The history of the devotion to the Heart of Mary is connected on many points with that to the Heart of Jesus; nevertheless, it has its own history which, although very simple, is not devoid of interest. The attention of Christians was early attracted by the love and virtues of the Heart of Mary. The Gospel itself invited this attention with exquisite discretion and delicacy. What was first excited was compassion for the Virgin Mother. It was, so to speak, at the foot of the Cross that the Christian heart first made the acquaintance of the Heart of Mary. Simeon’s prophecy paved the way and furnished the devotion with one of its favourite formulae and most popular representations: the heart pierced with a sword. But Mary was not merely passive at the foot of the Cross; “she cooperated through charity”, as St Augustine says, “in the work of our redemption”.
Another Scriptural passage to help in bringing out the devotion was the twice-repeated saying of St Luke, that Mary kept all the sayings and doings of Jesus in her heart, that there she might ponder over them and live by them. Some of the Fathers also throw light upon the psychology of the Virgin, for instance, S. Ambrose, when in his commentary on St Luke, he holds Mary up as the ideal of virginity and St Ephrem, when he so poetically sings of the coming of the Magi and the welcome accorded them by the humble Mother.
In the New Testament Elizabeth proclaims Mary blessed because she has believed the words of the angel ,the Magnificat is an expression of her humility and in answering the woman of the people, who in order to exalt the Son proclaimed the Mother blessed, did not Jesus himself say: “Blessed rather are they that hear the word of God and keep it”, thus in a manner inviting us to seek in Mary that which had so endeared her to God and caused her to be selected as the Mother of Jesus? The Fathers understood His meaning and found in these words a new reason for praising Mary. St Leo says that through faith and love, she conceived her Son spiritually, even before receiving Him into her womb and St Augustine tells us, that she was more blessed in having borne Christ in her heart, than in having conceived Him in the flesh.
Daily Prayer for August for the Intercession of the Immaculate Heart of Mary
O Most Blessed Mother,
heart of love, heart of mercy,
ever listening, caring, consoling, hear our prayer.
As your children, we implore your intercession,
with Jesus your Son.
Receive with understanding and compassion,
the petitions we place before you today,
especially those so deep in our heart.
We are comforted in knowing your heart is ever open
to those who ask for your prayer.
We trust to your gentle care and intercession,
those whom we love
and who are sick or lonely or hurting.
Help all of us, Holy Mother,
to bear our burdens in this life,
until we may share eternal life and peace
with God, our Father forever.
Amen
Thought for the Day – 16 July – The Memorial of Our Lady of Mount Carmel
A 1996 doctrinal statement approved by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments states that:
“Devotion to Our Lady of Mount Carmel is bound to the history and spiritual values of the Order of the Brothers of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel and is expressed through the scapular. Thus, whoever receives the scapular becomes a member of the order and pledges him/herself to live according to its spirituality in accordance with the characteristics of his/her state in life.”
According to the Church on the Brown Scapular:
“The scapular is a Marian habit or garment. It is both a sign and pledge. A sign of belonging to Mary, a pledge of her motherly protection, not only in this life but after death.
As a sign, it is a conventional sign signifying three elements strictly joined:
first, belonging to a religious family particularly devoted to Mary, especially dear to Mary, the Carmelite Order;
second, consecration to Mary, devotion to and trust in her Immaculate Heart;
third, an urge to become like Mary by imitating her virtues, above all her humility, chastity and spirit of prayer.”
The Shorter Form of Blessing and Bestowing the Scapular of Our Lady of Mt Carmel.
The Postulant kneels before the Priest, who is vested in surplice and white stole and the Priest says:
V. Show us Your mercy, O Lord.
R. And grant us Your salvation.
V. O Lord, hear my prayer.
R. And let my cry come unto You.
V. The Lord be with you.
R. And with Your spirit. Let us pray:
O Lord Jesus Christ, the Saviour of men, bless † with Your right hand this habit which, for Your love and for the love of Your holy Mother, the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel, this Your Servant (Handmaid) shall wear devoutly, so that, through the intercession of the same Blessed Virgin, Your Mother, he (she) may be guarded against the wicked one and remain until death in Your grace. Who lives and reigns, world without end.
R. Amen.
The Priest sprinkles the Scapular with holy water and, placing it upon the shoulders of the postulant, says:
Receive this blessed habit and pray the most Holy Virgin
that by her merits you may bear it without stain
and that she may guard you from all adversity
and bring thee unto life everlasting.
R. Amen.
By the power that has been granted to me, I admit you to share in all the spiritual blessings which, through the cooperation of our merciful Saviour, Jesus Christ, are obtained by the Religious of Mount Carmel.
In the name of the Father and of the Son, † and of the Holy Ghost.
R. Amen
Almighty God, the Creator of heaven and earth, bless † you, He Who has vouchsafed to join you unto the Society and Confraternity of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel; let us beseech her, therefore, that in the our of your death she may bruise the head of the old serpent and that you may obtain the palm of victory and the crown of inheritance everlasting. Through Christ our Lord.
R. Amen.
Then the Priest sprinkles the Recipient with holy water.
Notice--Scapulars of Our Lady of Mount Carmel can now be replaced by a MEDAL, having on one side the image of Our Lord showing His Sacred Heart and on the other, the image of the Blessed Virgin; even, ONE such medal can replace SEVERAL scapulars: but, then, it must receive just as many blessings as there are scapulars to be replaced, one sign of the Cross, however, suffices for each blessing.
Thought for the Day – 27 June – The Feast of Our Lady of Perpetual Succour ( Under the Protection of the Redemptiorists – CSsr)
An artist about to paint an icon prepares himself spiritually by prayer, confession, Holy Communion and sometimes fasting. He prays even while painting, for he sees himself as an instrument of the Holy Spirit, the principal artist, Who will use the icon as an instrument to channel graces to those who reverence it and pray before it. In most cases, the artist does not even sign his name to his work.
In Western art, there is little difference in the styles used in sacred art as compared to secular art; only the subject matter is different. Icons, however, are not meant to be realistic as far as physical representation, but rather to portray eternal truths in a way that immediately transports the viewer to a spiritual plane. Perhaps the simplest way to describe it is as theology in line and colour. The images are rendered in an extremely stylised, non-naturalistic way. The folds of garments appear as simple geometric forms, while faces and bodies show portray human nature transformed by grace into the divine.
In the icon of Our Mother of Perpetual Help, the Child Jesus is not portrayed with the physical proportions of an infant but appears almost as an adult in miniature form. This has been interpreted to indicate that He is God, having infinite knowledge. Yet He is human as well, for He clings to His Mother’s hand in fear, while gazing up toward the angel over His shoulder. One of His sandals has come loose, indicating the haste with which He had run to her.
Why is the Child Jesus so frightened? The angels in the picture are holding instruments of His Passion and death, with the angel on the left bearing the gall, the lance and the reed, while the angel on the right holds the cross and nails. Their hands are covered with a cloth or veil, much like the humeral veil that the priest holds when blessing with the Blessed Sacrament in the monstrance at Benediction.
The face of Our Lady is grave and sorrowful, with her large eyes directed not at Jesus, but at us. One feels that she is pleading with us to avoid sin, which has caused her Son to suffer so much for us. Her gaze makes us a part of the picture and the pain it portrays. “Will you not love my Son, Who has loved you so much?” she seems to say.
Our Lady is clothed in the colours of royalty; her tunic is of dark red and her mantle is dark blue with a green lining. (According to another interpretation, the dark red is said to be the colour worn by virgins at the time of Christ, while blue was the colour worn by mothers in Palestine.) The Child Jesus also wears the colours of royalty. Both Jesus and Mary have golden halos, but Christ’s halo is decorated with a cross as a sign of His Divinity and Passion. Jewelled crowns were placed on the heads of both Mother and Child of the original icon by order of the Vatican in 1867. (The crowns were removed when the icon underwent restoration in the 1990’s.)
The Greek initials next to the head of Our Lady identify her as “Mother of God,” while those next to the Child are the abbreviation for “Jesus Christ.” The letters over the angels’ heads indicate the one on the left as St Michael and the one on the right as S. Gabriel.
The 8-pointed star on Our Lady’s veil tells us that she is the Star of the Sea, the Star that leads us to Jesus. The small ornate cross to the left of the star reinforces this concept.
Mary’s mouth is small to indicate her spirit of silence and prayer. Her eyes are large, for they see all of our troubles and needs and are always turned toward us.
Christ’s hands, turned palms down into His Mother’s, indicate that He has placed the graces of the Redemption in her keeping. Our Lady’s hand does not clasp those of her Son but remains open, inviting us to put our hands in hers along with those of Jesus.
