Like St. Francis we venerate Mary, the Mother of our Lord, as our Lady and Queen, place ourselves under her protection, and follow her example. In the daily recitation of the Rosary we meditate on the chief mysteries of our faith.
“With our Blessed Mother let us implore God and in holy silence and recollection await the gifts and graces of the Holy Spirit, that we may bear witness to His fruits in our life.”
~ Blessed Maria Theresia
In addition to praying the Rosary every day, the Sisters pray the Franciscan Crown on Saturdays. It follows the format of the Rosary, but has the seven joys of Mary as the mysteries to ponder: the Annunciation; the Visitation; the Birth of Christ; the Adoration of the Magi; the Finding of the Child Jesus in the Temple; the Meeting of Jesus and Mary after the Resurrection; and the Assumption and Coronation.
The Franciscan Crown dates back to the early part of the 15th century. At that time, a young man who found joy in weaving a crown of wild flowers for a beautiful statue of Mary decided to enter the Franciscan Order. After entering the community, however, he was saddened when he no longer found the time to gather flowers for his personal devotion. One evening, while feeling tempted to abandon his vocation, he received a vision of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
The Virgin Mother encouraged the young novice to persevere by reminding him of the joyfulness of the Franciscan spirit. She also instructed him to meditate daily on seven joyful events from her own life as a new form of the Rosary. Instead of a crown of flowers, the novice would now weave a crown of prayers. Before long, many other Franciscans began to pray the Crown and it soon spread to the entire Order, becoming officially established in 1422.
FRANCIS OF ASSISI’S PRAYER IN PRAISE
OF MARY, THE MOTHER OF JESUS
Hail, holy Lady, most holy Queen,
Mary, Mother of God, ever Virgin.
Thou wert chosen by the Most High Father in Heaven,
consecrated by Him, with His most Holy Beloved Son
and the Holy Spirit, the Comforter.
On thee descended and still remains
all the fullness of grace and every good.
Hail, His Palace.
Hail His Tabernacle.
Hail His Robe.
Hail His Handmaid.
Hail, His Mother.
and Hail, all holy Virtues, who,
by grace and inspiration of the Holy Spirit,
are poured into the hearts of the faithful
so that from their faithless state,
they may be made faithful servants of God through thee.