Militia Immaculata seeks 'to extend as far as possible the blessed Kingdom of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus'

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St. Maximilian Kolbe is shown with lay people in Japan.

Donna Masek

In his evangelical zeal, St. Maximilian Kolbe desired to conquer the whole world and each soul in particular for God, through the evangelization movement he founded, the Militia of the Immaculata. He was  motivated not by the number of people he drew but rather by the desire for the sanctification of each and every soul in a particular way.

“When, dear Mother, will the whole world recognize you as its queen?” he asked the Virgin Mary.

St. Maximilian Kolbe founded the Militia of the Immaculata on Oct. 16, 1917, during his seminary days in Rome, Italy. With the permission of his superior, he joined with six friars; they charted the course of a new movement that would be dedicated to bringing souls to Christ through the intercession of Our Lady, whom the saint usually called the Immaculata.

After his ordination, he established Niepokalanow, or the City of the Immaculata, a Franciscan friary dedicated to Marian evangelization. With ultimately close to 700 friars, it was the largest Franciscan friary in the world.

On Jan. 2, 1922, the Movement was erected as a Pious Union by the Vicar for the Diocese of Rome.

Ever the evangelizer, Maximilian Kolbe left Poland in 1930 and ventured to Nagasaki, Japan to begin a second friary named Mugenzai no Sono (Garden of the Immaculata). He returned to Poland in 1936. After the Nazi occupation of Poland in 1939, he printed one issue of the magazine Rycerz Niepokalanej, or The Knight of the Immaculata, before being taken to Auschwitz, where he died in the place of another prisoner on Aug. 14, 1941.

It was perhaps this heroic act of charity that thrust the Movement into even greater zeal and growth for the Immaculata.

“In response to the petition presented on behalf of the MI by the Minister General of the Order of the Franciscan Conventual Friars, and in consideration of the universality of the MI membership and mission, on October 16, 1997, the Pontifical Council for the Laity erected the MI as an International Public Association of the Faithful. The MI is open to Catholics of all walks of life: laity, clerics and consecrated persons, and is governed according to the norms of Canon Law, the directives of the Catholic Church and the MI General Statutes.” (Cf. Militiaoftheimmaculata.com)

The movement’s current General Statutes were approved by the Pontifical Council of the Laity on March 25, 2015. Presently, the Militia of the Immaculata has national centers located in the Americas, Asia, Europe, Africa, and Oceania as it continues to “extend as far as possible the blessed Kingdom of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus.” (Cf. Consecration Prayer composed by St. Maximilian Kolbe)

Indeed, “To extend a hand to others and leading all souls to God through the Immaculata is a mission worth living, working, suffering, and even dying for…”

St. Maximilian Kolbe, pray for us.

Donna Masek is a Volunteer of the Immaculata and represents the Militia of the Immaculata in Utah. Through Immaculata Village meetings, retreats, and other outreaches, the MI serves both the English and Spanish communities. For information, contact Donna at miutah.stmary@gmail.com.