Under the maternal gaze of Our Lady, we come together from across our diocese, united in mission, faith, hope, and love.

As we embark on this journey together, let us open our hearts and minds to the wisdom shared by our distinguished speakers, to the fellowship of our brothers and sisters in Christ, and to the abundant graces that this gathering offers. Let us also entrust our endeavors to Mary’s powerful intercession, confident that she, the Mother of the Church, will lead us ever closer to her Son, Jesus Christ.

As we renew our diocesan consecration to Jesus through the Immaculate Heart of Mary, let us remember Our Lady of Fatima. Her message at Fatima emphasized the importance of family life and the call for families to be both holy and missionary. She urged individuals and families alike to consecrate themselves to her Immaculate Heart.

Let us also recall that on October 28, 2024, our bishop, Bishop Gregory Parkes, launched a new Pastoral Plan for the Diocese of Saint Petersburg, titled A Call to Conversion: Courageously Living the Gospel. In his letter to the faithful, outlining this five-year journey, he wrote:

“As we place the Lord at the center of our lives, we become more prayerful, more focused on loving and caring for our families and our neighbors in need, and less preoccupied with material things. In short, we find the true source of happiness and fulfillment that we all seek and that the Lord alone can provide. Imagine how transformed our five counties would become if we all made God and the things of God a priority. I have faith that, together, we can make this prayerful vision a reality.”

This is a powerful prayer, and I firmly believe that through our Blessed Mother — to whom our diocese was consecrated in 2018 — this vision will indeed become a reality. Amen.

I see this moment as not only a call to conversion, but also a profound call to unity. To pray as one family in the Body of Christ, and to embrace personal self-conversion through consecration.

When we look around us — not only within our diocese but across the world — what do we see? We see brokenness in our families, our communities, and even within the Church. Disasters strike, whether by nature’s force or by human violence. Christians are persecuted, wars rage both physically and spiritually, and wickedness abounds — in individuals and groups alike. Blasphemies, atrocities, and so much more confront us daily.

Things that were once considered taboos or abominations less than ten years ago are now, sadly, accepted as normal.

So, in today’s world, how do we safeguard ourselves, our children, our families, our communities, our Church, and our world?

How can the Immaculate Heart of our Blessed Mother triumph in the end?

How do we begin to help ourselves and our families to make our Bishop’s prayer a living reality?

I believe it starts with you and me.

Let us consecrate ourselves to the Immaculate Heart of Mary for these intentions:

1.  For ourselves — that we may unite our souls and bodies, leading to true self-conversion, if we allow our Blessed Mother to guide us by the hand. Without self-conversion, you can’t give what you don’t have.
2. For our families — young or old, near or far, our families remain our greatest treasures.
3. For our children — entrusting them to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, to safeguard them through the challenges of life, especially in their teenage years.
4. For our parishes, parishioners, diocese, Church, communities, nations, and the world — nurturing unity at every level, from the smallest family circle to the global community. Start or Maintain 1st Saturday Devotion to keep the spirit of oneness in unity momentum going after Consecration 5. In trust of Our Lady’s promise — to Sister Lucia at Fatima in 1917, she declared: “My Immaculate Heart will be your refuge, and you will never be alone.” This promise is for us today, if only we give her access to our hearts and souls through consecration.

We must all bear witness that since Bishop Parkes consecrated our diocese, we have seen a great spiritual awakening across our communities. Imagine the revival that could happen at every parish level if each parish, each family, and everyone took part in this consecration! But we must remember consecration without action is dead. Renewal must be daily, monthly, and yearly.

The time for selfishness and lukewarm faith is over. We need each other more than ever, to hold hands across every race, every color, every nationality, male and female alike. Only divine hands can lift us from this era of uncertainty, which is why our Blessed Mother is connecting us — dot by dot — to be the Veronicas of our modern time.

Through unity, we find hope. And hope leads to peace, and peace leads to love — love of God, love of neighbor, love to serve, and love to evangelize for the conversion of souls to Christ. This is precisely what Bishop Parkes is calling us to do.

We are losing our children and grandchildren in great numbers as they enter their teenage and adult years. If we do not fight and hold onto them, the enemy will gladly take them from us.

If you have not yet undergone consecration yourself, I urge you — do not delay. Prepare yourself spiritually today, as though there is no tomorrow. I am a living testimony to the radical transformation that can take place after consecration. I have even written a book about my journey, titled From My Lips to My Heart — an inspirational work guided by our Lord and our Blessed Mother.

It is not enough to sit and complain about the state of our world. Unity is crucial in today’s broken times, and it starts with you and me.

The question is:

If not you and me, then who?

If not now, then when?

Today is guaranteed, but tomorrow is only hopeful.

O Immaculate Heart of Mary, be our armor of hope and protection. Amen.

Ave Maria.

To learn more about consecrating yourself to Mary, consider attending the Marian Congress on May 3, 2025. This event is coordinated by the Office of Intercultural Ministries. For more information and to register for the Marian Congress, click here.