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Antonio Consecrates himself to Mary at 112 Years Old
“Habla Español? Do you speak Spanish?” It was not the first time that someone on the phone would
start thus their conversation…
“Un poco. A little,” came the answer. But then I wondered if I should just have asked the lady to call at a later time and talk with Anna.
She was asking information about our next series of meetings in preparation to Consecration to the Immaculata and when she heard that nothing was scheduled for Spanish speaking people until June, she said she could not wait so long: her father is 112 and she would very much like for him to be entrusted to Our Lady before anything might happen to him.
112? You mean 102… No, no: 112!
MY JOURNEY TO CONVERSION
by James Shoemaker
MI Member, East Coast
I share my story in the hope that I can be encouraging to others about the journey.
My conversion has been a lifelong journey and when I look back through the years, I see the leading of Jesus and Mary in my life, even regarding my own birth. My mother almost lost me at birth, on November 3, 1959. The nuns at King’s Daughter Hospital thought that I would not make it due to a water bubble on my head. They prayed for me and the Lord heard their prayers. The nuns knew my mother, as she worked there as a nurse after training at St. Mary's Nursing School in Clarksburg, W.Va. She had spent a lot of time around the Catholic Church during her four years of training. My parents had me dedicated two months after I was born, at the same Assembly of God Church in Martinsburg, West Virginia, that they had been married at in January of 1959. The dedication ceremony is similar to Baptism in the Catholic Church in that the Protestant pastor prays over the child and anoints the child with oil.
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Catechizing Youth in the Digital Age
by Shevawn Pearson
Millennials” are wired differently than previous generations of youth; they’ve grown up in the digital age where learning takes place in sound bites, their school projects involve web-based research, and classes employ audio-visual technology. Teens today are digitally “programmed” and this presents significant challenges in how to effectively educate them in the Catholic faith. Our Sunday Visitor’s contributing editor, Emily Stimpson, speaks to these concerns in an insightful article on teens and the digital realm:
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Letter To The National Assistants In The Occasion Of Holy Easter
Dearest Brothers,
Allow me to take this opportunity before the upcoming Easter Celebration to extend to each of you my sincere, heartfelt wishes and to express my acknowledgement and support for all that you do with determination and spirit of faith in every part of the world. My own greetings are accompanied by those of the whole International Council with which I share an engaging spiritual journey by which we all desire to give strength to the MI’s journey in the whole world.
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The National MI Council (USA/Canada) Meeting was hosted by the Father Kolbe Missionaries at their facility in West Covina, CA on February 21st. Fr. Patrick Greenough, OFM Conv., Br. Juniper Kriss, 
OFM Conv., Br. Daniel Quakenbush, OFM Conv., Anna Brizzi FKM, Peter Ptak, Shevawn Pearson, Christine Rossi and Sr. Donna Marie, SMMI, were present. Fr. Greenough reviewed the minutes of the International Board Meeting that was held recently in Italy. It was agreed that there are four points that should be commonly presented to all the MI members throughout the world. They are: 1) The life of St. Maximilian, 2) The History of the MI, 3) What is consecration 4) An explanation of the Act of Consecration. From the National Board Meeting it was decided that a teaching aid will be made that includes these four points for distribution. Also, it was decided that it is important to reconnect with the MI members throughout the US and Canada. In order to do this, it was decided to update the websites, and share information between sites that reinforces the points mentioned above. It was agreed that the use of short video clips are most effective in teaching about St. Maximilian and consecration.
MI International Council 
January 19 -21, 2011,
Bologna, Italy
The council was held at the Mother House of the Fr. Kolbe Missionaries in Bologna, Italy. Each council member gave a brief review of the ministry he/she was involved in for the MI. Some of the more important topics that were discussed was the relationship of the Conventual Franciscan Order with the MI now a Publick Association of the Faithfu which was founded by St. Maximilian Kolbe, a Conventual Franciscan. Like all relationships, this one too is a growing and evolving one. There were three main issues that dominated the three-day meeting,
1.) The structure of the MI,
2.) Formation in the MI,
3.) Finances.
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The Eucharistic Dimension in St. Maximilian Kolbe
Raffaele Di Muro , OFM Conv
The Eucharistic mystery is a dimension of fundamental importance in the spiritual journey of the martyr of Auschwitz. This article will try to demonstrate this point and bring to light the connection between his adoration of the Eucharist and his mission and martyrdom. The first part treats the importance of the celebration of the Eucharist in the life of Father Kolbe. The second section tries to present him as one who tirelessly adored the Lord through his devotion to the Eucharist. The final part highlights the close rapport between St. Maximilian’s love for the Blessed Sacrament and his mission that became martyrdom in the final stage of his life.
PLAY ON ST. MAXIMILIAN KOLBE PRODUCED IN BUFFALO
Year 2011, marks the 70th anniversary of St. Maximilian Kolbe martyr’s death in Auschwitz in 1941. Celebrations of this important anniversary are taking place world-wide. The Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVII, recently visited the Church of St. Maximilian in Rome inaugurating the Year of St. Maximilian.
A biographical play on St. Maximilian Kolbe under the title Father Maximilian’s Cell, by Kazimierz Braun is being produced in Buffalo under the sponsorship of Polish Cultural Foundation, The Polish Chair at Canisius College, M&T Bank, Polish American Congress, and other Polish-American organizations and selected RC Church Parishes of the Buffalo area. The production of Father Maximilian’s Cell will be a full scale professional production in English language. John Jacoby will perform the leading role of St. Maximilian. The production, with music by Michael Zachowicz, is directed by Mark F. Tattenbaum and produced by Dina Szymanski.
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