Nov. 21 - Presentation of the child Mary in the Temple

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MariaChristi

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Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Today is the Memorial of Mary our Mother being presented in the Temple by her parents.

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This Memorial is a sweet one – in “seeing” Mary as a child mounting the steps of the Temple, being brought to the Lord 's House by her parents.

“And behold, Joachim and Anna, generously sacrificing to God what was dearest to them on earth, set out from Nazareth, carrying by turns, in their arms, their beloved little daughter, who could not walk so great a distance as was that from Nazareth to Jerusalem, a journey, as several authors assert, of eighty miles. They thus went on their way, accompanied by only a few of their relations, but by hosts of angels, as St. George of Nicomedia asserts, who attended and ministered to the immaculate Virgin, as she went to dedicate herself to the Divine Majesty. How beautiful are thy steps, oh prince’s daughter! “Quam pulchri sunt gressus tui, filia principis” . Oh, how beautiful, how pleasing to God, as the angels sung, are thy steps, as thou goest to offer thyself to Him, oh great and chosen daughter of our common Lord! " ( excerpt is from “The Glories of Mary” by Saint Alphonsus Maria de Liguori (1696-1787), Doctor of the Church)

Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of Your Faithful. Kindke in us the Fire of Your Love!
 
Dear Mark and aroosi,

Thank you both for your “hearts”, which testify to your love for Jesus through Mary. I’m sure St. Louis de Montfort would not mind my putting this Memorial on Catholic Answers rather than words from his treatise on “True Devotion” today.

The proverb proves true: "One look is worth a thousand words! Looking at this picture and the artist’s depiction of Mary’s eagerness to give herself totally to the Lord increases in many of us, the desire to continue giving ourselves totally through Mary to the Lord. Mary almost looks as if she is running to enter the temple, so intense is her willingness to give herself to God.

By God’s Grace may we – today, give ourselves totally to Jesus through Mary, and with Jesus give ourselves to the Father by the power of the Holy Spirit. Totus Tuus!
 
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Mary is the Trinity’s most cherished friend​

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The Presentation of Mary in the Temple gives us several insights about what Marian devotion is all about. The first has to do with the nature of the Virgin’s relationship with God. Mary has always given this relationship priority in her life. This is the reason for her virginity. Mary is a virgin because she preferred God to anything else. Her life in the Temple increased her intimacy with the Most High to the point that she became the perfect incarnation of Zion, that is to say, the helper that God chose for himself to accomplish his plan of redemption. Because before becoming the Mother of the Messiah, Mary was the Trinity’s most cherished friend… Indeed, she later became the Mother of the Incarnate Son, but also the Mother of the members of the Church! This is a consoling mystery for those who do not have children, but are called by God to a spiritual fruitfulness, just as important, if not more so, than biological reproduction. The Presentation of the Virgin Mary in the Temple shows us that we lose nothing by placing God first!

The second teaching concerns the nature of Marian devotion. Our love for Mary should not be dictated primarily by superficial feelings or natural affections, but rather it should be rooted in the clear vision of how God considers His beloved daughter. The existence of Our Lady was God’s desire. God created the world in preparation for Christ, but also in preparation for Mary, without whom the second Person of the Trinity would not have become incarnate. It is therefore by contemplating her with the eyes of the Trinity that we will understand her best. Our filial attachment towards Mary needs to be enlightened by dogma. It is good to love the Virgin Mary. It is even better to love her by studying the reasons why God gave her such a high place in His plan of salvation.

Jean Michel Castaing

Aleteia

Read more on mariedenazareth.com :

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now, and at the hour of our death. Amen.
 
Dear AnaCarolina7,

Thanks for your sweet reply. What beautiful words in Latin, and in every language, reminding us of the Angel Gabriel’s message to Mary, and the Church’s plea to Mary, Mother of God to pray forus now and at the hour of our death! Amen.
 
There is a Novena out there to niña Mary. So sweet. She is always our Mother. How fortunate we are.
 
She knew how to get help from Jesus and others’ too.
But thats not why we love her. We feel her in our hearts. She loves us. All of us. And wants us as Her Children in heaven.

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Yes, dear sister, our Mother Mary is the sweetest of all the Mothers God created and we do well to ponder often Jesus’ words from His Cross to John the Beloved Disciple and to all of us:
“Behold your Mother”
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Yes and we should listen.
Always in my heart Mary please never leave me.
 
Dear hazcompat,

Thanks for your excerpt and the lovely picture of the Immaculate Heart of Mary in the hands of one of her children.

I’m not familiar with the writer of the excerpt. I tried to find more information on him and/or his writing, using the internet but to no avail. While I am always happy to read the words of those who love and honor Mary, I was wondering about this writer’s emphasis in the second paragraph, which seemed to me to put more emphasis on our own efforts rather than on our dependence upon God’s Grace.

We can do nothing without Him (cf Jn 15: 5). The writer may be taking this for granted but it seems to me we need to be more aware of the Supernatural gifts given to us in Baptism. There is a real difference between “natural” faith, hope and love (charity) and Supernatural Faith, Hope and Love (sharing Divine Charity).
 
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The Entrance of the Theotokos Into the Temple is Solemn for us Byzantine Catholics. (Nov 21, pre-fest on the 20th and final day is the 25th)

Troparion of the Entrance - Tone 4
To - day is the prel - ude of God’s be - nev - o - lence
and the her - ald of our sal - va - tion;
for the Vir - gin openly appears in the tem - ple of God
and fore - tells Christ to all.
Let us al - so with full voice ex - claim to her:
Re - joice, fulfillment of the Cre - a - tor’s plan.
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At Matins we sing the Katavasia (Tone 1):
Christ is born: glor - i - fy him.
Christ from the heav - ens:
go out to wel - come him.
Christ on earth: ex - alt him.
All the earth, sing to the Lord,
and praise him with joy, O peo - ples,
for he is glo - ri - fied.
Click to expand...
 
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Dear Vico,

Thanks so much for the beautiful Entrance Prayer and the words sung at Matins in honor of Mary’s Presentation in the Temple.

The few Eastern Rite Liturgies I’ve attended were beautiful and so reverent – they remain in my memory as special blessings!

Totus tuus! Blessings on today’s Feast of Christ the King!
 
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