Category: MARIAN REFLECTIONS

Posted in JESUIT SJ, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, NOVENAS, PRAYERS to the SAINTS

Novena to St Anne – Day Two – 18 July

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Novena to St Anne – Day Two – 18 July

Reflections by:
By Fr Daniel A Lord, SJ

SECOND DAY:

It was in the peaceful little house of Anne and Joachim that Mary, the Mother of God, spent her girlhood.   There Mary knew the example of a woman who lived the simple ways of wife and mother.

Unknown, save in the limited circle of Nazareth, Anne prepared the meals for her family, made and mended their plain garments and filled the house with the perfume of her devoted service.   She was a model of a wife’s diligence and a mother’s solicitude.

The young Mary watched this model of the simple domestic virtues.   This obedient daughter saw perfection in her mother, the perfection of small tasks done out of love for God and devotion to family.

Each day had a time for prayer.

Each day was filled with deeds of neighbourliness and acts of charity quietly and happily performed.

Mary saw in her mother how a woman can be simple yet great, how the deeds that God asks of us – however unnoticed or unimportant, these maybe – are, the deeds that win His gratitude and make us saints before Him and benefactors before the world.

To this model of the simple domestic virtues we pray:

Daily Prayer:

O glorious St Anne,
you are filled with compassion
for those who invoke you
and with love for those who suffer!
Heavily burdened with the weight of my troubles,
I cast myself at your feet and humbly beg of you
to take the present intention
which I recommend to you in your special care.
…………………(make your intention)
Please recommend it to your daughter,
the Blessed Virgin Mary
and place it before the throne of Jesus,
so that He may bring it to a happy issue.
Continue to intercede for me until my request is granted.
But, above all, obtain for me the grace, one day,
to see my God face to face
and with you and Mary and all the saints,
to praise and bless Him for all eternity.
Amen

Our Father . . . Hail Mary . . . Glory Be . . .

O Jesus, Holy Mary, St Anne, help me now and at the hour of my death.

Good St Anne, intercede for me.

SECOND DAY:

From the depths of my heart, good St Anne,
I offer you my homage this day
and ask you to shelter me under the mantle of your motherly care.
You know, good mother, how much I love you,
how gladly I serve you,
how happy I am to praise you,
how eager I am to call on you in time of distress.
Good St Anne,
be pleased to extend your helping hand in all my wants.
Listen to my prayers, for I place my trust in your gracious bounty.
Make all my thoughts and desires worthy and righteous.
Jesus my God, I thank You for all the graces
which in Your infinite goodness, You have lavished upon St Anne,
for having chosen her, among all women,
to be Your grandmother on earth
and exalted her in heaven with such great and miraculous powers.
In the name of her merits,
I humbly recommend myself to Your infinite mercy.
AmenDAY TWO ST ANNE NOVENA 18 july 2019.jpg

Posted in CATHOLIC-PRAYERS OF THE CHURCH, LITANIES, MARIAN DEVOTIONS, MARIAN PRAYERS, MARIAN QUOTES, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, MARIAN TITLES, PRACTISING CATHOLIC, PRAYERS of the CHURCH, PRAYERS to the SAINTS, The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

Thought for the Day – 16 July – The Litany to Our Lady of Mount Carmel

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Thought for the Day – 16 July – The Memorial of Our Lady of Mount Carmel

The Carmelites were known from early on as “Brothers of Our Lady of Mount Carmel.” The title suggests that they saw Mary, not only as “mother” but also as “sister.” The word sister, is a reminder, that Mary is very close to us.   She is the daughter of God and, therefore, can help us be authentic daughters and sons of God.   She also can help us grow in appreciation of being sisters and brothers to one another.   She leads us to a new realisation, that all human beings, belong to the family of God.   When such a conviction grows, there is hope, that the human race can find its way to peace.

Let us Pray:

Litany of Intercession to Our Lady of Mount Carmel

Lord, have mercy. Christ, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Christ, hear us. Christ, graciously hear us.
God the Father of Heaven, have mercy on us.
God the Son, Redeemer of the world,
God the Holy Spirit,
Holy Trinity, One God, have mercy on us.
Holy Mary, pray for us sinners.
Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Queen of heaven,
Our Lady of Mount Carmel, vanquisher of Satan,
Our Lady of Mount Carmel, most dutiful Daughter,
Our Lady of Mount Carmel, most pure Virgin,
Our Lady of Mount Carmel, most devoted Spouse,
Our Lady of Mount Carmel, most tender Mother,
Our Lady of Mount Carmel, perfect model of virtue,
Our Lady of Mount Carmel, sure anchor of hope,
Our Lady of Mount Carmel, refuge in affliction,
Our Lady of Mount Carmel, dispenser of God’s gifts,
Our Lady of Mount Carmel, tower of strength against our foes,
Our Lady of Mount Carmel, our aid in danger,
Our Lady of Mount Carmel, road leading to Jesus,
Our Lady of Mount Carmel, our light in darkness,
Our Lady of Mount Carmel, our consolation at the hour of death,
Our Lady of Mount Carmel, advocate of the most abandoned sinners, pray for us sinners.
For those hardened in vice, with confidence we come to thee, O Lady of Mount Carmel.
For those who grieve thy Son,
For those who neglect to pray,
For those who are in their agony,
For those who delay their conversion,
For those suffering in Purgatory,
For those who know thee not, with confidence we come to thee, O Lady of Mount Carmel.
Lamb of God, Who takes away the sins of the world, spare us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, Who takes away the sins of the world, graciously hear us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, Who takes away the sins of the world, have mercy on us.
Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Hope of the Despairing, intercede for us with thy Divine Son.
Let us pray.
Our Lady of Mount Carmel, glorious Queen of Angels, channel of God’s tenderest mercy to man, refuge and advocate of sinners, with confidence I prostrate myself before thee, beseeching thee to obtain for me

…………………………………….[ insert your request here].

In return, I solemnly promise, to have recourse to thee in all my trials, sufferings and temptations and I shall do all in my power to induce others to love and reverence thee and to invoke thee in all their needs.   I thank thee for the numberless blessings which I have received from thy mercy and powerful intercession.   Continue to be my shield in danger, my guide in life and my consolation at the hour of death.
Amen

Our Lady of Mount Carmel, O Clement, O Loving, O Sweet Virgin Mary,
Pray for Us, O Holy Mother of God!our lady of mount carmel - pray for us 16 july 2019.jpg

Posted in MARIAN QUOTES, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, MARIAN Saturdays, The ANNUNCIATION, The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

Thought for the Day – 6 July – Pope Francis on Mary’s “Yes”

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Thought for the Day – 6 July – Saturday of the Thirteenth week in Ordinary Time, Year C, – Marian Saturdays

Pope Francis on Mary’s “Yes”

Mary first conceived Jesus in faith and then in the flesh, when she said “yes” to the message God gave her through the angel.   What does this mean?   It means that God did not want to become man by bypassing our freedom, He wanted to pass through Mary’s free assent, through her “yes.”   He asked her:  “Are you prepared to do this?”   And she replied: “Yes.”

