Simple Ways to Help Children Fall in Love with the Blessed Mother
A mother teaches her child to hold her hand before crossing the street in order to be safe. We can also teach our children to hold the Blessed Mother’s hand so that she will keep them spiritually safe as she walks us to her Son, Jesus. It is not a paved or dirt road that we can see with our eyes, but life is a journey with the goal of day by day walking with Jesus. Our Mother in heaven will hold our hand and help us if we ask her.
Here are six ways to bring our children to Mary in ways they will love and that will help nurture a relationship with her to last a lifetime.
May Crowning
A meaningful way to honor our Blessed Mother is to crown a statue of Mary to show she is the queen of Heaven. Catholic Icing, a beautiful website full of ideas for crafts and activities, offers some wonderful ideas for planning a May crowning.
Read Together
There are many children’s books about the Blessed Mother. Our Lady’s Wardrobe, a new one by best-selling author Anthony DeStefano, inspired this article. Just looking at the stunning pictures stirs a love for the Blessed Mother. The book introduces children to eight of the visits Mary made from heaven through the simple but beautiful clothing she wore. Children also learn about the special things they can wear (the Brown Scapular and the Miraculous Medal) to assist them along the path to holiness and that they, too, can create a heavenly wardrobe reflective of God’s presence.
Author and Catholic blogger, Faith Hakesley, described the book as “hands down one of the most spectacular books I’ve ever laid eyes on.” I agree. Preview the book today.
Consecrate your lives to Mary together
Marian Consecration for Children: Bringing Mary to Life in Young Hearts and Minds by Dr. Carrie Gress offers a guide exciting and meaningful for children.
Years ago, my family did the 33-day consecration to Mary inspired by St. Louis de Montfort who preached on Marian consecration as a means we can give our entire selves to Jesus with his mother. I wish this book had been out when our children were young. It weaves in tales of saints, kings, queens, knights, and princesses to teach virtue, courage, and that their spiritual mother loves them. Spiritual lessons are also drawn from contemporary childhood stories, fables, and fairy tales and includes daily fun facts such as why lady bugs are named for Mary, and why the moon is a common symbol for Mary.
Teach About the Miraculous Medal and the Brown Scapular
Both are sacramentals. The Miraculous Medal was given to St. Catherine Laboure offering us an outpouring of graces from Heaven. The medal requested by the Blessed Mother shows her arms outstretched with golden rays pouring down from her hands onto us, representing God’s grace to help us become holy. Children can easily learn the prayer: “Oh Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee.” They will love the image of graces pouring down on us when we pray that.
The Brown Scapular given to St. Simon Stock from Our Blessed Mother offers divine protection from spiritual harm.
Watch Movies Together
Watch a movie about Marian apparitions with your children. There are beautifully done cartoon movies of some of these as well as classic and more recent family movies. If you or your parish belong to Formed, check out their Marian movies.
Bible Stories
Teach your children the Bible stories about our Blessed Mother, whom God picked out to be the mother for his own Son, so she was the most beautiful, loving, humble woman. At the Annunciation, the Angel Gabriel appeared to Mary and she agreed to be the mother of Jesus by saying, “Be it done unto me according to your word.” A simply-told story with an eternally deep message that children love.
Again, at the wedding feast of Cana, Mary teaches us again to do whatever God asks us to do. That first miracle of Jesus at the wedding was very different than all the other miracles. It was not a life or death situation and not a healing, but simply an embarrassing situation. Mary cares about us and will pray to help us. Jesus had told his mother it was not his time yet to begin his public life performing miracles, but because it was his mother who asked him, he changed water into wine. And the message she gave the servants is the same message she gives us: Do whatever Jesus tells us to do. As the very first miracle recorded in the Bible, it shows us how much Jesus loves his Blessed Mother and how much she cares about us and wants us to follow Jesus.
By introducing our children to the Blessed Mother, we also feel her motherly love and care. And surely she is smiling down upon us as we invoke her motherhood to help us raise our children for heaven.
Copyright 2020 Patti Maguire Armstrong
This article was originally published at CatholicMom.com and is shared here with permission.