Deacon's response to Kim's Question

Hi Ruth!  
I'm completely in favor of going "to Jesus through Mary" in all things.  But I think it's one thing to go "to Jesus through Mary" with a "Marian spirit," that is, a spirit of Marian trust in Divine Providence, and another thing to feel "forced" to invoke Mary's help in all of our prayers.  If we entrust to her our hearts, and ask for her guidance, I believe we can be assured of her help even when we do not invoke her name explicitly.  And certainly she would not want to us focus on her to the detriment of our relationship with Christ, and through Him, with the Most Holy Trinity.  

Obviously, Marian devotion can go too far (i.e., "mariolatry"....idolatrous WORSHIP of Mary) but it can also be overstated.    The things written below (in Kim's note) are worded too strongly in my opinion (i.e., "only" and "never" are strong words....too strong for the subject matter, I believe).  I believe the late Holy Father, Pope Paul VI, has some words for us to think about in our Marian devotion in his Apostolic Exhortation, Marialis Cultus:  
http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/paul_vi/apost_exhortations/documents/hf_p-vi_exh_19740202_marialis-cultus_en.html
    http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/paul_vi/apost_exhortations/documents/hf_p-vi_exh_19740202_marialis-cultus_en.html.  
In  particular, reading through "Part II" of the Apostolic Exhortation may help you come to a better understanding of where the CHURCH (and not simply private devotional practice, which can easily fall into grave error) would put us in relation to  Marian devotion.

I probably could say a lot more but I'll cut it off there.  In short, I will say this: If it doesn't sit well with you
spiritually, it's probably because it's not spiritually sound.  I hope that's helpful.  Obviously, some of this you're  already familiar with, but sometimes things are worth repeating, even if they're elemental.  I hope you are well.  God bless  you!

Pax Christi,
Deacon D.


Ruth's note:  We are on solid ground as St. Louis de Montmort's writings are all approved by the Church but it is good that the questions were raised and answers sought so that we can properly understand the material in its proper context. This is a good example of searching for answers when something doesn't sit right.  There are answers. We just have to search for them sometimes.  I want to thanks all those who contributed answers in an effort to help us better understand going to Jesus through Mary.  You can see that even those who answered looked at the question/problem from different perspectives and brought us more ideas to think about and chew on.  (Please ask God's blessings on all who have helped us with this question. Hail Mary, full of grace ......)