But what took place most singularly in the Virgin Mary also takes place within us, spiritually, when we receive the word of God with a good and sincere heart and put it into practice.   It is as if God takes flesh within us, He comes to dwell in us, for He dwells in all who love Him and keep His word.   It is not easy to understand this but really, it is easy to feel it in our heart….Pope Francis, 12 October 2013

HANDMAID OF THE LORD
The Gospel of Saint Luke presents us with Mary, a girl from Nazareth, a small town in Galilee, in the outskirts of the Roman Empire and on the outskirts of Israel as well.   A village.   Yet the Lord’s gaze rested on her, on this little girl from that distant village, on the one he had chosen to be the Mother of His Son.

In view of this motherhood, Mary was preserved from original sin, from that fracture in communion with God, with others and with creation, which deeply wounds every human being.   But this fracture was healed in advance in the Mother of the One who came to free us from the slavery of sin.   The Immaculata was written in God’s design, she is the fruit of God’s love that saves the world.

And Our Lady never distanced herself from that love, throughout her life her whole being is a “yes” to that love, it is the “yes” to God.   But that didn’t make life easy for her! When the angel calls her “full of grace” (Lk 1:28), she is “greatly troubled” for in her humility she feels she is nothing before God.

The angel consoles her:  “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favour with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus” (v. 30,31).   This announcement troubles her even more because she was not yet married to Joseph but the angel adds: “The Holy Spirit will come upon you…therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God” (v. 35). Mary listens, interiorly obeys, and responds: “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be done to me according to your word” (v.38)…. Pope Francis, 8 December 2013mary mother of jesus you who accepted - pope francis 6 july 2019.jpg

WE PRAY WITH POPE FRANCIS
Mary, Mother of Jesus,
you who accepted,
teach us how to accept,
you who adored,
teach us how to adore,
you who followed,
teach us how to follow.
Amen

Mary, Mother of the “Yes”, Pray for Us!mary mother of the yes pray for us 6 july 2019.jpg

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, MARIAN PRAYERS, MARIAN QUOTES, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, MARIAN TITLES, MORNING Prayers, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, QUOTES of the SAINTS, SAINT of the DAY, The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

Thought for the Day – 27 June – Hail, O Mary, Mother of God

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Thought for the Day – 27 June – Thursday of the Twelfth week in Ordinary Time, Year C and The Memorial of St Cyril of Alexandria (376-444) Father and Doctor

Defender of the divine Motherhood of the Virgin Mary

Saint Cyril of Alexandria (376-444)
Bishop, Father and Doctor

An excerpt from his Letter 1

That anyone could doubt the right of the holy Virgin to be called the mother of God fills me with astonishment.   Surely she must be the Mother of God if our Lord Jesus Christ is God and she gave birth to him! Our Lord’s disciples may not have used those exact words but they delivered to us the belief those words enshrine and this has also been taught us, by the holy fathers.

In the third book of his work on the holy and consubstantial Trinity, our father Athanasius, of glorious memory, several times refers to the holy Virgin as “Mother of God.”   I cannot resist quoting his own words:  “As I have often told you, the distinctive mark of holy Scripture is that it was written to make a twofold declaration concerning our Saviour – namely, that He is and has always been God, since He is the Word, Radiance and Wisdom of the Fatherand that for our sake,, in these latter days, He took flesh from the Virgin Mary, Mother of God and became man.”

Again further on he says:  “There have been many holy men, free from all sin. Jeremiah was sanctified in his mother’s womb and John while still in the womb leaped for joy at the voice of Mary, the Mother of God.”   Athanasius is a man we can trust, one who deserves our complete confidence, for he taught nothing contrary to the sacred books.

The divinely inspired Scriptures affirm that the Word of God was made flesh, that is to say, He was united to a human body endowed with a rational soul.   He undertook to help the descendants of Abraham, fashioning a body for Himself from a woman and sharing our flesh and blood, to enable us to see in Him not only God but also, by reason of this union, a man like ourselves.

It is held, therefore, that there are in Emmanuel two entities, divinity and humanity.   Yet our Lord Jesus Christ is nonetheless one, the one true Son, both God and man, not a deified man on the same footing as those who share the divine nature by grace but true God, who for our sake, appeared in human form.   We are assured of this by Saint Paul’s declaration:   When the fullness of time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law and to enable us to be adopted as sons.

Hail, O Mary, Mother of God
By St Cyril of Alexandria (376-444) Father & Doctor of the Church

Hail, Mother and Virgin,
eternal Temple of the Godhead,
Venerable Treasure of Creation,
crown of virginity,
support of the true faith,
on which the Church is founded, throughout the world.
Mother of God,
who contained the infinite God
under your heart,
whom no space can contain.
Through you, the most Holy Trinity, is revealed,
adored and glorified,
demons are vanquished,
Satan cast down from heaven into hell
and our fallen nature again assumed into heaven.
Through you, the human race,
held captive in the bonds of idolatry,
arrives at the knowledge of Truth.
What more shall I say of you?
Hail, through whom kings rule,
through whom the Only-Begotten Son of God
has become the Star of Light
to those sitting in darkness
and in the shadow of death.
Amenhail-o-mary-mother-of-god-st-cyril-of-alex-10-may-2019 (1)

Holy Mary, Mother of God, Pray for Us!holy-mary-mothr-of-god-pray-for-us

St Cyril of Alexandria, Pray for Us!st-cyril-of-alexandria-pray-for-us 27 JUNE 2019

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, MARIAN DEVOTIONS, MARIAN PRAYERS, MARIAN QUOTES, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, MARIAN TITLES, MARY, MATER ECCLESIAE, QUOTES of the SAINTS, The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

Thought for the Day – 10 June – Mary’s Motherhood in the Order of Grace

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church
(The First Monday after Pentecost – today 10 June 2019, is the Second Universal Memorial of Mary, Mater Ecclesiae)

Mary’s Motherhood in the Order of Grace

Second Vatican Council

An excerpt from Lumen Gentium, #61-62

Predestined from eternity by that decree of divine providence which determined the incarnation of the Word to be the Mother of God, the Blessed Virgin was on this earth the virgin Mother of the Redeemer and, above all others and in a singular way, the generous associate and humble handmaid of the Lord.   She conceived, brought forth and nourished Christ.   She presented Him to the Father in the temple and was united with Him by compassion as He died on the Cross.   In this singular way, she cooperated by her obedience, faith, hope and burning charity, in the work of the Saviour in giving back supernatural life to souls.   Wherefore, she is our mother in the order of grace.