As in other icons, the background of the painting is gold to symbolize Heaven, where Jesus and Mary now reign in glory. This light of Heaven shines through their clothing, illuminating not only the picture itself but those who behold it. This radiance speaks to us of God’s light and grace, strengthening and consoling us as we journey through life to our heavenly goal.
Finally, it is of no small significance that Our Blessed Mother herself referred to the icon by the title of “Holy Mary of Perpetual Succour.” Surely this, along with the symbolism we see in the picture, should assure us of the loving concern and tenderness our Blessed Mother has for us and her ardent desire to be a source of perpetual help to all who call upon her.
In answer to Pope Pius IX’s injunction to “make her known,” the Redemptorists commissioned several artists to paint copies of the original icon. More than 2,300 such copies, similarly touched to the original, have been sent to other houses of the order around the world. Pope Pius IX also received a copy, which he enshrined in his private chapel and was often seen kneeling before it in prayer. (Excerpt from Sister Mary Agatha, CMRI)
Part of the tradition is that Mary had made it clear that she wished her image to be situated between the great basilicas of St John Lateran (the Pope’s Cathedral) and St Mary Major, her own basilica. For the best part of 300 years from the year 1500, it was famous for the many miracles and graces granted to those who made the pilgrimage to the church of St Matthew on the Via Merulana, which was destroyed during the Napoleonic war.
In January 1855, the Redemptorist priests purchased Villa Caserta in Rome along the Via Merulana and converted it into their headquarters. Without realising it, the property they had purchased was once the church and monastery of Saint Matthew, the site which the Virgin reportedly chose as the icon’s shrine.
Decades later, Pope Pius IX invited the Redemptorist Fathers to set up a Marian house of veneration in Rome, in response to which the Redemptorists built the Church of St Alphonsus Liguori at that location. The Redemptorists were thus established on the Via Merulana, not knowing that it had once been the site of the Church of San Matteo and shrine of the once-famous icon.
Mother of Perpetual Succour, Pray for us!
THANKSGIVING PRAYER
O Mother of Perpetual Succour,
with grateful hearts we join you
in thanking God
for all the wonderful things
He has done for us,
especially for giving us,
Jesus, your Son, as our Redeemer.
O God, our Creator,
we thank You for the gift of life
and all the gifts of nature:
our senses and faculties,
our talents and abilities.
We thank You for creating us
in Your image and likeness
and for giving us this earth
to use and develop,
to respect and cherish.
Despite our failures,
you continue to show Your love for us today
by increasing the life of Your Spirit in us
at the Eucharistic table.
Finally, we thank You, loving Father,
for giving us Mary,
the Mother of Your Son,
to be our Mother of Perpetual Succour.
We are grateful for all the favours
we have received through her intercession.
We pray that those past favours
may inspire us to greater confidence,
in your loving mercy and to seek the aid
of our Mother of Perpetual Succour.
Amen
Thought for the Day – 9 June – The Feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary
“It was through the body of a young, Jewish girl, living in a tiny village called Nazareth, that Jesus, the divine Word, was made flesh. Mary belonged to that part of the people of Israel, who awaited the Lord’s coming with expectation and longing. She had no doubt read about His coming in the Old Testament Scriptures and prayed for it. But she had no idea how it would come about. Most Israelites thought the Messiah would manifest Himself gloriously.
When the Archangel Gabriel announced to Mary that she was to be the “door’ through which the long awaited desire of the nations would be fulfilled, she must have been astonished: “Hail, O favoured one, the Lord is with you! … You will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call His name Jesus” (Lk 1.28-31). A new life – filled with risks – opened before her. According to the Church’s tradition, Mary, in an exceptional gesture for a Jewish woman, had decided “not to know man” (Lk 1.34). She had discerned virginity to be God’s will. Her Immaculate Heart – the Feast we keep this day – prompted a total giving of herself to God and included the gift of both her body and her heart. Reassuring her that God had not disdained her vow, Gabriel told Mary that, like the glory of God coming upon the ark, so would the Spirit overshadow her. The young “handmaid of the Lord” contemplated the Angel’s words. She treasured them in her heart. Her response, known as her fiat – “let it be done to me as you say” (Lk 1.38) – shows that she entrusted herself fully to God’s designs. She chose to forgo her own plans for God’s. Through her fiat, the Word of God took flesh in the tabernacle of her womb…..
Today in this Eucharist, on the Feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, Jesus knocks at the door of our heart. In us, He wishes to take up His abode and, through our body, enter human history. When we welcome Him, He gives birth to divinity within the crib of our hearts. What answer will our heart give to His divine proposal?”…..Cardinal Robert Sarah (16 June 2012)
Our Morning Offering – 9 June – The Feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary
Prayer to the Two Holy Hearts of Jesus and Mary
O Heart of Jesus pierced for our sins
and giving us Your Mother on Calvary!
O Heart of Mary pierced by sorrow
and sharing in the sufferings of your divine Son
for our redemption!
O sacred union of these Two Hearts!
Praised be the God of Love who united them together!
May we unite our hearts and every heart
so that all hearts may live in unity and in imitation
of that sacred unity which exists in these Two Hearts.
Triumph, O Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary!
Reign, O Most Sacred Heart of Jesus!
– in our hearts, in our homes and families,
in the hearts of those who as yet do not know You
and in all nations of the world.
Establish in the hearts of all mankind the sovereign triumph
and reign of your Two Hearts so that the earth may resound
from pole to pole with one cry:
Blessed forever be the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus
and the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary!
Obtain for me a greater purity of heart
and a fervent love of the spiritual life.
May all my actions be done for the greater glory of God
in unions with the divine heart of Jesus
and the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
Hear and answer our prayers and intentions
according to Your most merciful will.
Amen
Feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary – 9 June is a devotional name used to refer to the interior life of the Blessed Virgin Mary, her joys and sorrows, her virtues and hidden perfections and, above all, her virginal love for God the Father, her maternal love for her son Jesus and her compassionate love for all people. Pope Pius XII instituted the feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary in 1944 to be celebrated on 22 August, coinciding with the traditional octave day of the Assumption. In 1969, Pope Paul VI moved the celebration of the Immaculate Heart of Mary to the Saturday, immediately after the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. This means in practice that it is now held on the third Saturday after Pentecost.
Historically, devotion to the Heart of Mary grew up in parallel but at a lesser intensity than that of devotion to the Heart of Jesus, only starting to become more prominent during the time of St John Eudes. John Eudes was born in 1601 in Normandy, France. He entered the Congregation of the Oratory of France, founded in 1611 by Cardinal de Berulle and was ordained to the priesthood on December 20, 1625. St John brought people to love Christ and the Virgin Mary by speaking tirelessly about their Hearts, the sign of the love God shows for us and the communion to which we are called.
To offer them liturgical worship, he composed Masses and Offices in their honour and had the first Feast of the Holy Heart of Mary celebrated on 8 February 1648, at Autun (France) and the Feast of the Heart of Jesus celebrated on 20 October 1672.
He died on August 19, 1680 and was canonised by Pope Pius XI on May 31, 1925.
Nevertheless, it was not until after the Apparitions at Rue du Bac concerning the “Miraculous Medal” made to Catherine Labouré in 1830 and the establishment of a society dedicated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, at the Church of Our Lady of Victories in Paris in 1836, that this particular devotion became really well known.
Since then devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, has gradually grown more widespread in the Church, particularly since the apparitions at Fatima.
The main difference between the devotions to the hearts of Jesus and Mary is that the one concerned with Jesus emphasises His divine heart as being full of love for mankind, but with this love for the most part being ignored or rejected, while devotion to Mary’s heart is essentially concerned with the love that her heart has for Jesus, for God.
Therefore, it is not an end in itself, so the love of her heart is meant to be a model for the way we should love God. The fact that her heart is immaculate, that is sinless, means that she is the only fully human person who is able to really love God in the way that He should be loved.
Honouring Mary’s Immaculate Heart is really just another way of honouring Mary as the person who was chosen to be the Mother of God, recognising her extraordinary holiness and the immense love she bestowed on Jesus as His mother, the person who was called to share in and co-operate in His redemptive sufferings.
The aim of the devotion is to unite mankind to God through Mary’s heart and this process involves the ideas of consecration and reparation. A person is consecrated to Mary’s Immaculate Heart as a way of being completely devoted to God. This involves a total gift of self, something only ultimately possible with reference to God but Mary is our intermediary in this process of consecration.
Because of the strong analogy between Jesus and Mary, the consecration to Mary’s Immaculate Heart is closely linked to the consecration to Jesus’ Sacred Heart, although it is subordinate and dependent on it. That is, although the act of consecration is ultimately addressed to God, it is an act that is made through Mary. And so we pray through Mary, through her Immaculate Heart, we ask to learn true love.
