During the Month of May – a month both named for and dedicated to Mary – Catholics have long honored her by placing a crown on her image. The tradition in the United States and many other countries has been for school children to have a “May Crowning” ceremony, with a procession, pretty dresses and a wreath of fresh flowers that one child gets to place on the statue. A song for these festivals, “Bring Flowers of the Fairest”, with its refrain “O Mary, we crown thee with blossoms today, Queen of the Angles, Queen of the May…” has been a familiar favorite for generations.
The offering of crowns to adorn images became common practice in the Eastern Churches. In itself it would mean no more than adding such additional splendor to the icon as might also be given by a handsome gold frame. The affixing of the crown naturally attracted to itself, like all things dedicated to the use of the Church, was blessed before it was affixed. At Rome, too, a ceremony evolved out of this pious practice. A famous case is the coronation of the picture of our Lady in Saint Mary Major. Clement VIII (1592-1605) presented crowns (one for our Lord and one for His Mother, both of whom are represented in the picture) to adorn it; so also did succeeding popes. These crowns were lost and Gregory SVI (1831-46) determined to replace them.
On August 15, 1837, surrounded by cardinals and prelates, he brought crowns, blessed them with a prayer composed for the occasion, sprinkled them with holy water, and incensed them. The Regina Caeli having been sung, he affixed the crowns to the picture, saying the form – “Sicuti per manus nostras coronaries in terries, ita a te Gloria et honore coronary mereamur in caelis” – for our Lord, and a similar form (per te a Jesu Christo Filio tuo…) for our Lady. There was another collect, the Te Deum, a last collect, and then High Mass coram Pontifice. The same day the pope issued a Brief about the rite. The crowns are to be kept by the canons of Saint Mary Major. The ceremonial used on that occasion became a standard for similar functions.
The queen symbol was attributed to Mary because she was a perfect follower of Christ, who is the absolute “crown” of creation. She is the Mother of the Son of God, who is the messianic King. Mary is the Mother of Christ, the Word incarnate… “He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High; the Lord will give Him the throne of His father David; and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever; and of His kingdom there will be no end” (LK 1:32-33). Elizabeth greeted the Blessed Virgin, pregnant with Jesus, as “the mother of my Lord” (Lk1:41-43). Mary is the perfect follower of Christ. The maid of Nazareth consented to God’s plan; she journeyed on the pilgrimage of faith; she listened to God’s Word and kept it in her heart/ she remained steadfastly in close union with her Son, all the way to the foot of the Cross; she persevered in prayer with the Church. Thus, in an eminent way she won the “crown of righteousness” (II Tim 4:8), the “crown of life” (Jas 1:12; Rev 1:10), the “crown of glory” (I Pet 5:4) that is promised to those who follow Christ.