"May the Virgin Mary...help us...shrink from pride and vanity..." Pope Francis

[MariaChristi]

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

In his Angelus Address, referring to today’s Gospel, the Pope closes with a prayer to our humble Mother:

…We, disciples of Jesus, should not seek titles of honor, of authority or of supremacy. I tell you that it hurts me personally to see persons that live, psychologically, running behind the vanity of honors. We, disciples of Jesus, must not do this, because, among us, there must be a simple and fraternal attitude. We are all brothers and in no way must we overpower others, and look down on them. No. We are all brothers. If we have received qualities from the celestial Father, we must put them at the service of brothers, and not take advantage of them for our personal satisfaction and interest. We must not consider ourselves superior to others; modesty is essential for an existence that wishes to be in conformity with the teaching of Jesus, who was meek and humble of heart, and who came not to be served but to serve.

May the Virgin Mary, “humble and higher than any creature” (Dante, Paradise, XXXIII, 2), help us, with her maternal intercession, to shrink from pride and vanity, and to be meek and docile to the love that comes from God, for the service of our brothers and for their joy, which will also be ours. (Full Address may be read HERE)

Please let us continue to pray for Mary’s intercession for the whole Church – Clergy and People – from the Pope to the least of the brethren, that we may learn from Jesus as Mary did, pondering all He said and did. By His Grace may we learn to be meek and humble of heart.