“A Mary Garden”
Dedicated to the loved ones of this parish and our community, who have meant so much to us on our journey in life, but have passed on to be with our heavenly father. Thank you for being part of our life.
This garden was blessed by Msgr. John Putano on Sunday July 9th, 2017.
In simple humility, let our gardener God, landscape you with the Word, making a salvation-garden of your life. James 1:21
The Church of the Immaculate Conception welcomes you to our Mary Garden, filled with flowers, plants and trees named for The Blessed Mother and Jesus, designed to be a place of beauty that reminds us of our Lord and our Lady, allowing one to experience God’s creation, and invites prayer and contemplation.
This garden is open to the community to enjoy. It has many flowers, trees and herbs that are connected to legends about Mary’s life. All are identified on small plaques and are symbolic and significant in the story of Mary as recounted in the Bible and other Christian stories.
The statue of Our Lady of Fatima is in the center of the garden. This Roman Catholic title of the Blessed Virgin Mary is based on the famous Marian apparitions reported in 1917 by three shepherd children at the Cova da Iria, in Fátima, Portugal.
Parish member Clyde Eckler created the beautiful stained glass artwork located in the gazebo. He depicts the Joyful Mysteries of the Rosary in stunning cut glass work. These mysteries are:
The Annunciation of the Lord to Mary
The Visitation of Mary to Elizabeth
The Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ
The Presentation of our Lord
Finding Jesus in the Temple at age 12
Our garden is unique—filled with plants and decorations that sing to your heart and spirit— a quiet place to help you find inner peace as you connect with God.
Flower and herb legends can tell us about important moments in Mary’s life. The Madonna Lily was carried by the Angel Gabriel when he visited Mary to tell her God had chosen her to be the mother of the Savior. Mary is associated with the passage from the Song of Songs: I am the Rose of Sharon, the lily of the valley. (2:1) A legend from the 2nd century says that when Mary’s tomb was opened to show Thomas that her body had been assumed into heaven, it was filled with roses and lilies
History of ‘The Mary Garden’
During the Middle Ages, the faithful saw reminders of Mary, the Mother of God, in the flowers and herbs growing around them. Violets were symbols of her humility, lilies her purity and roses her glory. They called her “Flower of Flowers,” and named plants after her. Marigolds were Mary’s Gold, clematis was the Virgin’s Bower and lavender was Our Lady’s Drying Plant.
Devoted to Mary, people decorated their altars with flowers on her feast days. Poets and popes praised her in hymns.
Today we also honor Mary with flowers. May crowning’s are a tradition in many parishes and Catholic schools during Mary’s month (May), and makeshift home altars bearing an image of Mary are decorated with home-grown blossoms.
The medieval custom of finding reminders of Mary’s attributes, glory and sorrows in flowers and herbs has left a legacy that can enrich our lives in this millennium. The first record of a flower named for Mary is that of the potted Marigold or Calendula (Mary’s Gold) in a 1373 English recipe for a potion to ward off the plague.
Marian Prayers
Ave, Regina Caelorum
Welcome, O Queen of Heaven. Welcome, O Lady of Angels Hail! thou root, hail! thou gate From whom unto the world, a light has arisen: Rejoice, O glorious Virgin, Lovely beyond all others, Farewell, most beautiful maiden, And pray for us to Christ. V. Allow me to praise thee, O sacred Virgin. R. Against thy enemies give me strength. Grant unto us, O merciful God, a defense against our weakness, that we who remember the holy Mother of God, by the help of her intercession, may rise from our iniquities, through the same Christ our Lord. Amen.
Alma Redemptoris Mater
Loving Mother of the Redeemer, Gate of heaven, Star of the sea, assist your people who have fallen yet strive to rise again, To the wonderment of nature you bore your Creator, Yet remained a virgin after as before, You who received Gabriel's joyful greeting, have pity on us poor sinners.
Hail Holy Queen
Hail, Holy Queen, Mother of mercy, hail, our life, our sweetness, and our hope. To you we cry, the children of Eve; to you we send up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this valley of tears. Turn, then, most gracious advocate, your eyes of mercy toward us; lead us home at last and show us the blessed fruit of your womb, Jesus: O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary.
Regina Caeli
Call: Queen of Heaven, rejoice. Alleluia. Response: For He, whom thou wast worthy to bear. Alleluia. Call: Has risen as He said. Alleluia. Response: Pray for us to God. Alleluia. Call: Rejoice and be glad, O Virgin Mary. Alleluia. Response: Because the Lord is truly risen, Alleluia. Let us pray O God, Who by the Resurrection of Thy Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, hast been pleased to give joy to the whole world, grant we beseech Thee, that through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, His Mother, we may attain the joys of eternal life. Through the same Christ, our Lord. Amen.
The Miraculous Medal Prayer
O Virgin Mother of God, Mary Immaculate, We dedicate and consecrate ourselves to you under the title of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal. May this Medal be for each one of us a sure sign of your affection for us and a constant reminder of our duties toward you. Ever while wearing it, may we be blessed by your loving protection and preserved in the grace of your Son. O Most Powerful Virgin, Mother of Our Savior, keep us close to you every moment of our lives. Obtain for us, your children, the grace of a happy death; so that in union with you, we may enjoy the bliss of Heaven forever. Amen.