The United States is placed under the patronage of Mary in her Immaculate Conception. Hence, the great basilica by that title in Washington, D.C. And here is El Greco's early 17th century painting (1607) of the Virgin Mary in Her Immaculate Conception.
We don't want to be simply admirers of Mary in her sinlessness, but in a sense aren't we all called to be an immaculate conception (small i, small c) — that is — one who gradually but surely turns towards Christ's rule over heart and mind. That I would consistently, as my way of life, be readying myself to give new birth to Christ by the transformation of my life — living that unique life truthfully and beautifully, as Christ lived his.
And here is the earliest prayer (Egyptian 3rd c) the Church has offered to the Mother of God. The word patronage in the first line is important. The Greek word indicates a visceral response which causes someone to run to help the other who is in trouble, danger or distress,
We fly to your patronage,
O Holy Mother of God,
despise not our petitions
in our necessities,
but deliver us always from all dangers,
O glorious and blessed Virgin.
Amen
But let us pray the prayer for our nation which is at risk of losing its identity these days — confounded, bitterly divided, armed, weakened by suspicion, personality cult, and a kind of partisan idolatry, weakened of conscience, such that we devote ourselves to whatever media-news confirms us in our fears and prejudices.
