CAMBRIDGE -- St. Mary of the Annunciation Parish in Cambridge was filled with hundreds of faithful of all ages who had come to consecrate themselves to Jesus through Mary on the evening of May 31, the feast of the Visitation.

Archbishop Richard G. Henning celebrated a trilingual Mass, featuring readings and music in English, Spanish, and Portuguese, to mark the Total Consecration to Jesus Through Mary. Bishop Cristiano Barbosa concelebrated.

The Total Consecration is a devotion created by St. Louis de Montfort. To make the consecration, the faithful must spend 33 days in prayer and learning about Mary -- one day for each year in the life of Jesus.

Thirteen-year-old Yoshua Escrich said that he related a lot to what he was reading as he prepared for the consecration.

"I wanted to dedicate myself more to God," he said, adding: "My relationship with Jesus changed a lot."

"I wanted to reflect more on my faith and my relationship with God, especially through Mary," said 23-year-old Alex Orellana.

The 33-day devotion taught him how to listen to God instead of simply demanding things from him.

"It made me more appreciative of silence and prayer in silence," he said.

The Mass began with the assembly waving white handkerchiefs in the air as the children who would be consecrating themselves, all dressed in white, processed through the center aisle. Veronica Romero brought her niece, Leilani Garcia, and her grandsons, Angel and Alexander Maldonado, to be consecrated.

"It's very important for the children to grow in faith," said Romero, who consecrated herself so she could educate her family about Mary.

Leilani, who is seven, was excited to consecrate herself.

"Celebrating Mary is so special to us because she is our mother," she said.

In his homily, Archbishop Henning recounted a pilgrimage he made to the Holy Land when he was an auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of Rockville Centre. He visited the village of Ein Karem and the Church of the Visitation. That visit was recounted in the day's Gospel. Seeing the site with his own eyes reminded the archbishop that the people in the Bible were not distant historical figures, but regular people. He could imagine Mary picking olives and walking in the village.

"It's true, is it not, that the church teaches us that there is such a thing as the church of the home?" he said. "You have one of the most beautiful churches in the country here, where you come together as a family of faith, but your kitchen table is also a place of holiness. Because it's there your family life is built up. It is there, too, that the Lord Jesus wishes to speak to your heart."

He said Mary and Elizabeth had "a very dramatic kitchen table" moment when they met, as Mary was expecting the birth of the Savior. They shared their faith with one another in that moment.

"Maybe your kitchen table or my kitchen table are not the places where the entire world will find the salvation of Jesus Christ," the archbishop said, "but it is the place where I'll find my salvation and you'll find yours, because it is in that daily living of the faith and that daily life of the disciple that you and I are drawn close to the heart of Jesus."

He said that consecration is a reminder that, through their baptism, the assembly were set apart and made to be people of God.

"That is our call as the disciples of the Lord Jesus," he said. "We are made for more. In the Lord's eye, we are a thing of beauty, ready to receive his spirit. That's why it's so important for us to continuously in our life seek purification, to turn away from all those things that lead us away from God, from anything that isn't God, and prepare ourselves to receive his holy presence, his sacrament, his presence."

The archbishop then blessed the parish's new statue of Mary. The statue depicts her as a young girl, slightly pregnant and moving her foot forward in the direction God has willed her to go. Then came the consecration. In English, Spanish, and Portuguese, the assembly read from a "Certificate of Consecration." They vowed to renounce Satan and offer their heart, body, and soul to Jesus through Mary.

"Let me be a fit instrument in your immaculate and merciful hands for bringing the greatest possible glory to God," the adults prayed. "If I fall, please lead me back to Jesus. Wash me in the blood and water that flow from his pierced side, and help me never to lose my trust in this fountain of love and mercy."

All of the adults and children lined up before the statue to place white carnations at her feet.

"I'm Portuguese, so I always had a great devotion to the Blessed Mother, and I wanted to be closer to her," said Otilia Barros.

Barros read the book "33 Days to Morning Glory" to prepare for the consecration.

"I couldn't even explain," she said after she consecrated herself. "It's a beautiful feeling."