This maternity of Mary in the order of grace, began with the consent which she gave in faith at the Annunciation and which she sustained without wavering beneath the cross and lasts, until the eternal fulfilment of all the elect.   Taken up to heaven she did not lay aside this salvific duty bu,t by her constant intercession, continued 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 cultics, until they are led into the happiness of their true home.   Therefore, the Blessed Virgin is invoked by the Church under the titles of Advocate, Auxiliatrix, Adjutrix and Mediatrix.   This, however, is to be so understood, that it neither takes away from, nor adds anything to, the dignity and efficaciousness of Christ the one Mediator.

For no creature could ever be counted as equal with the Incarnate Word and Redeemer. Just as the priesthood of Christ, is shared in various ways, both by the ministers and by the faithful and as the one goodness of God, is really communicated in different ways to His creatures, so also, the unique mediation of the Redeemer, does not exclude but rather, gives rise to a manifold cooperation, which is but a sharing in this one source.

The Church does not hesitate to profess this subordinate role of Mary.   It knows it through unfailing experience of it and commends it, to the hearts of the faithful, so that, encouraged by this maternal help, they may the more intimately adhere to the Mediator and Redeemer.

Maria, Mater Ecclesiae, Pray for Us!mary mater ecclesiae - mother of the church - pray for us - 21 may 2018.jpg

O Blessed Lady,
Mediatrix and Advocate
By St Bernard (1090-1153)

Our Mediatrix and Advocate
O blessed Lady,
you found grace,
brought forth the Life,
and became the Mother of Salvation.
May you obtain the grace for us to go to the Son.
By your mediation,
may we be received by the One
who through you, gave Himself to us.
May your integrity compensate with Him
for the fault of our corruption;
and may your humility,
which is pleasing to God,
implore pardon for our vanity.
May your great charity
cover the multitude of our sins;
and may your glorious fecundity
confer on us a fecundity of merits.
Dear Lady,
our Mediatrix and Advocate,
reconcile us to your Son,
recommend us to Him,
and present us to your Son.
By the grace you found,
by the privilege you merited,
by the mercy you brought forth,
obtain for us the following favour,
O blessed Lady.
Amen

o blessed lady mediatrix and advocate - 18 may 2019 by st bernard.jpg

Posted in CATHOLIC-PRAYERS OF THE CHURCH, FATHERS of the Church, MARIAN DEVOTIONS, MARIAN PRAYERS, MARIAN QUOTES, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, MARIAN TITLES, MARY, MATER ECCLESIAE, PAPAL ENCYLICALS, PAPAL PRAYERS, PRAYERS of the CHURCH, QUOTES of the SAINTS, The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

The Second Official Memorial of this new feast day, the first Monday after Pentecost – Mary Mater Ecclesiae – Mary , Mother of the Church – 10 June 2019

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Mary Mater Ecclesiae – Mary , Mother of the Church – 10 June 2019

Vatican Decree here:   https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2018/03/04/pope-francis-institutes-new-celebration-of-mary-mother-of-the-church/

“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 CHURCH IN THE GENERAL ROMAN CALENDAR

as-a-caring-guide-to-the-emerging-church-cardinal-sarah-21-may-2018.jpg

“…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 Graceshe-is-clearly-the-mother-of-his-members-st-augustine-first-memorial-of-mother-of-the-church-21-may-2018

“Who, more than Mary, could be, a star of hope for us?
With her “yes”, she opened the door of our world,
to God Himself; she became the living Ark of the Covenant,
in whom God took flesh, became one of us
and pitched His tent among us.”

Spe Salvi 49 – Pope Benedict XVIwho-more-than-mary-pope-benedict-xvi-11-may-2018.jpg

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 Basilicaprayer-to-mary-mother-of-the-church-and-mother-of-our-faith-pope-francis-21-may-2018-memorial-of-mater-ecclesiae.jpg

St Augustine(354-430)
The Image of the Holy Church

Gracious Lady,
you are a mother and virgin,
you are the mother
of the body and soul
of our Head and Redeemer,
you are also truly mother
of all the members of Christ’s Mystical Body.
For through your love,
you have co-operated
in the begetting of the faithful in the Church.
Unique among women,
you are mother and virgin,
mother of Christ and virgin of Christ.
You are the beauty and charm of earth, O Virgin.
You are, forever, the image of the holy Church.
Through a woman came death,
through a woman came life,
yes, through you, O Mother of God.the image of the holy church - st augustine - 10 june 2019 - mary mater ecclesiae mother of the church.jpg

Posted in CATHOLIC DEVOTIONS of the Month, MARIAN DEVOTIONS, MARIAN PRAYERS, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY, The HOLY EUCHARIST / The HOLY MASS

Marian Thoughts –24 May – Pope Francis – The Fifth Luminous Mystery: The Institution of the Eucharist

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Marian Thoughts – 24 May – ‘Mary’s Month’ – Friday of the Fifth Week of Easter, C

Mini Series – Pope Francis and the Holy Rosary

“Throughout her life, Mary did everything that the Church is asked to do in perennial memory of Christ.   In her faith, we learn to open our hearts to obey God, in her self-denial, we see the importance of tending to the needs of others, in her tears, we find the strength to console those experiencing pain.   In each of these moments, Mary expresses the wealth of divine mercy that reaches out to all in their daily needs.”
Pope Francis – 9 October 2016

The Fifth Luminous Mystery: The Institution of the Eucharist

“It is in the Lord, who gave His life for us on the cross, that we will always find that unconditional love which sees our lives as something good and always gives us the chance to start again.
In the Eucharist, Divine Mercy reveals itself in a special way.   Celebrating the greatest mysteries of our faith, we touch the source of mercy.
The Eucharist is flavoured with Jesus’ words and deeds, the taste of His Passion, the fragrance of His Spirit.   When we receive it, our hearts are overcome with the certainty of Jesus’ love. (18 June 2017)
Let us pray that frequent participation in the Holy Mass would expand our hearts, enrich our strength and enable us to give ourselves to our neighbours.”

Pope Francis
WYD 2016

pope francis the 5th luminous mystry - the institution of the eucharist 24 may 2019.jpg

Posted in CATHOLIC DEVOTIONS of the Month, MARIAN DEVOTIONS, MARIAN PRAYERS, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, The TRANSFIGURATION

Marian Thoughts –23 May – Pope Francis – The Fourth Luminous Mystery: The Transfiguration

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Marian Thoughts – 23 May – ‘Mary’s Month’ – Thursday of the fifth Week of Easter, C

Mini Series – Pope Francis and the Holy Rosary

“Mary helps us to understand what it means to be a disciple of Christ.   Eternally chosen to be his Mother, she learned to become his disciple.   Her first act was to listen to God.”…

Pope Francis 9 October 2016

The Fourth Luminous Mystery: The Transfiguration

“The Transfiguration helps the disciples and also us, to understand that Christ’s Passion is a mystery of suffering but it’s especially a gift of infinite love on Jesus’ part.   The event of Jesus, who is transfigured on the mountain, makes us also understand better His Resurrection.   To understand the mystery of the cross it’s necessary to know in anticipation, that He that that suffers and is glorified, is not only a man but the Son of God, who has saved us, with His faithful love to death. Thus the Father renews His Messianic declaration on the Son, already made on the banks of the Jordan after the Baptism and He exhorts: “listen to Him!” (v. 7).

