The first time my husband suggested we do a Marian consecration, I was a bit wary. I’d grown up with Protestant anti-Mary dogmas, and it has taken me years since my conversion to overcome that. However, we did a consecration together and I found myself growing in my love for Mary. A few times, I’ve thought it would be cool to do a Marian consecration with the girls, but that would have to be when they’re older, of course—maybe as young adults. Then Colleen Pressprich told me about her new book, Marian Consecration for Families with Young Children.
I received this book for review courtesy of the author; all opinions expressed remain my own. This post contains affiliate links.
Marian Consecration for Families
Featuring a traditional 33-day preparation for consecration, Marian Consecration for Families with Young Children is written and illustrated with kids ages 3 to 7 in mind. Each day has a short reflection, a beautiful illustration of Mary, and discussion questions to ask your child.
Marian Consecration for Families with Young Children guides families through:
- Getting Started
- What Is a Marian Consecration
- Who is Mary? (Days 1-9)
- What Can we Learn from Mary? (Days 10-17)
- Important Moments In Mary’s Life (Days 18-25)
- Marian Apparitions (Days 26-32)
- Consecration Day (Day 33)
Marian Consecration for Families with Young Children begins with tips for parents to start a family consecration to Mary. Colleen talks about establishing a ritual, being flexible, making it special, and following your child. The end of the book provides more tips specific to each day, including notes about the hidden symbols in the picture for Day 2. (I noticed this a few days after we started our consecration!) Colleen also shares examples of ways to personalize this experience for your children by sharing bits of your own faith story with them.
Our Marian Consecration with kids 12 to 2
We started our Marian consecration as a family on the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary. While I was excited about doing this as a family, I wondered how the girls would react. Maybe they’d find it boring. Instead, the girls have actually been the ones to remind me that we need to do our Marian consecration (or telling me we missed it because the evening got busy!). Four-year-old Pearl will grab Marian Consecration for Families with Young Children off the shelf after supper.
They’ve also been the ones making sure we do it “right,” because after the first day, I forgot we were supposed to start each day’s reflections with an Our Father and end with a Hail Mary. Jade now reminds me that we need to pray when we open our book. I love hearing Pearl reciting the prayers along with us. We’ve also learned some new Marian prayers, like the Memorare (on Day 6).
The illustrations by Rebecca Gorzynska are absolutely stunning. Each reflection is accompanied by a full-colour picture of Mary. We’ve spent as much time discussing the picture as the questions Collen provides. The pictures really help keep the attention of Jade and Pearl while I’m reading the reflection. Many of the pictures show different cultural influences, such as Ukrainian or Japanese or African. These really help to show that Mary is a mother to all of us, no matter our culture or background or place of birth.
While the girls know the Gospel stories about Mary very well, Marian Consecration for Families with Young Children is really helping them to dive deeper into what we know and believe about Mary. To them, it makes perfect sense that they would love Jesus’ mom just as He does. In their innocent love for Mary, I see so much more clearly how she always draws us to Her Son.
Doing this Marian consecration together has also drawn us closer to each other as a family. Talking about Jesus love for Mary and Mary’s love for Jesus often blossoms into declarations of love for each other. The Holy Family truly is the perfect example of what family life means, and learning more about Mary and her role within that family has helped us to grow in love for each other.
More about Colleen Pressprich
Colleen Pressprich is a former missionary and former Montessori teacher. She seeks to use the lessons she learned in the mission field and the classroom to live her dream homeschooling and building the domestic church. Colleen lives with her husband, children, and grandmother in Michigan, where they enjoy everything about spring, summer, and fall, and hate the winters. To find out more about Colleen and her book, drop by her website or follow her on Instagram.
Marian Consecration for Families with Young Children is available on Amazon, from Our Sunday Visitor, and at your favourite Catholic bookstore.
Have you ever done a Marian consecration, with or without your children?
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