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==Origins==
A number of traditions link the month of May to Mary. [[Alfonso X of Castile|Alfonso]] in the 13th century wrote in his ''[[Cantigas de Santa Maria]]'' about the special honoring of Mary during specific dates in May. Eventually, the entire month was filled with special observances and devotions to Mary.
The origin of the conventional May devotion is still relatively unknown. Herbert Thurston identifies the seventeenth century as the earliest instance of the adoption of the custom of consecrating the month of May to the Blessed Virgin by special observances.<ref>[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/15459a.htm Thurston, Herbert. "Devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 15. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1912. 1 May 2013]</ref> It is certain that this form of Marian devotion began in Italy. Around 1739, witnesses speak of a particular form of Marian devotion in May in Grezzano near [[Verona]]. In 1747 the Archbishop of Genoa recommended the May devotion as a devotion for the home.<ref name=kuppers>[http://campus.udayton.edu/mary/questions/yq2/yq367.html Küppers, Kurt. ''Marienlexikon'', Vol 4, p. 244-246, Augsburg]</ref> Specific prayers for them were promulgated in Rome in 1838. <ref>''Maiden and Mother: Prayers, Hymns, Devotions'' by Margaret Miles 2001 {{ISBN|0-86012-305-7}} page 87</ref>
According to [[Frederick_George_Holweck|Frederick Holweck]], the May devotion in its present form originated at Rome where Father Latomia of the Roman College of the [[Society of Jesus]], to counteract infidelity and immorality among the students, made a vow at the end of the eighteenth century to devote the month of May to Mary. From Rome, the practice spread to the other Jesuit colleges and thence to nearly every Catholic church of the Latin rite.<ref>[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/10542a.htm Holweck, Frederick. "Special Devotions for Months." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 10. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1911. 1 May 2013]</ref> In Rome by 1813, May devotions were held in as many as twenty churches. From Italy, May devotions soon spread to France. In Belgium, the May devotions, at least as a private devotion, were already known by 1803. The tradition of honoring Mary in a month-long May devotion spread eventually around the Roman Catholic world in the 19th century together with a month-long devotion to [[Jesus]] in June and the [[Rosary]] in October.
==May devotions==
In his 1965 [[encyclical]], ''Mense Maio'', [[Pope Paul VI]] identified the month of May as an opportune time to incorporate special prayers for peace into traditional May devotions.<ref>[https://www.vatican.va/holy_father/paul_vi/encyclicals/documents/hf_p-vi_enc_29041965_mense-maio_en.html Pope Paul VI, ''Mense Maio'', Encyclical Of Pope Paul VI On Prayers During May For Preservation Of Peace, April 29, 1965]</ref>
[[File:BanholtLourdesgrotroazekranswkped08.jpg|thumb|250px|Marian devotion of Rosary]]
There is no firm structure as to the content of a May devotion. It usually includes the singing of Marian anthems, readings from scriptures, and a [[sermon]]. Although prayers likely include the recitation of the [[Hail Mary]], the [[rosary]] itself is not usually a part of this particular devotion. Catholics offer Mary in May: pilgrimages, visits to churches dedicated to her, little sacrifices in her honor, periods of study and well-finished work offered up to her, and a more attentive recitation of the [[rosary]].<ref name=cna>[http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/resources/prayers/devotions/to-the-blessed-virgin-mary/month-of-mary-may-devotions/ "Month of Mary-May Devotions", Catholic News Agency]</ref>
The last devotion on May 31 is often followed by a solemn procession, during which a statue or portrait of the Virgin Mary is carried back into the church. Some May devotions may take place outside in a forest or a dedicated special place.
===Family Devotions===
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