Mary, Queen of Purgatory

[MariaChristi]

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

The following is an excerpt from an article on “Queen of Purgatory” written by Gloria Falcão Dodd, Oct. 28, 2013. It was posted by the University of Dayton.

…For those who know much about Our Lady, perhaps Mary’s title as “Queen of Purgatory” could provide a novel aspect of Mary’s Queenship. This unusual title is presented as a quote in the section about praying for deceased members in The Official Handbook of the Legion of Mary:

“Purgatory forms part of the realm of Mary. There, too, are her children, who in a passing spell of pain await their birth to the glory which will never pass. St. Vincent Ferrer, St. Bernardine of Sienna, Louis de Blois, as well as others, explicitly proclaim Mary to be Queen of Purgatory; and St. Louis-Marie de Montfort urges us to think and act in accordance with that belief. He wishes us to place in Mary’s hands the value of our prayers and satisfactions. He promises us that, in return for this offering, those souls which are dear to us will be more abundantly relieved than if we were to apply our prayers to them directly.”
(Lhoumeau: La Vie Spirituelle a l’Ecole de St. Louis-Marie de Montfort)1

At a time when some Catholics as well as Protestants might question the reality of purgatory, this Marian title reminds all that purgatory is indeed still part of a Biblical and post-Vatican II faith, and that Mary’s loving care extends there as well. This paper will review the Catholic belief in purgatory as found in The Catechism of the Catholic Church and in the Bible. The related teachings on indulgences and the communion of saints will then be presented to give a context for Mary’s role. The paper will conclude will the sayings of some saints about Mary’s help for the Poor Souls in purgatory…

This paper, on “Queen of Purgatory”, can be read in its entirety HERE