The disciples are called to follow the Master with confidence and hope, despite His death – Jesus’ divinity must manifest itself precisely on the cross, precisely in His dying “in that way,” so much so that the evangelist Mark puts on the centurion’s mouth the profession of faith:  “Truly this man was the Son of God!” (15:39).

We now turn in prayer to the Virgin Mary, the human creature transfigured interiorly by the grace of Christ.   We entrust ourselves confidentially to her maternal help, to continue the … journey with faith and generosity.”

Pope Francis

Angelus 25 February 2018

pope francis meditations the 4th luminous the transfiguration - 23 may 2019.jpg

Posted in CATHOLIC DEVOTIONS of the Month, CATHOLIC-PRAYERS OF THE CHURCH, MARIAN DEVOTIONS, MARIAN PRAYERS, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, PRAYERS of the SAINTS

Marian Thoughts –22 May – Pope Francis – The Third Luminous Mystery: The Proclamation of the Kingdom

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Marian Thoughts – 22May – ‘Mary’s Month’ – Wednesday of the fifth Week of Easter, C

Mini Series – Pope Francis and the Holy Rosary

“Through prayer and meditation on the life of Jesus Christ, we see once more his merciful countenance, which he shows to everyone in all the many needs of life. Mary accompanies us along this journey, pointing to her Son who radiates the very mercy of the Father.”...Pope Francis 9 October 2016

The Third Luminous Mystery:

The Proclamation of the Kingdom

Jesus Christ came to proclaim and bring about the Lord’s everlasting time of grace.   He brought good news to the poor, freedom to prisoners, sight to the blind and freedom to the oppressed (cf. Lk 4:18-19).
Proclaiming the Gospel, forgiving, carrying out His will – when we do these things, we are never alone.   Jesus walks ahead of us, taking our steps before us, preparing the way.

Pope Francis
WYD 2016

pope francis - 3rd luminous proclamation of the kingdom 22 may 2019.jpg

Posted in CATHOLIC DEVOTIONS of the Month, MARIAN DEVOTIONS, MARIAN PRAYERS, MARIAN QUOTES, MARIAN REFLECTIONS

Marian Thoughts –21 May – Pope Francis – The Second Luminous Mystery: The Wedding Feast at Cana

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Marian Thoughts – 21 May – ‘Mary’s Month’ – Tuesday of the fifth Week of Easter, C

Mini Series – Pope Francis and the Holy Rosary

“The prayer of the rosary is, in many ways, the synthesis of the history of God’s mercy, which becomes a history of salvation for all who let themselves be shaped by grace. “…Pope Francis 9 October 2016

The Second Luminous Mystery

The Wedding Feast at Cana

Jesus did this as the beginning of his signs in Cana in Galilee and so revealed his glory, and his disciples began to believe in him....John 2:11pope francis meditations the second luminous - the wedding at cana 21 may 2019.jpg

“In the context of the Covenant, we are also to understand Our Lady’s observation:   “They have no wine” (v. 3).   How can one celebrate a wedding feast and make merry without what the prophets indicated as a typical element of the messianic banquet? Water is necessary for life but wine expresses the abundance of a banquet and the joy of a feast.  This wedding feast was short of wine, the newlyweds are ashamed of this.   But just imagine ending a wedding feast drinking tea, it would be a shame.   Wine is necessary for a feast.   By transforming into wine the water of the jars used “for the Jewish rites of purification” (Jn 2:6), Jesus preforms an eloquent sign – He transforms the Law of Moses into the Gospel, bearer of joy.   As John states elsewhere: “For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ” (1:17).

Sometimes, even our best, beautiful dreams, our hard work and troubles – all go to nothing. Great works demand making sacrifices but sometimes we reach a wall. Let us pray that we – like Mary – know how to humbly show this situation to Jesus and that we strongly believe that even out of the greatest failure, He is able to produce the most unexpected good.”

Pope Francis

8 June 2016

Posted in MARIAN DEVOTIONS, MARIAN PRAYERS, MARIAN QUOTES, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

Marian Thoughts –20 May – Pope Francis – The First Luminous Mystery: The Baptism of the Lord

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Marian Thoughts – 20 May – ‘Mary’s Month’ – Monday of the fifth Week of Easter, C

Mini Series – Pope Francis and the Holy Rosary

“Mary helps us to understand what it means to be a disciple of Christ.  Eternally chosen to be his Mother, she learned to become His disciple.   Her first act was to listen to God. She obeyed the message of the Angel and opened her heart to receive the mystery of divine motherhood.   She followed Jesus, listening to every word that issued from His lips (cf. Mk 3:31-35).   She kept all those things in her heart (cf. Lk 2:19) and became the living memory of the signs worked by God’s Son to awaken our faith.   But is not enough simply to listen.  That is certainly, the first step but listening, then, needs to be translated into concrete action.   The disciple truly puts his life at the service of the Gospel.”…Pope Francis (9 October 2016)

The First Luminous Mystery

The Baptism of the Lord

“We then understand the great humility of Jesus, the One who had not sinned, in lining up with the penitents, mingled among them to be baptised in the waters of the river.   In doing so, He manifested what we celebrated at Christmas – the availability of Jesus to immerse Himself in the river of humanity, to take upon Himself the shortcomings and weaknesses of humanity, to share our desire to be free and to overcome everything that separates us from God and makes us strangers to our brothers and sisters.  Just like in Bethlehem, along the banks of the River Jordan, God keeps His promise, to take charge of the fate of human beings and Jesus is the tangible and definitive sign.”

