The Diocese of Phoenix celebrated the feast day of Mary on Monday, asking the Mother of God to pray for the faithful.

“Today we celebrate the Memorial of Mary, Mother of the Church. Ora pro nobis!” a Facebook posting by the diocese said. 

Multiple feast days are set aside to honor Mary annually, according to the Marians. During the month of May, Catholics celebrate the Feast of Our Lady of Fatima on May 13, and the Visitation on May 31. Those two days are highlights in what is known as the Month of Mary. Other notable celebrations of Mary include: the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God, on Jan. 1; the Annunciation, on March 25; Mary's Assumption into Heaven, on Aug. 15; and the Immaculate Conception, on Dec. 8. 

Mary holds a special place for Catholics because of her dual role as a human and the Mother of God. As a human, she is considered, like all people, to be in need of God's saving; as the Mother of God, though, it is clear that she received the gift of God's grace, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) said. Mary was willing to go along with God's plan — even though it put her at risk of being stoned — earning her a crucial role in salvation. Catholics view Mary as a role model of discipleship and often ask for her intercession in their prayers. 

This feast day is one of the newest in the Church, as Pope Francis created it in 2018. It is on the calendar the day after Pentecost, which is the celebration of the Holy Spirit filling Jesus' disciples and enabling them to preach the Gospel.

Pentecost comes 50 days after Jesus' resurrection and around 10 days after his ascension into heaven. Christianity.com offers a description of what happened. Jesus’ followers met in a room that was suddenly rocked by a sound reminiscent of a gust of wind rushing into the room. Tongues of fire appeared above Jesus' apostles, letting the Holy Spirit fill them, and they began to speak in tongues. A crowd gathered around them, with everyone hearing the disciples speak in the crowd member’s native language. When Peter preached to the crowd about Jesus that day, 3,000 people became followers of Christianity.