1. For she is a vapor of the power of God, and a certain pure emanation of the glory of the Almighty God: and therefore no defiled thing cometh into her. For she is the brightness of Eternal Light, and the unspotted mirror of God's Majesty, and the image of His Goodness.
-Wisdom VIII, 25, 26.
2. We deem indeed only fitting that all the faithful in Christ should give thanks and praise to Almighty God for the marvelous Conception of the Immaculate Virgin, should celebrate and take part in the Masses and other Offices appointed for that purpose, and also strive to gain indulgences and the remission of their sins . . .
-Pope Sixtus IV (O.M.C.) (+1484): Constitution Cum prae excelsa, 28 February 1476.
3. This devotion and homage toward the Mother of God was again increased and propagated . . . so that the universities having adopted this pious belief that she was conceived without sin, already nearly all Catholics have embraced it.
-Pope Alexander VII (1655-1667): Constitution Solicitude omnium ecclesiarum, published 1661.
4. In honor of the Holy and Undivided Trinity, to give glory and due honor to the Virgin Mother of God, for the exaltation of the Catholic faith and the increase of Christian religion, by the authority of Our Lord Jesus Christ, of the blessed Apostles Peter and Paul, and by Our own, We pronounce and define that the doctrine which states that the Most Blessed Virgin Mary was, in the first instant of her conception, by the singular grace and privilege of God, in view of the merits of Jesus Christ the Savior of the human race, preserved immune from all stain of original sin, has revealed by God and is therefore to be firmly and unswervingly believed by all the faithful. Wherefore if any should presume - which God avert - to think otherwise in their hearts than We have defined, let them know and understand that they stand condemned by their own judgment, that they have made shipwreck of the faith, have fallen away from the unity of the Church, and that in consequence they automatically fall under the canonical penalties if they venture to make known by word or writing or in any other outward way what they think in their hears.
-Pope Pius IX (1846-1878): Constitution Ineffabilis Deus, 8 December, 1854 (Acta Pii IX, i , 616).
5. If anyone says that man once justified can during his whole life avoid all sins, even venial ones, as the Church holds that the Blessed Virgin did by special privilege of God, let him be anathema.
-Council of Trent, Session VI, can. xx ii.
6. The Immaculate Conception of the glorious ever-Virgin Mary, Mother of God, whom on this day Pope Pius IX solemnly defined to have been by a singular privilege of God preserved free from all stain of original sin.
-Roman Martyrology, 8 December.
7. God, by a singular Providence, caused the Most Holy Virgin to be as perfectly pure from the very first moment of her existence, as it was fitting that she should be, who was to be the worthy Mother of God.
-Greek Menology, 25 March.
8. Our most holy, immaculate, and most glorious Lady, Mother of God and ever-Virgin Mary.
-Protoevangelium of Saint James (c. A.D. 170).
9. All blameless, more to be honored than the Cherubim, incomparably more glorious than the Seraphim.
-Liturgy of Saint James the Apostle.
10. Mary was altogether sinless.
-Liturgy of Saint John Chrysostom.
11. It was meet that the God of all purity should spring from the greatest purity, from the most pure bosom.
-Saint Irenaeus (+ c. 202), cited by Fr. Kane in School of Mary, ch. ii, p. 14.
12. She was not contaminated by the venomous breath of the serpent.
-Origen (+ c. 253): In Div., hom. i.
13. The only daughter of life, the tabernacle most holy, not made by hands of man, preserved incorrupt, and blessed from the head to the feet.
-Saint Dionysius of Alexandria (+ 265), quoted by Chandlery.
14. The new Eve, and the Mother of Life.
-Saint Athanasius, Doctor of the Church (+ 373): In Annunt.
15. Of a truth O Lord, Thou and Thy Mother are they alone who are in every way wholly fair; for in Thee, O Lord, there is no spot, in Thy Mother no stain.
-Saint Ephraem of Edessa, Deacon, Doctor of the Church (+ c. 373): Carmina Nisibena, XXVII, 8 (ed. Brickell, pp. 122-3).
16. She was as innocent as Eve before her fall, a Virgin most estranged from every stain of sin, more holy than the Seraphim, the sealed fountain of the Holy Ghost, the pure seed of God, ever in body and in mind intact and immaculate.
-Saint Ephraem of Edessa supra: Carmina Nisibena.