The whole world has been repeatedly consecrated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary by different popes:
Pius XII, 31 October 1942
Paul VI, 21 November 1964
John Paul II, 13 May 1982
John Paul II together with all the bishops of the world, 25 March 1984
Francis, 13 October 2013
The Immaculate Heart of Mary (Feast) (2018)
St Ephrem of Syria (Optional Memorial)
—
Bl Alexander of Kouchta
St Alexander of Prusa
Bl Anne Marie Taigi
St Arnulf of Velseca
St Baithen of Iona
St Columba of Iona
St Comus of Scotland
St Cumian of Bobbio
St Cyrus
Bl Diana d’Andalo
St Diomedes of Tarsus
St Felicianus
Bl Henry the Shoemaker
St Jose de Anchieta
Bl Joseph Imbert
St Julian of Mesopotamia
St Luciano Verdejo Acuña
Bl Luigi Boccardo
St Maximian of Syracuse
St Pelagia of Antioch
St Primus
St Richard of Andria
Bl Robert Salt
Bl Sylvester Ventura
St Valerius of Milan
St Vincent of Agen
—
Martyrs of Arbil – 5 saints: Five nuns who were martyred together in the persecutions of Tamsabur for refusing to renounce Christianity for sun-worship – Amai, Mariamne, Martha, Mary and Tecla. They were beheaded on 31 May 347 at Arbil, Assyria (in modern Kurdistan, Iraq)
Thought for the Day – 31 May – The Last Day of Mary’s Month and the Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary from St Bede the Venerable
Writing in the early 8th century, St Bede explains why the Magnificat, Mary’s prayer on the occasion of her Visitation of Elizabeth, is used daily in the liturgy of the hours (a.k.a the divine office) for Vespers or evening prayer. With Mary’s soul, our souls magnify the Lord and rejoice in God our Saviour.
My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my saviour.
With these words Mary first acknowledges the special gifts she has been given. Then she recalls God’s universal favours, bestowed unceasingly on the human race.
REJOICE IN GOD’S GREATNESS
When a man devotes all his thoughts to the praise and service of the Lord, he proclaims God’s greatness. His observance of God’s commands, moreover, shows that he has God’s power and greatness always at heart. His spirit rejoices in God his saviour and delights in the mere recollection of his creator who gives him hope for eternal salvation.
These words are offered for all God’s creations but especially for the Mother of God. She alone was chosen and she burned with spiritual love for the son she so joyously conceived. Above all other saints, she alone could truly rejoice in Jesus, her saviour, for she knew that He, who was the source of eternal salvation, would be born in time in her body, in one person both her own son and her Lord.
HOLY IS HIS NAME For the Almighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name.
Mary attributes nothing to her own merits. She refers all her greatness to the gift of the one whose essence is power and whose nature is greatness, for He fills with greatness and strength the small and the weak who believe in Him.
She did well to add: and holy is his name, to warn those who heard and indeed all who would receive His words, that they must believe and call upon His name. For they too could share in everlasting holiness and true salvation, according to the words of the prophet – and it will come to pass, that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. This is the name she spoke of earlier – and my spirit rejoices in God my saviour.
VESPERS & THE MAGNIFICAT: AN EVENING CANTICLE
Therefore it is an excellent and fruitful custom of holy Church that we should sing Mary’s hymn at the time of evening prayer. By meditating upon the incarnation, our devotion is kindled and by remembering the example of God’s Mother, we are encouraged to lead a life of virtue. Such virtues are best achieved in the evening. We are weary after the day’s work and worn out by our distractions. The time for rest is near and our minds are ready for contemplation.
The great canticle by the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Magnificat, proclaimed by Mary during her Visitation to St Elizabeth, is celebrated and explained in this excerpt from a homily by Saint Bede the Venerable (Lib 1,4:CCL 122, 25-26, 30) which is used in the Roman Catholic Liturgy’s Divine Office of Readings for the Feast of the Visitation, 31 May, with the accompanying biblical reading being from Song of Songs 2:8-14 and 8:6-7. With Mary’s soul, we proclaim the greatness of the Lord and rejoice in God, her Saviour and ours, each evening in Vespers prayer.
St Bede the Venerable (673-735) Father & Doctor of the Church
One Minute Marian Reflection – 31 May – The Last Day of Mary’s Month and the Feast of the Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
And Mary said, “My soul glorifies the Lord, my spirit rejoices in God, my Saviour”…Luke 1:46
REFLECTION – “THE VISITATION: MARY SINGS OF THE LOVE OF GOD – “God is interested in even the smallest events in the lives of His creatures – in your affairs and mine — and He calls each of us by name. This certainty that the faith gives, enables us to look at everything in a new light. And everything, while remaining exactly the same, becomes different, because it is an expression of God’s love. Our life is turned into a continuous prayer, we find ourselves with good humour and a peace that never ends and everything we do is an act of thanksgiving, running through all our day. ‘My soul magnifies the Lord,’ Mary sang, ‘and my spirit rejoices in God, my Saviour.'” …St Josemaría Escrivá (1902-1975) – “To Jesus through Mary,” Christ is Passing By, 144 Let us offer to our Mother today: The Holy Rosary said with concentration and affection.
PRAYER – Almighty, ever-living God, You inspired the Blessed Virgin Mary, when she carrying Your Son, to visit Elizabeth. Grant that, always docile to the voice of the Holy Spirit, we may, together with our Lady, glorify Your Name and offer You our constant praise and thanksgiving. Through Christ, our Lord, with You and the Holy Spirit, one God forever, amen.
Our Morning Offering – 31 May – The Last Day of Mary’s Month and the Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
The Magnificat, is Mary’s great gift to scripture, one of its most beautiful prayers. It is prayed every evening in the Liturgy of the Hours by millions around the world. With that, Mary’s great acclamation becomes the Church’s.
The Magnificat The Canticle of Mary Luke 1:46-55
My soul glorifies the Lord,
my spirit rejoices in God, my Saviour
He looks on His servant in her lowliness
Henceforth all ages will call me blessed:
The Almighty works marvels for me,
holy is his Name!
His mercy is from age to age,
on those who fear Him.
He puts forth His arm in strength
and scatters the proud-hearted.
He casts the mighty from their thrones
and raises the lowly.
He fills the starving with good things,
sends the rich away empty.
He protects Israel, His servant,
remembering His mercy,
the mercy promised to our fathers,
to Abraham and his sons forever.
Excerpt (18) from the Apostolic Exhortation “Marialis Cultus”
Blessed Pope Paul VI – 2 February 1974
“18. Mary is also the Virgin in prayer. She appears as such in the visit to the mother of the precursor, when she pours out her soul in expressions glorifying God and expressions of humility, faith and hope. This prayer is the Magnificat (cf. Lk. 1:46-55), Mary’s prayer par excellence, the song of the messianic times in which there mingles the joy of the ancient and the new Israel. As St Irenaeus seems to suggest, it is in Mary’s canticle, that there was heard once more, the rejoicing of Abraham who foresaw the Messiah (cf. Jn. 8:56)(48) and there rang out in prophetic anticipation the voice of the Church: “In her exultation Mary prophetically declared in the name of the Church: ‘My soul proclaims the glory of the Lord….'”
And in fact Mary’s hymn has spread far and wide and has become the prayer of the whole Church in all ages.”
The Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary – 31 May
As we say goodbye to Mary’s Month of May, we celebrate today the feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This feast celebrates the visit of Mary, the Mother of God, with the child Jesus in her womb, to her cousin Elizabeth. The visit took place when Elizabeth was herself, six months’ pregnant, with the forerunner of Christ, Saint John the Baptist. At the Annunciation of the Lord, the angel Gabriel, in response to Mary’s question “How shall this be done, because I know not man?” (Luke 1:34 ), had told her that “thy cousin Elizabeth, she also hath conceived a son in her old age; and this is the sixth month with her that is called barren: Because no word shall be impossible with God” (Luke 1:36-27).
The evidence of her cousin’s own near-miraculous conception had called forth Mary’s fiat: “Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it done to me according to thy word.” It is thus appropriate, that the very next action of the Blessed Virgin, that Saint Luke the Evangelist records, is Mary’s “making haste” to visit her cousin.
The Significance of the Visitation
Arriving at the house of Zachariah and Elizabeth, Mary greets her cousin and something wonderful happens: John the Baptist leaps in Elizabeth’s womb (Luke 1:41). As the Catholic Encyclopedia of 1913 puts it in its entry on the Visitation, the Virgin Mary’s “presence and much more the presence of the Divine Child in her womb, according to the will of God, was to be the source of very great graces to the Blessed John, Christ’s Forerunner.”
