Society of Mary (Anglican)

Society of Mary
Abbreviation	SOM
Named after	Mary Help of Christians
Formation	1931
Merger of	The Confraternity of Our Lady (formed in 1880) and the League of Our Lady (formed in 1902).
Type	Marian devotional society
Headquarters	United Kingdom
Region	Worldwide
Services	Grants for pilgrimages(Marian shrines) and reparations of Marian images(UK).
Official language	English
Superior General	Robert Ladds
Chaplain-General	Rev Graeme Rowlands, ssc
Affiliations	Church of England, Anglican Communion
Staff	4-6
Website	societyofmary.net
Remarks	The Society is not entirely made of Anglican laity and has members of other Christian denominations.

The Society of Mary is an Anglican devotional society dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary. As its website states, it is a group of Anglican Christians:

"dedicated to the Glory of God and the Holy Incarnation of Christ under the invocation of Our Lady, Help of Christians."

The Anglican Society of Mary is not to be confused with the two Roman Catholic religious orders of the same name commonly called the Marists and the Marianists.

Objectives

The stated objectives of the society are:

To love and honour Mary
To spread devotion to her in reparation for past neglect and misunderstanding
To take Mary as a model in purity, personal relationships and family life

Members of the society keep a rule of life that includes traditional Marian devotions (such as the Angelus and the Rosary), intercession for the faithful departed members of the society, participation in Mass on the major Marian feasts and solemnities and active engagement in apostolic work.

In localities where there are a number of members they may come together to form local organisations called "wards" or "cells". These groups gather for prayer and fellowship.

The society's magazine, called AVE, is published twice per year.

History

The Society of Mary began in 1931 as the combination of two other societies: The Confraternity of Our Lady (formed in 1880) and the League of Our Lady (formed in 1902). The American region of the society received its independence in 1962. Although Anglican in origin there are non-Anglican members of the society and they can be found all over the world. The main regional organisations are in England and the United States.