PROGRAMME OF THE EVENT

1. Opening prayer by Sis Edith Ozochi (nkpo na ani event begins)

2. Marian Hymns (3 mins)
3. Introduction of the members of High table
4. Breaking of kola nut
5. Chairman’s opening remark
6. Match past by Curiae
7. Welcome address by the Comitium President
8. Welcome song by Tower of Ivory Junior Curia St. Callistus Parish N/H
9. Introducing our History book
10. Presentation by Mater Chrsiti Curia Christ the King Parish GRA
11. Catena Legionis led by the Comitium Treasurer
12. Cutting of anniversary cake / Fundraising (10 nkpo na ani salute for Our Lady)
13. Pantomime by Coronation Junior Curia St. Michael
14. Presentation of Awards / Gifts
15. Refreshments
16. Cultural dance by Gate of Heaven Senior Curia St. Michael Parish
17. Vote of the thanks by the Comitium Vice President
18. Closing prayer by the Comitium Assistant Secretary
19. Blessings by the Spiritual Director / (2 nkpo na ani signifying event closure)
The Legion of Mary

The object of the Legion of Mary is the glory of God through the holiness of its members
developed by prayer and active co-operation in Mary’s and the Church’s work. The unit
of the Legion of Mary is called a praesidium, which holds a weekly meeting, where
prayer is intermingled with reports and discussion. Persons who wish to join the Legion
must apply for membership in a Praesidium. The Legion sees as its priority the spiritual
and social welfare of each individual. The members participate in the life of the parish
through visitation of families, the sick, both in their homes and in hospitals and through
collaboration in every apostolic and missionary undertaking sponsored by the parish.
Every legionary is required to carry out a weekly apostolic work in the spirit of faith and
in union with Mary.

The Legion of Mary is a lay apostolic association of Catholics who, with the sanction of
the Church and under the powerful leadership of Mary Immaculate, Mediatrix of All
Graces, serve the Church and their neighbour on a voluntary basis in about 170 countries.
The first meeting of the Legion of Mary took place in Myra House, Francis Street,
Dublin, Ireland, on 7 September, 1921. This meeting was to have very beneficial
consequences for the mission of the Catholic Church and, in a special way, for millions
of members of Christ’s lay faithful who would serve in the Legion and for those who
would be served by the legionary apostolate. Many persons outside the Catholic Church
would also benefit from that apostolate. With the approval and support of the Popes and a
great many Bishops, Priests and Religious, as well as the prayers and efforts of
legionaries, the Legion, by the grace of God, has grown into a worldwide organisation
with several million members.

Drawing its inspiration from the True Devotion to Mary, as taught by St. Louis Marie de
Montfort, and which had a profound influence on the Founder of the Legion, the Servant
of God, Frank Duff, the Legion is at the disposal of the Bishops and Priests for use in the
mission of the Church. While essentially a lay association, legionaries look for spiritual
and apostolic formation to priests and religious, who, as Legion Spiritual Directors, hold
an honoured place in the Legion system. The Legion requires ecclesiastical approval to
work in a diocese or parish. Loyalty to the Magisterium and to Ecclesiastical Authority is
a basic legionary principle. The Legion aims to bring Mary to the world as the infallible
means of winning the world to Jesus and legionary service is based on the doctrine of the
Mystical Body of Christ so that in their fellow members and in those they serve,
legionaries seek to have the Person of our Lord once again seen and served by Mary, his
Mother.

The general and essential means by which the Legion of Mary is to effect its object is
personal service acting under the influence of the Holy Spirit, having Divine Grace as its
moving principle and support, and the glory of God and the salvation of souls as its final
end and purpose. Evangelisation, especially the seeking of conversions to the Church,
should be a priority for the Legion. Through the visitation of homes and by other means,
the Legion must, as a first principle, set out to establish a contact of some sort with every
soul everywhere. Seeing and serving Christ in the sick and marginalised is another vital
part of the legionary apostolate. While not engaging in the giving of material relief,
legionaries will often find opportunities to do works of service for the needy.

The basic unit of the Legion is called a praesidium, which is normally based in a parish.
A parish may have more than one praesidium. To be an active legionary it is necessary to
apply for membership in a praesidium, which holds a weekly meeting and allocates a
weekly apostolic task to the members, who generally work in pairs. After a successful
period of probation, members are called to make the Legionary Promise (this is only
applicable for members over 18 years) which is directed to the Holy Spirit. Realising the
necessity for a strong support of prayer, the Legion has Auxiliary members, who
associate themselves with the Legion by undertaking a service of prayer in its name. The
administration of the Legion is carried out through its various councils at local, regional
and national level. The central council, the Concilium Legionis Mariae, meets monthly in
Dublin.

The Cause for Beatification has been introduced for three legionaries: The Servant of
God, Frank Duff (1889-1980), Founder of the Legion, who attended the Second Vatican
Council as a Lay Observer; Venerable Edel Quinn (1907-1944), Legion Envoy to East
Africa; and the Servant of God, Alfie Lambe (1932-1959), Legion Envoy to South
America.
Servant of God Frank Duff

Founder of the Legion of Mary, Frank Duff was born in Dublin, Ireland, on June 7, 1889.
He entered the Civil Service at the age of 18. At 24 he joined the Society of St. Vincent
de Paul where he was led to a deeper commitment to his Catholic faith and at the same
time he acquired a great sensitivity to the needs of the poor and underprivileged.

Along with a group of Catholic women and Fr. Michael Toher, Dublin Archdiocese, he
formed the first praesidium of the Legion of Mary on September 7, 1921. From that date
until his death, November 7, 1980, he guided the world-wide extension of the Legion
with heroic dedication. He attended the Second Vatican Council as a lay observer.