The Cleansing of John the Baptist From Original Sin
John’s leap was no ordinary movement of an unborn child, for as Elizabeth tells Mary, “as soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy” (Luke 1:44). The joy of John the Baptist, the Church has held from the time of the early Church Fathers, came from his cleansing at that moment of Original Sin, in accordance with the angel Gabriel’s prophecy to Zachariah, before John’s conception, that “he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother’s womb” (Luke 1:15). As the Catholic Encyclopedia notes in its entry on St John the Baptist, “as the presence of any sin whatever is incompatible with the indwelling of the Holy Ghost in the soul, it follows that at this moment John was cleansed from the stain of original sin.”
The Origin of Two Great Catholic Prayers
Elizabeth, too, is filled with joy and cries out in words that would become part of the chief Marian prayer, the Hail Mary: “Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb.” Elizabeth then acknowledges her cousin Mary as “the mother of my Lord” (Luke 1:42-43). Mary responds with the Magnificat (Luke 1:46-55), a canticle or biblical hymn that has become an essential part of the Church’s evening prayer (vespers). It is a beautiful hymn of thanksgiving, glorifying God for choosing her to be the mother of His Son, as well as for His mercy “from generation until generations, to them that fear Him.”
The History of the Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
The Visitation is mentioned only in Luke’s Gospel and Luke tells us that Mary stayed with her cousin about three months. The angel Gabriel, as we have seen, told Mary at the Annunciation that Elizabeth was six months pregnant and Luke seems to indicate that the Blessed Virgin departed for her cousin’s home very soon after the Annunciation.
While many Marian feasts are among the first feasts to have been celebrated universally by the Church, East and West, the celebration of the Visitation, even though it is found in Luke’s Gospel, is a relatively late development. It was championed by Saint Bonaventure and adopted by the Franciscans in 1263. When it was extended to the universal Church by Pope Urban VI in 1389, the date of the feast was set as July 2, the day after the octave (eighth) day of the feast of the Birth of Saint John the Baptist. The idea was to tie the celebration of the Visitation, at which Saint John had been cleansed of Original Sin, to the celebration of his birth, even though the placement of the feast in the liturgical calendar was out of sync with the account given by Luke. In other words, symbolism, rather than chronology, was the deciding factor in choosing when to commemorate this important event.
For close to six centuries, the Visitation was celebrated on July 2, but with his revision of the Roman calendar in 1969, Pope Paul VI moved the celebration of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary to the last day of the Marian month of May so that it would fall between the feasts of the Annunciation and the Birth of Saint John the Baptist—a time when Luke tells us that Mary would certainly have been with Elizabeth, taking care of her cousin in her time of need.
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St Alexander of Auvergne
St Camilla Battista Varano
St Crescentian of Sassari
St Donatian of Cirta
St Felice of Nicosia
St Galla of Auvergne
St Hermias of Comana
Bl Jacob Chu Mun-mo
Bl James Salomone
St Juan Moya Collado
Bl Kasper Gerarz
St Lupicinus of Verona
St Mancus of Cornwall
Bl Mariano of Roccacasale
St Mechtildis of Edelstetten
St Myrbad of Cornwall
Bl Nicolas Barré
Bl Nicholaus of Vangadizza
Bl Nicholaus of Vaucelles
St Nowa Mawaggali
St Paschasius of Rome
St Petronilla of Rome
Bl Robert Thorpe
St Silvio of Toulouse
Bl Thomas Watkinson
Bl Vitalis of Assisi
St Winnow of Cornwall
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Martyrs of Aquileia – 3 saints: Three young members of the imperial Roman nobility and who were raised in a palace and had Saint Protus of Aquileia as tutor and catechist. To escape the persecutions of Diocletian, the family sold their property and moved to Aquileia, Italy. However, the authorities there quickly ordered them to sacrifice to idols; they refused. Martyrs all – Cantianilla, Cantian and Cantius. They were beheaded in 304 at Aquae-Gradatae (modern San-Cantiano) just outside Aquileia, Italy.
Martyrs of Gerona – 29 saints: A group of Christians martyred together in Gerona, Catalonia, Spain, date unknown. No details about them have survived but the names –
• Agapia
• Amelia
• Castula
• Cicilia
• Donatus
• Firmus
• Fortunata
• Gaullenus
• Germanus
• Honorius
• Istialus
• Justus
• Lautica
• Lupus
• Maxima
• Paulica
• Rogate
• Rogatus
• Silvanus
• Tecla
• Teleforus
• Tertula
• Tertus
• Victoria
• Victurinus
• Victurus
Martyrs of the Via Aurelia – 4 saints: Four Christians martyred together. No information about them has survived except their names – Justa, Lupus, Tertulla and Thecla. The martyrdom occurred in 69 on the Via Aurelia near Rome, Italy.
Quote/s of the Day – and Marian too – 29 May “Mary’s Month!” – The Memorial of Blessed Joseph Gerard O.M.I. (1831-1914)
“Always believe, in the power of love and truth, the love of neighbour, which is rooted in the love of God and the truth, which sets people free.”
“Reject violence as a solution to any situation, no matter how unjust it may be.”
“Above all, trust in the God of justice, who created all things, who sees all human events, who holds in His hands, the destiny of every person and of every nation.”
“Let the eyes of our faith never wander from the Cross of Calvary.”
“May each of you, discover Mary, as your Mother.”
“May each of you, seek to be a son, a daughter, of Mary, who at the foot of the Cross, becomes in a particular way for us, the “Mother of Divine Grace”.”
May each of you, “make a place for her in your home” and even more so in your heart, every day and throughout your life, especially at those times, of trial and suffering.”
Maseru Race Course (Lesotho) Thursday, 15 September 1988
St Pope John Paul II (1920-2005)
Taken from the Beatification Homily of St Pope John Paul II (See today’s thought for the Day)
Our Morning Offering – 25 May “Mary’s Month” Friday of the Seventh Week in Ordinary Time, Year B
Mary, Virgin and Mother, shows us what love is and whence it draws its origin and its constantly renewed power. To her we entrust the Church and her mission in the service of love.
Pope Benedict XVI: Deus Caritas Est, 42
Holy Mary, Mother of God
By Pope Benedict XVI:
Deus Caritas Est, 42
Holy Mary, Mother of God,
you have given the world its true light,
Jesus, your Son – the Son of God.
You abandoned yourself completely
to God’s call and this became a wellspring
of the goodness which flows forth from Him.
Show us Jesus.
Lead us to Him.
Teach us to know and love Him,
so that we too, can become capable of true love
and be fountains of living water
in the midst of a thirsting world.
Quote of the Day – 24 May “Mary’s Month” – Feast of Our Lady, Help of Christians
“This motherhood of Mary in the order of grace, continues uninterruptedly, from the consent, which she loyally gave, at the Annunciation and which she sustained, without wavering beneath the Cross, until the eternal fulfilment of all the elect.
Taken up to heaven, she did not lay aside this saving office but by her manifold intercession, continues to bring us the gifts of eternal salvation. By her maternal charity, she cares for the brethren of her Son, who still journey on earth, surrounded by dangers and difficulties, until they are led into their blessed home.
Therefore the Blessed Virgin is invoked in the Church under the titles of Advocate, Helper, Benefactress and Mediatrix. This, however, is so understood, that it neither takes away anything from, nor adds anything to, the dignity and efficacy of Christ the one Mediator.”
Lumen Gentium, 62
Blessed Pope Paul VI (1897-1978)
Feast of Our Lady, Help of Christians – 24 May – Also known as Auxilium Christianorum.
The tradition of this advocation goes back to 1571, when the whole of Christendom was saved by Our Lady, Help of Christians when Catholics throughout Europe prayed the Rosary. The great battle of Lepanto occurred on 7 October 1571. For this reason, this date has been chosen as the feast of the Holy Rosary. In 1573 Pope Pius V instituted the feast in thanksgiving for the decisive victory of Christianity over Islamism.
Near the end of the 17th century, Emperor Leopold I of Austria took refuge in the Shrine of Mary, Help of Christians at Pasau, when 200,000 Ottoman Turks besieged the capital city of Vienna but a great victory occurred thanks to Our Lady, Help of Christians, on 8 September, Feast of Our Lady’s Birthday, plans were drawn for the battle. On 12 September, Feast of the Holy Name of Mary, Vienna was finally freed through the intercession of Mary, Help of Christians. All Europe had joined with the Emperor crying out “Mary, Help!” and praying the Holy rosary.
