by Veronica Szczygiel
Mary has long been revered by Catholics as an intercessor, mediator, and mother of God. But did you know that her special guardianship extends to our whole country, stretching back to the founding of our nation?
In 1584, a Jacksonville, Florida, church — one of the first Catholic churches in the present-day United States — was devoted to the Immaculate Conception and is now known as the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception. In 1792, 16 years after the founding of our nation, Father John Caroll, the first bishop of the United States, dedicated the Diocese of Baltimore, which consisted of the 13 original Colonies, to the Immaculate Conception.
As more Catholic dioceses were established in the growing United States, the bishops desired to place the nascent country under special protection.
In 1846, the American Catholic bishops gathered during the sixth provincial council of Baltimore. Archbishop Francis Kenrick of Baltimore and Bishop John Hughes of New York were major proponents of the Immaculate Conception devotion. On May 13 of that year, they unanimously approved the Blessed Virgin Mary of the Immaculate Conception to be entrusted as patroness of the United States.
The bishops wrote in a letter that the United States was now “under the special patronage of the holy Mother of God. … She will obtain for us grace and salvation.” Just a year later, on July 2, 1847, Pope Pius IX confirmed the bishops’ decision. And in 1854, in his papal bull “Ineffabilis Deus,” the pope declared the Immaculate Conception as dogma in the Catholic Church. It is a widely held belief that the pope’s decision was greatly influenced by the American bishops’ designation of the Immaculate Conception as their national patroness.
Since then, hundreds of American churches have been dedicated to the Immaculate Conception, the largest being the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C., which was opened in 1959.
But why the Immaculate Conception? What was so special about this doctrine?
The Immaculate Conception, celebrated as a holy day of obligation on Dec. 8, refers to Mary being conceived in the womb of her mother, St. Anne.
Conceived without the blemish of original sin, Mary was preserved as a pure vessel for God himself, who would be made incarnate in her own womb. God the Father knew that Mary was the holiest of women and therefore chose her specifically to carry his son Jesus into our broken world.
This Independence Day, let us turn to our pure and immaculate mother to pray for the health and holiness of our country. Let Our Lady’s immaculate conception teach us to honor the dignity of all life, from conception to natural death. Let her mercifully guide our politicians, lawmakers, and us in our daily lives to respect, and love, and care for all life.
As Pope John Paul II said during his first papal visit to the United States in 1979, “May the light of your Immaculate Conception show to all the way of grace and salvation.” Amen! Conceived without the blemish of original sin, Mary was preserved as a pure vessel for God himself, who would be made incarnate in her own womb. God the Father knew that Mary was the holiest of women and therefore chose her specifically to carry his son Jesus into our broken world.
This Independence Day, let us turn to our pure and immaculate mother to pray for the health and holiness of our country. Let Our Lady’s immaculate conception teach us to honor the dignity of all life, from conception to natural death. Let her mercifully guide our politicians, lawmakers, and us in our daily lives to respect, and love, and care for all life.
As Pope John Paul II said during his first papal visit to the United States in 1979, “May the light of your Immaculate Conception show to all the way of grace and salvation.” Amen!
Veronica Szczygiel, Ph.D., is the communications director at Semper Fi & America’s Fund.