Saint Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort (1673-1716)

Saint Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort (1673-1716)

Consecration to Jesus through Mary (Saint Louis de Montfort)

The heart of his act of consecration, in the original French

FrenchEnglish

Moi N…, pécheur infidèle, je renouvelle et ratifie aujourd'hui entre vos mains les vœux de mon Baptême ; je renonce pour jamais à Satan, à ses pompes et à ses œuvres, et je me donne tout entier à Jésus-Christ, la Sagesse incarnée, pour porter ma croix à sa suite tous les jours de ma vie, et afin que je lui sois plus fidèle que je n'ai été jusqu'ici.

I, N., a faithless sinner, renew and ratify today in thy hands the vows of my Baptism. I renounce for ever Satan, his pomps and his works, and I give myself entirely to Jesus Christ, the Incarnate Wisdom, to carry my cross after him all the days of my life, and to be more faithful to him than I have ever been before.

Je vous choisis aujourd'hui, en présence de toute la Cour céleste, pour ma Mère et Maîtresse ; je vous livre et consacre, en qualité d'esclave, mon corps et mon âme, mes biens intérieurs et extérieurs, et la valeur même de mes bonnes actions passées, présentes et futures, vous laissant un entier et plein droit de disposer de moi et de tout ce qui m'appartient, sans exception, selon votre bon plaisir, à la plus grande gloire de Dieu, dans le temps et l'éternité.

In the presence of all the heavenly court, I choose thee this day for my Mother and Mistress. I deliver and consecrate to thee, as thy slave, my body and soul, my goods both interior and exterior, and even the value of all my good actions, past, present and future; leaving to thee the entire and full right of disposing of me and of all that belongs to me, without exception, according to thy good pleasure, for the greater glory of God, in time and in eternity.

Amen.

SourceSaint Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort (1673-1716) · The heart of his act of consecration, in the original French

The history of this prayer

Saint Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort (1673-1716), a popular missioner in western France, taught the "holy slavery of love": giving oneself entirely to Jesus Christ through the hands of Mary. His Treatise on True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin lay forgotten in a chest for over a century; the manuscript was found in 1842 and published the following year. Pius XII canonized him in 1947, and Saint John Paul II took from him the motto "Totus tuus".

The full act of consecration written by the saint is a long prayer to Eternal Wisdom and to Mary. The two paragraphs given here are its heart and are commonly used as a short form: the renewal of the baptismal promises and the gift to Mary of all one is and has, even the value of one's good works.

Montfort advises a preparation of about a month (the 33-day scheme is now usual), with confession and Communion on the day of consecration, ideally a feast of Our Lady, and a yearly renewal. The original text is in French.

Frequently asked questions

How do you make the Montfort consecration?

Prepare for about 33 days, go to confession and Communion, and say the act of consecration, ideally on a Marian feast; renew it every year.

Is this the full text?

No: it is the heart of the act Saint Louis wrote, used as a short form. The full act is much longer.

More prayers: Our Lady

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