Invoking Mary "so that the plague of terrorism may cease”

It is striking to note the number of times that Pope John Paul II invoked Mary and asked Catholics to pray to her at a time of increasing international terrorism, especially on or around the anniversaries of the September 11 attacks.

The day after the attacks, on Wednesday, September 12, 2001, Pope John Paul II presided over a prayer for peace during a general audience, after entrusting the world to the Virgin Mary: "Let us beg the Lord that the spiral of hatred and violence will not prevail. May the Blessed Virgin, Mother of Mercy, fill the hearts of all with wise thoughts and peaceful intentions."

September 11, 2002, was a Wednesday, a day of general audience. The Pope presided over a universal prayer of intercession for the victims of the attack and their families and for peace in the world. In Arabic, the prayer read, "For the believers of all religions, so that in the name of God, the merciful and the lover of peace, they may reject firmly every form of violence and be dedicated to resolving conflicts with sincere and patient dialogue, respecting the different historical, cultural and religious experiences."

The following year, on the anniversary date of September 11, 2003, the Pope was on a trip to Slovakia, but on the eve of his departure, on Wednesday, September 10, at the end of the general audience, he mentioned the Virgin Mary, in Italian, recalling that they had just celebrated her Nativity and that on September 12, the Church celebrated the Holy Name of Mary.

And the following year, on Saturday, September 11, 2004, he sent a message to the bishops of the United States in which he invoked peace: "I join you in your prayers that the plague of terrorism may cease and the civilization of love may grow." And he invited the bishops to entrust themselves to Mary: "May you find wisdom and strength through the intercession of Mary Immaculate, patroness of your country!" He himself entrusted them to the Virgin: "I entrust you all with great affection to the prayers of Mary, Mother of the Church."

Anita Bourdin, September 11, 2015 (ZENIT.org)

Translated from: https://fr.zenit.org/2015/09/11/le-11-septembre-1683-la-victoire-de-la-vierge-marie/