17. Most holy Lady, Mother of God, alone most pure in soul and body, alone exceeding all perfection of purity . . . alone made in thy entirety the home of all the graces of the Most Holy Spirit, and hence exceeding beyond all compare even the angelic virtues in purity and sanctity of soul and body . . . my Lady most holy, all pure, all immaculate, all stainless, all undefiled, all incorrupt, all inviolate . . . spotless robe of Him Who clothes Himself with light as with a garment . . . flower unfading, purple woven by God, alone most immaculate.
- Saint Ephraem of Edessa supra: Precationes ad Deiparam, in Opp. Graec. Lat., III, 524-537.
18. She was immaculate, and remote from all stain of sin.
- Saint Ephraem of Edessa supra: Orat. ad Deiparam.
19. Hers was a purity without shadow.
-Saint Gregory of Nyssa (+ c. 395).
20. Receive me not from Sarah, but from Mary; that it may be an uncorrupted Virgin, a Virgin free by grace from every stain of sin.
-Saint Ambrose, Doctor of the Church (+ 397): in Ps. CXVIII, s. 22.
21. She was a Virgin not in body only, but in mind also; the purity of her thoughts had been deflowered by no evil suggestion . . . So pure was Blessed Mary that she was chosen to be the Mother of the Lord; God made her whom He had chosen, and chose of her of whom He would be made.
-Saint Ambrose, Bp. of Milan, supra.
22. He Who formed the first virgin (Eve) without deformity, also made the second Virgin (Mary) without spot or stain.
-Saint Amphilochius of Iconic (+ c. 400): In S. Deip. et Sim.
Thursday, August 6, 2015
Wednesday, January 21, 2015
After Christ, the best defense against the Devil
The chief remedy against the Devil is to have recourse to the Virgin Mary.
- St. John of Avila (+ 1569)
O my sovereign Lady, delight of my soul, heavenly dew quenching my burning thirst, liquid flowing from God into my parched heart, bright light in the midst of my soul's darkness, guide of my poor judgment, strength of my weakness, covering of my nudity, treasure of my poverty, remedy for incurable wounds, wiper away of tears, end of sighs, reverser of misfortunes, lightener of grief, loosener of my bonds, my hope of salvation, listen to my prayers, have mercy on my sighs, and reject not my lamentations; have mercy on me, and may my tears move thee; be moved by thine own feeling of compassion towards me, who art the Mother of God, the lover of men, hear and grant my prayers, fulfill my petition.
-St. Germanus
- St. John of Avila (+ 1569)
O my sovereign Lady, delight of my soul, heavenly dew quenching my burning thirst, liquid flowing from God into my parched heart, bright light in the midst of my soul's darkness, guide of my poor judgment, strength of my weakness, covering of my nudity, treasure of my poverty, remedy for incurable wounds, wiper away of tears, end of sighs, reverser of misfortunes, lightener of grief, loosener of my bonds, my hope of salvation, listen to my prayers, have mercy on my sighs, and reject not my lamentations; have mercy on me, and may my tears move thee; be moved by thine own feeling of compassion towards me, who art the Mother of God, the lover of men, hear and grant my prayers, fulfill my petition.
-St. Germanus
Tuesday, January 13, 2015
Praise of the Mother of God from Maximus the Confessor, 7th century
Behold, what mind will fathom, or what tongue will express, or what master scribe's hand will write the innumerable multitude of the graces and benevolences of the holy and ever-virgin Theotokos, which she manifested and manifests from day to day among the human race?
She is the ardent intercessor with her son, Christ God, for all those who entreat her.
She is the calm harbor of all those buffeted by waves, who rescues them from spiritual and fleshy waves.
She is the guide on the way of life for all who have gone astray.
She is the one who seeks and converts those who are lost.
She is the help and support of those who are afflicted.
She is the intercessor and mediator of those who are penitent.
And I will say even more than the above:
She is the resurrection of the fallen Adam.
She is the destruction of Eve's tears.
She is the comforter of those who mourn.
She is the throne of the king, who bears the one who bears all.
She is the one who renews the old world.
She is the ladder that reaches to heaven, by which God descended to the earth.
She is the bridge that leads from earth to Paradise.
She is the wonder of angels, and she is the wound of demons and their destruction.
She is the root of the incorruptible shoot.
She is the tree of immortal fruit.
She worked on the worker, the lover of humanity.
She sprouted forth the planter of life.
She is the furrow sprouting forth the wheat that strengthens hearts.
She is the table bearing eternal delight.
She is the incense offered to God for intercession on our behalf.
