Joseph Pronechen on Devotion to Mary

"When Thomas Hogan was growing up in Newport, New Hampshire, his family prayed the Rosary together every night. But then came 'a stretch when I was not practicing my faith, and it was the Rosary that was the biggest thing I wanted to get away from,' he said. He didn't know why he avoided it, yet during that same time in high school, he made his Marian consecration 'kind of begrudgingly' because his godmother asked him to. He knew it would make her and his mother, Catherine, happy. 'My mom told me after I made it, 'You may not have taken your consecration seriously, but Our Lady did.''

"Two years later, in the living room, Hogan accidently knocked over his mother's statue of Our Lady of Lourdes. 'When I picked up the broken statue,' he remembers distinctly, 'I heard a voice very clearly in my heart say, 'This is what you're doing to me by running away.' That was a very powerful and eye-opening moment for me. My mom looked at me and said, 'I told you Our Lady took you seriously.''

"That wake-up call prompted Hogan to renew his praying of the Rosary and return to the faith - and like many other Catholics, it helped him discover the deep riches found in the Church's Marian devotions."

In a recent commentary, National Catholic Register staff writer Joseph Pronechen reflected on Mr. Hogan's deepening devotion to Mary and on why devotion to Mary is important..

To access Mr. Pronechen's complete post, please visit:

National Catholic Register: Culture of Life: Want to Change Your Life? Go to Mary (26 MAY 19)