Totus Tuus

Totus Tuus was Saint John Paul II's apostolic motto. It is a Latin phrase meaning "totally thine" and expressed his personal Consecration to Mary based on the spiritual approach of Saint Louis de Montfort and the Mariology in his works.^[1] The pontiff explained the meaning further in his book Crossing the Threshold of Hope where he defines it as not only an expression of piety but also of devotion that is deeply rooted in the Mystery of the Blessed Trinity.^[2]

Description

Coat of arms of John Paul II, with the Marian Cross

According to his Apostolic Letter Rosarium Virginis Mariae he borrowed the motto from the Marian consecrating prayer found in the book True Devotion to Mary by Saint Louis de Montfort.^[3] The complete text of the prayer in Latin is:

"Totus tuus ego sum, et omnia mea tua sunt. Accipio te in mea omnia. Praebe mihi cor tuum, Maria." ("I belong entirely to you, and all that I have is yours. I take you for my all. O Mary, give me your heart")

Pope John Paul II once recalled how as a young seminarian he "read and reread many times and with great spiritual profit" some writings of Saint Louis de Montfort and that:

"Then I understood that I could not exclude the Lord's Mother from my life without neglecting the will of God-Trinity."^[4]

In 1987, Henryk Górecki composed a choral piece (Totus Tuus Op. 60) to celebrate the Pope's third pilgrimage to his native Poland that summer.^[5] While the motet opens with the same words as the apostolic motto, the piece actually uses a poem by Maria Boguslawska for its text.^[6]

See also

• Consecration and entrustment to Mary
• Roman Catholic Mariology
• Totus Tuus (Górecki)

References

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