She is the ransom of the world.
She is the cause of boldness before God for mortal humans.
She is the mother of the good shepherd.
She is the dwelling place of the rational sheep.
She is the chasing away of the invisible enemies.
She is the opening of the gates of Paradise.
She is the unsilenced mouth of the apostles.
She is the invincible courage of the martyrs.
She is the power and strength of Christians.
She is the dawn of the undarkening day.
She is the bearer of the sun of truth.
Through her the raging tyrant was banished from his dominion.
Through her the Lord Christ, the lover of humanity, has appeared to us as savior.
Through her we have been saved from the mire of many sins, and we have been freed from the rule of various passions.
She is the raising of human beings and the downfall of demons.
She is the rock of life from which the thirsty drink the water of immortality.
She is the pillar of light leading and illuminating those in darkness.
She is the urn receiving the manna coming from heaven.
She is the land of promise producing sweetness.
She is the flower of incorruptibility, the crown of virtue, the model of the life of angels.
She is the thickly leaved tree in whose shade the weary rest, the bearer of the redeemer of captives, the guide of those who have gone astray.
She is our intercessor before the just judge.
She is the destroyer of the record of our sins.
She is the garment of those who are bare of any good.
She is the door of great mystery.
She is the unquestioned pride of the faithful.
She is the one who received the uncontainable God.
She is the holy throne of the one seated on the cherubim.
She is the virtuous inheritance of the one glorified by the seraphim.
She leads forth the angels and humans together.
She united virginity and childbearing, for she was both the Immaculate Virgin and the mother of Emmanuel.
Through her was the curse removed.
On her account was Paradise opened.
She is the key of the kingdom of heaven.
She is the cause of eternal good things.
She is the one receiving the Wisdom of God.
She is the treasure house of his Providence.
She is the pillar of virginity.
She is the gate of salvation.
She is the beginning of our renewal.
She is the cause of divine mercy toward humanity.
She is the crown of the invisible sun.
She is the brilliance of the undarkening light.
She is the lightning that illuminates souls.
She is the thunder that shatters the enemies and the deceptive demons.
She is the one who engendered the source of life.
She is the font that purifies thoughts.
She is the cup brimming with joy.
She is the tent of the Word of God.
She is the saint of saints, the height of all sanctity.
She is the ark covered by the Holy Spirit.
She is the precious crown of faithful kings.
She is the pride and ornament of worthy and holy bishops.
She is the unshakable tower of the Catholic Church.
She is the impregnable wall of the city of the faithful, about which David said, "Who will lead me to the fortified city?" (Ps 59.11), which is the assembly of the faithful, gathered from the nations.
She is the healer of our infirmities.
She is the hope and helper of our souls.
- Maximus the Confessor, 7th century, as excerpted form the book "The Life of the Virgin" translated by Stephen J. Shoemaker.
She is the ardent intercessor with her son, Christ God, for all those who entreat her.
She is the calm harbor of all those buffeted by waves, who rescues them from spiritual and fleshy waves.
She is the guide on the way of life for all who have gone astray.
She is the one who seeks and converts those who are lost.
She is the help and support of those who are afflicted.
She is the intercessor and mediator of those who are penitent.
And I will say even more than the above:
She is the resurrection of the fallen Adam.
She is the destruction of Eve's tears.
She is the comforter of those who mourn.
She is the throne of the king, who bears the one who bears all.
She is the one who renews the old world.
She is the ladder that reaches to heaven, by which God descended to the earth.
She is the bridge that leads from earth to Paradise.
She is the wonder of angels, and she is the wound of demons and their destruction.
She is the root of the incorruptible shoot.
She is the tree of immortal fruit.
She worked on the worker, the lover of humanity.
She sprouted forth the planter of life.
She is the furrow sprouting forth the wheat that strengthens hearts.
She is the table bearing eternal delight.
She is the incense offered to God for intercession on our behalf.
She is the ransom of the world.
She is the cause of boldness before God for mortal humans.
She is the mother of the good shepherd.
She is the dwelling place of the rational sheep.
She is the chasing away of the invisible enemies.
She is the opening of the gates of Paradise.
She is the unsilenced mouth of the apostles.
She is the invincible courage of the martyrs.
She is the power and strength of Christians.
She is the dawn of the undarkening day.
She is the bearer of the sun of truth.
Through her the raging tyrant was banished from his dominion.
Through her the Lord Christ, the lover of humanity, has appeared to us as savior.
