Book Review: The Prayer of Mary: Living the Surrendered Life

This book is the perfect primer to give those who don't understand or appreciate the Church's relationship to the Blessed Virgin

The Prayer of Mary, in clear and vibrant language, takes the reader on a journey of faith as seen through the life of this precious woman who became a world-changer by uttering one simple word - "fiat," let it be done. Page by page, we behold her life of devotion to God, her humility, her motherhood, her sacrifice and her role in salvation history - past, present and future.

P>WASHINGTON,DC (Catholic Online) - When you want to remove all the veneer and inaccuracies you may have accumulated regarding the Blessed Virgin Mary and desire to build a solid foundation for understanding her profound role, here is the place to begin.

"The Prayer of Mary," by Deacon Keith Fournier (with Lela Gilbert), establishes a fresh beginning point upon which Protestants, as well as Catholics, can form a proper devotion to the one whom the Church calls the "Theotokos," the God-bearer.

"The Prayer of Mary," in clear and vibrant language, takes the reader on a journey of faith as seen through the life of this precious woman who became a world-changer by uttering one simple word - "fiat," let it be done. When we start there, an entire new world of meaning concerning her life and ministry opens before us.

Page by page, we behold her life of devotion to God, her humility, her motherhood, her sacrifice and her role in salvation history - past, present and future. She is presented in the context of the first century history and transported to our current day where her example and her intercession continue to bear great fruit for the Kingdom of God.

The book is divided into three parts. First, we encounter her through her "Fiat," then, through the "Magnificat" and finally, through what Fournier calls "Mary's Way." Like a musical crescendo, this final section leads us to a way of seeing her contemporary influence as she touches us individually, in our families, in our society and in our world.

As a convert, my former Protestant friends and relatives often challenge me with a common question. "But what about all the fuss about Mary?" Normally, they continue by describing one of several serious misunderstandings such as, "why do you pray to her? You should pray only to God!"

This book is the perfect primer to give those who don't understand or appreciate the Church's relationship to the Blessed Virgin. While a Catholic, Deacon Fournier avoids using "catholic-ese" in his writing, which makes the doctrines and teachings he shares understandable while thoroughly magisterial.

Keith Fournier can be described in many ways: a Catholic Deacon, husband, father, theologian, Editor-in Chief of Catholic Online, and constitutional lawyer. First and foremost however, he is a child of God and son of the Church who is deeply committed to Jesus Christ and has a profound love for His mother.

At the end of the Forward he writes, "Mary's choice, her response to the invitation of God, who always respects human freedom, is a singular event in human history. However, it is meant to be much more than that. I invite you to join me as we explore Mary's life and reflect upon our own personal histories. May they be written anew through the work of her Son."

Those who take the deacon up on his invitation will find their lives enriched and their hearts full.

"The Prayer of Mary" was published by Nelson Books years ago but is still available through Amazon and other book retailers.  Deacon Fournier's more recent reflections on Mary, the Mother of God, will soon be available in a new virtual pilgrimage site dedicated to her and sponsored by Catholic Online. Stay tuned.

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