How "tender" is our devotion to Mary?

[MariaChristi]

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Catholics, does this writer describe some of us today?

… care little or nothing about devotion to Mary, the Mother of the elect. It is true that they do not really hate her. Indeed they even speak well of her sometimes. They say they love her and they practise some devotion in her honour. Nevertheless, they cannot bear to see anyone love her tenderly, for they do not have for her any of the affection of Jacob; they find fault with the honour which her good children and servants faithfully pay her to win her affection. They think this kind of devotion is not necessary for salvation, and as long as they do not go as far as hating her or openly ridiculing devotion to her they believe they have done all they need to win her good graces. Because they recite or mumble a few prayers to her without any affection and without even thinking of amending their lives, they consider they are our Lady’s servants.

… sell their birthright, that is, the joys of paradise, for a dish of lentils, that is, the pleasures of this world. They laugh, they drink, they eat, they have a good time, they gamble, they dance and so forth, without taking any more trouble than Esau to make themselves worthy of their heavenly Father’s blessing. Briefly, they think only of this world, love only the world, speak and act only for the world and its pleasures. For a passing moment of pleasure, for a fleeting wisp of honour, for a piece of hard earth, yellow or white, they barter away their baptismal grace, their robe of innocence and their heavenly inheritance…

The words above were not written in this century but in the 1700’s by St. Louis de Montfort, in paragraphs 188 and 189 of his classic Treatise True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary. In this particular part of his book the saint gives an insightful interpretation of the Biblical narrative of Esau and Jacob. If you have never read this little book, it is well worth your time. I’ve read it more than once, and have always been blessed by it, but when I read those two paragraphs, I was struck by the relevance they hold, considering the lack of devotion to Mary among some Catholics today. As Pope St. John Paul II observed:

…When one moves away from the Mother, sooner or later he ends up keeping distant from the Son as well. It is no wonder that today in various sectors of secularized society, we note a widespread crisis of faith in God preceded by a drop in devotion to the Virgin Mother… Address to the Legion of Mary, October 30, 1982

 

[multitude]

When one moves away from the Mother, sooner or later he ends up keeping distant from the Son as well. It is no wonder that today in various sectors of secularized society, we note a widespread crisis of faith in God preceded by a drop in devotion to the Virgin Mother.

Pope St. JPII was on the money on this one, for me anyways. Simeon had told Mary that a sword will pierce Her soul too, so how people react to the Blessed Virgin Mary will reveal their many thoughts and hearts. And also, how people react to Her devotees will too reveal their many thoughts and hearts. A tenderness towards Her will say everything; as it was said in the last and 15th promise of Her rosary, it is a great sign of predestination. St. Louis de Montfort wrote some things that are still very applicable. Interestingly enough, he was ostracized for his flamboyance in his day, but he’s getting his last laugh.

 

[friardchips]

Pope St. JPII was on the money on this one, for me anyways. Simeon had told Mary that a sword will pierce Her soul too, so how people react to the Blessed Virgin Mary will reveal their many thoughts and hearts. And also, how people react to Her devotees will too reveal their many thoughts and hearts. A tenderness towards Her will say everything****; as it was said in the last and 15th promise of Her rosary, it is a great sign of predestination. St. Louis de Montfort wrote some things that are still very applicable. Interestingly enough, he was ostracized for his flamboyance in his day, but he’s getting his last laugh.

True enough.

BTW, I love the ‘Pieta’ statue on view in your posts!

 

[Glomung]

I was raised as an agnostic, and am relatively new to Catholicism (there’s a lot to learn).
After reading about St. Mary and Her influences in the lives of the Saints and even the laity, how can anyone help but not love Her?
She really is a wonder. I’m a big fan, and doing my best (which ain’t so good) to become a real devotee.

 

[MariaChristi]

Pope St. JPII was on the money on this one, for me anyways. Simeon had told Mary that a sword will pierce Her soul too, so how people react to the Blessed Virgin Mary will reveal their many thoughts and hearts. And also, how people react to Her devotees will too reveal their many thoughts and hearts. A tenderness towards Her will say everything; as it was said in the last and 15th promise of Her rosary, it is a great sign of predestination. St. Louis de Montfort wrote some things that are still very applicable. Interestingly enough, he was ostracized for his flamboyance in his day, but he’s getting his last laugh.

Dear multitude,

Thanks for your reply and for your devotion to our Mother Mary. Yes, St. John Paul II and St. Louis de Montfort were true “Champions of Mary”. St. John Paul II observed in 1982, the secularization of culture, the crisis of faith, and the decline in devotion to Mary, yet here we are in 2015 – 33 years later, and it seems to be even worse. Saints words so often go unheeded!!!

