The Family in the Messages of Our Lady Queen of Peace

Other languages: English, Deutsch, Français, Hrvatski, Italiano

The Family is Called to Holiness and Consecration

All those who are immersed in the death of Jesus Christ in baptism have died to sin and are called to holiness. In the Creed, we confess to the "One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church", which is called to be holy and stainless. What pertains to the entire Church, a fortiori, pertains to all its members and families and a family is often referred to as a 'small church.'

Holiness is a call to a concrete life in love with God and our brethren. In itself it means first and foremost, the healing of our relationship with God and with others and a growth in love, faith and hope.

It is Mary’s desire that a family be the birthplace of holiness. The example of the holiness of the parents and the elderly will, in itself, be a school of holiness to the young. "I beseech you, by your own testimony help those who do not know how to live in holiness....but especially your own family"(July 25, 1986). Love and forgiveness, goodness and generosity, gentleness and resoluteness, the love of truth and moderation are an expression of and a school of love in the family. So that the family may reach holiness in accordance to the measure of Jesus and Mary, which is the measure of the Gospel, Mary calls us to individually, as a family and as a parish, consecrate ourselves to Her beloved Son, Jesus and to Her Immaculate heart, "...so that all belongs to God through my hands" (October 25, 1988). The Latin expression for consecrate is 'con- sacrare', which directs us to the real meaning of the call to consecration. To consecrate means, to decide to take Mary and Jesus as the example, to be with them, to keep company with them, and to become like them in accordance with the logic of a national saying: "Tell me who you associate with, and Ill tell you who you are..". Whoever keeps company with Mary and Jesus in daily prayer, especially in the prayer of the Rosary, is in the best School of Holiness and will understand how he can live in joy and sorrow and the final glory in heaven.

Through consecration, a person consciously walks the way with Mary and Jesus and in this way overcomes that terrible loneliness which comes about through sin. He thus creates a new community of love and life and knows that he will conquer both sin and death.

 

For God to live in your hearts, you must love.

`