Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Novena for Marriage and Families 2017 Begins August 30th

"We live in a world where the family is under attack. It is safe to say that the institution of both marriage and family has never been as threatened as it is today. In fact, its very survival as an institution is questionable. There is hardly a person reading this who is not touched by the disintegration of family life. It can take many forms; divorce, co-habitation, the acceptance of a contraceptive mentality, abortion, fatherless homes, the rejection of the faith and numerous other dysfunctions which plague and threaten to destroy family life all together.

Beyond these problems, as Saint John Paul II himself warned in Familiars consortio, there are strong forces in our society, which are actively seeking to change the very nature, structure, and meaning of both marriage and family: and even in some cases to eradicate them all together. This disintegration of marriage and family has not happened by accident. At one time, they were considered to be sacred institutions having profound spiritual meaning." (The Domestic Church, Dr. Joseph Atkinson of the Pontifical John Paul II Institute for Marriage & Family)

Strong families are indispensable to building a culture of life that protects human dignity. We pray that the sacrament of marriage is strengthened and that families are preserved and sanctified. Please join us in praying the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Novena for the renewal of marriage, society and the people of God.

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"Vouchsafe that I may praise thee, O sacred Virgin; give me strength against thine enemies, and against the enemy of the whole human race. Give me strength humbly to pray to thee. Give me strength to praise thee in prayer with all my powers, through the merits of thy most sacred nativity, which for the entire Christian world was a birth of joy, the hope and solace of its life..."

— Saint Anselm

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