camp of Auschwitz, located in German-occupied Poland during World War II.He was canonized on 10 October 1982 by Pope John Paul II, and...

in 1917. Also known as the Knights of the Immaculata.

Legion of Mary

Formed in 1921 in Dublin, Ireland by Frank Duff, The Legion of Mary

Legion of Mary

The Legion of Mary is an association of Catholic laity who serve the Church on a voluntary basis. It was founded in Dublin, Ireland, as a Roman Catholic Marian Movement by layman Frank Duff. Today between active and auxiliary members there are in excess of 10 million members worldwide making it...

was first only open to women, but men joined as of 1929. The legionaries first started out by visiting hospitals, and in 1928 Duff formulated its basic rules.

The organization spread out of Ireland and started to grow after Pope Pius XI

Pope Pius XI

Pope Pius XI , born Ambrogio Damiano Achille Ratti, was Pope from 6 February 1922, and sovereign of Vatican City from its creation as an independent state on 11 February 1929 until his death on 10 February 1939...

expressed praise for it in 1931. The Venerable Edel Mary Quinn spearheaded the spread of the organization in Africa during the 1930s and 1940s and Legion of Mary currently claims three million active members worldwide, and estimates its auxiliary members about ten million. Both Quinn and Duff are in the beatification

Beatification

process. Members must be practicing Catholics.

The spirituality of the Legion of Mary is based on the approach of Saint Louis de Montfort as put forward in his book True Devotion to Mary. Saint Louis de Montfort's approach of "total dedication" to Christ through devotion to the Virgin Mary also influenced popes such as John Paul II.

The essential aim of the Legion of Mary is the sanctification of its members through prayer, the sacraments and devotion to Mary and the Trinity, and of the whole world through the apostolate of the Legion.

Blue Army of Our Lady of Fatima

The Blue Army was founded in 1947 by Rev. Fr. Harold V. Colgan in New Jersey

New Jersey

New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...

, USA. Inspired by the message of Our Lady of Fátima he focused the organization on devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary

Immaculate Heart of Mary

The Immaculate Heart of Mary originally The Sacred Heart of Mary is a devotional name used to refer to the interior life of Mary, her joys and sorrows, her virtues and hidden perfections, and, above all, her virginal love for God, her maternal love for her Son, Jesus, and her compassionate love for...

, daily recitation of the Rosary

Rosary

The rosary or "garland of roses" is a traditional Catholic devotion. The term denotes the prayer beads used to count the series of prayers that make up the rosary...

and righteous observance of the duties of one's state of life

Vocation

A vocation , is a term for an occupation to which a person is specially drawn or for which they are suited, trained or qualified. Though now often used in non-religious contexts, the meanings of the term originated in Christianity.-Senses:...

.

Author John Haffert

John Haffert

John Mathias Haffert, was an author, editor and Roman Catholic figure. He wrote several books, mostly on Roman Catholic themes, co-founded Catholic societies, edited Catholic magazines and lectured on Catholic issues....

assisted Colgan and began delivering conferences on the message of Fátima and the Blue Army. He also edited the "Scapular Magazine" that added one million new members to the organization.

In May 1947 Colgan met Pope Pius XII

Pope Pius XII

who approved of and blessed the organization. In 1950 there were one million enrolled members, in 1953 five million, and currently the numbers are beyond twenty million.

As the Blue Army grew into an international organization, it was transformed into the World Apostolate of Fatima, the decree of erection for it being signed in October 2005. In February 2006, the World Apostolate of Fátima held an official ceremony for the consignment of the decree and the approval of its statutes at the Pontifical Council for the Laity

Pontifical Council for the Laity

The Pontifical Council for the Laity has the responsibility of assisting the Pope in his dealings with the laity in lay ecclesial movements or individually, and their contributions to the Church. The Cardinal President of the Council is Cardinal Stanisław Ryłko. The Secretary is Bishop Josef...

in Rome. The World Apostolate of Fátima is now headquartered in Fátima, Portugal

Fátima, Portugal

Fátima is a city in Portugal famous for the Marian apparitions, recognized by the Catholic Church, that took place there in 1917. The town itself has a population of 7,756 and is located in the municipality of Ourém, in the Centro Region and Médio Tejo Subregion...

Our Lady's Rosary Makers
Our Lady's Rosary Makers
Our Lady's Rosary Makers is a non-profit apostolate in Louisville, Kentucky, dedicated to spreading devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary and the Rosary. Its 17,000 members, in the U.S. and other countries, make and distribute roughly 7 million cord and chain rosaries annually for missions around the...

This organization was formed in 1949 in Louisville, Kentucky

Louisville, Kentucky

Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...

by Sylvan Mattingly

Sylvan Mattingly

Sylvan Mattingly was a Catholic teacher and missionary worker who in 1949 founded what grew to be the largest Catholic Rosary making group in the United States.He was a member of the Xaverian Brothers and taught at the St...

