St. Pope John Paul II: What Was JPII’s Hope and Approach for the Third Millennium?

John Paul II’s  Hope

It  is no secret that our Holy Father, Pope John Paul II, has a very special, not to say unique devotion to the Mother of God.

By now, judging from the ratings on the best-seller list of his latest book, “Crossing The Threshold of Hope, ” the “whole world” should be aware of his tender devotion to the Mother of Jesus.

This, of course, should not surprise anyone. Since as the Vicar of Christ on earth, he is only walking in the footsteps of Jesus. He, Who loved his mother Mary, with a love that is infinite. The gospels tell us that He not only hid himself in her womb for nine months, but that he wanted her to be by his side from the Crib to the Cross; at which time he officially gave her to us as our Spiritual Mother. We also know that he wanted her to be present when, after his Ascension into heaven, the Apostles were gathered together at prayer in the upper room, “with Mary the Mother of Jesus.” Yes, she was there when the Holy Spirit came down upon the Apostles, thus breathing life into the newly born Church.

JPII’s  Devotion . . .

And what is special about Pope John Paul’s devotion to Mary? Let him speak for himself. He has done so on several occasions.
Back in 1982, in an interview with French writer, André Frossard, he revealed that in his seminary days, in Poland, he had read and re-read St. Louis de Montfort’s Treatise on True Devotion to Mary and that “Reading this book was to be a turning point in my life.” In his Marian Year encyclical, he described Montfort’s consecration to Jesus Through Mary as “authentic Marian Spirituality, ” and he singled out St. Louis de Montfort, as one of “the many witnesses and teachers of this spirituality . . . who proposes consecration to Christ through the hands of Mary, as an effective means for Christians to live faithfully their baptismal commitments.” (No. 48).

. . . to Mary

Fully aware of his responsibilities as the supreme teacher in the Church and of Christ’s triple command to his predecessor, St. Peter, “Feed my Lambs, Feed my Lambs, Feed my Sheep,” Pope John Paul has been doing just that since the day of his election in October of 1978. It is not surprising, therefore, that in his world-wide best seller, he is proud to say that “Thanks to St. Louis of Montfort, I came to understand that true devotion to the Mother of God is actually Christocentric, indeed it is very profoundly rooted in the Mystery of the Blessed Trinity, and the mysteries of the Incarnation and Redemption.”

For Pope John Paul, as for St. Louis de Montfort, true devotion to Mary is not just a passing, transitory manifestation of our devotion to Mary. It is a way of life which he calls “authentic Marian Spirituality” and which leads us to Christ by helping us “to live faithfully” our baptismal promises. Furthermore, it is the way Christ came to us two thousand years ago. It is the way the Holy Father is determined, with God’s help, to lead the Church into the third millennium.

A Way. . .

Is it a mere coincidence that at the very time the Holy Father’s best seller hit the bookstands around the world, the Montfort Missionaries should produce a monumental hand-book of the Spirituality of St. Louis Marie de Montfort, titled, Jesus Living in Mary? It would rather seem like an answer to the Holy Father’s prayer. Doesn’t he want the whole Church to go to Jesus the way He came to us the first time, namely, through Mary?

. . . Of Life

Isn’t that the message he gave the whole world, in his “Urbi et Orbi” address the day after his election, on Oct. 17, 1978, when he said the following.  “—In this grave hour which gives rise to trepidation, we cannot do other than turn our mind with filial devotion to the Virgin Mary, who always lives and acts as a Mother in the Mystery of Christ, and repeat the words ‘Totus tuus’ (all Thine) which we inscribed in our heart and on our coat of arms twenty years ago on the day of our episcopal ordination—”?

Now, isn’t that a faithful echo of St. Louis de Montfort who, three hundred years ago wrote: “I feel more than ever inspired to believe and expect the complete fulfillment of the desire that is deeply engraved on my heart and what I have prayed to God for over many years, namely, that in the near or distant future the Blessed Virgin will have more children, servants and slaves of love than ever before, and that through them Jesus, my dear Lord, will reign more than ever in the hearts of men”.  (T.D. #113).

It is our hope that the timely “Jesus Living in Mary” book will contribute, in its own way, to making Our Lady’s role in the world of souls better known and thus help to usher in the reign of Christ into the third millennium, in the manner presented to us by Pope John Paul II himself in his writings and in his own personal devotional life.