Marian Devotions Through the Year: February

February begins with the end of Christmas through the feast of Candlemas and continues quickly with all the hardships of the Holy Family and Our Lady’s first Sorrows as they flee to Egypt, live among the pagans there, and finally return to Nazareth to rebuild their quiet family life of service and witnessing of God’s Presence to one another and their surrounding community. It encompasses the Hidden Life at Nazareth as well as the grief of letting family members go in the death of St. Joseph, showing families in every age that there is always one Family who keeps under their wing those who seek to bear life’s trials and joys with the same virtue.

Marian Virtue: Constant Self-Denial

This month we focus on the fifth of the traditional Ten Virtues of Our Lady. Constant Self-Denial carries importance for the liturgical season of Lent that is beginning, but it also plays an evergreen significance in family life, from the parents who sacrifice much for each other and their offspring to the children who sacrifice their wills in obedience to their parents and charity towards siblings to the many families who live in a state of holy poverty out of necessity in this economy so that they can be more present to the ones within the home.

Marian Theme: The Holy Family

While some traditional calendars list February as the Month of the Passion of the Lord, others list February as the month of the Holy Family. During a time when the Northern Hemisphere is still largely experiencing winter and a more homebound lifestyle, it seems fitting to focus on the time of life for the Holy Family when they were refugees in Egypt and then the hidden life at Nazareth. The peaceful death of St. Joseph is it’s last known moment before the advent of Jesus’ public ministry which ultimately leads to his Passion and Death. This month we find ample opportunity to live the quietness of the Holy Family and implement the familial virtues of peace, charity, obedience, and holy poverty so that their fruits can spill over into our public lives as the next livelier season of spring approaches.

Marian Antiphon: Ave Regina Caelorum from February 3rd onward (Alma Redemptoris Mater from February 1 and 2)

Ave, Regina caelorum,
Ave, Domina Angelorum: 
Salve, radix, salve, porta

Ex qua mundo lux est orta:

Gaude, Virgo gloriosa, 
Super omnes speciosa, 
Vale, o valde decora, 
Et pro nobis Christum exora.

V. Dignare me laudare te, Virgo sacrata.
R. Da mihi virtutem contra hostes tuos.

Oremus. Concede, misericors Deus, fragilitati nostrae praesidium: ut, qui sanctae Dei Genitricis memoriam agimus; intercessionis eius auxilio, a nostris iniquitatibus resurgamus. Per eundem Christum Dominum nostrum. Amen.

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Welcome, O Queen of Heaven. 
Welcome, O Lady of Angels
Hail! thou root, hail! thou gate
From whom unto the world, a light has arisen:

Rejoice, O glorious Virgin, 
Lovely beyond all others, 
Farewell, most beautiful maiden, 
And pray for us to Christ.

V. Allow me to praise thee, O sacred Virgin. 
R. Against thy enemies give me strength.

Grant unto us, O merciful God, a defense against our weakness, that we who remember the holy Mother of God, by the help of her intercession, may rise from our iniquities, through the same Christ our Lord. Amen.

The liturgical year cycles through four Marian Antiphons, each having a Simple Tone and Solemn Tone in Gregorian chant. Marian antiphons are typically chanted after night prayer and immediately before going to bed. February contains the last two days of the liturgical season of Christmas and pre-Lent into Lent, so this month there are two Antiphons: the Alma Redemptoris Mater which is last sung on Candlemas (February 2) and the Ave Regina Caelorum which will be sung for the remainder of February and until Wednesday of Holy Week. Both texts are often attributed to the monk from Reichenau, Herimann the Lame (1013-1054) although the Ave’s earliest appearance seems to be in the 12th century. 

Sheet music for the Alma Redemptoris Mater Simple Tone may be printed from here (page 234 of the Parish Book of Chant pdf). 

Sheet music for the Solemn Tone may be found on page 235 of the same pdf. 

Sheet music for the Ave Regina Caelorum Simple Tone may be printed from here (page 238 of the Parish Book of Chant pdf). 

Sheet music for the Solemn Tone may be found on page 237 of the same pdf.

Marian Feasts

• February 2 - Presentation of the Lord/Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary/Candlemas
• February 6 - Our Lady of Louvain (Belgium, 1444)
• February 7 - Our Lady of Grace (Rome, 1610)
• February 11 - Our Lady of Lourdes (1858)
• February 21 - Our Lady of Good Haven (1838)
• February 24 - end of Plague in Rome after Pope St. Gregory the Great leads a procession with a painting of Our Lady by St. Luke (591)
• February 26 - Our Lady of the Fields, consecrated by St. Denis in Paris (250)

Marian Devotion: Seven Sorrows of Mary

Families may ask why we circle back to the Seven Sorrows during February. Just as this devotion holds a special place in September, so it claims February since Candlemas is the commemoration of the day when the Sorrows of Our Lady were laid bare to her by Simeon in an event that tradition holds to be not a mere minutes long presentation but an hours long proclamation in great detail. 

This devotion began very early in the Church, especially in the Mediterranean region, and several Saints and Blesseds had received visions by the 13th century detailing its efficacy to the soul and consolation to Our Lady. The most well known revelation though is that of the Blessed Virgin to St. Bridget of Sweden (1303-1373) where she states that devotion to the Seven Sorrows would bring great graces to the soul. Her method consists of praying seven Hail Marys while meditating on the Seven Sorrows. While there are also longer meditations, including a form approved by Pope Pius VII in 1815 and a Seven Sorrows Chaplet or Rosary, this one is simple enough for the entire family to join in on. 

The Seven Sorrows of Mary:

1.  The Prophecy of Simeon (Luke 2:34-35)
2.  The Flight into Egypt (Matthew 2:13-21)
3.  The Loss of Jesus for Three Days (Luke 2:41-50)
4.  The Carrying of the Cross (John 19:17)
5.  The Crucifixion of Jesus (John 19:18-30)
6.  Jesus Taken Down from the Cross (John 19:39-40)
7.  Jesus Laid in the Tomb (John 19:39-42)

Seven Promises Our Lady gave to St. Bridget for those who meditate on Our Lady’s Seven Sorrows:

1. “I will grant peace to their families.”
2. “They will be enlightened about the Divine Mysteries.”
3. “I will console them in their pains and I will accompany them in their work.”
4. “I will give them as much as they ask for as long as it does not oppose the adorable will of my Divine Son or the sanctification of their souls.” 
5. “I will defend them in their spiritual battles with the infernal enemy and I will protect them at every instant of their lives.”
6. “I will visibly help them at the moment of their death. They will see the face of their Mother.”
7. “I have obtained this grace from my divine Son, that those who propagate this devotion to my tears and dolors, will be taken directly from this earthly life to eternal happiness since all their sins will be forgiven and my Son and I will be their eternal consolation and joy."

Marian Customs Highlight: Making a Miniature Pilgrimage

In February we celebrate the feast of Our Lady of Lourdes. One way to tie in the special pilgrimages and prayers for healing that go along with this feast and Mary’s apparition at Lourdes is to do a mini Marian pilgrimage as a family or with friends. If you cannot find a dedicated Marian shrine (this site is a helpful though not all inclusive resource) in your diocese or within reasonable driving distance, look for a church with special saint relics or visit the local diocesan Cathedral. Collect intentions from your family and friends, ask your little ones who they would like to pray for so that they are specifically invested, and write down all the petitions. If the drive is long enough, pray a Rosary and sing Marian hymns en route; if it is a short drive, simply sing hymns and pray a Rosary at the site. You could even look up French pilgrimage songs such as “Je vous salue Marie” or Lourdes hymns to add to the spirit. Planning your pilgrimage around Holy Mass gives something concrete to do while at your destination, but also be sure to spend some time taking in the architecture and learning a piece of the history of the chapel or church. Once you get back home, soup, bread, and tea is a perfect winter meal to wind up the day.