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Why the Scapular?
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Dear Friends in Christ,
Arguably one of the most important things we can do right now in the Catholic Church is to get as many people as possible to wear the Brown Scapular. Let me give you the two primary reasons for this, both of which come from the promise of Our Blessed Mother:
- Our Lady promises peace and protection to those who wear the Brown Scapular.
- Our Lady promises that whosoever dies wearing the Brown Scapular shall not suffer eternal fire.
Who would not want to avail of these beautiful promises? Who would not want the protection of Our Blessed Mother in this life and after death? Through the Brown Scapular Our Lady is constantly pushing us towards her Son, towards the sacrament of Penance, towards the life of grace.
The Scapular is often called the ‘garment of grace’ as it prepares the wearer to receive the graces God wishes to pour into their soul. It could equally be called the ‘garment of mercy’. Through it she not only intercedes on behalf of her children who wear it, as she intervened at the wedding feast of Cana, but through it she also teaches us about the divine mercy of God, a mercy that wishes all souls to be saved.
Hail, Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy, our life, our sweetness, and our hope!
In promoting and disseminating the Brown Scapular we join Mary, our most merciful Mother, in leading souls to her Son. This is the fundamental goal of the Scapular Apostolate: to help save souls!
Our Apostolate was founded in St. Mary’s Parish and Shrine in Oswego, NY in the Diocese of Syracuse three years ago to make and distribute low-cost scapulars so as many souls as possible could receive one and be saved through Our Lady’s intercession.
To date we have made 14,000 scapulars by hand, mostly with glue and some sewn. We have materials to make *80,000 more due to generous donations. Any proceeds from the sale go back into purchasing materials for the scapulars. Ultimately our dream goal is to provide free scapulars to whoever wants one, even if it is the whole world!
There is a great need for these scapulars in the world today.
Think of children in the confusion of today’s world who can be led to Christ through Mary by this simple sacramental.
Our Apostolate currently visits local schools and youth groups to talk to young Catholics about the Brown Scapular, but there is much more that we could do.
Think of the men and women in prisons, the most marginalized in our society, they also need to know the protection and love of the Blessed Virgin. We have requested a dispensation from the Vatican for prisoners (currently unable to wear the Brown Scapular due to prison restrictions) to be allowed to carry brown wool piece(s) about their person in lieu of the traditional Scapular.
Think of politicians across the globe. Think of poor countries. Think of broken families. The list is endless.
There is no doubt; there is a great need. She, who swaddled the Christ Child in the manger, now wishes to wrap all her children in her garment of grace and mercy.
While most charities care for the human, physical needs like food, shelter, and clothing, the Scapular Apostolate is inviting you to contribute to something greater, to participate in a spiritual work of mercy and potentially save souls for eternity.
How can anyone measure what this is worth?
The Catholic Church sometimes pulls things out of the attic, as a rector once said, now is the time to reintroduce this sacramental.
We believe you can help us with our Apostolate and are writing to ask you:
- Would you be willing to pray for the Scapular Apostolate? Would you be willing to encourage your family and friends to wear the Brown Scapular?
- Do you have the means to inform others of this Apostolate? Would you be willing to use the means at your disposal to spread the word?
- Would you be willing to support either or both of the following?
- Materials for the scapular
- Donations for the scapular-making machine?Until this point we have made all our scapulars through volunteers, but to meet the demand of scapulars we have identified a company that can build a fully automated and programmable scapular-making machine. At this time, we have approximately $30k committed out of the $250k required to purchase one. Donations for materials and the machine can be made on our website: www.scapularapostolate.com
When you honor Our Lady by spreading devotion to her Scapular, it is surely pleasing to her Son, Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Help us get this Scapular Apostolate going!
Ad Jesum per Mariam,
Do you want to help spread this devotion to Our Lady? Click here to find out how you can donate today!
Image: Fr. James Schultz's ordination June 4 2011