Through her we have been saved from the mire of many sins, and we have been freed from the rule of various passions.
She is the raising of human beings and the downfall of demons.
She is the rock of life from which the thirsty drink the water of immortality.
She is the pillar of light leading and illuminating those in darkness.
She is the urn receiving the manna coming from heaven.
She is the land of promise producing sweetness.
She is the flower of incorruptibility, the crown of virtue, the model of the life of angels.
She is the thickly leaved tree in whose shade the weary rest, the bearer of the redeemer of captives, the guide of those who have gone astray.
She is our intercessor before the just judge.
She is the destroyer of the record of our sins.
She is the garment of those who are bare of any good.
She is the door of great mystery.
She is the unquestioned pride of the faithful.
She is the one who received the uncontainable God.
She is the holy throne of the one seated on the cherubim.
She is the virtuous inheritance of the one glorified by the seraphim.
She leads forth the angels and humans together.
She united virginity and childbearing, for she was both the Immaculate Virgin and the mother of Emmanuel.
Through her was the curse removed.
On her account was Paradise opened.
She is the key of the kingdom of heaven.
She is the cause of eternal good things.
She is the one receiving the Wisdom of God.
She is the treasure house of his Providence.
She is the pillar of virginity.
She is the gate of salvation.
She is the beginning of our renewal.
She is the cause of divine mercy toward humanity.
She is the crown of the invisible sun.
She is the brilliance of the undarkening light.
She is the lightning that illuminates souls.
She is the thunder that shatters the enemies and the deceptive demons.
She is the one who engendered the source of life.
She is the font that purifies thoughts.
She is the cup brimming with joy.
She is the tent of the Word of God.
She is the saint of saints, the height of all sanctity.
She is the ark covered by the Holy Spirit.
She is the precious crown of faithful kings.
She is the pride and ornament of worthy and holy bishops.
She is the unshakable tower of the Catholic Church.
She is the impregnable wall of the city of the faithful, about which David said, "Who will lead me to the fortified city?" (Ps 59.11), which is the assembly of the faithful, gathered from the nations.
She is the healer of our infirmities.
She is the hope and helper of our souls.
- Maximus the Confessor, 7th century, as excerpted form the book "The Life of the Virgin" translated by Stephen J. Shoemaker.
Friday, December 12, 2014
Our Lady of Guadalupe
Today, December 12th, is the feast day of Our Lady of Guadalupe! Quite possibly the most important historical event to occur in the New World began 483 years ago, and Our Lady of Guadalupe spoke these magnificent words:
"Listen, put it into your heart, my youngest and dearest son, that the thing that disturbs you, the thing that afflicts you, is nothing. Do not let your countenance, your heart be disturbed. Do not fear this sickness of your uncle or any other sickness, nor anything that is sharp or hurtful. Am I not here, I, who am your Mother? Are you not under my shadow and protection? Am I not the source of your joy? Are you not in the hollow of my mantle, in the crossing of my arms? Do you need anything more? Let nothing else worry you, disturb you. Do not let your uncle's illness worry you, because he will not die now. You may be certain that he is already well."
The Immaculate, Blessed, Ever-Virgin Mary is our Mother and the powerful mediatrix with Christ. Truly, no cause is hopeless or beyond repair. Please pray to Our Lady of Guadalupe!
"Listen, put it into your heart, my youngest and dearest son, that the thing that disturbs you, the thing that afflicts you, is nothing. Do not let your countenance, your heart be disturbed. Do not fear this sickness of your uncle or any other sickness, nor anything that is sharp or hurtful. Am I not here, I, who am your Mother? Are you not under my shadow and protection? Am I not the source of your joy? Are you not in the hollow of my mantle, in the crossing of my arms? Do you need anything more? Let nothing else worry you, disturb you. Do not let your uncle's illness worry you, because he will not die now. You may be certain that he is already well."
The Immaculate, Blessed, Ever-Virgin Mary is our Mother and the powerful mediatrix with Christ. Truly, no cause is hopeless or beyond repair. Please pray to Our Lady of Guadalupe!
