The Sodality of the Children of Mary Immaculate

Page 20 in "Marian Devotions in the Domestic Church"

Catherine Fournier and Peter Fournier

The Sodality of the Children of Mary Immaculate began at the same time as the devotion to the Miraculous Medal. (The word "Sodality" means a lay association formed to carry on devotional or charitable activities.) As devotion to the medal spread, various associations were formed to assist and encourage devotion to the Virgin Mary among young people and children. 

One of these was an organization dedicated to Mary Immaculate, for young girls attending the schools run by the Saint Vincent de Paul Sisters of Charity. (Sister Catherine Laboure, who received the apparitions of Mary Immaculate and was entrusted with the medal, and also Sister Justine Bisqueyburu, who received the green scapular, were Sisters of Charity.) The aim was to assist and encourage children to come to know Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior through devotion to His Mother. Through membership, children learned to pray, to sacrifice, and to practice the virtues, especially purity and modesty. 

A letter written by Pope PIus IX in 1876 opened membership in the "Children of Mary" to children not attending the schools or workrooms of the Sisters of Charity. Pope Leo XIII confirmed this permission in 1897 and 1903. 

The badge adopted by the Children of Mary Immaculate is the Miraculous Medal, worn suspended from a blue ribbon. Members are encouraged to wear a scapular also. 

Membership in the Children of Mary was very common early in the twentieth century. Many Catholics today still remember their membership with fondness and with an awareness of how much it contributed to their spiritual formation. 

Such a memorable tradition deserves reviving. A family or group of families could begin a Children of Mary group in their parish, or as part of their home schooling activities. 

Children of Mary is most suitable for boys and girls between the time of their First Communion and their teen years (ages eight to twelve). A Children of Mary group should not resemble a catechism class (though catechism texts could provide useful material). Instead, plan activities like praying the Rosary, learning devotional songs, and creating and acting in skits recalling events in Church history (especially those involving Mary). Craft projects, such as making rosaries to send to missions, drawing devotional pictures, and volunteering to plant flowers at the church or senior citizens' home, are very suitable for Children of Mary. 

Upon joining the Children of Mary, each child says this traditional pledge: 

I, [name], a member of the Sodality of the Children of Mary, promise to 

.love, honor, worship, and consecrate my life to the most Holy and Blessed Trinity, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

I promise to love our Blessed Mother, to pray the Rosary every day, and to wear the scapular. I promise to encourage unity of our family by praying the Rosary together every day and to remind them that the family that prays together, stays together. 

I promise to attend Holy Mass every Sunday and spend as much time as possible in adoration of the Holy Eucharist. 

I promise to be a good and obedient child, to keep myself pure and innocent, and to avoid the occasions of sin. 

I promise to love Jesus with all my heart, to love our Blessed Mother, and to love and honor Saint Joseph. 

I promise to receive the Holy Eucharist as often as I can and to attend Mass on the First Sunday of each month with the Sodality of the Children of Mary. * 

* If it is not practicable for your children to observe this last promise, you may wish to omit it, or emphasize to your children that, even if they are attending Mass "alone", our communion with the entire Body of Christ means that we are celebrating Mass with the entire Church, and therefore with other Children of Mary, every time we attend.