Pope Francis (Angelus – 7 January 2018)

pope francis rosary meditations - the baptism of the lord - the 1st luminous mystery 20 may 2019.jpg

Posted in CATHOLIC DEVOTIONS of the Month, MARIAN DEVOTIONS, MARIAN PRAYERS, MARIAN QUOTES, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, PRACTISING CATHOLIC, The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

Marian Thoughts – 18 May – Pope Francis – The Fifth Joyful Mystery: The Finding of Jesus in the Temple

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Marian Thoughts – 18 May – ‘Mary’s Month’ – Saturday of the Fourth Week of Easter, C

Mini Series – Pope Francis and the Holy Rosary

“Praying the rosary does not remove us from the problems of life. On the contrary, it demands that we immerse ourselves in the history of each day, so as to grasp the signs of Christ’s presence in our midst. Whenever we contemplate an event, a mystery of the life of Christ, we are asked to reflect on how God comes into our own lives, so as to be able to welcome Him and follow Him.”
Pope Francis

The Fifth Joyful Mystery:

The Finding of Jesus in the Temple

The Holy Family had gone to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover but on the return voyage, Mary and Joseph discovered that Jesus, who was only twelve years old, was not in the caravan.
They searched for Jesus for three days, finally finding Him in the Temple amid the doctors of the law.
When they found Jesus, the Gospel says, “they were astonished” and Mary expressed her concern to Jesus, saying, “Your father and I have been looking for you with great anxiety.”
In the Holy Family, astonishment never failed!
To feel astonishment is the opposite of taking everything for granted… It means opening ourselves to others.
This attitude is important for mending compromised relationships and curing the open wounds within the family.
The anxiety felt by Mary and Joseph, shows the centrality of Jesus in the Holy Family. And so we see, why the family of Nazareth is holy – because it was centred on Jesus, all the attention and care of Joseph revolved around Him.
The anxiety felt by Mary and Joseph, when Jesus was lost for three days, should also be our anxiety, when we are far from Jesus, when we forget Jesus, going without prayer, without reading the Gospel for several days.
Mary and Joseph found Jesus in the Temple and we too, should seek Jesus in the house of God – and especially, in the Liturgy, where we have the living experience of Jesus, in His Word and in the Eucharist, from which we receive the strength to face the difficulties of each day….
Pope Francis 2018

pope francis rosary meditations the 5th joyful finding of jesus in the temple 18 may 2019.jpg

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Marian Thoughts – 17 May – Pope Francis – The Fourth Joyful Mystery: The Presentation

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Marian Thoughts – 17 May – ‘Mary’s Month’ – Thursday of the Fourth Week of Easter, C

Mini Series – Pope Francis and the Holy Rosary

“Praying the Rosary together as a family,
s very beautiful and it gives us strength.”
Pope Francis

The Fourth Joyful Mystery:  The Presentation

Forty days after Christmas, we celebrate the Lord who enters the temple and comes to encounter His people.
In the Christian East, this feast is called the “Fest of Encounter” – it is the encounter between God, who became a child, to bring newness to the world and an expectant humanity, represented by the elderly man and woman in the Temple.
In the Temple, there is also an encounter between two couples – the young Mary and Joseph and the elderly Simeon and Anna.   The old receive from the young, while the young draw upon the old.   In the Temple, Mary and Joseph find the roots of their people. This is important, because God’s promise does not come to fulfilment, merely in individuals, once for all but within a community and throughout history.   There too, Mary and Joseph find the roots of their faith, for faith is not something learned from a book but the art of living with God, learned from the experience of those who have gone before us.   The two young people, in meeting the two older people, thus find themselves. And the two older people, nearing the end of their days, receive Jesus, the meaning of their lives.   This event, fulfils the prophecy of Joel: “Your old men shall dream dreams and your young men shall see visions” (2:28).
In this encounter, the young see their mission and the elderly realise their dreams.
All because, at the centre of the encounter, is Jesus … May we never look at the screen of our cell phone more than the eyes of our brothers or sisters or focus more on our software, than on the Lord….Pope Francis 2018pope francis meditations on the holy rosary - the fourth the Presentation - 17 may 2019 no 2.jpg

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Marian Thoughts – 16 May – Pope Francis – The Third Joyful Mystery: The Nativity

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Marian Thoughts – 16 May – ‘Mary’s Month’ – Thursday of the Fourth Week of Easter, C

Mini Series – Pope Francis and the Holy Rosary

“The month of May is dedicated to Our Lady
and it is “fitting” to start the habit of a daily rosary now.”
Pope Francis

The Third Joyful Mystery – The Nativity

“Mary and Joseph had to leave their people, their home and their land and to undertake a journey in order to be registered in the census.
This was no comfortable or easy journey for a young couple about to have a child – they had to leave their land.
At heart, they were full of hope and expectation because of the child about to be born, yet their steps were weighed down by the uncertainties and dangers that attend those, who have to leave their home behind.
They they found themselves, having to face perhaps, the most difficult thing of all. They arrived in Bethlehem and experienced that, it was a land that was not expecting them. A land, whee there was no place for them.   And there, where everything was a challenge, May gave us Emmanuel.   The Son of God, had to be born in a stable because His own had no room for Him. “He came to what was his own and his own people did not accept him” (Jn 1:11).
That night, the One who had no place to be born, is proclaimed to those who had no place at the table or in the streets of the city.   The shepherds are the first to hear this Good News.   By reason of their work, they were men and women forced to live on the edges of society.   Their state of life and the places they had to stay, prevented them from observing all the ritual prescriptions of religious purification, as a result, they wee considered unclean.   Their skin, their clothing, their smell, their way of speaking, their origin, all betrayed them.   Everything about them generated mistrust. They were men and women to be kept at a distance, to be feared.   They were considered pagans among the believers, sinners among the just, foreigners among the citizens. Yet, to them – pagans, sinners and foreigners – the angel says:  “Do not be afraid – for see – I am bringing you good news of great joy for the people, to you is born this day, in the city of David, a Saviour, who is the Messiah, the Lord.” (Lk 2:10-11)”

Pope Francis

pope francis meditations on the rosary - the third joyful mystery - the nativity - 16 may 2019.jpg

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Marian Thoughts – 14 May – Pope Francis – The First Joyful Mystery: The Annunciation

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Marian Thoughts – 14 May – ‘Mary’s Month’ – Tuesday of the Fourth Week of Easter, C

Mini Series – Pope Francis and the Holy Rosary

“I want to recommend some medicine for all of you.   It’s a spiritual medicine.   Don’t forget to take it.   “It’s good for your heart, for your soul, for your whole life.” (17 November 2013)pope francis' reflections on the joyful mysteries 1st mystery 14 may 2019.jpg

The First Joyful Mystery:   The Annunciation

“The annunciation to Mary can be read alongside the announcement to Zechariah of John the Baptist’s birth.   One annunciation happens to a priest in the Temple of God, during a liturgy, where everyone is waiting outside, while the other, happens to a young woman named Mary, in a small town that did not necessarily have a good reputation.   This contrast is not insignificant.   It serves as a sign that the new Temple of God, the new encounter of God with His people, will happen in places which we normally do not expect, on the margins, on the peripheries.   By now, it will no longer be in a place reserved for the few, while the majority wait outside. Nothing and no-one, will be indifferent, no situation will be deprived of His presence, the joy of salvation began in the daily life of the home of a youth in Nazareth.
Even today, God is still searching for hearts like Mary’s that are open to welcoming His invitation and providing hope, even when it’s hard.
God continues to walk our neighbourhoods and our streets, He pushes in each place in search of hearts capable of listening to His invitation and making it become flesh here and now.
In the end, the Lord continues to seek hearts like that of Mary, disposed to believe even in very extraordinary conditions.
Just like He did with Mary, God also takes the initiative in our lives, inserting Himself into our daily struggles, anxieties and desires.
It is precisely in the daily routine of our lives, that we receive the most beautiful announcement we can hear – “Rejoice, the Lord is with you!”
(Pope Francis, 2017)

