 This year we celebrate our 90th anniversary of the Association of the Miraculous Medal here at Perryville.
We continue to give thanks to God and Mary, the mother of God’s Son for the many graces and blessings that have come to you over these years. We pray the Association may continue to be a source of blessing for you in the future. Our Lady continues to invite us to come to her altar where she will shower us with the graces we need to continue to grow into the people God wants us to be.
Miraculous Medal Associations
Around the World
by Father Henry Grodecki, C.M.
Although the Association of the Miraculous Medal has existed in various forms almost since the first medals were distributed, its international approval came in 1909, when Saint Pius X was pope.
Its International Statutes, most recently approved in 1998, determine the nature of the Association. These statutes provide that anyone who wears a blessed Miraculous Medal is a member of the Association of the Miraculous Medal. This statement is so broad that there cannot be a register of all the members of the Association.
Only God knows the total number of people who wear the medal, but we all form the worldwide Association of the Miraculous Medal!
Even though we all have the same apostolate—to spread devotion to Mary under her title of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, and to serve the poor in the spirit of Saint Vincent de Paul, various Associations around the world do this in different ways.
Devotion to Our Lady
For instance, the Domiciliary Visit of the Pilgrim Statue of Our Lady is the primary apostolate of the Association in many Spanish-speaking countries. The apostolate of the Domiciliary Visit is a form of family devotion and catechesis. Its focus is a small, portable shrine that circulates around a group of about 30 families each month, with a different one of the 30 families accepting the statue each day of the month. Besides being the focus for prayers and catechesis, the statue contains a box for collecting funds to assist the poor of the parish.
Service to the Poor
In Switzerland, one of the Association’s apostolates is direct support of missionaries. Today the Association there directly supports over 150 missionaries spread out on five continents. One of the Swiss Association’s goals has been to involve more young people. In pursuit of this goal, the Association has organized fieldwork in the missions for its younger members.
In Guatemala, the newly formed Association of San Pedro Ayampuc has just recently adopted the International Statutes. And they will soon acquire a plot of land and plan to use it to support social work in the region. And the Association of Coban, Alta Verapaz, has prepared a temporary home that will house the Indians who visit their relatives in the nearby regional hospital. These people usually do not have a place to spend the night after having traveled from their home villages high up in the mountains to visit sick family and friends at the hospital.
New Associations of the Miraculous Medal continue to be established in different countries. Although the apostolates and customs of Associations may take various forms throughout the world, all share the same general mission of honoring our Lady and spreading her care and love to all, especially those in need. We all come together as one to pray, to grow spiritually, and to live our commitment as Christians by serving the Church and evangelizing the poor.
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Financial Accountability Report for the 2007 Fiscal Year
I am pleased to present a brief financial accountability report for the 2007 fiscal year. You may click on this link to view it. We give grateful thanks to the many members who generously support the work of the Association.
Online Gift Shop
We are offering two lovely Miraculous Medals and a richly finished rosary this month: The first is a Sparkling Heart Miraculous Medal. Our other Miraculous Medal is a lovely Sterling Heart Medal of the Blessed Mother. The rosary is a Gold-plated Glass Bead Rosary with Cloisonné Our Father Beads. Just click on the link to visit our online Gift Shop to order other fine religious articles.
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