Santa Maria and the Filipino Faithful

Santa Maria is the most honored, revered and influential woman in the history of the world. Magnificent cathedrals have been built around the world in her name like Rome’s Santa Maria Maggiore and our Lady of Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C.

Women and men have dedicated their lives in religious orders like the Marian Fathers in Poland, The Society of Mary and the Marist Brothers. Santa Maria has appeared to many faithful like in Guadalupe, Mexico in 1531, Lourdes, France in 1858, Fatima, Portugal in 1917 and in Assiut, Egypt in 2000 and 2001. These appearances resulted in conversions, pilgrimages and Marian movements/societies. With more than 25 million members, the Blue Army of our Lady of Fatima is the world’s largest Marian Society.

The most popular novena in our nation is Wednesday’s Mother of Perpetual Help novena. A doctrine clarified at a church council led to her being called Mother of God in the year 431. She was proclaimed a perpetual virgin in the year 533 by Vatican. In 1854 Vatican approved the dogma of the Immaculate Conception which says Santa Maria was conceived without original sin.

In 1950, the Catholic Church approved the doctrine of the Assumption of Mary, which says her body was taken to heaven either before or at her death. In honor of Sta. Maria, Maria is often made part of a girl’s name like Maria Cecilia, Maria Teresa, Maria Cristina, Maria Corazon, Maria Remedios, etc. How lucky we are to have Santa Maria as our intercessor!