Mary's Faith

[MariaChristi]

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Our “Year of Faith” will soon come to a close on the Feast of Christ the King, this November 24, 2013.

In an address given by Pope Emeritus last December, I found these words to be a blessing; I underlined what blessed me especially concerning the faith of Mary:

… how was Mary able to live this path beside her Son with such a strong faith, even in the moments of darkness, without losing full trust in the action of God? There is an underlying attitude that Mary assumes in the face of what happens in her life. At the Annunciation she is disturbed by hearing the angel’s words - it is the fear a person feels when touched by the closeness of God - but it is not the attitude of those who are afraid in front of what God may ask. Mary reflects, she ponders the meaning of this greeting (cf. Lk 1:29). The Greek word used in the Gospel to define this “reflection”, “dielogizeto”, evokes the root of the word “dialogue.” This means that Mary comes into intimate dialogue with the Word of God that has been announced, she does not consider it superficially, but pauses, she lets it her penetrate her mind and her heart to understand what the Lord wants from her, the announcement’s meaning. We find another hint of Mary’s interior attitude in front of the action of God, again in the Gospel of St. Luke, at the time of the birth of Jesus, after the adoration of the shepherds. Luke affirms that Mary “treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart” (Lk 2:19), in Greek the term is symballon, we could say that She “held together”, “put together” in her heart all the events that were happening; she placed each single element, every word, every fact within the whole and compared it, guarded it, recognizing that everything comes from the will of God. Mary does not stop at a first superficial understanding of what happens in her life, but is able to look deeper, she allows herself to be questioned by the events, processes them, discerns them, and gains that understanding that only faith can provide. It is the profound humility of the obedient faith of Mary, who welcomes into herself even what she does not understand of the action of God, leaving it to God to open her mind and heart. “Blessed is she who believed in the word of the Lord”(Lk 1:45), exclaims her relative Elizabeth. It is precisely because of this faith that all generations will call her blessed.

Dear friends; the Solemnity of the Nativity of the Lord which we will soon celebrate, invites us to live this same humility and obedience of faith. The glory of God is not manifested in the triumph and power of a king, it does not shine in a famous city, in a sumptuous palace, but dwells in the womb of a virgin, it reveals itself in the poverty of a child. The omnipotence of God, also in our lives, acts with the force, often silent, of the truth and of love. Faith tells us, then, that the defenseless power of that Child in the end overcomes the noise of the powers of the world.

The month of September has presented us with several feasts of Mary to help us obey the words of Jesus from the Cross: “Behold your Mother” and to do as John the beloved apostle did, taking her into our lives. October, the Month of the Rosary, gives us more opportunities. By God’s Grace may we come to know the gift of Mary given to us by God, that we may follow Jesus as she did.

 

[Glacies]

Understandably the faith of the Blessed Virgin Mary is very reflective, as is the Holy Rosary where the events of the Holy Scriptures are meditated upon one by one. Apparently the method of praying the Holy Rosary itself teaches us about Our Lady, and not only the prayers and Mysteries involved. Many of the Mysteries come from the Gospel of St. Luke, who is believed to have been the first icon painter, which are a very meditative devotion as well.

September and October remind of the Catholic dedication of each month to a specific spiritual topic. According to one listing we are blessed with five directly Marian months:

• January to the Holy Name of Jesus,
• February to the Holy Family,
• March to St. Joseph
• April to the Holy Spirit,
• May to the Blessed Virgin Mary,
• June to the Sacred Heart,
• July to the Precious Blood,
• August to the Immaculate Heart,
• September to Our Lady of Sorrows,
• October to the Holy Rosary,
• November to the Souls in Purgatory, and
• December to the Immaculate Conception.

 

[MariaChristi]

Understandably the faith of the Blessed Virgin Mary is very reflective, as is the Holy Rosary where the events of the Holy Scriptures are meditated upon one by one. Apparently the method of praying the Holy Rosary itself teaches us about Our Lady, and not only the prayers and Mysteries involved. Many of the Mysteries come from the Gospel of St. Luke, who is believed to have been the first icon painter, which are a very meditative devotion as well.