Holy Mary of the Annunciation of Emmanuel,

God with us,

Pray for us!mary's fiat - holy mary pray for us 14 may 2019 pope francis and the rosary from Fr Enrico no 1.jpg

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Marian Thoughts – 11 May – ‘Mary’s Month’ – The Whole World Awaits Mary’s Reply

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Marian Thoughts – 11 May – ‘Mary’s Month’

The Whole World Awaits Mary’s Replymary's fiat - luke 1 38 behold i am the handmaid of the lord - 11 may 2019.jpg

On the Annunciation and Mary’s “fiat”
Saint Bernard (1090-1153)
Mellifluous Doctor

You have heard, O Virgin, that you will conceive and bear a son, you have heard that it will not be by man but by the Holy Spirit.   The angel awaits an answer, it is time for him to return to God who sent him.   We too are waiting, O Lady, for your word of compassion, the sentence of condemnation weighs heavily upon us.

The price of our salvation is offered to you.   We shall be set free at once if you consent. In the eternal Word of God we all came to be and behold, we die.   In your brief response we are to be remade, in order to be recalled to life.

Tearful Adam with his sorrowing family begs this of you, O loving Virgin, in their exile from Paradise.   Abraham begs it, David begs it.   All the other holy patriarchs, your ancestors, ask it of you, as they dwell in the country of the shadow of death.   This is what the whole earth waits for, prostrate at your feet.   It is right in doing so, for on your word depends comfort for the wretched, ransom for the captive, freedom for the condemned, indeed, salvation for all the sons of Adam, the whole of your race.

Answer quickly, O Virgin.   Reply in haste to the angel, or rather through the angel to the Lord.   Answer with a word, receive the Word of God.   Speak your own word, conceive the divine Word.   Breathe a passing word, embrace the eternal Word.

Why do you delay, why are you afraid?   Believe, give praise and receive.   Let humility be bold, let modesty be confident.   This is no time for virginal simplicity to forget prudence.   In this matter alone, O prudent Virgin, do not fear to be presumptuous. Though modest silence is pleasing, dutiful speech is now more necessary.   Open your heart to faith, O blessed Virgin, your lips to praise, your womb to the Creator.  See, the desired of all nations is at your door, knocking to enter.   If He should pass by because of your delay, in sorrow you would begin to seekHhim afresh, the One whom your soul loves.   Arise, hasten, open.   Arise in faith, hasten in devotion, open in praise and thanksgiving.   Behold the handmaid of the Lord, she says, be it done to me according to your word.

This homily excerpt of St Bernard is in the Office of Readings for
20 December the fourth week of Advent.
Hom. 4, 8-9answer quickly o virgin - st bernard - 11 may 2019 homily on the annunciation.jpg

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Marian Thoughts – 10 May – Lumen Gentium #61-62

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Marian Thoughts – 10 May – “Mary’s Month” and Friday of the Third Week of Easter, C

From the Constitution on the Church of the Second Vatican Council
(Lumen Gentium #61-62)

The Motherhood of Our Lady in God’s Plan of Salvation

From all eternity, together with the Incarnation of the divine Word, the Blessed Virgin was predestined to be the Mother of God.   By the will of divine Providence, she was the loving mother of the divine Redeemer, here on earth and, above all others, in a unique way she was the willing partner and the humble handmaid of the Lord.   She conceived, brought forth and nourished Christ.   She presented Him to the Father in the temple and shared the suffering of His Son as He died on the cross.   In an utterly singular way, she co-operated by her obedience, faith, hope and burning charity in the Saviour’s work of restoring supernatural life to souls.   For this reason, she is a mother to us in the order of grace.

This motherhood of Mary, in the order of grace, began with the consent which she gave in faith, at the Annunciation and which she sustained without wavering beneath the cross, it will last without interruption, until the eternal fulfilment of all the elect.   Once assumed into heaven, she did not set aside this saving role but, with her numerous prayers of intercession, continues to win for us, the gifts of eternal salvation.

By her maternal charity, Mary cares for the brethren of her Son who still wander through this world, in the midst of dangers and difficulties, until they are led to the happiness of their heavenly home.

For this reason the Blessed Virgin is invoked by the Church under the titles of Advocate, Auxiliatrix, Adjustrix and Mediatrix – but they are titles which must be understood, in a way, that neither detracts from, nor adds anything to the dignity and efficacy of Christ the one Mediator.

For no creature could ever be counted as equal with the Incarnate Word and Redeemer. Just as the priesthood of Christ is shared in various ways, both by sacred ministers and by the faithful and, as the one goodness of God, is really communicated in different ways to His creatures, in the same way, the unique mediation of the Redeemer, does not exclude but, rather gives rise among creatures, to a manifold co-operation, which is but a sharing in this one source.

The Church does not hesitate to profess this subordinate role of Mary.   She knows it through unfailing experience of it and commends it to the hearts of the faithful, so that, encouraged by this maternal help, they may follow the Mediator and Redeemer more clearly.

Sancta Mater Maria, Mother of God and our Mother, Pray for us!sancta mater maria ora pro nobis pray for us 10 may 2019.jpg

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Marian Thoughts – 9 May – Mary, our Mother

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Marian Thoughts – 9 May – ‘Mary’s Month’ – Thursday Third Week of Easter, C

St Aelred of Rievaulx (1110-1167)

From his sermons – Sermon 20

Mary, our Mother

what shall we say brethren - st aelred 9 may 2019

Let us come to His bride, let us come to His mother, let us come to the best of His handmaidens.   All of these descriptions fit Blessed Mary.

But what are we to do for her?   What sort of gifts shall we offer her?   O that we might at least repay to her the debt we owe her!   We owe her honour, we owe her devotion, we owe her love, we owe her praise.   We owe her honour because she is the mother of Our Lord.   He who does not honour the mother, will without doubt dishonour the son. Besides, scripture says: ‘Honour your father and your mother.’

What shall we say, brethren?   Is she not our mother?   Certainly, brethren, she is in truth our mother.   Through her we are born, not to the world but to God.

We all, as you believe and know, were in death, in the infirmity of old age, in darkness, in misery.   In death because we had lost the Lord, in infirmity of old age , because we were in corruptio, in darkness because we had lost the light of wisdom and so we had altogether perished.

But through blessed Mary we all underwent a much better birth than through Eve, inasmuch as Christ was born of Mary.   Instead of the infirmity of old age, we have regained youth, instead of corruption, incorruption, instead of darkness, light.

