Join us as we renew our covenant of love on this May 18.

Pray with us! Download prayers here: Renewal of the Covenant of Love May 2020

To mark the 50th anniversary of the death of Servant of God Fr. Joseph Kentenich, founder of the Schoenstatt movement and survivor of the Dachau concentration camp, Sr. M. Danielle Peters, Schoenstatt Sister of Mary, and John Larson, MIC, offer an overview of the Mariology of this influential priest.

To get book, got to: https://www.shopmercy.org/mother-thrice-admirable-an-introduction-to-the-mariology-of-fr-joseph-kentenich.html

My husband and I feel very strongly that our vocation and mission are absolutely connected to our family, especially our children and grandchildren. With that in mind, we decided we wanted to bring back the tradition of holy cards.

We both grew up attending Catholic school and had been influenced by the precious bits of paper that were provided to students who did well in both academics and behavior. We proudly received and pressed the cards between pages of books as bookmarks and read the prayers that accompanied the cards, inwardly promising that we, too, would grow up to be “saintly”. They were inspirations that we wanted to pass on to our grandchildren in this day and age of “do whatever feels good.”

And so, when our grandson Richard, snuggled up next to me at McDonalds, I asked him how his week at Kindergarten had been. He had been filled with mischief initially and was struggling to earn the coveted blue star every pupil desired. Red was for the poorest students, then yellow, green, purple, and finally the joyous blue! He smiled up at me and exclaimed with delight that he had finally managed a blue star this week.

We were all so excited and I reached into my purse to take out the holy cards I had brought for him hoping for the good news. After giving one to him of the Blessed Mother along with a few words of encouragement, I secondly presented him with a picture of a Guardian Angel. I told him how God had given each of us a Guardian Angel to watch over us and be with us and help us to be good.

His eyes got very wide when he said, “They’re invisible right?” I was pleased that he seemed to know a few things about angels and replied, “Yes, they are.” – to which he asked, “But will he watch over me even when I’m NOT in the garden?” Inwardly I giggled, thinking garden instead of guardian and even chose a few words to try to explain this to him. But he would have none of it and proclaimed that his garden angel would watch over him when he was in the garden. I smiled, put my hand on his heart and said, “Yes, the garden of your heart too, because that’s where Jesus lives.” He got very quiet, very serious and whispered, “Oooo, OK.”

Kate Otto

Greetings from the Confidentia Shrine,

The month of May finds us in a situation which is not unlike that of the disciples after Jesus’ Ascension. We, too, remain in the room where we are staying (cf. Acts 1:13). As joyful apostles, we unite around the Blessed Mother praying with one accord. During this whole month dedicated to her honor, we prepare for Pentecost on May 31. In this way, each day of May can become a day of grace, a day to live our covenant of love, and a day of Pentecost.

A month ago, on April 15, we united with the international Schoenstatt Family to offer a crown to our Queen of physical and spiritual health. This crown will remain in the original shrine until the end of the pandemic. You can make a virtual visit there by clicking here: https://www.schoenstatt.de/de/livestream-urheiligtum.htm.

We are invited to daily offer our crowns to our Mother and Queen thereby renewing our unconditional trust and childlike surrender to her. In the worldwide crisis not only we, but many Catholics in the whole world are motivated to seek the presence and protection of the Blessed Mother. On May 1, our US bishops consecrated our nation to the Blessed Mother asking her to show herself victorious as Mother of the Church (http://www.usccb.org/about/communications/consecration.cfm).

Meanwhile we have experienced that some TX dioceses have opened the churches again and also begun with inviting parishioners to the celebration of Holy Mass, albeit with certain restrictions. And so, as joyful apostles we stay with the Blessed Mother and draw hope and courage from her. She didn’t just intercede the coming of the Holy Spirit together with the Apostles. She surely also took them into her school, so to speak, during this time of waiting while they were together. They were to become more deeply acquainted with the Risen Lord whom they followed, learn more about him, become open to the working of the Holy Spirit, and thereby become fruitful for the kingdom of God.

We expect the same from her. We gather around her in our little Cenacle. We want to learn from her, we want to be open to the Holy Spirit like her and abandon ourselves to the Good Shepherd as joyful apostles, living the covenant.

With prayers from the Confidentia Shrine,

Schoenstatt Sisters of Mary

For more information CLICK HERE

Without the basic cell of society, – the family – Schoenstatt could not exist. Father Kentenich (1885-1968), the founder of Schoenstatt, knew this very well. He was able to work with families already since the 1930s, when the industrial revolution threatened to tear families apart. During his time in Milwaukee he worked tirelessly to build up, educate, and strengthen families through his weekly talks to couples. Through his message and the response of the families, he was able to bring to fruition what he has once written to families from Brazil in 1948….

To read more, go to https://schoenstattwisconsin.org/dedicating-our-home-to-god-and-mary/

Dear Schoenstatt Family,

To download the prayers click here

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Happy Easter and Greetings from the Confidentia Shrine,

We just experienced an extraordinary Triduum and Easter! Perhaps very much like that of the first apostles who after the Last Supper dispersed in isolation, fear, and desolation. Unlike any other, we commemorated the days of the passion, death, and resurrection of Our Lord from home with the help of TV and the digital media. This in itself is a gift and makes us long all the more to return to the sacraments. Accompanied by the threat of the virus, the question concerning life after Covid-19 goes through our minds: What does God want to tell us personally and the world at large with this pandemic?

The news portrays a world caught between fear and anger, between an excess of information and helplessness, negligence, worry, and panic. We are concerned about the medical workforce who serve beyond their strength to minister to the sick and dying. And we worry for the many who have to remain at home, and are anxious about the security of their jobs, their businesses, and the future of their families.

All of us have to come to grips with the sudden reality that our life has fundamentally changed. What seemed meaningful and what we took for granted before is breaking away – piece by piece each day.

This situation challenges us to be and to remain Joyful Apostles, Living the Covenant. The resurrection of Christ is the proof of divine strength that breaks forth from the collapse of human strength. Redeemed by him, we have received his new life. And this is what truly matters!

As worldwide Schoenstatt Family we unite today with great joy, hope, and confidence to hand over the crown to the MTA, each in his or her home.

For more information visit: www.schoenstatt-int.com .
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In the Confidentia Shrine, we sisters offer the crown for all of you and your intentions, and we are grateful to you for your continued spiritual and material support,

Schoenstatt Sisters of Mary