Marian Cross
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Marian Cross is an informal name applied to a Roman Catholic cross design. It consists of a traditional Latin cross with the crossbar extended on the right, and a letter "M" (for the Virgin Mary) in the lower right quadrant. The first widely known appearance of the Marian Cross was on the personal coat of arms of Pope John Paul II, displayed prominently on his casket at his funeral (the pope was widely known for encouraging devotion to Mary), although it may have been in use before this.
Pope John Paul II's selection of the letter M for his coat of arms was based on his strong Marian devotion and attachment to the Rosary. [1] In an address to the Montfortian Fathers, he attributed this partly to reading one of Saint Louis de Montfort's books, True Devotion to Mary[2] as a "decisive turning point" in his life.[3] He also singled out de Montfort's work in his encyclical entitled Redemptoris Mater[4] as a key example of Marian devotion. And in his Apostolic Letter, Rosarium Virginis Mariae Pope John Paul II discussed the inspiration of the rosary and how his motto Totus Tuus was inspired by the Mariology in the writings of Saint Louis de Montfort.[5]
[edit] References
- ^ Holy See Press Office Coat of Arms of His Holiness John Paul II, Updated: 03-15-2006
- ^ Catholic Treasury, True Devotion to Mary
- ^ Carine Lee, "Embracing Mary’s maternal tenderness", Catholic Register, 21 December 2007, reporting on Pope John Paul II's statements regarding Saint Louis de Montfort
- ^ Pope John Paul II, Redemptoris Mater (English)
- ^ Pope John Paul II, Rosarium Virginis Mariae (English)