, a Xaverian Brother who inspired by the message of Our Lady of Fátima decided to form a rosary

Rosary

The rosary or "garland of roses" is a traditional Catholic devotion. The term denotes the prayer beads used to count the series of prayers that make up the rosary...

making club. The organization started modestly, with $25 donated by an old couple for a typewriter and was based in the basement of St. Xavier High School

St. Xavier High School, Louisville, Kentucky

St. Xavier High School is an all-male, Xaverian Brothers-sponsored school in Louisville, Kentucky. It is located in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Louisville. St. Xavier, also known as St. X, was founded in 1864 by Br. Paul Van Gerwen, C.F.X. The school currently resides on Poplar Level Road...

. Sylvan Mattingly died two years after he formed the club, but over time it grew in the U.S. and around the world.

Our Lady's Rosary Makers

Our Lady's Rosary Makers

Our Lady's Rosary Makers is a non-profit apostolate in Louisville, Kentucky, dedicated to spreading devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary and the Rosary. Its 17,000 members, in the U.S. and other countries, make and distribute roughly 7 million cord and chain rosaries annually for missions around the...

now has about 17,000 members, in the U.S. and other countries, who make and distribute roughly 7 million cord and chain rosaries annually for missions around the world. Over the years, the members Our Lady’s Rosary Makers have distributed hundreds of millions of free rosaries to Catholic missions worldwide.

The core of Our Lady's Rosary Makers

Our Lady's Rosary Makers

operation is the bimonthly newsletter called Our Lady’s Messenger which reaches approximately twenty thousand people. There is no central control over the rosary making activity, and Catholic missionaries

Missionary

worldwide who are in need of rosaries just post their requests in the newsletter. Other members then select which missionaries they are inspired to send rosaries to by reading the newsletter. The missionaries simply wait until packages of Rosaries arrives in the mail from various members.

Mariological Society of America

The Mariological Society of America

Mariological Society of America

The Mariological Society of America is a Mariological scholarly society dedicated to the study of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Each year the society publishes the proceedings of the annual meeting in Marian Studies, a publication that contains articles addressing a particular theme connected the role...

(MSA) is a theological society dedicated to the study of the Virgin Mary along with an interest in encouraging Marian catechetics and Marian spirituality in the Americas. It is a Catholic theological association dedicated to studying and making known the role of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the mystery of Christ and in the Church and in the history of salvation. Through its annual meeting and in its publication, Marian Studies, the Society seeks to promote original research in Mariology, Marian doctrine and devotion.

The Mariological Society of America

Mariological Society of America

was founded by Fr. Juniper B. Carol, O.F.M., in October 1949. The charter members gathered for the first meeting in Washington, D.C., in January 1950. Since that time, the MSA has met annually in various cities throughout the United States. In 1954, the Society was recognized as a corporation "organized exclusively for charitable, religious, educational and scientific purposes." Listed in the Official Catholic Directory as one of the national organizations of the United States Catholic Conference. The proceedings of the annual meeting are published in Marian Studies.

Marian Movement of Priests

The Marian Movement of Priests

Marian Movement of Priests

The Marian Movement of Priests is a Roman Catholic movement founded by Father Stefano Gobbi on October 13, 1972, the 55th anniversary of Our Lady of Fátima....

was founded by Father Stefano Gobbi

Stefano Gobbi

Father Stefano Gobbi was an Italian Roman Catholic priest. He was born in the Province of Como, Italy and was ordained as a priest in 1964. He later obtained a doctorate in sacred theology from the Pontifical University in Rome...

in 1972, on the 55th anniversary of Our Lady of Fátima

Our Lady of Fatima

. According to the organization, its members now include over 400 Catholic cardinal

Cardinal (Catholicism)

A cardinal is a senior ecclesiastical official, usually an ordained bishop, and ecclesiastical prince of the Catholic Church. They are collectively known as the College of Cardinals, which as a body elects a new pope. The duties of the cardinals include attending the meetings of the College and...

s and bishop

Bishop

A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...

s, more than 100,000 Catholic priests, and several million lay Catholics worldwide.

Father Gobbi has not claimed a Marian apparition, but has reported interior locution

Interior locution

An interior locution is a mystical concept used by various religions, including the Roman Catholic Church. In an interior locution, a person reportedly receives a set of ideas, thoughts, or imaginations from an outside spiritual source. Interior locutions are most often reported during prayers...

from the Virgin Mary, i.e. an internal voice from the Blessed Virgin that urged him to have confidence in the Immaculate Heart of Mary

Immaculate Heart of Mary

and to gather those priests that would be willing to consecrate themselves to Immaculate Heart of Mary

Immaculate Heart of Mary

and be strongly united with the Pope and the Catholic Church.

