Nr. 1-2 /2016 - 7
An important role has been allocated to the Virgin Mary since the very beginnings of Christianity. According to the calendar of the Roman Catholic Church, May is dedicated to honouring the Virgin Mary. Due to her human origins, she has become an intermediary between people and God, capable of influencing the decisions of her son Jesus Christ, and providing assistance to people of her own accord. Together with God and Jesus Christ, she is considered to have extraordinary, saintly qualities in Latvian Catholic communities.At the beginning of the 19th century, the tradition of May devotions began to spread widely in Catholic territories in Latvia. Currently the services are usually performed by womenfolk in the rural environment. Every evening or on weekends in May, people gather to pray and sing in churches, cemeteries, at crossroads, or in the centre or the edge of villages where crucifixes are located.
Keywords: May Devotions, Virgin Mary, Latgale, Catholicism, Jesuits, crucifixes.