Commemorating May Crowning and Ascension

May is a special month in the Catholic Church as it is the month that the faithful worldwide celebrate  Mary, our Blessed Virgin Mother, and also the Ascension of our Lord, Jesus Christ, into heaven.The dedication of this month to our Blessed Mother dates back to the 18th century, when  Father Latomia of the Roman College of the Society of Jesus in Rome urged his students to dedicatate their lives to Mary. Fr. Latomia’s idea spread throughout Jesuit colleges, then all other Catholic churches. In 1815, Pope Pius VII granted May as a partial indulgence for devotion to Mary; in 1859 Pope Pius IX made the indulgence plenary. Today, students in the Diocese of Orlando‘s Catholic schools in Orlando continue that devotion through May crownings, praying the rosary and other celebrations throughout the month.Seeing Mary adorned in a crown is not an unfamiliar site for Catholics.Mary and Jesus were crowned in paintings and iconography in Eastern churches before this practice was noted in the West during the 19th century. One of the most recognized icons depicting a crowned Mary and baby Jesus is the image known as Salus Populi Romani, which is is displayed at the Basilica of St. Mary Major. The portrait was devoid of crowns until Pope Clement VIII added a crown to both Mary and baby Jesus. The crowns were lost, then once more added by Pope Gregory XVI during the Feast of the Assumption. After Pope Gregory’s addition of the crowns, the practice gained popularity, most prominently during May.The Coronation of Mary was furthered by Pope St. John Paul II in 1987 in an attempt to capture the significance of crowning the Blessed Mother when he announced that being the perfect follower of Christ, Mary was adorned with the symbol of the queen, and as the Mother of the messianic King, the Son of God, Mary became the ultimate Queen Mother.Pope Paul VI noted May’s importance, stating that setting aside a month to Our Blessed Lady gave incentive for more “fervent and trusting prayer.” To practice in this form of prayer to Mary, recite the rosary daily during May. Mary can also be honored with a shrine in your home or yard or having a May Coronation of Mary with your family.May also marks 40 days since Jesus rose from the tomb and continued teaching his disciples. Jesus had explained to his disciples that he would be leaving them again to be with his Father, a fact described in passages throughout the Bible. On the 40th day after He rose from the tomb, Jesus ascended in a cloud to heaven to be seated at the right hand of His Father.Jesus’s Ascension into heaven is a fundamental fact from the New Testament affirming Christ as God’s Son. Jesus worked to redeem man of his sin, and the Ascension was His reward. The Bible alludes to Jesus’s Ascension in at least seven different books, often referred to as the point of contact between the epistles and the Christ of the gospels. Many theologians view the Ascension as a stepping stone between the Earthly Christ and the heavenly exaltation of Jesus as God’s only begotten Son. Jesus’s work was finished as he completed the cycle of his threefold glory-- as the Son of God before the Incarnation, as God made man, and as the Son of God after the Resurrection and Ascension. It was Jesus’s glory to ascend into heaven, proving his victory, position of honor, and place of power, rest, happiness, and permanence.Learning of Mary’s prominence in May and Jesus’s Ascension allows Catholics to better understand their faith. The Diocese of Orlando is committed to helping its parishioners and students in Catholic schools in Orlando become more deeply involved in their faith by explaining many Catholic teachings. Read several of these explanations in our blogs or contact the Diocese at 407-246-4903.