She is our mother, mother of our incorruption, of our light.   The Apostle says of our Lord, ‘Whom God made our righteousness, our sanctification and our redemption.’

She, therefore, who is the mother of Chris,t is the mother of our wisdom, mother of our righteousness, mother of our sanctification, mother of our redemption.   Therefore, she is more our mother than the mother of our flesh.   Better, therefore, is our birth, which we derive from Mary, for from her is our holiness, our wisdom, our righteousness, our sanctification, our redemption.

Scripture says, ‘Praise the Lord in his saints’.   If the Lord is to be praised in those saints through whom He performs mighty works and miracles, how much more should He be praised in her, in whom He fashioned Himself, He who is wonderful beyond all wonder.

From the Little Office of Mary
++++++++++++++++scripture says praise the lord - st aelred on mary - 9 may 2019.jpg

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Marian Thoughts – 5 May – ‘Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you.’ 

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Marian Thoughts – 5 May – “Mary’s Month!”

From the Sermons of St Sophronius (560-638) Father of the Church

(St Sophronius was a courageous leader of the Jerusalem Church during the Islamic conquests of the seventh century, Bishop Saint Sophronius I has his liturgical memorial on 11 March).hail full of grace, the Lord is with you - luke 1 29.jpg

The blessings of the Father shone upon men through Mary

‘Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you.’   Could anything transcend the joy that is yours, O Virgin Mother?   Could anything surpass this race granted by God to you alone?   Is it possible to think of anything more gratifying and more splendid?   Nothing can even approach the marvel that we see in you.   All things lie far below the grace that is yours; in comparison, even the best of them take second place and their brilliance is overshadowed.

‘The Lord is with you’ and who has dared to strive against you?   God has been born of you, who would stand in your way and not gladly give you first place and supremacy? For this reason, when I contemplate the privileges that put you above all creatures I cry out to you in highest praise. ‘Hail O favoured one, the Lord is with you.’   The joy that comes from you is shared not only by mankind but also by the powers of heaven.

Truly, ‘you are blessed among women’ for you have changed the condemnation of Eve into a blessing.   Because of you, and through you, Adam who hitherto was cast down and condemned received a blessing.

Truly, ‘you are blessed among women’ for through you the blessing of the Father came to mankind and reprieved them from the age-old sentence.

Truly, ‘you are blessed among women’, because through you, your ancestors found salvation.   You were to give birth to the Saviour who would win for them God’s salvation.

Truly, ‘you are blessed among women’ for without the seed of man you bore the fruit that gives a blessing to the whole earth and frees it from being condemned to produce only thorns.

Truly, ‘you are blessed among women’, for though you are a woman like any other woman you will in actual fact become the Mother of God.   If the one to be born of you, is in truth God incarnate, you rightly deserve to be called ‘she who gave birth to God’, inasmuch, as you truly did give birth to God.

You have God enclosed within your womb.   He lives in you according to the flesh and comes forth from you like a bridegroom, giving joy to all and sharing His divine light with all mankind.

In you, O Virgin, as in the clear brightness of heaven, God ‘has placed his tent’ and He ‘will come forth from you like a bridegroom from his chamber’.   Like a giant He will run the course of His life to bring salvation to all living things.   That course ‘will stretch from one end of the heavens to the other’ filling all things with the life-giving warmth of God’s radiance.

From the Little Office of Mary
+++++++++++++

Mary, Rosa Mystica, Pray for Us!mary-rosa-mystica-pray-for-us-8-may-2018

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Marian Thoughts – 7 May – The Image of the Holy Church

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Marian Thoughts – 7 May – ‘May, Mary’s Month’

St Augustine(354-430)
The Image of the Holy Church

Gracious Lady,
you are a mother and virgin,
you are the mother
of the body and soul
of our Head and Redeemer,
you are also truly mother
of all the members of Christ’s Mystical Body.
For through your love,
you have co-operated
in the begetting of the faithful in the Church.
Unique among women,
you are mother and virgin,
mother of Christ and virgin of Christ.
You are the beauty and charm of earth, O Virgin.
You are, forever, the image of the holy Church.
Through a woman came death,
through a woman came life,
yes, through you, O Mother of God.
==========gracious lady the image of the holy church - st augustine - 7 may 2019 no 2.jpg

Mary, Mater Ecclesiae, Pray for us!

mary mater ecclesiae - mother of the church - pray for us - 21 may 2018.jpg

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Marian Thoughts – 5 May – “A Calm Vision”

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Marian Thoughts – 5 May – the Month of Mary

Apostolic Exhortation of St Pope Paul VI
Marialis Cultus – 2 February 1974

To Honour Mary

Devotion to the Mother of the Lord becomes for the faithful an opportunity for growing in divine grace and this is the ultimate aim of all pastoral activity.   For it is impossible to honour her who is “full of grace” (Lk. 1:28) without thereby honouring, in oneself, the state of grace, which is friendship with God, communion with Him and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.   It is this divine grace which takes possession of the whole man and conforms him to the image of the Son of God (cf. Rom. 8:29; Col. 1:18).

The Catholic Church, endowed with centuries of experience, recognises in devotion to the Blessed Virgin a powerful aid for man as he strives for fulfilment.   Mary, the New Woman, stands at the side of Christ, the New Man, within whose mystery the mystery of man(124) alone finds true ligh,; she is given to it as a pledge and guarantee that God’s plan in Christ for the salvation of the whole man has already achieved realisation in a creature – in her.   Contemplated in the episodes of the Gospels and in the reality which she already possesses in the City of God, the Blessed Virgin Mary offers a calm vision and a reassuring word to modern man, torn as he often is between anguish and hope, defeated by the sense of his own limitations and assailed by limitless aspirations, troubled in his mind and divided in his heart, uncertain before the riddle of death, oppressed by loneliness while yearning for fellowship, a prey to boredom and disgust. She shows forth the victory of hope over anguish, of fellowship over solitude, of peace over anxiety, of joy and beauty over boredom and disgust, of eternal visions over earthly ones, of life over death.contemplated in the episodes - st paul VI- marilis cultus 5 may 2019.jpg

Let the very words that she spoke to the servants at the marriage feast of Cana, “Do whatever he tells you” (Jn. 2:5), be a seal on our Exhortation and a further reason in favour of the pastoral value of devotion to the Blessed Virgin as a means of leading men to Christ.   Those words, which at first sight were limited to the desire to remedy an embarrassment at the feast, are seen in the context of Saint John’s Gospel to re-echo the words used by the people of Israel to give approval to the Covenant at Sinai (cf. Ex. 19:8, 24:3, 7; Dt. 5:27) and to renew their commitments (cf. Jos. 24:24; Ezr. 10:12; Neh. 5:12). And they are words which harmonise wonderfully with those spoken by the Father at the theophany on Mount Tabor – “Listen to him” (Mt. 17:5

Second Reading
The Little Office of Mary
Saturdays
===============

Mater Admirabilis, Pray for us!mater-admirabilis-pray-for-us-5-may-2019.jpg

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Marian Thought for the Day – 4 May – “Here we have the image and model of the Church!”

