"How welcome to Jesus Christ, the Father of the world to come, is a child perfumed with the fragrance of Mary!"

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MariaChristi

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Dear Brothers and Sisters,

What encouragement St. Louis continues to give us from his treatise on "True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin"
  1. The fourth good office our Lady performs for her children and faithful servants is to defend and protect them against their enemies. By her care and ingenuity Rebecca delivered Jacob from all dangers that beset him and particularly from dying at the hands of his brother, as he apparently would have done, since Esau hated and envied him just as Cain hated his brother Abel.
Mary, the beloved Mother of chosen souls, shelters them under her protecting wings as a hen does her chicks. She speaks to them, coming down to their level and accommodating herself to all their weaknesses. To ensure their safety from the hawk and vulture, she becomes their escort, surrounding them as an army in battle array. Could anyone surrounded by a well-ordered army of say a hundred thousand men fear his enemies? No, and still less would a faithful servant of Mary, protected on all sides by her imperial forces, fear his enemy. This powerful Queen of heaven would sooner dispatch millions of angels to help one of her servants than have it said that a single faithful and trusting servant of hers had fallen victim to the malice, number and power of his enemies.
  1. Finally, the fifth and greatest service which this loving Mother renders her faithful followers is to intercede for them with her Son. She appeases Him with her prayers, brings her servants into closer union with Him and maintains that union.
Rebecca made Jacob approach the bed of his father. His father touched him, embraced him and even joyfully kissed him after having satisfied his hunger with the well-prepared dishes which Jacob had brought him. Then inhaling most joyfully the exquisite perfume of his garments, he cried: “Behold the fragrance of my son is as the fragrance of a field of plenty which the Lord has blessed.” The fragrance of this rich field which so captivated the heart of the father, is none other than the fragrance of the merits and virtues of Mary who is the plentiful field of grace in which God the Father has sown the grain of wheat of the elect, His only Son.

How welcome to Jesus Christ, the Father of the world to come, is a child perfumed with the fragrance of Mary! How readily and how intimately does He unite himself to that child! But this we have already shown at length.
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Holy Spirit, thank You for the Wisdom You’ve given St. Louis de Montfort for the Church!
 
I appreciate the wisdom of St.Louis de Montfort from the depth of his words!
 
Comparing Esau and Jacob to Cain and Abel? Hmmm…

Of Esau and Jacob…

In a way, Esau’s story is kind of a sad one, since Jacob was probably a bit too tricky.

The first born always suffers the harder position because the parents make mistakes, as they are only just learning what they are doing; and, then, when the second child comes along, the second child tends to upstage the first because of their age, as well as normally having the benefit of three (or more) older family members to learn from, including two (now more experienced) parents.

Having to contend with all that… Jacob was probably well-fit to wrestle with the angel, although he still ended up with a broken hip… as I’ve been contemplating it lately, I think the angel might have broken Jacob’s hip as a way to humble him… St Louis call’s Jacob “a man of deception”, which is something I’ve always wondered about, since it is true… He probably needed to be subdued somehow…

How could Rebecca have conscionably abetted Jacob in usurping Isaac’s blessing upon Esau? It was Isaac’s blessing to give, and it was intended for Esau. In its strictest sense, a blessing is really only something God can grant, but - despite all the errors in wardrobe - it was allowed… so… why? Somehow it was within the Wisdom of God to allow the deceit…

But here is where Esau and Jacob are completely different than Cain and Abel…

Cain killed his younger brother; and Cain lived a slave because of it. But, in God’s plan, Esau and Jacob reconciled, and they reconciled in a most wonderful way.

As for Rebecca, unlike Eve, Rebecca did assist in this process, although I still wonder why it was important she help Jacob trick Isaac. We can’t really know, of course. It was so long ago, and families have their inner workings according to what’s right. But it still seems worthy of contemplation.

Having said all of that… I chalk up the discrepancies to Old Testament error… by “error” I mean “incompleteness” - there was simply a lot they did not know, as we do know in the New Testament, in which we see the completeness and fulfillment of God’s will in Jesus and Mary…

I really like the Montfortian passages quoted above. They help to explain so much about how Mary speaks to Jesus for us in such a loving and consoling manner; as in a way only a Mother could speak to their child. It answers so many questions as to how we sinners can petition her graces, complaints which God hears anyway, and yet which through turning to her we can still find redemption in Christ.
 
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Dear Dorothy,

Thanks so much for your reply. Yes, I also appreciate the depth of St. Louis de Montfort’s words. If you have never read his book on “The love of Eternal Wisdom” you may be blessed by that book also. I’ve read them both (more than once) and I believe God inspired St Louis in writing both books. It seems to me that “The Love of Eternal Wisdom” led de Montfort to write his treatise on “True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin.”

Both books have been great blessings to me and helped me also to grow in my love for Holy Scripture as well as my love for Jesus through Mary. 🙂
 
I get a lot out of great spiritual books, so I will put “The Love of Eternal Wisdom” by St. Louis de Montfort on my list.
 
Maybe you can share it with others on CAF? 🙂 It certainly blessed me – especially after reading it the second time!
 
It is ordered. I should be getting it in about ten days. Glad you brought up the title!
 
Dear William,

Thanks for your heart and for your reply. Perhaps you have not pondered the story of Jacob and Esau enough. Remember Esau had so little regard for his birthright , he was willing to exchange it merely for something to eat.

Do you really want to blame Esau’s conduct on his parents? It is important to try and “see” – by Faith – from God’s perspective, when we read the Scriptures, it seems to me. It is really important to Listen to what God says in His Word, and not rely too much on our own thoughts or experiences in trying to understand what God is revealing in His Holy Word.

Cain’s offering was not received and so he became angry and killed his younger brother. God gave us free will and so He allows us to make the choices we make. The Original Sin had terrible consequences for all of us, for we all inherit that propensity to sin, but by God’s Grace won for us by Jesus we can be born again, by Baptism, out of Adam and into Christ. We need to keep Listening in order to hear God’s Truth – pondering the mysteries of the Old Testament we can begin seeing by Supernatural Faith, the fulfillment of the Old in the New. 🙂

Ah yes, St. Louis de Montfort pondered the Scriptures and prayed for God’s Gift of Wisdom in writing his book, “The Love of Eternal Wisdom”. It seems to me that book led him to write his Treatise on “True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin”. Totus Tuus!
 
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Good for you, Dorothy! May you be blessed abundantly in reading and hearing God’s truth. May you bless others in sharing what God gave to St. Louis de Montfort for His Church! 🙂
 
Dear Stephie,

Thanks for your “faithful heart” and for your love of Jesus through Mary!
 
Dear Stephie and Greenfields,

Thanks so much for your “hearts”, letting us know you appreciated the words of St. Louis de Montfort. 🙂
 
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