The Most Holy Name of Mary

The Most Holy Name of Mary is the memorial that honors the holy name of the Mother of God and, through her name, all the graces and privileges bestowed on her and all that she means to the Church. Just as the Church venerates the Holy Name of Jesus, so she cherishes the name of Mary, invoked with confidence by the faithful as a name of tenderness, refuge, and intercession, sweet to pronounce in life and in the hour of death.

Devotion to Mary's name grew through the Middle Ages and was given a feast in Spain before Pope Innocent XI extended it to the universal Church in 1683, in thanksgiving for the deliverance of Vienna and of Christendom from the besieging Ottoman armies, a victory attributed to the intercession of Our Lady. Kept on 12 September, near the feast of her Nativity, it invites the faithful to honor the one whose name is joined so closely to the name of her Son.