Catholic Info
Traditional Catholic Faith => Catholic Living in the Modern World => Topic started by: MariaDolores on April 19, 2024, 12:41:03 AM
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Hello everyone, I would like some input from the members on a beautiful tradition I have observed but don't know how to exactly participate or get it started.
I saw a several times how little girls, dressed in all white and most of them wearing their first communion dress, offered flowers to a statue of Our Lady sometimes before sometimes after mass. I believe it was in the month of May. I do know that it was not their first Holy Communion day. I have not seen this at the parish we go to now.
My daughter recently did her first communion, and I would love to have her do something like this, but I am not sure when or how to do it.
Is anyone familiar with this or witnessed it?
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Queen of the May
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_fln4An7G4
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Here are the lyrics. I can’t hear this without shedding tears.
Bring Flowers of the Rarest Song Lyrics | Marian Hymns | Divine Hymns
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jf4CaAxwepo
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Hello everyone, I would like some input from the members on a beautiful tradition I have observed but don't know how to exactly participate or get it started.
I saw a several times how little girls, dressed in all white and most of them wearing their first communion dress, offered flowers to a statue of Our Lady sometimes before sometimes after mass. I believe it was in the month of May. I do know that it was not their first Holy Communion day. I have not seen this at the parish we go to now.
My daughter recently did her first communion, and I would love to have her do something like this, but I am not sure when or how to do it.
Is anyone familiar with this or witnessed it?
We have it every year at our chapel and call it the "May Crowning" of Our Lady.
At our chapel it usually it takes place on the first Sunday in May along with 1st Holy Communions. The 1st Holy Communions take place at the 9 am Mass. Then the families with children who have received their 1st Holy Communion have a brunch nearby while the later Mass takes place.
Around 2 pm or so we have a rosary procession with Our Lady being carried and alll of the 1st Holy Communion children stay dressed in their clothes for this. It ends with the crowning of Our Blessed Mother in the chapel.
I have seen this "May Crowning" and procession at other chapels as well.
The song that Nadir shared is usually the one that we sing while Our Lady is being crowned.
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Back in the decades before the fall (Vat II) the May crowning of Our Blessed Mother was always done on the LAST Sunday of May. The reason being is that May 31st is the feast of the Queenship of Mary so the crowning was the closest Sunday to the feast.
Also (at least in my climate) Lilacs and peonies bloom, so as the song goes "from garden and woodland and hillside and vale", we gathered flowers in bloom and the aroma filling the church was heavenly.
I've always felt sad that the SSPX changed the tradition to the beginning of May when we can only bring store bought flowers. Also a crowning is at the end of something... probably that's why Her feast is the very end of May after a month of devotions, novenas etc.
There was a procession...first the first communicants in their white dresses and veils then Our Lady's Sodality. These were unmarried girls and young women and were considered Our Queen's ladies in waiting...all in long white gowns. All were presumed virgins as no married women were allowed in the sodality. Married women belonged to the Christian Mothers Society. The president of the sodality crowned the statue.
Often the crowning was in the church, but I remember participating when the numbers warranted an altar to be built and lavishly adorned in the attached school yard. That's when the number of parishoners far exceeded the capacity of the church.
At least one year when I participated as a senior choir member, the Bishop rented the Hamilton Tiger Cats football stadium and people from all the parishes in the diocese came for Mass and a huge procession with floats and choirs and sodalities and the various church organizations with their beautiful banners, from many parishes. Everyone brought a picnic breakfast as the fast was from midnight.
I know I have photos of the school yard event and also the stadium event. If I can scan them I'll post them.
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Thank you so much for sharing this beautiful tradition! I hope the tradition can come back at Church I go to. We will share with our Priest. Thank you!
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Back in the decades before the fall (Vat II) the May crowning of Our Blessed Mother was always done on the LAST Sunday of May. The reason being is that May 31st is the feast of the Queenship of Mary so the crowning was the closest Sunday to the feast.
The Feast of the Queenship of Mary was only established by Pius XII in 1954, and from what I've read, the pope did crown a statue of Mary in the Vatican the first time the feast was celebrated. So, your parish may have been imitating that practice. However, as mentioned above, this only started in 1954. Before that, I don't believe there was any universal fixed time for the May crowning, other than sometime in the month of May.
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The Feast of the Queenship of Mary was only established by Pius XII in 1954, and from what I've read, the pope did crown a statue of Mary in the Vatican the first time the feast was celebrated. So, your parish may have been imitating that practice.
Good info... it's nice to know the crowning at the end of May was actually done by the Pope as that's where he fixed her feast day. Our bishop at the stadium and later parishes, probably did in fact follow his example.
However, as mentioned above, this only started in 1954. Before that, I don't believe there was any universal fixed time for the May crowning, other than sometime in the month of May.
The real question is, were there in fact May crownings before 1954? I know from reading there were May day celebrations but was there an actual crowning of Mary?
Now I really feel sad that certain trad chapels aren't following Pope Pius' example for the end of May.
I'd like to think he started a lovely tradition 70 years ago.
Sometimes it feels as if people just have to change things.