As a very young child, Louis had organized Rosary societies, preached sermons, told stories of the saints, and led the Rosary with groups of neighborhood children.
He was particularly devoted to Our Lady, and he took her name in confirmation. As a student with the Jesuits at Rennes, he continued his devotions; he joined the sodality, and became an exemplary member.
For much of his life, Louis gave colorful missions in country parishes. In some cases the parishes had been without a priest for decades. Ruined churches were repaired, marriages rectified, children baptized and instructed, and Catholicity rebuilt. He joined the third order of Dominicans, and everywhere he went, he established the Rosary devotion. People who came to his missions out of curiosity, remained, and his preaching did much to renew religion in France.
"It
can be safely asserted that no saint has played a greater part in the
development of the Legion than St. Louis-Marie de Montfort. The handbook
is full of his spirit. The prayers re-echo his very words. He is really
the tutor of the Legion."
(Handbook,
24, 3)
St Louis-Marie de Montfort's feast occurs on July 20th.
Pope John Paul II on St. Louis' Theology
Pope John Paul II has consistently praised the theology and spirituality of Saint Louis de Montfort. The Holy Father's recent book, "Gift and Mystery" has the following quote about Saint Louis de Montfort: " ... At one point I began to question any devotion to Mary, believing that, if it became too great, it might end up compromising the supremacy of the worship owed Christ. At that time, I was greatly helped by a book by Saint Louis Marie Grignion de Montfort entitled 'Treatise of True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin.' There I found the answers to my questions. Yes, Mary does bring us closer to Christ; she does lead us to him, provided that we live her mystery in Christ. This treatise by Saint Louis Marie de Montfort can be a bit disconcerting, given its rather florid and baroque style, but the essential theological truths which it contains are undeniable. The author was an outstanding theologian. His Mariological thought is rooted in the mystery of the Trinity and in the truth of the Incarnation of the Word of God. I then came to understand why the Church says the Angelus three times a day ... Such powerful words! They express the deepest reality of the greatest event ever to take place in human history. This is the origin of the motto 'Totus Tuus': The phrase comes from Saint Louis Marie de Montfort. it is an abbreviation of a more cmplete form of entrustment to the Mother of God which runs like this: 'Totus Tuus ego sum et omnia mea Tua sunt. Accipio Te in mea omnia. Praebe mighi cor Tuum, Maria.' And so, thanks to Saint Louis, I began to discover the immense riches of Marian devotion from new perspectives." (pp.28-30)