In 1809, Napoleon’s men entered the Vatican, arrested Pius VII and brought him in chains to Grenoble and eventually Fontainbleau. His imprisonment lasted five years. The Holy Father vowed to God that , if he were restored to the Roman See, he would institute a special feast in honour of Mary. Military reverses forced Napoleon to release the Pope and on May 24th 1814, Pius VII returned in triumph to Rome. Twelve months later, the Pope decreed that the feast of Our Lady, Help of Christians, be kept on 24 May.
St John Bosco (1815 – 1888) was a dynamic priest who founded the Salesian Order in the XIX century in Italy. His many prophetic dreams, beginning at age nine, guided his ministry and gave insights on future events.
On 14 May 1862, Don Bosco dreamed about the battles the Church would face in the latter days. In his dream, the Pope of those days anchors the ‘ship’ of the Church between two pillars, one with a statue of Our Lady ( the Auxilium Christianorum or ‘Help of Christians’) and the other with a large Eucharistic Host.
St John Bosco wrote about his congregation, the Salesians: “The principal objective is to promote veneration of the Blessed Sacrament and devotion to Mary, Help of Christians. This title seems to please the august Queen of Heaven very much.”
The Salesian Sisters of St John Bosco or Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians, are the sister order of the Salesians of Don Bosco.
St John Bosco, himself, on 9 June1868, dedicated to Our Lady Help of Christians, the mother church of his congregation at Turin (Italy). The Salesian Fathers and their Sisters have carried the devotion to their numerous establishments all over the world.
More info here: https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2017/05/24/saint-of-the-day-24-may-the-feast-of-mary-help-of-christians/
Our Lady, Help of Christians/Auxilium Christianorum
Our Lady of China: Our Lady of China is a title for the Virgin Mary in China who is believed to have appear at the small village of Donglu in 1900. In Chinese she is called Zhōnghuá Shèngmǔ. She is also known as Our Lady of Donglu.
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St Afra of Brescia
Bl Benedict of Cassino
St David of Scotland
Bl Diego Alonso
St Donatian of Nantes
St Gennadius of Astroga
St Hubert of Bretigny
Bl Isidore Ngei Ko Lat
St Joanna the Myrrhbearer
Bl John del Prado
Bl John of Montfort
Bl Juan of Huete
Bl Louis-Zéphirin Moreau
St Manahen
St Marciana of Galatia
Bl Mario Vergara
St Meletius the Soldier
Bl Nicetas of Pereslav
St Palladia
St Patrick of Bayeux
Bl Philip of Piacenza
St Rogatian of Nantes
St Sérvulo of Trieste
St Simeon Stylites the Younger
St Susanna
Bl Thomas Vasière
St Vincent of Lérins
St Vincent of Porto Romano
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Martyrs of Istria: A group of early martyrs in the Istria peninsula. We know little more than some names – Diocles, Felix, Servilius, Silvanus and Zoëllus.
Martyrs of Plovdiv: 38 Christians martyred together in the persecutions of Diocletian and Maximian. We don’t even known their names. They were beheaded in Plovdiv, Bulgaria.
Martyrs of the Small West Gate: Additional Memorial – 20 September as part of the Martyrs of Korea. A group of lay catechists and catechumens who were imprisoned and executed together for the crime of being Christian.
• Saint Agatha Kim A-Gi
• Saint Agatha Yi So-Sa
• Saint Anna Pak A-Gi
• Saint Augustine Yi Kwang-Hon
• Saint Barbara Han A-Gi
• Saint Damianus Nam Myong-Hyok
• Saint Lucia Pak Hui-Sun
• Saint Magdalena Kim Ob-I
• Saint Petrus Kwon Tug-In
They were beheaded on 24 May 1839 at the Small West Gate, Seoul, South Korea and were Canonised on 6 May 1984 by Pope John Paul II.
Marian thought for the Day – 21 May 2018 “Mary’s Month!” – The First Memorial of Mary, Mother of the Church
“Mary Mother of the Church, Mater Ecclesiae
our new Universal Memorial today!
Blessed Pope Paul VI explicitly proclaimed Mary Mother of the Church and asked that she be honoured and invoked with this title by all the Christian people.
The title “Mother of the Church” thus reflects the deep conviction of the Christian faithful, who see in Mary not only the mother of the person of Christ but also of the faithful. She who is recognised as mother of salvation, life and grace, mother of the saved and mother of the living, is rightly proclaimed Mother of the Church.
Pope Paul VI would have liked the Second Vatican Council itself to have proclaimed “Mary Mother of the Church, that is, of the whole People of God, of the faithful and their Pastors”. He did so himself in his speech at the end of the Council’s third session (21 November 1964), also asking that “henceforth the Blessed Virgin be honoured and invoked with this title by all the Christian people” (AAS 1964, 37).
In this way, my venerable Predecessor explicitly enunciated the doctrine contained in chapter eight of Lumen gentium, hoping that the title of Mary, Mother of the Church, would have an ever more important place in the liturgy and piety of the Christian people.” – St Pope John Paul II (1920-2005)
“We need to meditate frequently on the fact that the Church is a deep, great mystery, so that we never forget it. We cannot fully understand the Church on this earth. If men, using only their reason, were to analyse it, they would see only a group of people who abide by certain precepts and think in a similar way. But that would not be the Church.
In the Church we Catholics find our faith, our norms of conduct, our prayer, our sense of fraternity. Through it we are united with all our brothers and sisters who have already left this life and are being cleansed in Purgatory—the Church suffering—and with those who already enjoy the beatific vision and love forever the thrice holy God—the Church triumphant. The Church is in our midst and at the same time transcends history. It was born under the mantle of our Lady and continues to praise her on earth and in heaven as its Mother (“The Supernatural Aim of the Church,” 28 May 1972).
If we become identified with Mary and imitate her virtues, we will be able to bring Christ to life, through grace, in the souls of many who will in turn become identified with him through the action of the Holy Spirit. If we imitate Mary, we will share in some way in her spiritual motherhood. And all this silently, like Our Lady; without being noticed, almost without words, through the true and genuine witness of our lives as Christians, and the generosity of ceaselessly repeating her fiat, which we renew as an intimate link between ourselves and God.” – St Josemaria Escrivá (1902-1975) – Friends of God, 281-283
“….We have spoken about Mary, about Jesus. What about us? We who are the Church? What kind of love do we bring to others? Is it the love of Jesus that shares, that forgives, that accompanies, or is it a watered-down love, like wine so diluted that it seems like water? Is it a strong love, or a love so weak that it follows the emotions, that it seeks a return, an interested love? Another question: is self-interested love pleasing to Jesus? No, it is not because love should be freely given, like His is. What are the relationships like in our parishes, in our communities? Do we treat each other like brothers and sisters? Or do we judge one another, do we speak evil of one another, do we just tend our own vegetable patch? Or do we care for one another? These are the questions of charity!
And briefly, one last aspect: Mary as the model of union with Christ. The life of the Holy Virgin was the life of a woman of her people: Mary prayed, she worked, she went to the synagogue… But every action was carried out in perfect union with Jesus. This union finds its culmination on Calvary, here Mary is united to the Son in the martyrdom of her heart and in the offering of his life to the Father for the salvation of humanity. Our Lady shared in the pain of the Son and accepted with Him the will of the Father, in that obedience that bears fruit, that grants the true victory over evil and death.
The reality Mary teaches us, is very beautiful: to always be united with Jesus. We can ask ourselves: do we remember Jesus only when something goes wrong and we are in need, or is ours a constant relation, a deep friendship, even when it means following him on the way of the Cross?
Let us ask the Lord to grant us His grace, His strength, so that the model of Mary, Mother of the Church, may be reflected in our lives and in the life of every ecclesial community. So be it!”...Pope Francis 23 October 2013
Quote/s of the Day – 21 May 2018 “Mary’s Month!” – The First Memorial of Mary, Mother of the Church and the Memorial of St Eugene de Mazenod (1782-1861)
“…She is clearly the Mother of his members; that is, of ourselves, because she cooperated by her charity, so that faithful Christians, members of the Head, might be born in the Church. As for the body, she is the Mother of its Head… Mary gave birth to our Head; the Church gave birth to you. Indeed, the Church also, is both virgin and mother, mother, because of her womb of charity, virgin, because of the integrity of her faith and piety.”
St Augustine (354-430) Doctor of Grace
“This celebration will help us to remember. that growth in the Christian life, must be anchored to the Mystery of the Cross, to the oblation of Christ in the Eucharistic Banquet and to the Mother of the Redeemer and Mother of the Redeemed, the Virgin who makes her offering to God.”
“As a caring guide to the emerging Church, Mary had already begun her mission in the Upper Room, praying with the Apostles, while awaiting the coming of the Holy Spirit.”
