ACT OF CONSECRATION OF IRELAND TO THE IMMACULATE HEART OF MARY FOR PROTECTION FROM THE CORONAVIRUS

Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord

Wednesday 25th March 2020 at 12noon

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

I welcome Parishioners and others who join us today via webcam. I wave to you all!

We gather first of all as members of the Catholic Family across the world as our Holy Father, Pope Francis has asked us and all People of Good Will to pray the Lord’s Prayer at 12noon today asking God to protect us and keep us safe. In doing this we form part of a chain of prayerful protection around the world.

Our Father,……..

We gather also as the Catholic Family in Ireland. Our Archbishop, Eamon Martin, is also Primate of All Ireland, and today he asks us to consecrate Ireland to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

The Act begins with the recitation of The Angelus.

V. The Angel of the Lord declared unto Mary. R. And she conceived of the Holy Spirit. Hail Mary, … V. Behold the handmaid of the Lord. R. Be it done unto me according to thy word. Hail Mary, … V. And the Word was made Flesh. R. And dwelt among us. Hail Mary, … V. Pray for us, O holy Mother of God. R. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ. LET US PRAY Pour forth, we beseech Thee, O Lord, Thy grace into our hearts, that we to whom the Incarnation of Christ Thy Son was made known by the message of an angel, may by His Passion and Cross be brought to the glory of His Resurrection. Through the same Christ Our Lord. Amen.

My few words

How many of us have been thrown by events that we never expected – a twist on our path of life that we never saw coming, be it for better or for worse – and asked ourselves, in anger, despair or bewilderment: How can this be? And when Mary asks the Archangel Gabriel the same question, she is told, simply: “Nothing is impossible to God.” And that is enough. That is all Mary needed to hear. She will accept God’s will and she will carry it out.

It is hard to comprehend how someone so young can so easily say “Yes” to what will certainly be difficult, and painful, and maybe even scandalous? We live in an age when it’s so easy to say “No” to whatever life throws at us. We can make life what we want it to be – even if that’s not what it should be. You can fight aging with Botox, avoid dieting with liposuction. You can run from the world with alcohol, drugs, violence. And, if it all becomes too stressful, society tells us that you can get rid of anything that’s just inconvenient.

But Mary didn’t. She listened to another voice. The voice of an angel. When Mary asked the question, and the world also does so often ask of God, “How can this be?” the answer ignited in her a fire. The fire of the Holy Spirit, the fire of possibility.

The answer is because God wills it to be. Nothing is impossible to God. How often we forget that. How often we disbelieve it or mistrust it. But the lesson of the Annunciation is very clear. Mary, we’re told, was troubled at what she heard. But what follows is a message for all of us.

In this present time of sickness and coronavirus and of confusion, when we are troubled, we need to remember that nothing is impossible to God. God’s Spirit will come, and His Light will break through and guide the world, because Mary said Yes to God, to a saviour in a stable. And it can be this, because nothing is impossible to God.

Mary was challenged, and now so are we. The Gospel of Jesus Christ, also called the Good News, asks us to look at the unexpected, the miraculous, and the mysterious. It asks us to look into our own hearts and see how do we respond to the Gabriel’s in our own lives? How do we react when God suddenly knocks on our door to announce a change in plans? No work, no school, no visit to loved ones, no gathering for Mass, no sporting fixtures, no gathering at all.

We may feel disappointment, confusion, and maybe even anger. And we may ask those words that Mary asked so long ago, “How can this be?” How will I get through it? How will I manage? The answer is the same today as it was over 2,000 years ago. Nothing is impossible to God – God is with us – the baby in the womb of Mary, the child in the manger at Bethlehem, the man on the Cross on Calvary. The “Yes” to God. And that is what we cling to. It is possible.

If we stay close to God and each other, though doing so in the words of the lyric – close to each other from a distance! – if we trust in his blessings and protection and pray for and trust in the talents, advice, direction and courage of our scientific and medical professionals, we will get through this time of crisis and we will be the better for it as individuals, as family, as a community and humanity as a whole … simply … Because nothing is impossible to God.

The Apostles Creed

I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried; He descended into hell; on the third day He rose again from the dead; He ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from there He will come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Holy Catholic Church, the communion of Saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting. Amen.

The First Joyful Mystery of the Rosary: The Annunciation of the Lord

PRAYER OF CONSECRATION

Most Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God and Health of the Sick, at this time of great challenge to our country from the coronavirus, we consecrate to Jesus through your Immaculate Heart:

ourselves, our family, the members of Errigal Ciaran Parish, and the Cardinal MacRory Pastoral Area, our Archdiocese of Armagh, and the people of Ireland. O Mary, Queen of Ireland, when you appeared at Knock, you gave hope to your people in a time of distress, and brought them comfort in a time of sorrow.

Be with us now as a sign of salvation and hope, as we entrust ourselves to your loving care. We renew the promises of our Baptism and Confirmation and ask your intercession that we may be always faithful to Christ and to His Church. Bring under your mantle of protection all those who are suffering because of the coronavirus, and those who care for the sick and minister to their needs, as your Son implores us to do for one another. O Loving Mother, at the foot of the Cross, with steadfast faith, your Immaculate Heart was pierced by grief at the suffering of your Son. You know what we need during these difficult days. Help us, O Mother of Divine Love, to conform ourselves to the Father’s will and to do what Jesus tells us – He who took our sufferings upon Himself, and bore our sorrows to bring us, through the Cross, to the joy of the Resurrection. O Blessed Mother, Our Life, our Sweetness and Our Hope,

we wish that this Consecration be for the glory of God and that it lead us safely to Jesus your Son.

Hail Mary,…….

BLESSING

May your servants be shielded, O Lord

By the protection of your loving-kindness,

That, doing what is good in this world,

They may reach you, their highest good.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

May Almighty God bless you, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen