John Paul II – Tertio Millennio Adveniente and Novo Millennio Ineunte: Mary, guide of the third millennium

The Great Jubilee of 2000, the culminating moment of the pontificate of Saint John Paul II, was prepared and carried forward by two Apostolic Letters with a strong Marian content: Tertio Millennio Adveniente (November 10, 1994), which prepared the Jubilee, and Novo Millennio Ineunte (January 6, 2001), which opened the post-jubilee follow-up.

Tertio millennio adveniente n. 43, Mary preparer of the Jubilee

“Maxima est in tempore Adventus Magni Iubilaei locus, qui Beatissimae Virgini Mariae tribuendus est. Ipsa enim, plena gratia, Filii Dei caro factura erat, ut nos in se redimeret. In Maria autem, fons et primitiva exemplar fidei Ecclesiae, omnia, quae Christus dixit aut fecit, integrum sensum reperiuntur”

, Greatest, in the time of the Advent of the Great Jubilee, is the place that must be given to the Most Blessed Virgin Mary. She, in fact, full of grace, was to become the mother of the Son of God who would be made flesh to redeem us. In Mary, source and primitive exemplar of the faith of the Church, everything that Christ said or did finds its full meaning.

Tertio millennio adveniente n. 54, the three preparatory years

John Paul II articulated the preparation for the Jubilee of 2000 in three years consecrated to three Persons: 1997 to the Son, 1998 to the Holy Spirit, 1999 to the Father. Mary assumes a special place in the third year (1999), Mary as the model of the Church’s pilgrimage toward the house of the Father:

“Maria, mater Domini Iesu, quae sine intermissione cum Iesu peregrinata est, sit pro Christianis viatoribus exemplar et auxilium in itinere ad Iubilaeum”

, May Mary, mother of the Lord Jesus, who journeyed without interruption with Jesus, be for Christian viatores an exemplar and a help on the journey to the Jubilee.

Novo millennio ineunte n. 58, duc in altum with Mary

After the Jubilee, John Paul II published Novo Millennio Ineunte (January 6, 2001) with the famous invitation: “Duc in altum!” (Put out into the deep!), words of Christ to Peter in Lk 5:4. The final n. 58 is devoted to Mary as the guide of this new voyage of the Church:

“Et nunc, ut iter aggrediamur quod ante nos extenditur, Maria respicimus, gloriae Templum nostrum: ut omnium scopulis devitemus quos vocavit ‘numquam’, dum spes nostra in Iesu reconditur. In hoc itinere ad novum saeculum, Maria a saeculo erecta est in faro luminoso ut credentium navem mediante per fluctus tempestatum dirigat”

, And now, as we set out on the path that stretches before us, we turn our eyes to Mary, Temple of our glory: so that we may avoid all the reefs that she called “never”, while our hope is concentrated in Jesus. On this path toward the new century, Mary has always been raised up as a luminous beacon to guide the barque of the faithful through the tossing of the storms.

Legacy: the Marian program of the third millennium

These two texts, together, defined the Marian program of the Church for the third millennium:

• Mary the preparer: in every period of historical transition, Mary goes before the Church as the one who has already seen what is coming
• Mary the pilgrim: the pilgrim Church follows its model, and it is that of Mary who “journeyed in faith” (LG 58)
• Mary the beacon: amid the cultural and moral storms, Mary is the sure point of orientation
• Mary Templum gloriae: in Mary the final glory that awaits all redeemed humanity is already initially realized

Further reading

Mariology | Redemptoris Mater | Rosarium Virginis Mariae | Munificentissimus Deus | Postgraduate Program in Mariology