Home
 Centennial of the Death of Pope Pius IX Middle Stamp Illustrates the Seal From the Encyclical Formally Proclaiming The Dogma Of The Immaculate Conception in 1854 Scott 632-634 (1978) On December 8, we normally celebrate the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. In 2024, with December 8 falling on a Sunday and the day we celebrate the Second Sunday of Advent, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception is moved to Monday, December 9. The dogma of the Immaculate Conception was celebrated by the Church for centuries, but it was not formally proclaimed until 1854 by Pope Pius IX in his encyclical Ineffabilius Deus, a portion of which states: "Accordingly, by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, for the honor of the Holy and undivided Trinity, for the glory and adornment of the Virgin Mother of God, for the exaltation of the Catholic Faith, and for the furtherance of the Catholic religion, by the authority of Jesus Christ our Lord, of the Blessed Apostles Peter and Paul, and by our own: “We declare, pronounce, and define that the doctrine which holds that the most Blessed Virgin Mary, in the first instance of her conception, by a singular grace and privilege granted by Almighty God, in view of the merits of Jesus Christ, the Savior of the human race, was preserved free from all stain of original sin, is a doctrine revealed by God and therefore to be believed firmly and constantly by all the faithful."Simply stated, the dogma proclaims that the Virgin Mary from the moment of her conception was preserved free from sin. The solemnity is a patronal feast in the United States. Click on today's Page 2 button for more on the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception. REFERENCES: |
