At the sixth provincial council in Baltimore (1846) the assembled bishops petitioned Pope Pius IX that Mary, the Immaculate Conception be named the patroness of the United States. (The dogmatic definition of the Immaculate Conception occurred later, in 1854.) The Holy Father approved and since that time the United States has been under the protection of the Immaculate Conception. The idea of a patron is not very familiar in the US. Maybe the closest analogy is that of a sponsor — Visa Half Time report, Nokia Sugar Bowl, Guaranteed Rate Stadium. The sponsor gives something and expects something in return — promotion of their product. Mary, the Immaculate Conception, expects something of us — our acceptance that the word the angel addressed to her is aimed at us as well: The Lord is with you.