Cardinal Robert Sarah
Congregation of Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, 11 February 2018, the memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Lourdes. DECREE ON THE CELEBRATION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY, MOTHER OF THE CHURCHIN THE GENERAL ROMAN CALENDAR
“We glorify God in the masterpiece of His power and love… it is the Son whom we honour in the person of His Mother.”
“To love the Church is to love Jesus Christ and vice versa.”
“Practice well among yourselves: charity, charity, charity and outside, zeal for the salvation of souls”
Our Morning Offering – 21 May 2018 “Mary’s Month!” – The First Memorial of Mary, Mother of the Church
Prayer to Mary, Mother of the Church and Mother of our Faith
By our Holy Father, Pope Francis
Mother, help our faith! Open our ears to hear God’s word and to recognise His voice and call. Awaken in us a desire, to follow in His footsteps, to go forth from our own land and to receive His promise. Help us to be touched by His love, that we may touch Him in faith. Help us to entrust ourselves fully to Him and to believe in His love, especially at times of trial, beneath the shadow of the cross, when our faith is called to mature. Sow in our faith the joy of the Risen One. Remind us that those who believe are never alone. Teach us to see all things with the eyes of Jesus, that He may be light for our path. And may this light of faith, always increase in us, until the dawn of that undying day, which is Christ Himself, your Son, our Lord! Amen
Prayer to Mary at the conclusion of the Encyclical Lumen Fidei (29 June 2013) Image of Mary – Our Lady of the Column in St Peter’s Basilica
Martyrs of the Mexican Revolution (Optional Memorial): The 1917 Mexican constitution was pointedly anti-clerical and anti-Church, and its adoption instituted years of violent religious persecution including expulsion of foreign priests, closing of parochial schools, and the murders of several priests and lay leaders who work to minister to the faithful and support religious freedom. 25 of them who died at different times and places but all as a result of this persecution were celebrated together. They each have separate memorials but are also remembered as a group.
• Saint Agustin Caloca Cortes
• Saint Atilano Cruz Alvarado
• Saint Cristobal Magallanes Jara
• Saint David Galván-Bermúdez
• Saint David Roldán-Lara
• Saint David Uribe-Velasco
• Saint Jenaro Sánchez DelGadillo
• Saint Jesús Méndez-Montoya
• Saint Jose Isabel Flores Varela
• Saint José María Robles Hurtado
• Saint Julio álvarez Mendoza
• Saint Justino Orona Madrigal
• Saint Luis Batiz Sainz
• Saint Manuel Moralez
• Saint Margarito Flores-García
• Saint Mateo Correa-Magallanes
• Saint Miguel de la Mora
• Saint Pedro de Jesús Maldonado-Lucero
• Saint Pedro Esqueda Ramírez
• Saint Rodrigo Aguilar Alemán
• Saint Roman Adame Rosales
• Saint Sabas Reyes Salazar
• Saint Salvador Lara Puente
• Saint Toribio Romo González
• Saint Tranquilino Ubiarco Robles
Canonised: 21 May 2000 by Pope John Paul II
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St Adalric of Bèze
Bl Adilio Daronch
St Ageranus of Bèze
St Ansuinus of Bèze
St Antiochus of Caesarea Philippi
St Bairfhion of Killbarron
St Berard of Bèze
St Collen of Denbighshire
St Constantine the Great
St Donatus of Caesarea
St Eugene de Mazenod O.M.I. (1782-1861)
St Eutychius of Mauretania
Bl Franz Jägerstätter
St Genesius of Bèze
St Godric of Finchale
Bl Hemming of Åbo
St Hospitius of Cap-Saint-Hospice
Bl Hyacinth-Marie Cormier
St Isberga of Aire
Bl Jean Mopinot
Bl Lucio del Rio
St Mancio of Évora
Bl Manuel Gómez González
St Nicostratus of Caesarea Philippi
Bl Pietro Parenzo
St Polieuctus of Caesarea
St Polius of Mauretania
St Restituta of Corsica
St Rodron of Bèze
St Secundinus of Cordova
St Secundus of Alexandria
St Serapion the Sindonite
St Sifrard of Bèze
Bl Silao
St Synesius
St Theobald of Vienne
St Theopompus
St Timothy of Mauretania
St Valens of Auxerre
St Vales
St Victorius of Caesarea
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Martyrs of Egypt: Large number of bishops, priests, deacons and lay people banished when the Arian heretics seized the diocese of Alexandria, Egypt in 357 and drove out Saint Athanasius and other orthodox Christians. Many were old, many infirm and many, many died of abuse and privations while on the road and in the wilderness. Very few survived to return to their homes in 361 when Julian the Apostate recalled all Christians and then many of those later died in the persecutions of Julian.
Martyrs of Pentecost in Alexandria: An unspecified number of Christian clerics and lay people who, on Pentecost in 338, were rounded up by order of the Arian bishop and emperor Constantius and were either killed, or exiled, for refusing to accept Arian teachings. 339 in Alexandria, Egypt.
Marian Thought for the Day – 17 May “Mary’s Month” – Thursday of the Seventh Week of Eastertide
Mary is the “Mater Salvatoris,” the Mother of the Saviour
Blessed John Henry Newman (1801-1890)
HERE again, as in our reflections of yesterday, we must understand what is meant, by calling our Lord a Saviour, in order to understand why it is used, to form one of the titles given to Mary in her Litany.
The special name by which our Lord was known before His coming was, as we found yesterday, that of Messias, or Christ. Thus He was known to the Jews. But when He actually showed Himself on earth, He was known by three new titles, the Son of God, the Son of Man and the Saviour; the first expressive of His Divine Nature, the second of His Human, the third of His Personal Office. Thus the Angel who appeared to Mary, called Him the Son of God; the angel who appeared to Joseph called Him Jesus, which means in English, Saviour; and so the Angels, too, called Him a Saviour when they appeared to the shepherds. But He Himself specially calls Himself the Son of Man.
Not Angels only, call Him Saviour but those two greatest of the Apostles, St Peter and St Paul, in their first preachings. St Peter says He is “a Prince and a Saviour” and St Paul says, “a Saviour, Jesus.” And both Angels and Apostles tell us why He is so called—because He has rescued us from the power of the evil spirit and from the guilt and misery of our sins. Thus the Angel says to Joseph, “Thou shalt call His name Jesus, for He shall save His people from their sins;” and St Peter, “God has exalted Him to be Prince and Saviour, to give repentance to Israel and remission of sins.” And He says Himself, “The Son of Man is come to seek and to save that which is lost.”
Now let us consider how this affects our thoughts of Mary. To rescue slaves from the power of the Enemy implies a conflict. Our Lord, because He was a Saviour, was a warrior. He could not deliver the captives without a fight, nor without personal suffering. Now, who are they who especially hate wars? A heathen poet answers. “Wars,” he says, “are hated by Mothers.” Mothers are just those who especially suffer in a war. They may glory in the honour gained by their children but still such glorying, does not wipe out, one particle of the long pain, the anxiety, the suspense, the desolation and the anguish which the mother of a soldier feels. So it was with Mary.
For thirty years she was blessed with the continual presence of her Son—nay, she had Him in subjection. But the time came when that war called for Him, for which He had come upon earth. Certainly He came, not simply to be the Son of Mary but to be the Saviour of Man and, therefore, at length He parted from her. She knew then, what it was to be the mother of a soldier. He left her side; she saw Him no longer, she tried in vain to get near Him. He had for years lived in her embrace and after that, at least in her dwelling—but now, in His own words, “The Son of Man had not where to lay His head.”
And then, when years had run out, she heard of His arrest, His mock trial and His passion. At last she got near Him—when and where?—on the way to Calvary and when He had been lifted upon the Cross. And at length she held Him again in her arms, yes—when He was dead. True, He rose from the dead but still she did not thereby gain Him, for He ascended on high and she did not at once follow Him. No, she remained on earth many years—in the care, indeed, of His dearest Apostle, St John. But what was even the holiest of men, compared with her own Son and Him the Son of God?
O Holy Mary, Mother of our Saviour, in this meditation we have now suddenly passed from the Joyful Mysteries to the Sorrowful, from Gabriel’s Annunciation to thee, to the Seven Dolours. That, then, will be the next series of Meditations which we make about thee.
Marian Thought for the Day – 16 May “Mary’s Month!” – Wednesday of the Seventh Week of Eastertide and the Memorial of St Simon Stock (1165-1265)
The brown Scapular of the Carmelite Order has gained considerable popularity and use among those devoted to the Blessed Mother. The following prayer, addressed to Our Lady of Mount Carmel, prays for her continued protection and grace for those who wear the scapular:
Prayer to Our Lady of Mount Carmel
O all-blessed, immaculate Virgin,
ornament and glory of Mount Carmel,
you who looks, with most gracious countenance,
on those who have been clothed,
with your venerable livery,
look kindly also on me
and take me under the mantle
of your maternal protection.
