CARMEL'S OWN

The Discovery of the "Treatise of True the Devotion" by Karol Wojtyla (Pope JP II)

The reading of this book marked a turning point in my life. I say "a turning point" although it was actually a long interior journey, coinciding with my clandestine preparation for priesthood. At this point in time this singular treatise came into my hands; it is one of those books that is not enough to have only just "read". I remember that I carried it for long time in my pocket, even taking it with me to the factory where I worked, so that its beautiful cover became stained with lime. I often thought about the passages and went back over them again and again. I quickly realized that there was something fundamental beyond the archaic manner of the book. From then onward, the Marian devotion of my childhood and even of my youth made way to a new attitude: a devotion that came from the deepest part of my faith, from the heart of a Trinitarian and Christological reality. Whereas before I always held back my love for the Virgin Mary in fear that my devotion to the Mother of God might mask Christ instead of yielding the way to Him, I came to understand in the light of the Treatise of Saint Louis de Montfort that it was actually the contrary. Our interior relationship with the Mother of God results organically from our bond to the mystery of Christ. It is therefore out of the question that one could prevent the other. (...) It is even possible to say that one who endeavors to know and love Jesus Christ designates Mary as his own Mother just as the disciple John did at Calvary.

Be Not Afraid!: John Paul II Speaks Out on His Life, His Beliefs, and His Inspiring Vision for Humanity, Andre Frossard in conversation with Pope John Paul II.

Translated from the French by J.R. Foster, 1984

MULTIMEDIA : Velankanni, India

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now, and at the hour of death. Amen.