If “the simplicity, the beauty, the truth, the authenticity of the message, the attitude of its priests, the piety of the gathering, the calmness, the serious attitude, the radiant charity” existing in our Works took hold of you to such an extent that you adhered to it, giving it, in turn, your support and devotedness, you are now in a position to understand our positive action in the battle raging in the Church.

There have always been conflicts and wars because the men of today as well as those of yesterday turn a deaf ear to the word of God. God wants to establish a kingdom of prosperity and justice, as defined in His law, and establish it here and now. It is for us to open our eyes and see the signs and indications that point to this kingdom, in spite of the enormous confusion in which the world is enveloped.

Prophets and Messengers

The Old Testament relates how God sent His prophets or messengers to men. For the most part, they were not listened to. In the New Testament the Son of God came to reveal to us the Father’s love and to bring us His peace. But He was rejected and crucified by men.

Now it is Mary’s hour, the hour foretold in the Apocalypse: the hour of the battle between the Woman crowned with stars and the Dragon.

Beginning in 1830, in the chapel of the Miraculous Medal, Mary, in her turn, as “God’s envoy”, came to warn of the dangers threatening us, and, as she had done in each one of her epiphanies, to give us the means to ward them off. But proud and rebellious man turned a deaf ear to her appeals. Despite her increasingly pressing interventions at La Salette in 1846 and at Fatima in 1917, the world continues to rush towards the abyss. Now we must battle on every front, so universal has the corruption become. Mary knew all of this, foresaw it all.

Then she came to Amsterdam as the Lady of All Peoples to give us even more details concerning events which were to come. In her messages, given over a period of fifteen years (March 25, 1945 to May 31, 1959), she foretold the manifold evils we should have to face. And one by one these prophecies are coming to pass before our eyes, thus strengthening our faith in her words. “The signs are contained in my words,” said Mary on April 4, 1954. Now, “the years have passed in such a state”.

“Rome, have you any idea how you are being undermined? Years will pass – years will pass in such a state; and the more years there will be, the more apostasy will there be.” (The Lady of All Peoples, August 15, 1951)

Here again, “God’s envoy” has not been heeded! The signs are unceasingly being given to us, but men do not see them; they have become blind.

The Army of Mary

The situation was becoming increasingly desperate, so on August 28, 1971, Mary constituted her Army in order to mobilize Marian souls and form with them a spiritual force which she herself is directing through the orders she gives the one whom she had prepared for this task over a period of forty years, indicating to her handmaid the manner in which she was to obey.

From it inception, the Army of Mary, at a time when the authority of the Church’s head, Pope Paul VI, was being generally contested, manifested through positive action its fidelity to Rome and to the Pope.

These are times of general deterioration within the Church. So the Army of Mary, in a very positive fashion, works to consolidate what is right and to redress what is wrong. Thus, it preserves and safeguards authentic religious, spiritual and liturgical values; its religious ceremonies are beautiful, at once simple and grand; the interior life is intensified; the spiritual bonds of the family are strengthened; true values are rediscovered by parents and children alike with the support of priests increasingly conscious of the grandeur and beauty of their priesthood lived in conformity with the teaching of the Church.

The direct and positive activity of the Army of Mary does not stop there.

• It promotes a choir of a hundred and fifty voices whose aim is to restore sacred music to its rightful place. This aim is pursued during religious manifestations and also in different countries on the occasion of the Army of Mary pilgrimages. There are also sacred concerts or its Christmas pageants and the visits by the choir to the sick and the destitute.
• Catechism courses are given to the young and not-so-young.
• Courses in spiritual doctrine are a source of joy for adults and adolescents who are happy to renew their knowledge of their faith and to pass this knowledge along to their friends either verbally or through recordings on cassettes. Video cassettes on this subject are even available.
• Little bookstores are multiplying everywhere for the spreading and sale of good books and religious articles.
• The Pilgrim Virgin is being received with joy in thousands of homes. In certain dioceses, the visits of more than one hundred and fifty of these pilgrim statues are being asked for each week by families, and the waiting list is continually lengthening. And Mary multiplies the graces of all kinds.
• Poor families are helped at all times, and especially at Christmas when food hampers help to bring cheer to parents and children.