His profound insights into the role of the Blessed Virgin in the plan of Redemption, as
also into the role of the lay faithful in the mission of the Church, are reflected in the
Legion Handbook which is almost entirely his composition.
Prayers for the Beatification of Servant of God Frank Duff

God our Father, You inspired your servant Frank Duff with a profound insight into the
mystery of Your Church, the Body of Christ, and of the place of Mary the Mother of
Jesus in this mystery. In his immense desire to share this insight with others and in filial
dependence on Mary he formed her Legion to be a sign of her maternal love for the world
and a means of enlisting all her children in the Church’s evangelising work.

We thank you Father for the graces conferred on him and for the benefits accruing to the
Church from his courageous and shining faith. With confidence we beg You that through
his intercession you grant the petition we lay before You . ............... We ask too that if it
be in accordance with Your will, the holiness of his life may be acknowledged by the
Church for the glory of your Name, through Christ Our Lord, Amen.

(With ecclesiastical approval)

Venerable Edel Quinn

Edel Quinn was born in Kanturk, Co. Cork, Ireland on 14 September 1907. As a girl her
ambition was to enter a contemplative convent, but she was prevented from doing so by
ill-health. At the age of 20 she joined the Legion of Mary in Dublin and was an
enthusiastic member.

In 1932 she became seriously ill and spent a long period in hospital. She resumed her
activities in the Legion but for the remainder of her life was impaired due to that illness.
In 1936 Edel was appointed Legion of Mary Envoy to East Africa – to countries such as
Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia and Mauritius. She encountered obstacles in this pioneering
work and overcame them despite her poor health and harsh conditions. She had great
faith in God’s love and a limitless trust in the maternal care of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Edel was gifted with a clear practical mind. She had notable organising ability, an
indomitable will and a depth of warmth and human empathy. Her infectious joyousness
of spirit never failed her. These qualities quickly won everyone to her side.

Although often working alone and in a state of ill-health and exhaustion, Edel established
the Legion of Mary on a firm footing in the countries she visited – even as far as
Mauritius in the Indian Ocean. Hundreds of Legion branches and higher councils of the
Legion were established – meaning that thousands of Africans were mobilised in the
service of the Church.

After eight years of heroic labour, Edel died in Nairobi on 12 May 1944 where she is
buried in the Missionaries’ Cemetery.

The Diocesan Process, the first step towards her beatification, was set in motion in 1957
by the Archbishop of Nairobi. She was declared Venerable on 15 December 1994 by
Pope John Paul II.

The following extracts from her private notes give an indication of her spiritual life:

‘What boundless trust we should have in God’s love! We can never love too much; let us
give utterly and not count the cost. God will respond to our faith in Him …’

‘Mary loves us because we are Christ’s legacy to her. Let us give ourselves completely to
her to be made all His, to be consumed unceasingly, to be spent for Christ.’

‘To suffer for love of Our Lord is my very greatest joy.’

Edel’s favourite prayer:

‘Dear Jesus make Thyself to me, a living bright reality.

More present to Faith’s vision keen, than any outward object seen,

More dear, more intimately nigh than e’en the sweetest earthly tie.’

------------------------------
Prayers for the Beatification of Venerable Edel Quinn

Eternal Father, I thank you for the grace you gave to your servant, Edel Quinn, of striving
to live always in the joy of your presence, for the radiant charity infused into her heart by
your Holy Spirit and for the strength she drew from the Bread of Life to labour until
death for the glory of Your name in loving dependence on Mary, Mother of the Church.

Confident, O Merciful Father, that her life was pleasing to you, I beg you to grant me,
through her intercession, the special favour I now implore ..........., and to make known by
miracles the glory she enjoys in Heaven, so that she may be glorified also by your Church
on earth, through Christ Our Lord, Amen

(With ecclesiastical approval)

Servant of God Alfie Lambe

The Servant of God, Alphonsus Lambe, (known as Alfie) was born in Tullamore, Ireland
on the feast of St. John the Baptist, Friday, 24th June 1932, during the International
Eucharistic Congress in Dublin.

Like St. John he was a precursor - the precursor of the Legion of Mary, which Pope Paul
VI described as “the greatest movement which has been established for the good of souls
since the era of the great religious orders”. After spending a period of his youth in the
novitiate of the Irish Christian Brothers, which he had to leave because of delicate health,
he found his vocation in the Legion of Mary, and was appointed Envoy in 1953. With
Seamus Grace, he left for Bogota, Columbia on the feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel
16th July of that year.

For almost six years he worked ceaselessly in promoting the Legion of Mary in
Columbia, Argentina, Ecuador, Uruguay and Brazil. After a short but grave illness he
died in Buenos Aires on the feast of St. Agnes, 21st January 1959.
God had bestowed on him great natural gifts, a personality which attracted souls to the
service and love of God, an infectious enthusiasm, and a facility for learning languages,
which enabled him to rapidly attain fluency in Spanish and Portuguese.

During his years in South America he set up a great number of branches of the Legion of
Mary, and trained a multitude in the apostolate of the Legion. His devotion to Mary was
outstanding, and in contacts with Legionaries and others he explained and urged the
practice of the True Devotion to Our Lady.

He is buried in the vault of the Irish Christian Brothers, in the Recoleta Cemetery,
Buenos Aires.

————————————————————————

Prayers for the Beatification of Servant of God Alfie Lambe

O God, who by your infinite mercy inflamed the heart of your servant, Alphonsus Lambe
with an ardent love for you and for Mary, our Mother; a love which revealed itself in a
life of intense labour, prayer and sacrifice for the salvation of souls, grant, if it be your
will, that we may obtain, by his intercession, what we cannot obtain by our own merits.
We ask this through Jesus Christ, Our Lord. Amen

(With ecclesiastical approval)