"Where there is a Mother..." - Pope Francis' 1st Mass of 2017

[MariaChristi]

Pope Francis celebrated his first Mass of 2017 in St. Peter’s Basilica. In his homily, Francis spoke on Mary, Mother of God, and stressed that where there is a mother, there is tenderness.

To celebrate Mary as Mother of God and our mother at the beginning of the new year, the Holy Father highlighted, means recalling a certainty that will accompany our days: “we are a people with a Mother; we are not orphans.”

“Mothers,” he said, “are the strongest antidote to our individualistic and egotistic tendencies, to our lack of openness and our indifference. A society without mothers would not only be a cold society, but a society that has lost its heart, lost the ‘feel of home.’” (Underlining is mine)

Full text HERE

 

[patricius79]

How true! Yes, mothers–and especially our Blessed Mother, the Mother of Infinite Goodness–are the antidote to individualism.

If only we would more-and-more deeply become little children, and recognize Mary as our mother, and as the mother of all of us, so that we can see each other and brothers and sisters.

Only through her can the human race find the unity of Jesus Christ.

Mary is all sweetness and truth!

The fountain of her goodness inebriates the thirsty! (St. Bonaventure)

She is mercy itself! (Pope St. Leo)

She is the way to Jesus Christ which has no obstacle! (St. Louis Marie De Montfort)

If we call on her name, we will be refreshed by fountains of spiritual water!

She is all humility and love!

 

[MariaChristi]

How true! Yes, mothers–and especially our Blessed Mother, the Mother of Infinite Goodness–are the antidote to individualism.

If only we would more-and-more deeply become little children, and recognize Mary as our mother, and as the mother of all of us, so that we can see each other and brothers and sisters.

Only through her can the human race find the unity of Jesus Christ.

Mary is all sweetness and truth!

The fountain of her goodness inebriates the thirsty! (St. Bonaventure)

She is mercy itself! (Pope St. Leo)

She is the way to Jesus Christ which has no obstacle! (St. Louis Marie De Montfort)

If we call on her name, we will be refreshed by fountains of spiritual water!

She is all humility and love!

YES, dear patricius, a million times Yes – the saints continue to share with us their own discovery of the gift of Mary to us from Jesus on Calvary. May we continue to learn by God’s Grace, Jesus’ Love for Mary and become imitators of Him in loving and honoring her as He did on earth and as He does now in heaven!

 

[EIF5A]

It’s quite heartbreaking that many Protestants resist the Catholic Church because of Marian devotion.

After centuries of Protestant paranoia, how do we enlighten them…?

 

[MariaChristi]

It’s quite heartbreaking that many Protestants resist the Catholic Church because of Marian devotion.

After centuries of Protestant paranoia, how do we enlighten them…?

Dear EIF5A,

Prayer is our most powerful means of bringing Christ’s light, and then by cooperating with His Grace to live His Truth as Mary lived. When we perceive an opening: to say a word to encourage, or to answer a question, then pray to the Holy Spirit for the wisdom to speak His Truth in love.

Sad to say, not only non Catholics resist; even some Catholics seem to have forgotten the Marian devotion taught by the Catholic Church for centuries and seem to be resisting also.

“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

 

[patricius79]

YES, dear patricius, a million times Yes – the saints continue to share with us their own discovery of the gift of Mary to us from Jesus on Calvary. May we continue to learn by God’s Grace, Jesus’ Love for Mary and become imitators of Him in loving and honoring her as He did on earth and as He does now in heaven!

Yes,my sister, she is so good. I think we’ve been taught in some ways through Protestantism or through ourselves that focusing on Mary somehow distracts from Christ.

But that is not at all how the saints saw it.

Rather, the more we honor our Mother, the the more we honor Jesus.

The Popes have warmly encouraged True Devotion to Mary (by St. Louis De Montfort)

She deserves to be constantly praised.

Mary, our Mother and the Mother of God, you are so patient.

Mary, you are so kind.

Mother, you are so holy.

Mother, you are so merciful.

Thank you for saving us from our sins and individualism!

 

[MariaChristi]

Yes,my sister, she is so good. I think we’ve been taught in some ways through Protestantism or through ourselves that focusing on Mary somehow distracts from Christ.