In 1973, he wrote his interior locution

Interior locution

s as messages which were published in the book: "To the Priests, Our Lady's Beloved Sons" and received imprimatur

Imprimatur

An imprimatur is, in the proper sense, a declaration authorizing publication of a book. The term is also applied loosely to any mark of approval or endorsement.-Catholic Church:...

s from three Catholic cardinal

Cardinal (Catholicism)

s. Pope John Paul II, who had a personal devotion to the Virgin Mary, used to meet with and celebrated mass with Father Gobbi in his private papal chapel in the Vatican

Apostolic Palace

The Apostolic Palace is the official residence of the Pope, which is located in Vatican City. It is also known as the Sacred Palace, the Papal Palace and the Palace of the Vatican...

on an annual basis for several years. In November 1993, Pope John Paul II also provided an official papal blessing

Blessing (Roman Catholic Church)

Blessing in Roman Catholicism, in the narrow liturgical sense, is a rite consisting of a ceremony and prayers performed in the name and with the authority of the Church by a duly qualified minister by which persons or things are sanctified as dedicated to Divine service or by which certain marks of...

for the American branch of the organization in St. Francis, Maine

St. Francis, Maine

St. Francis is a town in Aroostook County, Maine, United States on the Canadian border at the junction of the St. Francis River and the Saint John River. The population was 577 at the 2000 census...

but did not offer an imprimatur

Imprimatur

An imprimatur is, in the proper sense, a declaration authorizing publication of a book. The term is also applied loosely to any mark of approval or endorsement.-Catholic Church:...

for the book.

The movement places special emphasis on the power of praying the Holy Rosary

Holy Rosary

Holy Rosary may refer to:*Rosary, a set of prayer beads used in a traditional Roman Catholic devotion*The Holy Rosary, a prayer based on the rosary-See also:*Holy Rosary Academy , one of several Roman Catholic schools with this name...

and Eucharistic Adoration

Eucharistic adoration

Eucharistic adoration is a practice in the Roman Catholic Church, and in a few Anglican and Lutheran churches, in which the Blessed Sacrament is exposed to and adored by the faithful....

as effective means of strengthening the Church. Father Gobbi has held cenacle

Cenacle

The Cenacle , also known as the "Upper Room", is the term used for the site of The Last Supper. The word is a derivative of the Latin word cena, which means dinner....

s of varying sizes on every continent. The cenacle he held in Ōita

Oita, Oita

is the capital city of Ōita Prefecture located on the island of Kyushu, Japan.- Demographics and geography :Ōita is the most populous city in Ōita Prefecture...

, Japan on June 2, 1978 was for a few priests and nuns while the cenacle he held in Mexico City on November 27, 1994 was attended by 20,000 people in the city stadium.

America Needs Fatima

Formed in 1984 in the United States, this is an action oriented organization formed based on the work of the Brazilian writer Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira

Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira

Plinio Correa de Oliveira was a Brazilian intellectual, politician and Catholic activist....

and the American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property

American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property

The American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property is a civic organization of traditional Roman Catholic inspiration...

. Organization members hold anti-abortion rallies, distribute leaflets and visit homes in the US with the statues of Our Lady of Fátima. The organization states that it has received letters of support for its initiatives from dozens of American bishops as well as many of priests.

The organization's stated goal is to: “win the heart and soul of America for Mary by spreading Our Lady's Fatima message and promoting devotion to Her Immaculate Heart

Immaculate Heart

Immaculate Heart may refer to:*Immaculate Hearts, a punk band from New York City*Immaculate Heart of Mary, a religious doctrine related to Sacred Heart of Jesus*Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, a religious order...

.”

The organization is action oriented in the sense that it orchestrates anti-blasphemy campaigns outside major movie studios, and encourages activities such as "Public Square Rosary Campaigns". On October 13, 2007 the organization orchestrated a number of groups across the United States to pray the rosary and proclaim the Fatima message in a public place, such as a sidewalk or street corner, on the 90th anniversary of the Miracle of the Sun during the Fatima apparitions.

Fatima Movement of Priests

The Fatima Movement of Priests

Fatima Movement of Priests

The Fatima Movement of Priests is a Roman Catholic movement organized by priests who follow the devotion to Our Lady of Fatima. The movement was founded following a series of meetings among priests at three international Fátima Peace Congresses held by the Fátima Center: Tuy, Spain and Fátima,...

was founded following a series of meetings among priests at three international Fátima Peace Congresses held by the Fátima Center: Tuy, Spain

Tui, Galicia

Tui , in Spanish Tuy, is a town in Galicia , in the province of Pontevedra. It is located on the left bank of the Minho River, facing the Portuguese town of Valença....

and Fátima, Portugal

Fátima, Portugal

in October 2006; São Paulo

São Paulo

São Paulo is the largest city in Brazil, the largest city in the southern hemisphere and South America, and the world's seventh largest city by population. The metropolis is anchor to the São Paulo metropolitan area, ranked as the second-most populous metropolitan area in the Americas and among...

, Brazil in July 2007; and Madras, India in late January, early February 2008.

The organization's stated focus is to implement the Our Lady of Fátima messages to affect people's lives, parishes and dioceses. It is also a loose confederation of Catholic priests and bishops the world over who have resolved to make the Fátima Message more central in their own priestly lives and in their work.