This very positive action is a preparation and formation for the young Knights of Mary who are initiated into the practice of the moral virtues, arriving at an appreciation of the values of marriage and entering upon it imbued with its established principles. In many homes there are budding vocations, for love of Mary leads to the love of Christ and of His Church.

When the majority of people will have resolutely committed themselves to a positive action, in accordance with the authentic teaching of the Church, then shall we witness the inevitable disappearance of the widespread corruption you speak of and about which the Lady of All Peoples has already warned us.

Corruption

Mary, good mother that she is, desired to preserve her children from the “corruption, disaster and war” she foresaw by giving us a prayer to recite. However, she laid down one condition:

“The Lady of All Peoples promises to give true Peace. But the peoples, WITH the Church – and mark this well: WITH the Church – will have to recite my prayer this very year.” (The Lady of All Peoples, March 20, 1953)

The Work of the Lady of All Peoples had scarcely become known when a savage assault was launched against it and the messenger. But here again, Mary, the Lady of All Peoples, took steps to support those who, with simplicity and humility of heart, accepted this intervention of heaven and wished to adhere to it:

“The powers of hell are going to be unleashed. They will not vanquish the Lady of All Peoples.” (The Lady of All Peoples, December 3, 1953)

This violent attack came from all sides: progressists and “traditionalists” alike fell into the devil’s trap. Why? Because in order to be solidly attached to the Barque of Peter, it is necessary to be devoted to the Triple White of the Eucharist, Mary and the Pope (Don Bosco’s dream). Neglect even one of these, and the light fails. Thus, those who reject devotion to Mary (progressists) and those who turn their back on the Pope (“traditionalists”) wage war against the Lady of all Peoples, unmindful of Gamaliel’s advice:

“Men of Israel, be careful how you deal with these people… If this enterprise, this movement of theirs, is of human origin it will break up of its own accord; but if in fact it does come from God you will not be able to destroy them, you might even find yourselves fighting against God.” (Acts 5:36-39)

It is enough to look at the attitude or action of those who fight in order to quickly detect the spirit that motivates them. The one who works for God possesses peace and acts with wisdom, charity and love, while the other passionately attacks with hatred and violence.

As was the case in Israel’s time when men were straying, Heaven is still leading the combat today. If we wish to understand, let us not forget these important words: “I thank you Father… for hiding these things from the learned and clever and revealing them to mere children. (Mt 11:25)

The Prayer

The prayer given by the Lady of All Peoples to be recited is short and simple.

“Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the Father, send now your spirit over the earth. Let the Holy Spirit live in the hearts of all peoples, that they may be preserved from corruption, disaster and war. May the Lady of All Peoples, who once was Mary, be our Advocate. Amen.”

This prayer has rapidly spread around the world. It has received more than two hundred imprimaturs. In 1967, the prayer had been translated into twenty-nine languages and more than eight million copies of it had been distributed. At Paris, Mary said to Catherine Labouré, with regard to the Miraculous Medal: “Have a medal struck according to this model. Those who wear it will receive many graces.” At Amsterdam, Mary said: “Look at my image, look at it well… You will have a picture made of this. You will propagate it at the same time as the prayer which I gave you.” (The Lady of All Peoples, March 4, 1951)

But the two are one and the same representation, and this representation is the SEAL and the SIGN.

The Army of Mary, founded in the very bosom of the Church, has brought new developments to the Work of the Lady of All Peoples. The ever-increasing popular fervor with which this devotion is being embraced around the world, in spite of the violent attacks against it, is another indication in its favor.

So now you understand, dear sir, why corruption is so widespread. It is praiseworthy, certainly, to embark upon a campaign against this or that particular evil, but this requires the expenditure of vital powers which would be better spent in the building up of solid bases in the formation of the people of God in accordance with the authentic teaching of the Church. Moreover, those who are so zealously promoting evil, whatever be its form, look forward to the adverse reaction of the good as a means of stirring up publicity for their nefarious works. Why should we always be on the defensive?

The Army of Mary has launched itself into battle in a positive action, gathering together souls and leading them onwards to the Kingdom. Its fundamental norm of action: the sound doctrine of the Church and its diffusion. Obedience to the law of God promotes peace and happiness.

To engage in the battle in a positive fashion in wielding the arms of prayer, love, obedience and fidelity, is to pave the way for the return of Christ with a view to His Kingdom.

Marie-Paule