"A Virgin conceived, a Virgin bore, and a Virgin she remains."
St. Peter Chrysologus
For Reflection:
Read Paragraphs 499-501 in the Catechism of the Catholic Church. What do these paragraphs teach about Mary's perpetual virginity, the reference to brothers and sisters of Jesus in Sacred Scripture, and Mary's spiritual motherhood?
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"What a wonder is your Mother! The Lord entered her, and became a Servant; the Word entered her, and became silent within her; Thunder entered her, and His voice was still; the Shepherd of all entered her, and He became a Lamb."
St. Ephraem the Syrian
For Reflection:
Mary is a wonder! How does she exemplify the call of the disciple as given to us in this quote?
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"Mary symbolizes the Church, which, espoused to Christ as a virgin, has conceived us of the Holy Spirit, and as a virgin has also given us birth."
St. Isidore of Seville
For Reflection:
According to the quote above, what are two ways Mary symbolizes the Church? Think of at least two more ways in which we see Mary as a symbol or archetype of the Church.
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"Hail to you forever, O virgin mother of God, our unceasing joy. You are the pearl of great price that belongs to the kingdom; the fate of every victim, the living altar of the bread of life. Hail, O treasure of God. Hail, O fount of the Son's love for man."
St. Methodius of Olympus
For Reflection:
Why do you think Mary is our "unceasing joy?" Why do you think she is the "pearl of great price that belongs to the kingdom?" How is Mary "the living altar of the bread of life" and, therefore, "the fate of every victim?" Why do you think she is the "treasure of God" and the fount of the Son's love for man?" In considering all of this, is my appreciation and love of the Virgin Mary deepened? To what extent?
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"Look, my child, at my heart surrounded with thorns, which ungrateful men continuously nail into me with their blasphemies and sins. You, at least, try to console me and tell everyone that those who go to confession on the first Saturday of the month for five months, receive holy communion, say the rosary and keep me company for a quarter of an hour - these I promise to assist at the time of their death with the necessary graces for their salvation."
The Blessed Virgin Mary
(Fatima, August 13, 1917)
For Reflection:
To what extent am I willing to make reparation for sins against the name of Jesus?
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"The knot of Eve's disobedience was untied by Mary's obedience: what the virgin Eve bound through her disbelief, Mary loosened by her faith."
St. Irenaeus
For Reflection:
Do I stand more in the footprints of Eve or the Blessed Mother? How do I show my obedience through faith even when it may be difficult? What is one example from my life that points to this?
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"Death came through Eve; life has come through Mary."
St. Jerome
For Reflection:
One of Mary's titles is the "New Eve." Why do you think this title is appropriate? How has "life" come through Mary?
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"No one may understand the meaning of the Gospel if he has not rested on the breast of Jesus and received Mary from Jesus, to be his mother also."
Origen
For Reflection:
In light of Genesis 3:15, why is it necessary to receive Mary as our mother in order to understand the meaning of the Gospel? See tomorrow's Grace Line for one saint's insight.
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"He willed us to have all through Mary."
St. Bernard of Clairvaux
For Reflection:
In what specific ways have we obtained all through Mary?
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Mary, Virgin and Mother
Oh, Virgin Joy of all the world art thou,
In whose white, fragrant steps the countless throng
On souls elect doth follow God with song:
Creation's Queen, whose bright and holy brow
The multitude of Saints, like stars, endow
With changeful splendors, flashing far and strong:
The Main unshadow'd by the primal wrong:
God's Lily, chosen in His shrine to bow.
All these thy glories are, and still a grace
More high, more dread, and yet more sweet and fair,
Doth bind thy royal brows, O Mary blest.
God called thee Mother; yea, His sacred face
The tender likeness of thine own doth wear.
And thou art ours --- we trust Him for the rest.
E. Seton
For Reflection:
The saintly poet ends with the proclamation that Mary is our mother. Have I accepted her as such? Why or why not? To what extent have I seen her maternal influence in my life?
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