Strengthen my weakness with your might;
enlighten the darkness of my heart,
with your wisdom;
increase in me,
the virtues of faith, hope and charity.
So adorn my soul with graces
and virtue of our God,
by your prayers,
that it may always be dear
to your divine Son
and to you.
Assist me during life,
comfort me in death
with your most sweet presence
and present me as your child
and faithful servant,
to the most Holy Trinity,
that I may be enabled to praise
and extol you in heaven forever.
Amen
In 1322, Pope John XXII issued a document known as a Papal Bull in which he included a promise from Our Lady of Mount Carmel. In his document, the Pope revealed that he had received an apparition of Our Blessed Mother, during which she made a promise to all mankind.
Her “Sabbatine Privilege” was as follows:
“on the First Saturday after the death of one of the faithful, Our Blessed Mother would free from Purgatory her Scapular children who have fulfilled certain conditions. She stated to Pope John XXII: “I, the Mother of Graces, shall descend on the Saturday after their death, and as many as I find in Purgatory I shall free.”
The Church has since formalised the Sabbatine Privilege, based on this revelation. Containing three conditions, those who follow and practice true devotion, will be released from Purgatory by Our Lady’s intercession on the Saturday after their death. As set forth by the Church, the three conditions include:
1)Wear the brown scapular devoutly, once you’ve been enrolled in the Scapular Confraternity of the Blessed Virgin of Mount Carmel;
2) Observe chastity according to your state in life;
3) Recite daily the Little Office of the Blessed Virgin Mary. (Given the length of this beautiful prayer, with permission of a priest you can substitute five decades of the rosary, abstinence from meat on Wednesdays and Saturdays or another approved good work).
His Holiness, Pope Pius XII, wrote concerning the Sabbatine Privilege,“Certainly, this most gentle Mother will not delay to open as soon as possible, through Her intercession with God, the gates of Heaven for children expiating their faults in Purgatory.”
Once one has been enrolled in the Scapular Confraternity of the Blessed Virgin of Mount Carmel, one shares in the daily prayers and other spiritual benefits of the Carmelite Order. Our Lady of Mount Carmel’s scapular promise of salvation to Saint Simon Stock and the Carmelites applies to the enrollee as well! http://ocarm.org/en/content/ocarm/confraternities
The short form of the investiture is as follows:
Receive this Scapular, a sign of your special relationship with Mary, the Mother of Jesus, whom you pledge to imitate. May it be a reminder to you of your dignity as a Christian, in serving others and imitating Mary. Wear it as a sign of her protection and of belonging to the Family of Carmel, voluntarily doing the will of God and devoting yourself to building a world true to His plan of community, justice and peace.
Many popes and other religious figures over the centuries have extolled the virtues of the brown scapular devotion. Pope Pius XII went so far as to say: “The Scapular is a practice of piety which by its very simplicity is suited to everyone, and has spread widely among the faithful of Christ to their spiritual profit.”More recently, Pope Paul VI said: “Let the faithful hold in high esteem the practices and devotions to the Blessed Virgin … the Rosary and the Scapular of Carmel.”Still, they caution that, although our Lady of Mount Carmel promised that the scapular would protect us from eternal fire, wearing it in itself doesn’t guarantee our salvation.
The scapular is not to be worn as a substitute for leading a devout life of love and obedience to our Lord. The Most Reveren. Kilian Lynch, former prior general of the Carmelite Order, warned that the scapular was not “endowed with some kind of supernatural power which will save us no matter what we do or how much we sin.”He said, “Fidelity to the commandments is required by those seeking ‘the special love and protection of Our Lady.”
The immeasurable benefits of the Scapular result from the fact that the wearing of “the armour of Mary” is not merely an external act of devotion– it is a sign of our internal consecration to the Immaculate Virgin. The scapular recommends us to her endless grace and generosity. At Fatima in 1917, the Mother of God encouraged all people to consecrate themselves to Her Immaculate Heart. And in the final Fatima vision on 13 October, the Blessed Virgin appeared as Our Lady of Mount Carmel, wearing the robes of the Carmelite Order, holding aloft the Brown Scapular. On that occasion, Our Blessed Mother reminded us that the devoted living of the Brown Scapular consecration, paired with daily prayer of the Holy Rosary, is a necessary part of the amendment of life– the random of a sinful world– for which she so earnestly pleaded.
Pope Pius XII stressed this important truth: “May the Scapular be a sign to them (all who wear it) of their consecration to the Most Pure Heart of the Immaculate Virgin.” In wearing the brown scapular devoutly, in living in love and obedience to God, we join our hearts to Mary’s and thus, to her divine Son’s Sacred Heart as well!
Father, You called St Simon Stock to serve You in the brotherhood of Our Lady of Mount Carmel. Through his prayers, help us like him, to live in Your presence and to work for man’s salvation. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, Who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen
Our Morning Offering – 16 May “Mary’s Month!” – Wednesday of the Seventh Week of Eastertide and the memorial of St Simon Stock (1165-1265)
Carmel’s Flower By St Simon Stock (1165-1265)
Carmel’s Flower,
Vine ever blossoming,
Heaven’s splendour!
Virgin who bore a child.
No one is like thee.
Mother gentle and kind.
Yet never touched by man!
To Carmelites give thou the privilege.
Help us Star of the Sea.
Saint of the Day – 16 May – St Simon Stock (1165-1265) Religious Monk, Visionary, Mystic, Marian devotee, early prior general of the Carmelite religious order. Born c 1165 in Aylesford, County Kent, England – died on 16 May 1265 in the Carmelite monastery at Bordeaux, France of natural causes while on a visit. Patronage – Bordeaux, France.
Simon was born in Aylesford, England, to one of the most well-known and respected Christian families in the County of Kent. While still an infant, he was chosen by the Blessed Mother for her own, with his parents and others hearing him recite the Angelic Salutation of the Archangel Gabriel, long before he had learned to speak. Prodigious as a child, he learned and memorised the Little Office of the Blessed Virgin before he was able to read, reciting it on a daily basis. He was observed to read the Holy Scripture, kneeling in his room, by the age of six.
At the age of twelve, Simon left home, living as a hermit in the hollowed trunk of a large oak tree, earning him the name Simon “Stock.” There he triumphed over the demon, as he would later tell his religious, only by the assistance of the Most Holy Virgin. While living as a hermit, he drank only water and ate only herbs, roots and wild apples. Eventually, after eight years of solitude, Simon felt called back to communion with others and joined the Carmelite Order. He finished his studies at Oxford and later (in 1215) was appointed Vicar General of the Order.
Saint Simon worked tirelessly to spread the Carmelite Order throughout Europe, founding many communities in university towns such as Cambridge, Oxford, Paris and Bologna. He was responsible for the revision of the Rules of the Order, leading the community from lives as hermits to those of mendicant friars. Known for his deep devotion to Our Blessed mother, as well as for the spiritual gifts of miracles and prophecy, Simon was elected as the sixth Superior General of the Carmelites at age 82. He continued to govern the order for twenty years, demonstrating holiness, vision and prudence.
During his tenure as Superior General, Simon was graced with a visitation from the Blessed Mother, to whom he was so devoted. Radiantly surrounded by a multitude of Angels, Our Lady of Mount Carmel appeared to him as he knelt in prayer at Aylesford, England. Presenting to him the Carmelite Brown Scapular, she made Her Promise of unparalleled generosity to him, his spiritual children and to all those who wished to consecrate themselves to her by this special sign: Her words were:
“Receive, my beloved son, this scapular of your Order. It is the special sign of my favour, which I have obtained for you and for your children of Mount Carmel. He who dies clothed with this habit shall be preserved from eternal fire. It is the badge of salvation, a shield in time of danger and a pledge of special peace and protection.”
The scapular (from the Latin, scapular, meaning “shoulder blade”) consists of two pieces of cloth, one worn on the chest and the other on the back, which were connected by straps or strings passing over the shoulders. In certain Orders, monks and nuns wear scapulars that reach from the shoulders almost to the ground as outer garments. Lay persons usually wear scapulars underneath their clothing, consisting of two pieces of material only a few inches square. Although the scapular may be worn by any Catholic, even an infant, proper investiture must be done by a priest. Subsequently, the scapular must be worn in the proper manner, the individual forfeiting its holy benefits if neglectful or careless.
Saint Simon Stock died on 16 May 1265, at the age of 100 and was buried in the cathedral of Bordeaux, where he was visiting at the time of his death. The Saint’s bones are still preserved in a cathedral in Bordeaux; a tibia was brought to England in the 1860s for the Carmelite church in Kensington, a part of the skull was enshrined at Aylesford in 1950. St Simon was never formally Canonised but he has been venerated by the Carmelites since at least 1564 and the Vatican has approved the Carmelite celebration of his feast.
