"...Mary is the accepted Cross..."

[MariaChristi]

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

In my thread on “God shelters us in Himself…He bears us in Himself” as quoted in the book , “Mary the Church at the Source,” Cardinal Ratzinger wrote about the image of the Pieta. He stated that Mary is the compassio of God, displayed in a human being who has let herself be drawn wholly into God’s mystery. I want to continue with the very next sentence, continuing on pp. 77 on to p.78 of this book.

It is because life is at all times suffering that the image of the suffering Mother, the image of “the womb” of God, is of such importance for Christianity.

The Pieta completes the picture of the Cross, because Mary is the accepted Cross, the Cross communicating itself in love, the Cross that now allows us to experience in her compassion the compassion of God. In this way the Mother’s affliction is Easter affliction, which already inaugurates the transformation of death into the redemptive being-with of love. Only apparently have we distanced ourselves from the “rejoice” with which the narrative of Mary begins.

For the joy announced to her is not the banal joy clung to in forgetfulness of the abysses of our being and so condemned to plunge into the void. It is the real joy that gives courage to venture the exodus of love into the burning holiness of God. It is the true joy that pain does not destroy but first brings into maturity. Only the joy that stands the test of pain and is stronger than affliction is authentic.

The very last sentence in the quote above was a powerful one for me and I hope it is for all who read this thread. There is so much to ponder, when by God’s Grace we hear the words of Jesus deeply: “Behold your Mother”. May the Holy Spirit inflame our hearts with the Fire of His Love, and bring us into all Truth. May He fill us as He filled Mary with Jesus.

“O Jesus, living in Mary, come and live in Your servants, in the Spirit of Your holiness, in the fullness of Your power, in the perfection of Your ways, in the truth of Your virtues, in the communion of Your mysteries. Rule over every adverse power, in your Spirit, for the glory of the Father. Amen.” (Prayer of Fr. Olier)

 

[StephieNorthCo]

I agree with your assessment!

It hits home for me personally. I lost my spouse to cancer leaving me as sole parent to a 15 year old. I didn’t realize until many, many years later the truth and joy that would bring… all I could think of at the time was the pain.

 

[patricius79]

From the Admirable Heart of Mary by St. John Eudes:

Now we know that the Mother of Jesus had no sentiments other than those of her Son, and she
realized that nothing in the world can give greater glory and honor to God than sufferings and
humiliations endured for the sake of His love. Hence, just as her Son calls His ignominious and most
bitter Passion His glory and joy, so did she find her greatest glory and most perfect joy in supreme
humiliation and the most poignant sorrows, for her honor and happiness consisted in the things which
give the greatest honor to God and please Him best.

We should not believe, however, that this contentment of bets prevented her from suffering.
Not in the least, for it is certain that no one on earth, after her beloved Son, suffered as much as she.
But in Christ, joys and sorrows were joined together in such fashion that the joys possessing the
superior part of His soul did not destroy the sorrows that ruled the inferior part. So when the Mother
of Jesus was crucified and reviled with her Son, the bitter anguish and inconceivable torments she
endured in her senses and in the inferior part of her soul did not prevent her from enjoying in her
spirit and in her Heart, a profound peace and an unutterable contentment, for she knew that such was
God’s will and His good pleasure.
Full text of "The Admirable Heart Of Mary by St John Eudes"

 

[MariaChristi]

Dear Stephie,

Thanks so much for sharing your own experience, with us. You are certainly not alone in that experience of pain. It can fill us so completely, all we can think about is the pain That is, until - and only if - God enables us by His Grace to make room for Him to work in us something more beautiful than we can adequately describe. I underlined the very last sentence in my own copy of the book: “Only the joy that stands the test of pain and is stronger than affliction is authentic”.

Pope Emeritus has a special gift, it has seemed to me over the years, to be able to say the most profound Truth, in simple words. It can only be the fruit of his interior life of prayer and study of Scripture to be able to speak God’s Truth so well.

Please let us continue to pray for one another and for all God’s sons and daughters. May your son be blessed in countless ways with you his dear Mother, by our Eternal Father, and may your spouse be held in the crossing of Mary’s arms forever, interceding with Mary for you and your son with her Son Jesus before our Heavenly Father.

 

[MariaChristi]

Thanks patricius, for the words from St. John Eudes, who received many graces in prayerfully listening to Jesus in Scripture as well as listening to the Holy Spirit teaching him within. St. John Eudes pondered God’s Word as Mary did in her Heart. The more he prayed and listened, the more God revealed His Heart and the Heart of His Mother to this Saint – who in turn shares what he learned with the Church.

Please let us continue to pray for and with one another for the Church and for all those in most need of God’s Mercy.

 

[MariaChristi]

Dear VanitasVanitatum, patricius and Stephie,

Thank you all for your “faithful hearts”, and your love for Jesus through Mary which promts you to read and appreciate what the Lord provides.