St. Louis de Montfort upon his death was known as The Apostle of the Cross and the Apostle of the Holy Rosary. However, in modern times, he is known as the Apostle of Total Consecration and Apostle of Marian Spirituality. The Spirituality of St. Louis de Montfort – in Jesus Through Mary – is one of Christianity’s most precious and best-kept secrets.
St. Louis de Montfort presents a spirit of Consecration to God … through His Mother – as Mother of God. Mary is Mother of the total human family, each person, and all of creation. It is she who St. Louis de Montfort says will bring us together from all nations. For Montfort, she is the first and last way to God: the accomplisher of her Son’s Incarnation and work of salvation. It is she who wins through humanity what has been lost through pride. In the words of Montfort “she is the masterpiece of grace on earth … the way He will come to us a second time … mercy, power and grace … who will crush the head of Satin … the sure, direct and immaculate way … to Incarnate Wisdom … to the Blessed Trinity.”
Saint John Paul II calls his encounter with Montfort Spirituality “the decisive turning point” in his life. He terms it, “indispensable to anyone who means to give himself without reserve to Christ”. It is, he says, “a new attitude springing from the depths of my faith, as though from the very heart of the Trinity and Jesus Christ. … It is the best known means of participating fruitfully and effectively in this reality.”
Mother Teresa of Calcutta in a … letter to the Holy Father recommended, “that the Cause of St. Louis de Montfort may soon be advanced, and that he may soon be counted among the doctors of the Church … all for Jesus through Mary.”
About St. Louis de Montfort
St. Louis de Montfort (1673-1716) was beatified by the Roman Catholic Church in 1888 and canonized in 1947. He emerged from … the tiny village of Montfort, France. The Jesuits and the Sulpicians prepared Louis Marie for his brief sixteen-year priesthood as a vagabond preacher. … The father from Montfort served the poor, the sick, disabled, dispossessed, and illiterate of France as the pope’s “Apostolic Missionary” until his death. He inspired the founding of three congregations – the Company of Mary (Montfort Missionaries), the Daughters of Wisdom, and the Brothers of St. Gabriel. His charism is today inspiring a growing worldwide movement of Total Consecration to God Alone through the Blessed Mother.
St. Louis de Montfort’s Writings
There are three primary literary sources of St. Louis de Montfort: The first is The Writings of St. Louis de Montfort, and include: The Secret of Mary, Treatise of True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin, Secret of the Most Holy Rosary, Friends of the Cross and Love of Eternal Wisdom, as well as several other writings and letters.
The second source is The Hymns of St. Louis de Montfort. And the third source is Jesus Living in Mary: The Handbook of the Spirituality of St. Louis e Montfort.
Of course, there are additional resources, including Preparation for Total Consecration to Jesus Through Mary (commonly referred to as the Gray Book).
The books and writings may be found on Montfort Publications. Additional spiritual resources (audio, video and articles) are freely available on The Association of Mary, Queen of All Hearts website. See the links elsewhere on this website for more information.
