The devotion to Our Lady of La Leche goes back to the earliest years of the Church. Here’s a prayer that many women turn to when they are new or expectant moms -- or when they want to conceive a child.
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00:00If you are a Catholic mom who's breastfeeding or pumping, you're going to want to listen
00:07to this.
00:08If you have not heard of the devotion to Our Lady of La Leche, Alatea would love to take
00:13this opportunity to introduce you to her.
00:16Breastfeeding is one of those things about motherhood that, not always, but a lot of
00:20times can be very, very difficult and emotionally and physically taxing on mothers.
00:26I remember with my first, personally thinking, oh, this is going to be so easy.
00:29It's going to be so natural.
00:31What else could be more natural than breastfeeding your baby?
00:34I was definitely thrown for a loop by how not natural and how difficult it was.
00:39And I'm sure so many of you can agree and have experienced something similar.
00:43And one of the many reasons I love our Catholic faith, there truly is something for everyone.
00:48It's so niche with so many different aspects of life.
00:51Our Lady of La Leche or Our Lady of the Milk is a devotion and depiction of Mary breastfeeding
00:56Jesus.
00:57Pretty straightforward.
00:58I know that when I was struggling with breastfeeding, a lot of times I would pray to Our Lady of
01:03La Leche and ask her to help enter a seat on my behalf.
01:06And I also give that encouragement to a lot of other moms who are struggling with breastfeeding
01:10or pumping.
01:11There's also actually a shrine in Florida for and devoted to Our Lady of La Leche.
01:17So if you ever wanted a reason to go to Florida, that's a pretty big one.
01:21In any case, here is a prayer to Our Lady of La Leche that you can save for breastfeeding
01:26mothers.
01:27To you, lovely Lady of La Leche, and to your divine son, do I now dedicate this little
01:34baby whom our Father in heaven has given me.
01:38Grateful for the trust he has placed in me, I beg you to obtain for me the physical and
01:43spiritual graces I need to fulfill my duties at every moment.
01:49Compare me with the motherly sentiments you felt during your days with the child Jesus.
01:54Make it possible for me, in imitation of you, O Lady of La Leche, to nurse my child to perfect
02:01health.
02:02In all things, help me to follow the example which you, as the perfect model of all mothers,
02:09have given to me.
02:10Let my family mirror the virtues of your holy family in Nazareth.
02:15Finally, I commend to your loving care all the mothers of earth, in whose hands he has
02:21entrusted the souls of his little children.
02:24Amen.