St. Louis de Montfort is most known for his Total Consecration to and love for Our Lady. But he was a fierce priest and preacher, and survived several assassination attempts.
An Intellectual & Preacher
St. Louis was born at the end of the 17th century and excelled at academics as a child. He also was deeply religious from the very beginning and knew he had a vocation to the priesthood (it helped that his uncle was a priest). He was ordained a priest at age 27 after formative years in seminary studying the consecration to Mary, the works of St. Thomas Aquinas, and fostering a love for the poor.
He desired to go on foreign missions, but was asked to stay in France and preach locally. It was definitely by God’s will that he was asked to stay because he was a great defender of the faith against the Jansenism heresy. He preached love of Our Lord and Our Lady, the power of Christ’s cross, and the fruit of praying the rosary. His whole life preached the virtues and the fire of the Holy Spirit inside him, and he brought so many souls to conversion.
Holy Consecration
There’s a story about his suggestion to build a building with a calvary scene on a mountain in France. The peasants were so behind him that they helped build it for over a year without any pay. However, the Jansenists (who flat out hated St. Louis) went to the king and convinced him that it could be used for a revolution and the king ordered it be torn down, but Louis simply responded, “Blessed be God!” (a better person than me!) Other accounts of St. Louis tell us that the Jansenists tried to poison him and assassinate him (I mean they REALLY hated him), but he survived by the grace of God!
But the most well known thing about St. Louis was his love for Our Lady. He wrote, “True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary” and really brought back to life the idea of a total consecration to Jesus through Mary. He said this consecration is the quickest way to become a saint. Other saints throughout history have consecrated themselves to Jesus through Our Lady and have become powerhouses for Marian devotion and Gospel evangelization (like St. Maximilian Kolbe, St. Teresa of Calcutta, and St. John Paul II). Fr. Michael Gaitley, a Marian of the Immaculate Conception priest has a sort of “updated” version of St. Louis’ consecration called 33 Days to Morning Glory which includes the reflections of those powerhouse saints (it is truly awesome!).
Why a Wrist Chain?
St. Louis de Montfort was a great Marian saint and is known for his Total Consecration to Our Lady. He had such great devotion to Our Lady and believed in her intercession that he called his consecration to her “holy slavery”. The wrist chain was and is still worn by many who have consecrated themselves to Mary as a symbol of being chained to her.
Who would be Friends with St. Louis de Montfort?
- Public Speakers
- The poor (he loved the poor)
- Those who serve the poor
- Young Catholics
- Priests
- Third Order Dominicans (he was one!)
- Those desiring great love for Our Lady
- Any who love the rosary (or want to!)
“By this devotion we give to Jesus all we can possibly give him, and in the most perfect manner, that is, through Mary’s hands”
St. Louis de Montfort
Along with the wrist chain, you could wear the St. Louis de Montfort medal to remember your consecration to Jesus through Mary. Get one here.
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