2017 USCCB Convocation Participants Guidebook and Journal | Page 39

Preparation for the Convocation
o What kind of leader were they?
o What was the impact of their missionary
discipleship?
• Pray with Mary, the Mother of Evangelization, the one
who said “yes” to the angel to bring forth Christ to the
world, the one to whom Pope Francis entrusted the fruits
of Evangelii Gaudium: “She is the Mother of the Church
which evangelizes, and without her we could never truly
understand the spirit of the new evangelization . . . She is
the missionary who draws near to us and accompanies us
throughout life, opening our hearts to faith by her mater-
nal love” (nos. 284, 286). Praying the Rosary is the first
and favored way to unite ourselves to Jesus through Mary.
• Reflect on Mary as the Immaculate Conception (patron-
ess of the United States) and Our Lady of Guadalupe
(patroness of the Americas). Devotion to Our Lady has
been foundational for Catholic communities across our
continent and has been especially important for Catholic
immigrants to the Americas. The leaders of many of these
communities looked to Mary for the strength they needed
to persevere despite the opposition and rejection they
faced in their new home.
• Reflect on the image (or images) of the Blessed Mother
that most appeals to you, and consider how (or if) that
image has been a part of your family’s journey over the
years. Spend time considering one of the images or titles
of Mary that you are least familiar with as well; how does
the multiplicity of ways of seeing Mary speak to both the
universality and the particularity of the Catholic faith?
Pray a litany of the Blessed Mother.
• Engage in your own favorite Catholic devotions, keeping
the Convocation (and all those across the country who,
like you, are preparing for this event within their dio-
ceses, organizations, or other communities or groups) in
your mind as an intention in those moments of prayer.
34