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Marian Thought for the Day – 4 May – “Mary’s Month”

Pope Benedict XVI

Excerpt- Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord,
Saint Peter’s Square, Saturday, 25 March 2006

And Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord, let it be to me according to your word.”…Luke 1:38luke-1-38-let-what-you-have-said-be-done-to-me-18dec2018-ourladyofexpectation.jpg

“The icon of the Annunciation, more than any other, helps us to see clearly how everything in the Church goes back to that mystery of Mary’s acceptance of the divine Word, by which, through the action of the Holy Spirit, the Covenant between God and humanity was perfectly sealed.  Everything in the Church, every institution and ministry, including that of Peter and his Successors, is “included” under the Virgin’s mantle, within the grace-filled horizon of her “yes” to God’s will. T  his link with Mary naturally evokes a strong affective resonance in all of us but first of all it has an objective value….

Everything in this world will pass away.   In eternity only Love will remain.   For this reason, … taking the opportunity offered by this favourable time …, let us commit ourselves to ensure that everything in our personal lives and in the ecclesial activity in which we are engaged is inspired by charity and leads to charity.   In this respect too, we are enlightened by the mystery that we are celebrating today.

Indeed, the first thing that Mary did after receiving the Angel’s message was to go “in haste” to the house of her cousin Elizabeth in order to be of service to her (cf. Lk 1: 39). The Virgin’s initiative was one of genuine charity, it was humble and courageous, motivated by faith in God’s Word and the inner promptings of the Holy Spirit.   Those who love, forget about themselves and place themselves at the service of their neighbour.

Here we have the image and model of the Church!”

everything-in-this-world-will-pass-away-pope-benedict-xvi-25-march-2019

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Marian Thought – 3 May – “These virtues of the Mother will also adorn her children…”

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Marian Thoughts – May, the Month of Mary – 3 May 2019

Apostolic Exhortation of St Pope Paul VI (1897-1978)
Marialis Cultus – 2 February 1974
To Honour Mary

The Blessed Virgin’s role as Mother leads the People of God to turn with filial confidence to her who is ever ready to listen with a mother’s affection and efficacious assistance. Thus the People of God have learned to call on her as the Consoler of the afflicted, the Health of the sick and the Refuge of sinners, that they may find comfort in tribulation, relief in sickness and liberating strength in guilt.

For she, who is free from sin, leads her children to combat sin with energy and resoluteness.   This liberation from sin and evil (cf. Mt. 6:13)-it must be repeated-is the necessary premise for any renewal of Christian living.

The Blessed Virgin’s exemplary holiness encourages the faithful to “raise their eyes to Mary who shines forth before the whole community of the elect as a model of the virtues.”   It is a question of solid, evangelical virtues – faith and the docile acceptance of the Word of God, generous obedience (cf Lk. 1:38), genuine humility (cf. Lk. 1:48), solicitous charity (cf. Lk. 1:39-56), profound wisdom (cf. Lk. 1:29, 34; 2:19, 33:51), worship of God manifested in alacrity in the fulfillment of religious duties (cf. Lk. 2:21-41), in gratitude for gifts received (cf Lk. 1:46-49), in her offering in the Temple (cf. Lk. 2:22-24) and in her prayer in the midst of the apostolic community (cf. Acts 1:12-14), her fortitude in exile (cf. Mt. 2:13-23) and in suffering (cf. Lk. 2:34-35, 49; Jn. 19 25), her poverty reflecting dignity and trust in God (cf. Lk. 1:48, 2:24) her attentive care for her Son, from His humble birth to the ignominy of the cross (cf. Lk. 2:1-7; Jn. 19:25-27), her delicate forethought (cf. Jn. 2:1-11), her virginal purity (cf. Mt. 1:18-25; Lk. 1:26-38), her strong and chaste married love.

These virtues of the Mother will also adorn her children who steadfastly study her example in order to reflect it in their own lives.   And this progress in virtue, will appear as the consequence and the already mature fruit, of that pastoral zeal which springs from devotion to the Blessed Virgin.

Second Reading
The Little Office of Mary
Monday, Wednesday, Friday
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Marian Thoughts – “To Honour Mary” St Paul VI – 2 May 2019

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Marian Thoughts – May, the Month of Mary – 2 May 2019

Apostolic Exhortation of St Pope Paul VI (1897-1978) 
Marialis Cultus – 2 February 1974

To Honour Mary

Finally, insofar as it may be necessary, we would like to repeat that the ultimate purpose of devotion to the Blessed Virgin is to glorify God and to lead Christians, to commit themselves, to a life which is in absolute conformity with His will.   When the children of the Church unite their voices, with the voice of the unknown woman, in the Gospel and glorify the Mother of Jesus, by saying to Him:  “Blessed is the womb that bore you and the breasts that you sucked” (Lk. 11:27), they will be led to ponder the Divine Master’s serious reply:  “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and keep it!” (Lk. 11:28)   While it is true, that this reply is, in itself, lively praise of Mary, as various Fathers of the Church interpreted it and the Second Vatican Council has confirmed, it is also an admonition to us, to live our lives in accordance with God’s commandments.   It is also an echo of other words of the Saviour:   “Not everyone who says to me ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven” (Mt. 7:21); and again: “You are my friends if you do what I command you” (Jn. 15:14).

Christ is the only way to the Father (cf. Jn. 14:4-11) and the ultimate example to whom the disciple must conform his own conduct (cf. Jn. 13:15), to the extent of sharing Christ’s sentiments (cf. Phil. 2:5), living His life and possessing His Spirit (cf. Gal. 2:20; Rom. 8:10-11).   The Church has always taught this and nothing in pastoral activity should obscure this doctrine.    But the Church, taught by the Holy Spirit and benefiting from centuries of experience, recognises, that devotion to the Blessed Virgin, subordinated to worship of the divine Saviour and in connection with it, also has a great pastoral effectiveness and constitutes, a force, for renewing Christian living.

It is easy to see the reason for this effectiveness.   Mary’s many-sided mission to the People of God is a supernatural reality which operates and bears fruit within the body of the Church.   One finds cause for joy, in considering, the different aspects of this mission and seeing how each of these aspects, with its individual effectiveness, is directed towards the same end, namely, producing in the children the spiritual characteristics of the first-born Son.   The Virgin’s maternal intercession, her exemplary holiness and the divine grace which is in her, become, for the human race, a reason for divine hope.

Second Reading
The Little Office of Mary
Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday
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