September and October remind of the Catholic dedication of each month to a specific spiritual topic. According to one listing we are blessed with five directly Marian months:

• January to the Holy Name of Jesus,
• February to the Holy Family,
• March to St. Joseph
• April to the Holy Spirit,
• May to the Blessed Virgin Mary,
• June to the Sacred Heart,
• July to the Precious Blood,
• August to the Immaculate Heart,
• September to Our Lady of Sorrows,
• October to the Holy Rosary,
• November to the Souls in Purgatory, and
• December to the Immaculate Conception.

Dear Glacies,

Thanks for your reply. It can be good to focus on monthly themes, as you have listed, in our efforts to grow in Faith, Hope and above all Charity. We need both attention and devotion in our prayer.

However, I think Pope Emeritus (Benedict XVI) in the excerpt I posted on Mary’s Faith is inviting us to go deeper into our own interior dispositions. Our devotion to Mary and ultimately to Jesus and the Holy Trinity needs to be, more than most of us seem willing to pursue, with God’s Grace.

What struck me especially was the Pope’s call away from superficiality:

… Mary does not stop at a first superficial understanding of what happens in her life, but is able to look deeper, she allows herself to be questioned by the events, processes them, discerns them, and gains that understanding that only faith can provide. It is the profound humility of the obedient faith of Mary, who welcomes into herself even what she does not understand of the action of God, leaving it to God to open her mind and heart. "

 

[Glacies]

Monthly, weekly and other time-oriented devotions are also a good part of the continual process of giving more from our life to God. Like Pope St. Pius X said: Instaure Omnia in Christo. In fact time has been called, after grace, the greatest of gifts God bestows us.

Spiritual understanding is truly an important thing. Many Saints of God like St. Athanasius, St. John Chrysostom and St. Augustine have praised the Creation as a teacher of spiritual realities, as their eyes were illuminated, like those of the Blessed Virgin, to see a deeper meaning in all things. In addition to the Book of Nature, this obviously applies to the Holy Scriptures also. There are really wondrous things to see there, like all the Prefigures of Christ in the Old Testament, and for example discerning the Seven Sacraments along the verses of the Our Father. A good example is the commentary compiled by St. Thomas Aquinas, Catena Aurea. Who would see a difference in that whether Our Lord spoke while sitting or standing in the Holy Gospels? The Church Fathers did, as advanced in spiritual matters they were.

At present the deepest levels of spiritual life are probably unfathomable to many, as people have neither seen, heard or read about them. St. Gerard Majella, who was visited by Our Lady before his death, wrote that we should put aside all earthly attachment in order to belong wholly to God. The more you give the more you receive, and the Saint knew this applies with the Lord very well.

 

[MariaChristi]

Monthly, weekly and other time-oriented devotions are also a good part of the continual process of giving more from our life to God. Like Pope St. Pius X said: Instaure Omnia in Christo. In fact time has been called, after grace, the greatest of gifts God bestows us.

Spiritual understanding is truly an important thing. Many Saints of God like St. Athanasius, St. John Chrysostom and St. Augustine have praised the Creation as a teacher of spiritual realities, as their eyes were illuminated, like those of the Blessed Virgin, to see a deeper meaning in all things. In addition to the Book of Nature, this obviously applies to the Holy Scriptures also. There are really wondrous things to see there, like all the Prefigures of Christ in the Old Testament, and for example discerning the Seven Sacraments along the verses of the Our Father. A good example is the commentary compiled by St. Thomas Aquinas, Catena Aurea. Who would see a difference in that whether Our Lord spoke while sitting or standing in the Holy Gospels? The Church Fathers did, as advanced in spiritual matters they were.

At present the deepest levels of spiritual life are probably unfathomable to many, as people have neither seen, heard or read about them. St. Gerard Majella, who was visited by Our Lady before his death, wrote that we should put aside all earthly attachment in order to belong wholly to God. The more you give the more you receive, and the Saint knew this applies with the Lord very well.

Dear Glacies,

Thanks for you second reply. Yes, I agree with all you have said and find it all compatible with the quote I posted on “Mary’s Faith” from Pope Emeritus (Benedict XVI).

God willing, we will soon be entering the Month of October, the Month of the Rosary. What an opportune time for all of us to renew our devotion to Mary, our Mother and Queen of the Rosary! Let us, by God’s Grace, take time for deeper devotion and attention to praying this beautiful prayer, meditating on all the Mysteries in the lives of Jesus and Mary, applying them to our lives as well. May we ever draw closer to Him through Mary.