Feast of the Annunciation and the Consecration of Russia

March 25, 2022

Today is the Feast of the Annunciation and the day appointed for the consecration of Russia and Ukraine. At the time of this writing, we are still waiting to see what transpires in Rome, and while there is cause for concern regarding the wording of the prayer attached to the consecration, the necessary statement of consecration of Russia to the Immaculate Heart of Mary is there, nonetheless:

“Therefore, Mother of God and our mother, to your Immaculate Heart we solemnly entrust and consecrate ourselves, the church and all humanity, especially Russia and Ukraine.”

The inclusion of other variables does not take away from the specific mention of Russia in this act of consecration. While there are other aspects of concern (Did the bishops of the world participate? Does the absence of an act of penance negate the consecration? Isn’t the Pope supposed to ask all the faithful to make the five first Saturdays?), and there is much disagreement even among Fatima experts on these matters, none of this changes the responsibility we lay and religious faithful have in making recourse to Our Lady to assist us through this vale of tears.

As this is the Feast of the Annunciation, it is only fitting that we should meditate and celebrate Our Lady’s Fiat, which opened the way for the salvation of souls. What follows is a meditation written by the great Dom Prosper Gueranger in his work, “The Liturgical Year,” on the Annunciation as an act of undoing the sin of Eve:

A tradition, which has come down from the apostolic ages, tells us that the great mystery of the Incarnation was achieved on the twenty-fifth day of March. It was at the hour of midnight, when the most holy Virgin was alone and absorbed in prayer, that the Archangel Gabriel appeared before her, and asked her, in the name of the blessed Trinity, to consent to become the Mother of God. Let us assist, in spirit, at this wonderful interview between the angel and the Virgin: and, at the same time, let us think of that other interview which took place between Eve and the serpent. A holy bishop and martyr of the second century, Saint Irenaeus, who had received the tradition from the very disciples of the apostles, shows us that Nazareth is the counterpart of Eden.

In the garden of delights there is a virgin and an angel; and a conversation takes place-between them. At Nazareth a virgin is also addressed by an angel, and she answers him; but the angel of the earthly paradise is a spirit of darkness, and he of Nazareth is a spirit of light. In both instances it is the angel that has the first word. 'Why,' said the serpent to Eve, 'hath God commanded you, that you should not eat of every tree of paradise?' His question implies impatience and a solicitation to evil; he has contempt for the frail creature to whom he addresses it, but he hates the image of God which is upon her.

See, on the other hand, the angel of light; see with what composure and peacefulness he approaches the Virgin of Nazareth, the new Eve; and how respectfully he bows himself down before her: 'Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with thee! Blessed art thou among women!' Such language is evidently of heaven: none but an angel could speak thus to Mary.

Scarcely has the wicked spirit finished speaking than Eve casts a longing look at the forbidden fruit: she is impatient to enjoy the independence it is to bring her. She rashly stretches forth her hand; she plucks the fruit; she eats it, and death takes possession of her: death of the soul, for sin extinguishes the light of life; and death of the body, which being separated from the source of immortality, becomes an object of shame and horror, and finally crumbles into dust.

But let us turn away our eyes from this sad spectacle, and fix them on Nazareth. Mary has heard the angel's explanation of the mystery; the will of heaven is made known to her, and how grand an honor it is to bring upon her! She, the humble maid of Nazareth, is to have the ineffable happiness of becoming the Mother of God, and yet the treasure of her virginity is to be left to her! Mary bows down before this sovereign will, and says to the heavenly messenger: 'Behold the handmaid of the Lord: be it done to me according to thy word.'

