Aug. 15 - Day 9 - "...He has looked upon His Handmaid's lowliness..."

[MariaChristi]

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

In listing the ten most important virtues of Mary, it is no wonder St. Louis De Montfort put “Humility” first. In his treatise on True Devotion, paragraph 108, he wrote:

1. … true devotion to our Lady is holy, that is, it leads us to avoid sin and to imitate the virtues of Mary. Her ten principal virtues are: deep humility, lively faith, blind obedience, unceasing prayer, constant self-denial, surpassing purity, ardent love, heroic patience, angelic kindness, and heavenly wisdom.

As we continue our journey of 33 days preparing for Total Consecration to Jesus through Mary (or renewal of it), we are following a humble path written for us by St. Luois de Montfort. He urges us to spend the first 12 days, “emptying ourselves of the spirit of the world which is opposed to the Spirit of Jesus”. He does not yet suggest certain prayers, as he does in the next 3 weeks, but he rather urges us to “see” with eyes of faith and acknowledge what the world is in its opposition to Jesus – it is filled with prideful self-love and lacking in humility.

Today we celebrate Mary’s Glorious Assumption into heaven and we begin perhaps to “see” more clearly by faith, how God loves humility such as hers and as we “see” in Jesus Who urges us to learn of Him Who is Meek and Humble as Incarnate Son, doing always the Will of His Father. We have 3 days left in this preliminary period before we being Week 1 in which we will seek a true knowledge of ourselves.

It is one thing to look at the world and see how it opposes Jesus, but it takes even more grace perhaps to look into our own hearts and see how we have opposed Him. We need to continue asking the intercession of our humble Mother Mary, that we might empty ourselves of the spirit of the world and we may become more like her – filled with the Holy Spirit!(Please Note: This uploaded content is no longer available.)

 

[GioG12]

(Please Note: This uploaded content is no longer available.)
O Immaculate Virgin,
Mother of God and Mother of Humanity,
we believe with all the fervour of our faith in your triumphal Assumption
both in body and in soul into heaven
where you are acclaimed as Queen
by all the choirs of angels
and all the legions of saints;
we unite with them to praise and bless the Lord who has exalted you above all other pure creatures
and to offer you the tribute of our devotion and our love.

We know that your gaze,
which on earth watched over the humble
and suffering humanity of Jesus,
in heaven is filled with the vision
of that humanity glorified
and with the vision of uncreated Wisdom, and that the joy of your soul
in the direct contemplation of the adorable Trinity
causes your heart to throb with overwhelming tenderness;
and we, poor sinners whose body weights down the flight of the soul,
beg you to purify our hearts so that,
while we remain below,
we may learn to see God and God alone
in the beauties of his creatures.

We trust that your merciful eyes
may deign to gaze down upon our miseries and anguish,
upon our struggles and our weaknesses;
that your countenance may smile
upon our joys and our victories;
that you may hear the voice of Jesus
saying to you of each one of us,
as He once said to you of His Beloved Disciple:
“Behold you son,”
and we who call upon you as our Mother,
we, like John, take you as the guide,
strength and consolation of our mortal life.

We are inspired by the certainty that your eyes,
which wept over the earth crimsoned by the blood of Jesus,
are yet turned toward this world
racked by wars and persecutions,
the oppression of the just and the weak.
From the shadows of this vale of tears,
we seek in your heavenly assistance,
tender mercy, comfort for our aching hearts, and help in the trials of Church and country.

We believe finally that in the glory where you reign,
clothed with the sun and crowned with stars, you are, after Jesus,
the joy and gladness of all the angels and the saints,
and from this earth,
over which we tread as pilgrims,
comforted by our faith in the future resurrection, we look to you our life,
our sweetness, our hope;
draw us onward with the sweetness of your voice, so that one day, after our exile, you may show us Jesus,
the blessed fruit of your womb.
O clement, O loving,
O sweet Virgin Mary.

Amen.

O Glorious Queen Assumed Into Heaven, Pray for us!

 

[hazcompat]

Mary, Paradise of the New Adam​

(Please Note: This uploaded content is no longer available.)

Today the holy Virgin of Virgins is presented in the heavenly temple. Virginity in her was so strong as to be a consuming fire. It is forfeited in every case by childbirth. But she is ever a virgin, before the event, in the birth itself, and afterwards. To-day the sacred and living ark of the living God, who conceived her Creator Himself, takes up her abode in the temple of God, not made by hands. David, her forefather, rejoices. Angels and Archangels are in jubilation, Powers exult, Principalities and Dominations, Virtues and Thrones are in gladness: Cherubim and Seraphim magnify God. Not the least of their Praise is it to refer praise to the Mother of glory…

Today the Eden of the New Adam receives the true paradise, in which sin is remitted and the tree of life growl, and our nakedness is covered. Today the spotless Virgin, untouched by earthly affections, and all heavenly in her thoughts, was not dissolved in earth, but truly entering heaven, dwells in the heavenly tabernacles…

How could she, who brought life to all, be under the dominion of death? But she obeys the law of her own Son, and inherits this chastisement as a daughter of the first Adam, since her Son, who is the life, did not refuse it. As the Mother of the living God, she goes through death to Him.