Pietro Novelli, Our Lady of Mount Carmel and Carmelite Saints (Simon Stock (standing), Angelus of Jerusalem (kneeling), Mary Magdalene de’Pazzi, Teresa of Avila), 1641 (Museo Diocesano, Palermo.)
Devotion to the Brown Scapular remains widespread and recommended by the Catholic Church. The Carmelites continue to find meaning in the traditional story and iconography of Saint Simon Stock receiving the scapular, particularly as reflecting their filial relationship with Mary. When St Pope John Paul II addressed the Carmelite family in 2001 on the occasion of the 750th anniversary of the bestowal of the Scapular, he said:
“Over time, this rich Marian heritage of Carmel, has become, through the spread of the Holy Scapular devotion, a treasure for the whole Church. By its simplicity, its anthropological value and its relationship to Mary’s role, in regard to the Church and humanity, this devotion was so deeply and widely accepted, by the People of God, that it came to be expressed, in the memorial of 16 July on the liturgical calendar, of the universal Church, “the Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel.”
One Minute Reflection – 14 May – Mary’s Month!” – Monday of the Seventh Week of Eastertide
After three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions...Luke 2:46
REFLECTION – “MARY: LOSING AND FINDING THE CHILD JESUS – “The Mother of God, who looked for her Son so anxiously when he was lost (through no fault of her own) and experienced such great joy in finding him, will help us retrace our steps and put right, whatever may be necessary when, because of our carelessness or our sins, we have been unable to recognise Christ. With her help, we will know the happiness of holding Him in our arms once more and telling Him we will never lose Him again.”…St Josemaría Escrivá (1902-1975) “Mother of God and Our Mother,” Friends of God, 278 Let us offer to our Mother today: A good, sincere, sorrowful confession of our sins and failures, in the sacrament of Penance.
PRAYER – Lord God, as You brought joy to the world, through the resurrection of Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, grant that through His Virgin Mother, we may constantly seek and recognise our Lord and Saviour and turn to Him in complete trust and love. Mary, Mother of our Lord, bring your holy child to us. Through Jesus Christ with You and the Holy Spirit, one God forever, amen.
Feast of Our Lady of the Most Blessed Sacrament – 13 May
History of the Title of Our Lady of the Most Blessed Sacrament
St Peter Julian Eymard (1811-1868), of France, had a strong devotion to the Holy Eucharist and Our Lady and began his priestly life in the Society of Mary. “But his heart burned with the desire to establish perpetual adoration of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament exposed upon a royal throne and surrounded by a large court of adorers.” On 2 February 1851, at the shrine of Fourvière, the most Blessed Virgin had made him understand its necessity. ‘All the mysteries of my Son have a religious order of men to honour them. The Eucharist alone has none . . . .’
After several years of prudent reflection and interior combat, encouraged by Pope Pius IX, he founded the Congregation of the Most Blessed Sacrament at Paris on 13 May 1856
The title of Our Lady of the Blessed Sacrament was first given to Mary by St Peter Julian Eymard in May 1868, while speaking to his novices. A few years later he described what her statue should look like: “The Blessed Virgin holds the Infant in her arms and He holds a chalice in one hand and a Host in the other.”He exhorted them to invoke Mary: “Our Lady of the Blessed Sacrament, pray for us who have recourse to thee!”
Later, Pius IX enriched the invocation with indulgences. Twice, St Pius X did the same. On 30 December 1905, he granted a 300 days indulgence to the faithful who pray: “Our Lady of the Most Blessed Sacrament, pray for us.” “This title, Our Lady of the Blessed Sacrament, is perhaps the most meaningful of all,” said St. Pius X.
In 1921 the Sacred Congregation of Rite authorised the Blessed Sacrament Congregations to celebrate each year, on 13 May, a “solemn commemoration of the Blessed Virgin,” with the intention of honouring Mary under the title of “Our Lady of the Most Blessed Sacrament.” And of course this Feast is still celebrated today with great joy by all the spiritual sons and daughters of St Peter Julian Eymard.
St Pope John XXIII codified the title of Our Lady of the Most Blessed Sacrament when he declared St Peter Julian Eymard a saint on 9 December 1962, at the end of the last session of the Second Vatican Council.
Our Lady of Fatima 101st Anniversary of the First Apparition
Our Lady of Help: Devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary under this title began in Palermo, Sicily in the 14th century, and has since spread throughout the Augustinians. It began when Father Nicola Bruno, who suffered from severe and long-term pains in his side, prayed to Our Lady for healing while meditating on a painting of Mary in which she used a stick or club to chase away the dragon and protect the infant Jesus; the artist was making reference to passages in Genesis and Revelations that referred to the eternal enmity between The Woman and the serpent. That night, Father Nicola received a vision of Mary and was healed. The painting received the title “Our Lady of Help” and the devotion began. Since 1804 the celebration has had its own liturgy.
Our Lady of the Most Blessed Sacrament: The title of Our Lady of the Blessed Sacrament was first given to Mary by St Peter Julian Eymard in May 1868, while speaking to his novices. A few years later he described what her statue should look like: “The Blessed Virgin holds the Infant in her arms and He holds a chalice in one hand and a Host in the other.” He exhorted them to invoke Mary: “Our Lady of the Blessed Sacrament, pray for us who have recourse to thee!”
Dedication of Saint Mary of the Martyrs: Commemorates and celebrates the dedication of Minor Basilica of Saint Mary of the Martyrs, formerly a temple of all the pagan Roman gods called the Pantheon, in Rome, Italy by Pope Boniface IV in 609.
St Abban of Abingdon
St Agnes of Poitiers
St André-Hubert Fournet
St Anno of Verona
St Argentea of Cordoba
St Euthymius the Illuminator
Bl Fortis Gabrielli
Bl Gerard of Villamagna
Bl Gemma of Goriano
St Glyceria of Trajanopolis
St John the Silent
Bl Julian of Norwich
St Lucius of Constantinople
St Mael of Bardsey
Bl Magdalen Albrizzi
St Merewenna of Rumsey
St Mucius of Byzantium
St Natalis of Milan
St Onesimus of Soissons
St Servatus of Tongres
St Valerian of Auxerre
—
Martyrs of Alexandria: A group of Catholic Christians martyred in the church of Theonas, Alexandria, Egypt by order of the Arian Emperor Valens. Their names have not come down to us. 372 in Alexandria, Egypt.
One Minute Marian Reflection 11 May – “Mary’s Month!” – Friday of the Sixth Week of Eastertide
Having listened to what the king had to say, they set out. And suddenly the star they had seen rising went forward and halted over the place where the child was…Matthew 2:9
REFLECTION – “MARY: WELCOMING THE MAGI: “‘Going into the house, they saw the child with Mary, his mother.’ Our Lady is always near her Son. The Magi are not received by a king on a high throne but by a child in the arms of His mother. Let us ask the Mother of God, who is our mother, to prepare for us the way that leads to the fullness of love …. Her sweet heart knows the surest path for finding Christ.” …St Josemaria Escrivá (1902-1975) “The Epiphany of Our Lord,” Christ is Passing By, 38. Let us offer to our Mother today: A visit to a poor person to communicate our Lady‘s concern for that person.
PRAYER – Heavenly Father, Your plans are always the Truth. So in Your wisdom, You gave us Mary as our Mother, to help us home to You. Grant that by her prayers we finally arrive with You in Your eternal Kingdom. Through Jesus our Lord, in union with the Holy Spirit, one God forever, amen.
Our Morning Offering – 11 May “Mary’s Month” – Friday of the Sixth Week of Eastertide
Alma Redemptoris Mater Loving mother of the Redeemer Prayers of the Church from the Breviary
Loving mother of the Redeemer,
gate of heaven, star of the sea,
assist your people who have fallen,
yet strive to rise again.
To the wonderment of nature
you bore your Creator,
Yet remained a virgin after as before.
You who received Gabriel’s joyful greeting,
have pity on us poor sinners.
Alma Redemptoris Mater,
quae pervia caeli porta manes,
et stella maris, succurre cadenti,
surgere qui curat, populo:
tu quae genuisti, natura mirante,
tuum sanctum Genitorem,
Virgo prius ac posterius,
Gabrielis ab ore,
sumens illud Ave, peccatorum miserere.
This is one of four Marian antiphons, with following versicles and prayers, traditionally said or sung after night prayer, immediately before going to sleep. It is said from the beginning of Advent (from night before the fourth Sunday before Christmas) through 1 February.
AnaStpaul 
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