Thus, as the great St. Irenaeus and so many of the holy fathers remark, the obedience of the second Eve repaired the disobedience of the first: for no sooner does the Virgin of Nazareth speak her fiat, 'be it done,' than the eternal Son of God (who, according to the divine decree, awaited this word) is present, by the operation of the Holy Ghost, in the chaste womb of Mary, and there He begins His human life. A Virgin is a Mother, and Mother of God; and it is this Virgin's consenting to the divine will that has made her conceive by the power of the Holy Ghost. This sublime mystery puts between the eternal Word and a mere woman the relations of Son and Mother; it gives to the almighty God a means whereby He may, in a manner worthy of His majesty, triumph over satan, who hitherto seemed to have prevailed against the divine plan.

Never was there a more entire or humiliating defeat than that which this day befell satan. The frail creature, over whom he had so easily triumphed at the beginning of the world, now rises and crushes his proud head. Eve conquers in Mary. God would not choose man for the instrument of His vengeance; the humiliation of satan would not have been great enough; and therefore she who was the first prey of hell, the first victim of the tempter, is selected to give battle to the enemy. The result of so glorious a triumph is that Mary is to be superior not only to the rebel angels, but to the whole human race, yea, to all the angels of heaven. Seated on her exalted throne, she, the Mother of God, is to be the Queen of all creation. Satan, in the depths of the abyss, will eternally bewail his having dared to direct his first attack against the woman, for God has now so gloriously avenged her; and in heaven, the very Cherubim and Seraphim reverently look up to Mary, and deem themselves honored when she smiles upon them, or employs them in the execution of any of her wishes, for she is the Mother of their God.

Therefore is it that we, the children of Adam, who have been snatched by Mary's obedience from the power of hell, solemnize this day of the Annunciation. Well may we say of Mary those words of Debbora, when she sang her song of victory over the enemies of God's people: ‘The valiant men ceased, and rested in Israel, until Debbora arose, a mother arose in Israel. The Lord chose new wars, and He Himself overthrew the gates of the enemies.’ Let us also refer to the holy Mother of Jesus these words of Judith, who by her victory over the enemy was another type of Mary: 'Praise ye the Lord our God, who hath not forsaken them that hope in Him. And by me, His handmaid, He hath fulfilled His mercy, which He promised to the house of Israel; and He hath killed the enemy of His people by my hand this night. . . . The almighty Lord hath struck him, and hath delivered him into the hands of a woman, and hath slain him.'

A month and a half ago, we received a curt, one-page letter from the Association of US Catholic Priests (AUSCP) demanding that we “cease and desist” referring to them as a heretical organization that supports women’s ordination to the priesthood. We received that letter (dated 09 Feb) on the 16^th of February and responded a week later. In that letter we asked 18 very simple and very direct yes or no questions to allow the AUSCP the ability to clarify their positions related to Catholic theological and moral teaching, and earlier this week, we received a reply.

The AUSCP’s response, dated 16 March, was a series of dodges and deflections to the grave matters we brought to their attention and asked about. And since the AUSCP believes that it was “correcting the mistaken assumptions” of the Lepanto Institute, we responded point by point to these “corrections.” What became clear as we reviewed each point was that the AUSCP corrected nothing, refused to answer our concerns (with evidence), refused to answer our questions, and used misdirection and double-speak to hide the truth. You can read our response by clicking the link here.

It may seem strange to many that we spend time fighting this organization and given the average age of its members it’s a reasonable reaction. But we spend time fighting and opposing this organization simply because they have the support of bishops and even members of the Curia. Their agenda is destructive to both the good morals of the faithful and the structure of Holy Mother Church, and as long as they continue to operate, they must be opposed. And sadly, we appear to be the only organization maintaining a close watch on their actions and influences.

Please continue to pray for us as we work diligently to prevent this organization from growing in size and influence. Perhaps send a copy of this article to your local bishop and ask him to issue a formal condemnation of this organization, forbidding his priests from being members or supporters.

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As always, please pray for the Church, for our bishops, priests, deacons, and for Lepanto's mission as we continue to unearth the truth and "restore all things to Christ." (Col. 1:20)

Christus Vincit!

Michael Hichborn
President
Lepanto Insititute