From the Vatican:
Following Pope Francis’ announcement that he will consecrate Russia and Ukraine to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, Bishop Clemens Pickel, of Saratov, Russia, said the Bishops of Russia, who have just ended their plenary assembly, are “happy that he has decided to do this.”
Speaking to Vatican News, Bishop Pickel noted that Russian Bishops are now planning for this Act of Consecration, focusing on helping the Russian faithful understand it well.
“The important thing is that we ourselves pray along and that it is about our hearts,” he said, adding that “Consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary is not magic; it is prayer.”
“We want to ask Our Lady with her heavenly power that the shedding of blood may stop, as soon as possible.”
Every consecration is a dedication to Christ, Bishop Pickel continued. “And so we want to entrust Russia and Ukraine to Mary: to her heart.”
Archbishop Paolo Pezzi of Moscow, the President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference in the Russian Federation, said Mary’s heart is “the virgin land from which every country is born, because every country, every people is promised or fulfilled in Christ.”
The Archbishop then noted that carrying out this Act of Consecration lends “a great strength of faith” to the Pope’s recent appeals for peace.
“Celebrating an Act of Consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary is to express that faith, hope and charity are the normal, real conditions for peoples to truly live together.”