Holy Mary, Queen, is one of the devotions to the Virgin Mary. In this, Mary is presented as Queen of all creation, as the Mother of God. Although it is not a dogma of faith, it is considered a Christian truth.
In fact, Mary appears in heaven with a crown of twelve stars in the Bible. Later, at the Council of Ephesus, the title of "Queen" began to be attributed to her. However, it wasn't until 1954 that Pope Pius XII instituted this memorial.
At first, it was celebrated every May 31st. However, after the Second Vatican Council, the date was changed. It is now August 22nd.
Pope Benedict XVI spoke about this memorial of the Virgin Mary in 2012.
POPE BENEDICT XVI
For centuries, she has been invoked as the celestial Queen of Heaven.
The rhythm of these ancient invocations, and daily prayers like the Salve Regina, help us understand that the Holy Virgin, as our Mother alongside her Son Jesus in the glory of Heaven, is always with us, in the daily unfolding of our lives.
This title also speaks of Mary as Queen of Peace. Pope Leo has invoked her on several occasions.
For example, at the last general audience and at his first Regina Caeli.
POPE LEO XIV
But how many other conflicts exist in the world? I entrust this heartfelt appeal to the Queen of Peace, so that she may present it to the Lord Jesus to obtain for us the miracle of peace.
And listen right after he announces those words.
Here, Pope Leo XIV is praying the quintessential Marian prayer of Easter time.
The Regina Caeli, which means Queen of Heaven, was already being prayed as early as the 12th century, long before its liturgical memorial was approved.
But the title of Holy Mary, Queen, is also highly relevant today. It presents the Virgin as a model of femininity, highlighting the importance of women in the life of the Church.
At the highest levels of the Church's teaching, the magnitude of the figure of Mary was also captured, like in Lumen Gentium, one of the documents resulting from the Second Vatican Council.
Also, exactly 30 years ago, in 1995, Pope St. John Paul II published a letter addressed to women. In it, he encouraged them to continue fighting for equal conditions. He also spoke of very influential women.
I am thinking especially of Saint Catherine of Siena and Saint Teresa of Jesus, to whom Pope Paul VI granted the title of Doctors of the Church. (…) In the future of the Church in the third millennium, there will certainly be new and admirable manifestations of the "feminine genius."
The Virgin has always been the central model for women in the Church. On a theological level, she has not been relegated to the background. She has been exalted as an example of holiness. All Catholics turn to her as an example to follow.
AM
TR: GS
