Philomène Faye, outgoing President of the Comitium of the Legion of Mary in Dakar/Philomène Faye
matter of faith
The Legion of Mary of Senegal is 70 years old. In this interview with The Cross AfricaPhilomène Faye, outgoing President of the Comitium of this organization in Dakar takes stock of the seven decades of this Marian association.
La Croix Africa: What should be remembered from the Legion of Mary in 70 years of presence in Senegal?
Philomene Faye : The Legion of Mary is one of the oldest organizations of the Catholic Church in Senegal. The actions for its creation in the country began on January 6, 1952 and official recognition was made on June 10, 1952. Since this recognition, the Legion of Mary has occupied a prominent place in the landscape of the Church in Senegal since it is present in all the dioceses. The legionnaires are very active in their parishes and constitute a wealth on which the ecclesiastical authorities can rely.
For several decades, the Legion of Mary was considered an association of elderly women who recite the rosary. However, we note that a new wind is blowing, going in the direction of rejuvenation and masculinization. Youth recruitment work has been carried out and is beginning to bear fruit. Like other countries in the sub-region, young men have acquired their place there and are even currently at the head of the association’s governing body, which is the Comitium Marie Miroir de Justice in Dakar.
What role does the Legion play in the synod on synodality?
Philomene Faye: Through this synod, the Pope invites us to walk together, to live and to commune with our “traveling companions”. The great sub-themes of this synod are: Communion, participation and mission. This is basically legionary service.
The purpose of the Legion of Mary is to seek the glory of God through the sanctification of its members. Driven by the same values of unity, fidelity, obedience, love of the task as the Roman army on which it modeled its organization, the Legion of Mary sees in man a soul to be saved. Its mission is to bring Christ to the world.
Read also: Cameroon: The Legion of Mary celebrates its centenary
The spirit of the Legion is the very spirit of Mary. It is a spirit of unity, solidarity, love, peace, obedience and surrender and above all of humility, guided by the Holy Spirit. We live in communion of prayers and participate in making the reign of God grow with multiple activities on the ground, in all places. A synodal church is a listening church, just like the legionary who walks in the company of his neighbor to whom he lends an attentive ear. The synod on synodality therefore reinforces the spirituality of the Legion of Mary.
What are the challenges of the Legion of Mary in Senegal?
Philomene Faye : Our major challenge is to install praesidia (legionary groups) in all the parishes of Senegal. We strive to train our members for a better understanding of the legionary system and also continue to recruit young boys, girls and even juniors (children).
We are working to develop the Comitium Mirror of Justice into a Regia and to create other Comitia (higher councils) in the dioceses in the interior of the country. We pursue evangelization through prayer and the apostolate in the field; in short, we bring Christ to the world through Mary his mother.
Collected by Charles Senghor (in Dakar)
“The synod on synodality reinforces the spirituality of the Legion of Mary”