 

[MariaChristi]

I was raised as an agnostic, and am relatively new to Catholicism (there’s a lot to learn).
After reading about St. Mary and Her influences in the lives of the Saints and even the laity, how can anyone help but not love Her?
She really is a wonder. I’m a big fan, and doing my best (which ain’t so good) to become a real devotee.

Dear Glomung,

Thanks so much for your reply and I thank God for His grace leading you to Catholicism! Our Mother Mary, given to us by Jesus from His cross, remains our Faithful Mother – I agree with you: “how can anyone help but love Her?”

It is a mystery of grace, it seems to me, that all of us can read the beautiful words of Scripture and hear Jesus say, “Behold your Mother” and yet not everyone is moved to love her standing there at the foot of His Cross. How we need to open our hearts, as the Beloved Disciple John did! He took her into his own life. He learned to love Jesus more through her, as we are all called to do. Jesus gave her to us in His Love for us. We need her!

None of us can do enough to repay God for the gift of Mary; none can repay Mary for her faithfulness to God and to us, but whenever we give all we have, humbly as children do, that is pleasing to God and to Mary. By God’s grace, we can grow in faith, hope and above all charity moment by moment. Mary is our Mother AND our Model. She was Immaculate from her conception and yet she grew in grace, So we, cleansed in Baptism, are called to grow grace upon grace.

Please let us draw courage from the example of our Mother Mary and all the saints who have loved God with their whole hearts and souls and minds and strength. I’m mindful of St. John Paul II’s words repeated so often:

Be not afraid! Open wide the doors of your heart to Christ".

The saints all learned from Mary to follow Jesus totally in love. Her last words recorded in scripture are: “Do whatever He tells you.” How tender a Mother we have! Let us love her as Jesus did, tenderly in return.

 

[multitude]

More words from St. Louis de Montfort from his book True Devotion to Mary.
St. Louis de Montfort:

If they are sometimes heard speaking of devotion to your Mother, it is not for the purpose of promoting it or convincing people of it but only to destroy the abuses made of it. Yet all the while these persons are devoid of piety or genuine devotion to you, for they have no devotion to Mary. They consider the Rosary and the Scapular as devotions suitable only for simple women or ignorant people. After all, they say, we do not need them to be saved. If they come across one who loves our Lady, who says the rosary or shows any devotion towards her, they soon move him to a change of mind and heart. They advise him to say the seven penitential psalms instead of the Rosary, and to show devotion to Jesus instead of to Mary.

St. Louis de Montfort:

Dear Jesus, do these people possess your spirit? Do they please you by acting in this way? Would it please you if we were to make no effort to give pleasure to your Mother because we are afraid of offending you? Does devotion to your holy Mother hinder devotion to you? Does Mary keep for herself any honour we pay her? Is she a rival of yours? Is she a stranger having no kinship with you? Does pleasing her imply displeasing you? Does the gift of oneself to her constitute a deprivation for you? Is love for her a lessening of our love for you? Nevertheless, my dear Master, the majority of learned scholars could not be further from devotion to your Mother, or show more indifference to it even if all I have just said were true.

 

[MariaChristi]

More words from St. Louis de Montfort from his book True Devotion to Mary.

Dear multitude,

Thanks for your reply with the additional quotes form St. Louis de Montfort’s classic work, True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin The paragraphs you quoted do indeed show us the saint’s experience with men and women of his own time who were more like Esau than Jacob who loved his mother Rebecca with a tender Love.

St. Louis calls on Jesus, asking Him (even as we might ask the same today):

Dear Jesus, do these people possess your spirit? Do they please you by acting in this way? Would it please you if we were to make no effort to give pleasure to your Mother because we are afraid of offending you? Does devotion to your holy Mother hinder devotion to you? Does Mary keep for herself any honour we pay her? Is she a rival of yours? Is she a stranger having no kinship with you? Does pleasing her imply displeasing you? Does the gift of oneself to her constitute a deprivation for you? Is love for her a lessening of our love for you? Nevertheless, my dear Master, the majority of learned scholars could not be further from devotion to your Mother, or show more indifference to it even if all I have just said were true.

Those who love Jesus are led to imitate Him and His tender love for Mary. Jacob in the Biblical Narrative is a prefigure of Christ, in whom we have been baptized. We are called to follow Jesus and under Mary’s care to grow as He did in wisdom, age, and grace. (cf Luke 2:52)