7th Wonderful Effect of True Devotion

[MariaChristi]

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

In Chapter 6, of St. Louis De Montfort’s True Devotion he lists 7 Wonderful Effects of this devotion; today, we are pondering #7:

7. The greater glory of Christ

1. If you live this devotion sincerely, you will give more glory to Jesus in a month than in many years of a more demanding devotion. Here are my reasons for saying this:

(1) Since you do everything through the Blessed Virgin as required by this devotion, you naturally lay aside your own intentions no matter how good they appear to you. You abandon yourself to our Lady’s intentions even though you do not know what they are. Thus you share in the high quality of her intentions, which are so pure that she gave more glory to God by the smallest of her actions, say, twirling her distaff, or making a stitch, than did St. Laurence suffering his cruel martyrdom on the grid-iron, and even more than all the saints together in all their most heroic deeds! Mary amassed such a multitude of merits and graces during her sojourn on earth that it would be easier to count the stars in heaven, the drops of water in the ocean or the sands of the sea-shore than count her merits and graces. She thus gave more glory to God than all the angels and saints have given or will ever give him. Mary, wonder of God, when souls abandon themselves to you, you cannot but work wonders in them!

1. (2) In this devotion we set no store on our own thoughts and actions but are content to rely on Mary’s dispositions when approaching and even speaking to Jesus. We then act with far greater humility than others who imperceptibly rely on their own dispositions and are self- satisfied about them; and consequently we give greater glory to God, for perfect glory is given to him only by the lowly and humble of heart.
2. (3) Our Blessed Lady, in her immense love for us, is eager to receive into her virginal hands the gift of our actions, imparting to them a marvelous beauty and splendour, and presenting them herself to Jesus most willingly. More glory is given to our Lord in this way than when we make our offering with our own guilty hands.
3. (4) Lastly, you never think of Mary without Mary thinking of God for you. You never praise or honour Mary without Mary joining you in praising and honouring God. Mary is entirely relative to God. Indeed I would say that she was relative only to God, because she exists uniquely in reference to him.

She is an echo of God, speaking and repeating only God. If you say “Mary” she says “God”. When St. Elizabeth praised Mary calling her blessed because she had believed, Mary, the faithful echo of God, responded with her canticle, “My soul glorifies the Lord.” What Mary did on that day, she does every day. When we praise her, when we love and honour her, when we present anything to her, then God is praised, honoured and loved and receives our gift through Mary and in Mary.

 

[hazcompat]

The origin of “To Jesus through Mary” is generally attributed to Saint Louis Grignion de Montfort in his True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin . That is to say that he used the expression most explicitly, and presented devotion to Mary as the most effective means of consecration to Jesus. Therefore, according to Grignion, we ought to entrust ourselves to Mary in imitation of Christ ( True Devotion 121, 123, 124). According to Montfort, true devotion “consists in giving oneself entirely to the Blessed Virgin, in order to belong entirely to Jesus Christ through her.” ( True Devotion , 121).

However, the idea of going through Mary to Jesus is much older, and was promoted by such authors as Ildephonse of Toledo (+667), Germanus of Constantinople (+773), John of Damascus (+750), Ambrose Autpert (+781), Fulbert of Chartres (+1028), Odilo of Cluny (+1049), Peter Damian (+1072), Anselm of Lucca (+1086), and Anselm of Canterbury (+1109).

Geoffrey of Vendôme (+1132) would say, for example, “…let us hasten to his Mother, and through her to the Son Himself.” (PL 157, 266A) And Bernard of Clairvaux insists: “…be careful to commit to Mary the little thou desirest to offer, that the Lord may receive it through her hands…” (" De Nat"., in: Bernard’s sermons on the Blessed Virgin Mary . Augustine Publ.: Devon, 1987, 101-103).

In Odo of Canterbury (+1200) we find a passage which is even closer to the consecrated expression attributed to Montfort. Odo uses these words: “In fact, one goes to Christ through Mary, one goes to the Son through the Mother. By means of the Mother of Mercy one reaches mercy itself.” ( Testi Mariani, ed. L. Gambero, vol. 3, 490)

International Marian Research Institute, Dayton, OH

Read more on mariedenazareth.com:​

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now, and at the hour of death.
Amen.

 

[MariaChristi]

Dear hazcompat,

Thanks again for your reply. Yes, The Lord planted “seeds” of 'True Devotion" in many hearts before he inspired St. Louis de Montfort to write his treatise on “True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin”. St. Louis himself admits what he teaches is not new, and quotes many of those who wrote before him – St. Augustine, St Bernard and others.

Yet there is a unique quality to St. Louis De Montfort’s little treatise that I believe was intended by God to resurface in our present time. There is such an emphsis on “self” in the culture of the world today! The very popularity of “selfie” pictures is amazing to me – but it goes far deeper, and is tragic.

The Lord told us so clearly in Luke 9:23 that if anyone would come after Him, he must deny himself…Mary our Mother listened and truly followed Him up the hill to Calvary and stood beneath His Cross. When Jesus told John: “Behold your Mother” and John obeyed taking Mary into his life, John began to live as Mary’s son and as we are called to live, as her children even as Jesus became her child by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Jesus is so pleased to see us with Mary – as John was with her. The closer we come to Mary the more we become like Christ. Saints after John began this beautiful relationship and they continue today, even in a world obsessed with “self” they gaze with Mary on Jesus!

Please let us all continue to pray for one another and for all those in most need of God’s Mercy. Thanks so much.