But that is not at all how the saints saw it.

Rather, the more we honor our Mother, the the more we honor Jesus.

The Popes have warmly encouraged True Devotion to Mary (by St. Louis De Montfort)

She deserves to be constantly praised.

Mary, our Mother and the Mother of God, you are so patient.

Mary, you are so kind.

Mother, you are so holy.

Mother, you are so merciful.

Thank you for saving us from our sins and individualism!

Dear brother Pat,

St. Louis de Montfort says it so well in these paragraphs from his Treatise on True Devotion :

…62 If then we are establishing sound devotion to our Blessed Lady, it is only in order to establish devotion to our Lord more perfectly, by providing a smooth but certain way of reaching Jesus Christ. If devotion to our Lady distracted us from our Lord, we would have to reject it as an illusion of the devil. But this is far from being the case. As I have already shown and will show again later on, this devotion is necessary, simply and solely because it is a way of reaching Jesus perfectly, loving him tenderly, and serving him faithfully.

1. Here I turn to you for a moment, dear Jesus, to complain lovingly to your divine Majesty that the majority of Christians, and even some of the most learned among them, do not recognise the necessary bond that unites you and your Blessed Mother. Lord, you are always with Mary and Mary is always with you. She can never be without you because then she would cease to be what she is. She is so completely transformed into you by grace that she no longer lives, she no longer exists, because you alone, dear Jesus, live and reign in her more perfectly than in all the angels and saints. If we only knew the glory and the love given to you by this wonderful creature, our feelings for you and for her would be far different from those we have now. So intimately is she united to you that it would be easier to separate light from the sun, and heat from the fire. I go further, it would even be easier to separate all the angels and saints from you than Mary; for she loves you ardently, and glorifies you more perfectly than all your other creatures put together…(Underlining is mine)

If anyone reading this thread has never read this little gem of a book, it can be read online HERE

 

[patricius79]

Dear brother Pat,

St. Louis de Montfort says it so well in these paragraphs from his Treatise on True Devotion :

If anyone reading this thread has never read this little gem of a book, it can be read online HERE

Amen!

Yes and here in paragraph 164 and 225 of True Devotion to Mary, St. Louis says that the focus on Mary can never impair union with God; and that whenever we praise her it is God who is praised.
ewtn.com/library/Montfort/TRUEDEVO.HTM#Ch. 6

If only we will die to ours selfish individualism and lack of charity through calling on her life-giving name…

She is so good and helpful!

 

[MariaChristi]

Amen!

Yes and here in paragraph 164 and 225 of True Devotion to Mary, St. Louis says that the focus on Mary can never impair union with God; and that whenever we praise her it is God who is praised.
ewtn.com/library/Montfort/TRUEDEVO.HTM#Ch. 6

If only we will die to ours selfish individualism and lack of charity through calling on her life-giving name…

She is so good and helpful!

Dear Pat,

How profound each paragraph is! It is true that “selfishnesss” can keep us from ever learning how to love as Jesus has loved us. Mary and all the saints grew in God’s Love because they were willing, by God’s Grace, to “empty themselves” of that selfishness which is the spirit of the world. Mary humbly says: “Behold the Handmaid of the Lord…” He is more important than “herself”. She rejoices in Him Who is her Savior.

As St. Louis de Montfort wrote in paragraph 225 of “True Devotion”:

…She is an echo of God, speaking and repeating only God. If you say “Mary” she says “God”. When St. Elizabeth praised Mary calling her blessed because she had believed, Mary, the faithful echo of God, responded with her canticle, “My soul glorifies the Lord.” What Mary did on that day, she does every day. When we praise her, when we love and honour her, when we present anything to her, then God is praised, honoured and loved and receives our gift through Mary and in Mary.

Thanks again, dear brother for your love of Jesus and Mary!

 

[EIF5A]

Part of it seems to be the inability of the human mind to not categorize things as “this versus that”. Two can coexist without contradiction. The limitation is the human mind.

Mary can be venerated without diminishing adoration of God.

Statues and icons of Mary and saints to not detract from God.

They are just reminders of the living Church, and with the whole Church, God is worshipped and praised.

