The founding story of the Marist Way is that Mary really did jump into history in 1816 with an inspiration to 12 young priests saying: ‘this is what I want…..’ and from this point, doing ‘the work of Mary’ by living her presence began to spread and grow. It’s a striking thought - Mary really does have work to do - do we want to be available for it.

A popular Marist Book called ‘Bearings’ offers some thoughtful ideas on the Marist Way of looking at and living life.

The Work of Mary

On 23 July 1816, at the shrine of Our Lady of Fourvière in Lyons, twelve young priests and seminarians climbed the hill and promised to found a congregation bearing Mary's name. They were convinced they were responding to Mary's own wish, which they heard in the words: “I supported the Church at its birth; I shall do so again at the end of time.” Jean-Claude Colin, the man who would shape the Society of Mary, said those words “served us, in the very earliest days, as a foundation and an encouragement.”

The Marist Way, then, does not begin with a program or a set of rules. It begins with a conviction: that Mary is quietly at work in the Church today, just as she was in the upper room at Pentecost, and that she gathers ordinary people to share that work. A second-generation Marist, Alphonse Cozon, put it simply: “It is because we have believed this that we have come together.” As Bearings observes, what brought us together binds us together.

Notice what kind of presence Mary had in the early Church. She held no office. She preached no sermons that were recorded. Yet she was, in Colin's word, its “mainstay” — a supporting, encouraging, unifying presence. To be drawn to the Marist Way is to sense an invitation to be present to your family, parish, workplace and neighbourhood in exactly that manner: supportive rather than dominating, encouraging rather than controlling, a quiet mainstay for others.

That invitation is open to everyone. From the beginning the Marist project included lay men and women; Colin dreamed of “a community of believers with one mind and one heart.” Whatever your state of life, this first bearing asks you to trust that your desire to live this way is itself a grace — perhaps even Mary's own choice of you.

Marist Reflection Question

Where do I already sense Mary quietly at work in my life — and could my attraction to this way of living be her invitation to share her work?

Marist Practice

Begin each morning this week with one Hail Mary, asking to notice a single situation during the day where you can be a quiet “mainstay” — supporting someone else's good work without needing to lead it or be thanked for it.

The Work Of Mary

The Work of Mary

Doing Good Without Noise

For God Alone