November 28 - Saint Catherine Laboure (d. 1876) Mary in the Temple (VIII) God's most tender gaze is upon her She lives almost without making a sound, without being spoken of by the world and without Israel [...] heaven watches her and venerates her as the one whom God caused to be born so as to one day clothe her with a new nature. And this same God, who chose to be born of her, loves her and sees her in this quality
Immaculate Conception” (France, 1858) Life Came Through Mary It is fitting therefore that the holy Fathers see Mary as used by God not merely in a passive way, but as freely cooperating in the work of human [...] Hence not a few of the early Fathers gladly assert in their preaching, "The knot of Eve's disobedience was untied by Mary's obedience; what the virgin Eve bound through her unbelief, the Virgin Mary loosened [...] loosened by her faith." Comparing Mary with Eve, they call her "the Mother of the living," and still more often they say: "death through Eve, life through Mary."
apparition in Lourdes (France, 1858) – Our Lady of Walsingham Mary’s only plan is to let God act "In the sixth month, the Angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth." Let us try to understand [...] so present that he does not need to impose his presence. This is why, with God, the beginnings are often modest: Gabriel came to a village ... Too often, in our faith’s journey, we miss the reality of [...] that is delayed, but we who are no longer waiting for it. In Nazareth, Mary had no other plan than to let God act and to find favor with him, in the praise of his glory. That is why, even though God’s message
" she said. Aren't these the words of a Queen? Aren't these the words of a Mother? See how close she and Heaven are to our spirit? If I want to be like Mother Mary, I must remember that I am dust, that [...] Haut (Hainault, France, 1428) Mary, Our Loving Mother One evening I was on the sun deck getting ready to pray the Liturgy of the Hours. Before beginning prayer, I like to take a few minutes to consider what [...] and His blessings. If I could just be like our Mother Mary... If I could pray like her and be like her. I wanted to be like her in her relationship with our dear Lord. Because she was "one of us," I felt
God, mankind walks with God in Paradise. Reading the Holy Scriptures is equivalent to listening to God who speaks to the heart. It is a dialogue of love that makes our faith grow. Mary found her happiness [...] and in hearing it preached. Mary's greatness lies in her faith. Mary is the model of faith, yet she did not understand everything. Saint Luke comments on Jesus’ words after Mary and Joseph found Him in the [...] that neither Mary nor Joseph "understood this word." Faith illuminates the path of mankind, but it also has an obscure side, the "night of the soul" evoked by St John of the Cross. Father Marie-Joseph Lagrange
the Virgin Mary to defeat "the world conflicts that aim to disperse them, destroy their identity, change their history, turn them into beggars and place them in a position of hostility with their host [...] of Mary On June 9, 2019, the feast of Pentecost, Patriarch Ria, the head of the Maronite Church in Lebanon, renewed the consecration of Lebanon and the Middle East to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, an [...] mention some positive developments in the Middle East, which he perceives as being the benefits of Mary's providential maternal protection: the fact that Iraq did not break out into three states, that Mosul
French school of spirituality Mary’s life passed from silence to silence Our Lady's lot is to be silent and to listen. This is her state, this is her way, this is her life. Hers is a life of silence adoring [...] eternal Word. Seeing with her eyes, on her bosom, in her arms, This same Word, the substantial Word of the Father, Being muted and silenced because of his childhood, She enters into a new silence and is
Virgin Mary The martyrdom of the Virgin Mary is recorded both in Simeon's prophecy and in the story of the Lord's Passion. "This child is here", says the holy old man of the Child Jesus, "as a sign of [...] of contradiction, and you yourself - he is now speaking to Mary - a sword will pierce your soul." Blessed Mother, it is true that a sword pierced your soul. And it was only by piercing your soul that it [...] lack of affection among the pagans' greatest crimes. This was far from being the case with Mary's heart. A Sermon of Abbot Saint Bernard (dom. As., 14-15)
in the form of more sisters from France. Mother Saint Michael, a woman of rare ability and a teacher crowned with success, was running a Catholic boarding school for girls. Although the bishop declined [...] The pope was a prisoner of Napoleon, and it seemed unlikely he would even receive her letter of petition. So Mother Saint Michael prayed, “O most Holy Virgin Mary, if you obtain for me a prompt and favorable [...] of Prompt Succor (Louisiana, USA, 1809) Homage and Veneration to Mary in New Orleans (I) In 1803, the boarding school and orphanage in a New Orleans convent founded by French Ursuline nuns was short on
1751) The world could recover Christ through Mary Bishop Sheen (1), former Auxiliary Bishop of New York (United States), wrote in 1951: “There is Hope and a great Hope, too,” Bishop Sheen emphasized. “The [...] will then perform a miracle so that all may believe.” … Bishop Sheen gave two reasons why God wanted to have his Blessed Mother appear to bring us back to where we needed to be with prayer and penance [...] lost Christ, it may be that through Mary it will recover him.” When at 12 Jesus was lost, Our Lady found him. “Now that he has been lost again, it may be through Mary that the world will recover Christ