The other predilection seems to be to reduce Jesus’ Humanity. Not consciously (all Christians, Protestants included, celebrate Christmas), but we have a tendency to want to forget His Incarnation in favor of His Divinity — maybe we fear blasphemy so we take one extreme to “hide” His human nature.

Jesus is human, and He has a human Mother. And this Mother is the Mother of all Christians who only wants the best (e.g., salvation and beatific vision) for her children.

By “reducing” Jesus’ Humanity, the role of Mary is consequently ignored and forgotten by Protestants because it’s deemed unnecessary. Jesus is God and Divine — that’s all that’s necessary.

Perhaps, but God chose to become human. Who are we to say, “God, that’s not very God-like. You should’ve done things differently”?

By ignoring Mary, that’s essentially what we’re saying.

 

[MariaChristi]

Part of it seems to be the inability of the human mind to not categorize things as “this versus that”. Two can coexist without contradiction. The limitation is the human mind.

Mary can be venerated without diminishing adoration of God.

Statues and icons of Mary and saints to not detract from God.

They are just reminders of the living Church, and with the whole Church, God is worshipped and praised.

The other predilection seems to be to reduce Jesus’ Humanity. Not consciously (all Christians, Protestants included, celebrate Christmas), but we have a tendency to want to forget His Incarnation in favor of His Divinity — maybe we fear blasphemy so we take one extreme to “hide” His human nature.

Jesus is human, and He has a human Mother. And this Mother is the Mother of all Christians who only wants the best (e.g., salvation and beatific vision) for her children.

By “reducing” Jesus’ Humanity, the role of Mary is consequently ignored and forgotten by Protestants because it’s deemed unnecessary. Jesus is God and Divine — that’s all that’s necessary.

Perhaps, but God chose to become human. Who are we to say, “God, that’s not very God-like. You should’ve done things differently”?

By ignoring Mary, that’s essentially what we’re saying.

Dear EIF5A,

Thanks for your reply and for your love in defending the Chruch’s teachings on Jesus and Mary. The Catechism of the Catholic Church states it so clearly:

487 What the Catholic faith believes about Mary is based on what it believes about Christ, and what it teaches about Mary illumines in turn its faith in Christ.

Jesus was rejected and so Mary, His Mother and His most perfect disciple, is rejected as well, by those who seem not to have ears to hear God’s Truth. Let us continue to pray for all those in most need of His Mercy.

Mary, Mother of the Church, pray with us and for us.
Mary, Star of the New Evangelization, intercede for us, that we may bring Christ as you did.
Jesus, we trust in You!

 

[patricius79]

Dear Pat,

How profound each paragraph is! It is true that “selfishnesss” can keep us from ever learning how to love as Jesus has loved us. Mary and all the saints grew in God’s Love because they were willing, by God’s Grace, to “empty themselves” of that selfishness which is the spirit of the world. Mary humbly says: “Behold the Handmaid of the Lord…” He is more important than “herself”. She rejoices in Him Who is her Savior.

As St. Louis de Montfort wrote in paragraph 225 of “True Devotion”:

Thanks again, dear brother for your love of Jesus and Mary!

My dear sister, MariaChristi,

Yes, Mary’s whole goal is to unite us to Christ. So she can never be an obstacle.

As it says in paragraph 2 of True Devotion, Mary had no inclination deeper than that of wanting to hide herself, and to be treated as being irrelevant.

So to be humble, I must hide myself in the depths of Mary’s spirit, and care for nothing but what she wants.

I am constantly tempted to fall into selfishness. It is calling on Mary which saves me, just as she has already saved me from hell.

Her name is sweeter than we can ever fathom.

Those who keep her name are filled with inner peace.

As St. Ephrem says, “the name of Mary is the key to the gates of Heave, in the hands of those who devoutly invoke it”.

How much our Mother loves us each of, and wants us to love one another!

 

[MariaChristi]

My dear sister, MariaChristi,

Yes, Mary’s whole goal is to unite us to Christ. So she can never be an obstacle.

As it says in paragraph 2 of True Devotion, Mary had no inclination deeper than that of wanting to hide herself, and to be treated as being irrelevant.

So to be humble, I must hide myself in the depths of Mary’s spirit, and care for nothing but what she wants.

I am constantly tempted to fall into selfishness. It is calling on Mary which saves me, just as she has already saved me from hell.

