August 22: Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary

She sits on the throne of mercy  

On the octave of the Assumption, the Church celebrates the memorial of the Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This feast was instituted by Pope Pius XII in 1955, originally set for May 31, but later moved to August 22 to highlight more clearly the connection between Mary’s queenship and her Assumption into heaven in body and soul.

Mary’s queenship is a truth that brings consolation to every human being, especially in moments of need for forgiveness. In every necessity, the Church invites the faithful to turn to her, who is both Mother and Queen, to ask for her help.

The fact that Mary is Mother of God and at the same time Mother of all mankind is what strengthens confidence in her power of intercession. This certainty comforts, instills hope, and encourages to pick ourselves up after every fall.

The theological reason for this feast is rooted in Mary’s special role in the redemption accomplished by Jesus. As the Dogmatic Constitution  Lumen Gentium  (no. 61) recalls, Mary participated in a unique way in salvation: welcoming Jesus into her womb, giving Him life, growing with Him, presenting Him to the Father in the Temple, and above all suffering beside Him at the foot of the cross.

Mary’s queenship is not one of power, but of intercession: she “shines as Queen and intercedes as Mother,” as stated in Paul VI’s encyclical  Marialis Cultus  (no. 6). It is a queenship born of her humility, as she sings in the Magnificat: “He has cast down the mighty from their thrones, and has lifted up the lowly.”

To exalt this regal dimension, the Church has composed and continues to sing numerous Marian hymns such as the Salve Regina , the Regina Coeli, and the Ave Regina Coelorum, in which Mary is invoked as Queen of Heaven and Mother of mercy.