Eve listened to the serpent, adopted his suggestion, was caught by the lure of false and deceptive pleasure, and was condemned to pain and sorrow, and to bear children in suffering. With Adam she received the sentence of death, and was placed in the recesses of Limbo.

How can death claim as its prey this truly blessed one, who listened to God’s word in humility, and was filled with the Spirit, conceiving the Father’s gift through the archangel, bearing without concupiscence or the co-operation of man the Person of the Divine Word, who fills all things, bringing Him forth, without the pains of childbirth, being wholly united to God? How could Limbo open its gates to her? How could corruption touch the life-giving body?

Saint John of Damascus, Sermon II, On the Assumption (excerpts)

Read more on mariedenazareth.com:​

L’Assomption de Marie au Ciel

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 our death.
Amen.

 

[MariaChristi]

Thanks GioG12,

For your “heart”, for the beautiful artwork, and the beautiful prayer to help us all celebrate this Feast Day of our Mother Mary, our Mother and Model for the Church. Can you share with us, the author of the prayer?

The words are powerful and touch the heart, especially these:

We are inspired by the certainty that your eyes,
which wept over the earth crimsoned by the blood of Jesus,
are yet turned toward this world
racked by wars and persecutions,
the oppression of the just and the weak.

Yes, it is a fitting cry at the end to unite in praying:

O Glorious Queen Assumed Into Heaven, Pray for us!

 

[MariaChristi]

Dear hazcompat,

Thanks for the lovely artwork, and the lovely words of St. John of Damascus! I wondered if he might be the same person as St. John Damascene, and so did a bit of research and found this:

Saint John of Damascus , also called Saint John Damascene , Latin Johannes Damascenus , (born c. 675, Damascus—died Dec. 4, 749, near Jerusalem; Western feast day December 4).

The Eastern Church celebrates the “Dormition” of Mary and as I read the excerpts you posted from John of Damacus I think his questions seem to indicate more a belief that she did not die, but simply went asleep and woke in heaven.

However, I tend to believe Mary followed Jesus in life and death. I did some research and found this:

Catholics believe that at the end of her life, Mary, the mother of Jesus, was assumed both body and soul into heaven. Preserved free from all stain of original sin, she was taken up by God to share in his heavenly glory. This doctrine was dogmatically defined by Pope Pius XII in 1950, but confusion still remains about whether she died prior to her assumption.

The apostolic constitution Munificentissimus Deus defined that Mary, “after the completion of her earthly life was assumed body and soul into the glory of heaven”. Notably, there’s no mention of her death, so the jury is still out on whether she faced her own mortality.

Of course, theologians have speculated on the matter a great deal; the Catholic tradition has leaned towards the belief that she did die prior to her assumption but no official pronouncements have been made to confirm this.

It seems reasonable that in order to better conform to her son, Mary too died. Indeed, this is what Pope John Paul II suggested in a 1997 general audience on the matter: “However, the fact that the Church proclaims Mary free from original sin by a unique divine privilege does not lead to the conclusion that she also received physical immortality…the Mother is not superior to the Son who underwent death, giving it a new meaning and changing it into a means of salvation. Involved in Christ’s redemptive work and associated in his saving sacrifice, Mary was able to share in his suffering and death for the sake of humanity’s redemption.”

The Pope continues that while we don’t know how she died as the New Testament doesn’t record it, the belief that she died out of love for her son is the most fitting…See HERE

Thanka again, haxcompat, I learn new things every day!

 

[MariaChristi]

Dear Greenfields and Stephie,

Thank you both for your “Faith-full and loving hearts”! Hopefully you both were blessed abundantly on this Feast of Mary our Mother.

How blessed we are to be her children! May we ever strive to become more like her that we may love and honor her Dear Son Jesus, Who gave her to us from His Cross.

Let me share something that was so sweet to me, today, as my husband and I were praying in our parish Church while waiting for Mass to begin. The priest who was to offer Mass came from the Sacristy with a small bouquet of flowers, and placed them in a vase at the feet of Mary’s Statue. He quietly stepped back and stood in silent prayer for a few moments and then got vested for Mass.

It was something I had never seen before but will treasure forever: A priest-son who loves Mary! May there be many, many more sons both clergy and laymen who strive to love Mary as Jesus did! May her daughters likewise love and honor her more and more! Come Holy Spirit fill our hearts as you filled the heart of Mary with God’s Love!