Her name is sweeter than we can ever fathom.

Those who keep her name are filled with inner peace.

As St. Ephrem says, “the name of Mary is the key to the gates of Heave, in the hands of those who devoutly invoke it”.

How much our Mother loves us, and wants us to love one another!

Dear Brother Pat,

We will be fighting against the temptations to be selfish until we die, it seems to me. That is the consequence of original sin: darkened intellects and weakened wills. Nevertheless, God did not leave us “orphans” – He adopted us as His sons and daughters in Jesus, and He enables us to live in Him by grace, growing in Holiness as we cooperated with grace.

We can be encouraged by St. Louis de Montfort who on his death bed was heard to say to the tempter: “It is done! You can tempt me no more! I am in the arms of Jesus and Mary!”

Please let us continue to pray for one another to “Fight the good fight” (as St. Paul wrote). Daily, Legion of Mary members pray the Antiphon: “Who is she that comes forth as the morning rising, fair as the moon, bright as the sun, terrible as an army set in battle array” (from the Song of Songs) before praying Mary’s Magnificat from Luke’s Gospel.

Catholics on earth often forget they are “The Church Militant” – we are called to do battle here. After we die we may be members of “The Church Suffering” in Purgatory or with the saints in “The Church Triumphant in Heaven”. In the end, Her Immaculate Heart will triumph. May we strive always to be worthy sons and daughters of so noble a Mother.

Please let us pray for one another, and for all those in most need of God’s Mercy. Thanks!

 

[patricius79]

Please let us continue to pray for one another to “Fight the good fight” (as St. Paul wrote). Daily, Legion of Mary members pray the Antiphon: “Who is she that comes forth as the morning rising, fair as the moon, bright as the sun, terrible as an army set in battle array” (from the Song of Songs) before praying Mary’s Magnificat from Luke’s Gospel.
…
Please let us pray for one another, and for all those in most need of God’s Mercy. Thanks!

Yes, my sister, we are children of God and thus can do so much to help one another, and all those in need of mercy, if only we invoke Mary and Jesus with trust.

Yes, Mary is the Morning rising, the Fair moon, and the Army of humility.

Her most-holy name is spiritual honey, which sweetens all our crosses and battles.

As St. Louis says, we should put no confidence in ourselves, but rather put all our confidence in our Queen who unites us to Jesus Christ.

Yes, let’s always pray for each other to Jesus through Mary.

 

[MariaChristi]

Yes, my sister, we are children of God and thus can do so much to help one another, and all those in need of mercy, if only we invoke Mary and Jesus with trust.

Yes, Mary is the Morning rising, the Fair moon, and the Army of humility.

Her most-holy name is spiritual honey, which sweetens all our crosses and battles.

As St. Louis says, we should put no confidence in ourselves, but rather put all our confidence in our Queen who unites us to Jesus Christ.

Yes, let’s always pray for each other to Jesus through Mary.

Thanks, dear Brother Pat!

 

[patricius79]

… but God chose to become human. Who are we to say, “God, that’s not very God-like. You should’ve done things differently”?

By ignoring Mary, that’s essentially what we’re saying.

Yes, and as St. Louis Demontfort points out at the beginning of True Devotion to Mary, God has chosen to do the work of redemption through Mary.

So if we really believe in God’s Sovereignty, we can depend on and submit ourselves to Mary just as Jesus Himself did.

Another issue that makes following Jesus’s example difficult is the hyper-masculinity of our culture–which is also behind the difficulty with paradox that you mentioned.

It is also behind the coldness of our culture, which so badly needs the feminine affirmation and warmth of Our Mother, as more and more people are unaffirmed persons.

Mary you are all tenderness. Please enfold us in your Immaculate Heart and protect us in your most-chaste womb.

Blessed Mother, you are the Virgin Most-Merciful. Please wash away our sins and bandage our wounds.

You are so good!

 

[patricius79]

Thanks, dear Brother Pat!

Thanks, sister MariaChristi.

The spirituality of True Devotion to Mary is so beautiful because he teaches how Mary clothes our sinful selves with the unimagined merits of herself and her Divine Son!

How much our world needs to be consoled by this tender, perfect, constantly-empathetic Mother!