September Allocutio 2026
The Angels – Our Protectors in Battle.
Fr. Liam O Cuiv
(Reading: Chapter 24,7 The Heavenly Powers, Mary’s Legion of Angels. pp. 141-3)
As we approach the feast of the Archangels Michael, Gabriel and Raphael on September 29th and that of The Holy Guardians Angels on October 2nd it is appropriate that we consider their importance both tor the Legion of Mary itself and for ourselves as legionaries.
St. Paul, in chapter 6 of his Letter to the Galatians tells us …”it is not against human enemies that we have to struggle, but against the principalities and the ruling forces who are masters of the darkness in this world, the spirits of evil in the heavens.” (Eph. 6: 12).
The first record of spiritual combat is, surely, the temptation of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. The cunning snake tempts Eve and both she and Adam sin. In response the Lord God curses the snake and states, in the words we find in Latin on every Tessera and on the front of every Handbook: “I shall put enmity between you and the woman, between your offspring and hers, he will bruise your head” (Gen 3:15).
Therefore, the protagonists of the battle against the Evil One are the woman and her offspring, whom we as Catholics see as Mary, the Mother of God, and her Son, Jesus. The Handbook, quoting Henri-Marie Boudon, describes Mary, not St. Michael the Archangel, as the general of the armies of God. The section of the Handbook dedicated to St. Michael Archangel is introduced by a quote from St. Augustine, “Although the prince of all the heavenly court, St. Michael is the most zealous in honouring Mary and causing her to be honoured, while he waits always in expectation that he may have the honour to go at her bidding to render service to some one of her servants.”
Similarly, the Legion Handbook speaks of the Archangel Gabriel in his connection to Our Lady:
“St. Gabriel is the Angel of the Annunciation. It was through him that the compliments of the Holy Trinity were addressed to Mary, that the mystery of the Holy Trinity was first stated to man, that the Incarnation was announced, that the Immaculate Conception was declared, that the first notes of the Rosary were struck”
As we have heard in our spiritual reading for this meeting, from the first the angels have been invoked by the Legion in its prayers. In summary, the handbook tells us they are the most glorious troops of her army. The Legion’s recourse to the angels has become more and more evident as they are the heavenly counterpart of its campaign. Moreover, in a sense our battle means more to our guardian angel than to ourselves as legionaries, since our angel guardian has a greater perception of the issues at stake: God’s glory and the value of each soul. Therefore, the interest of the angel is most intense, and his support unfailing, while all the other angels are similarly concerned in this warfare.
So it is that the entire angelic army is involved. Our battle is part of the main struggle which from the first they have maintained against Satan and his minions. They are represented as paralleling the human warfare and as having an intimate protective role in regard to men. The angels aid as a body as well as individually. So, as the original angelic invocation was not expressive of this universal protective role of the angels, it was decided that the name of Mary should be introduced into the invocation. She is Queen of the Angels. She is truly the Commander of the Angelic Legion and it would be a new grace to our Legion to salute her under that deeply significant title: “All ye heavenly Powers, Mary’s Legion of Angels, pray for us.”
Pope Leo XIV spoke of the Devil’s work in a meeting he had with the leadership of the International Association of Exorcists in March. However, it was Pope Leo’s predecessor, Pope Leo XIII that is especially remembered for his introduction of the prayer to St. Michael the Archangel at the end of the celebration of the Mass in 1884 when he had experienced a chilling vision of demonic forces attacking the Church.
As legionaries we do well to invoke St. Michael and all the angels. Let us as legionaries always maintain this prayerful vigilance. In today’s world so much that is sacred is coming under attack and yesterday morning, March 19, the Holy Father received in audience participants in a Convention promoted by the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints and by the New Martyrs – Witnesses of Faith Commission (established by Pope Francis in 2023) on the theme ‘The XXI Century: a new age of martyrs?’ Their report spoke of over 1,700 Christian martyrs this century including Christians from other denomination.
May we as legionaries continually invoke the intercession of Our Lady Queen of Angels that she send her angels to support and protect all who suffer on account of the Gospel.
Mary, Queen of Angels, pray for us.
All you heavenly powers, Mary’s Legion of Angels, pray for us.