Wednesday, December 10, 2014
The Hoped for Benefits of the Immaculate Conception, by Bl. Pope Pius IX
Our soul overflows with joy and our tongue with exultation. We give, and we shall continue to give, the humblest and deepest thanks to Jesus Christ, our Lord, because through his singular grace he has granted to us, unworthy though we be, to decree and offer this honor and glory and praise to his most holy Mother. All our hope do we repose in the most Blessed Virgin—in the all fair and immaculate one who has crushed the poisonous head of the most cruel serpent and brought salvation to the world: in her who is the glory of the prophets and apostles, the honor of the martyrs, the crown and joy of all the saints; in her who is the safest refuge and the most trustworthy helper of all who are in danger; in her who, with her only-begotten Son, is the most powerful Mediatrix and Conciliatrix in the whole world; in her who is the most excellent glory, ornament, and impregnable stronghold of the holy Church; in her who has destroyed all heresies and snatched the faithful people and nations from all kinds of direst calamities; in her do we hope who has delivered us from so many threatening dangers. We have, therefore, a very certain hope and complete confidence that the most Blessed Virgin will ensure by her most powerful patronage that all difficulties be removed and all errors dissipated, so that our Holy Mother the Catholic Church may flourish daily more and more throughout all the nations and countries, and may reign “from sea to sea and from the river to the ends of the earth,” and may enjoy genuine peace, tranquility and liberty. We are firm in our confidence that she will obtain pardon for the sinner, health for the sick, strength of heart for the weak, consolation for the afflicted, help for those in danger; that she will remove spiritual blindness from all who are in error, so that they may return to the path of truth and justice, and that here may be one flock and one shepherd.
Let all the children of the Catholic Church, who are so very dear to us, hear these words of ours. With a still more ardent zeal for piety, religion and love, let them continue to venerate, invoke and pray to the most Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God, conceived without original sin. Let them fly with utter confidence to this most sweet Mother of mercy and grace in all dangers, difficulties, needs, doubts and fears. Under her guidance, under her patronage, under her kindness and protection, nothing is to be feared; nothing is hopeless. Because, while bearing toward us a truly motherly affection and having in her care the work of our salvation, she is solicitous about the whole human race. And since she has been appointed by God to be the Queen of heaven and earth, and is exalted above all the choirs of angels and saints, and even stands at the right hand of her only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, she presents our petitions in a most efficacious manner. What she asks, she obtains. Her pleas can never be unheard.
Given at St. Peter’s in Rome, the eighth day of December, 1854, in the eighth year of our pontificate.
Monday, March 31, 2014
On the Ave Maria and its power (by St. Louis De Montfort)
Are you in the miserable state of sin? Then call on the divine Mary and say to her: Ave, which means "I salute thee with the most profound respect, thou who are without sin" and she will deliver you from the evil of your sins.
Are you groping in the darkness of ignorance and error? Go to Mary and say to her: Hail Mary; which means "Hail thou who are bathed in the light of the Sun of Justice" - and she will give you some of her light.
Have you strayed from the path leading to heaven? Then call on Mary, for her name means "Star of the Sea, the North Star which guides the ships of our souls during the voyage of this life," and she will guide you to the harbor of eternal salvation.
Are you in sorrow? Turn to Mary, for her name means also "Sea of Bitterness which has been filled with sharp pain in this world but which is now turned into a Sea of the Purest Joy in heaven," and she will turn your sorrow to joy and your afflictions into consolation.
Have you lost the state of grace? Praise and honor the numberless graces with which God has filled the Blessed Virgin and say to her: Thou art full of grace and filled with all the gifts of the Holy Spirit, and she will give you some of these graces.
Are you all alone, having lost God's protection? Pray to Mary and say:"The Lord is with thee - and this union is far nobler and more intimate than that which he has with saints and the just - because thou art one with Him. He is thy Son and His Flesh is thy flesh; thou are united to the Lord because of thy perfect likeness to Him and by your mutual love - for thou art His Mother." And then say to her: "The Three Persons of the Godhead are with thee because thou are the Temple of the Most Blessed Trinity," and she will place you once more under the protection and care of Almighty God.
Have you become an outcast and have you been accursed by God? Then say to Our Lady: "Blessed are thou above all women and above all nations, by thy purity and fertility; thou has turned God's maledictions into blessings for us," and she will bless you.
Do you hunger for the bread of grace and the bread of life? Draw near to her who bore the Living Bread Which came down from heaven and say to her: Blessed be the Fruit of thy womb Whom thou hast conceived without the slightest loss of thy virginity, Whom thou didst carry without discomfort and to Whom thou didst give birth without pain. Blessed be Jesus who has redeemed our suffering world when we were in the bondage of sin, Who has healed the world of its sickness, Who has raised the dead to life, brought home the banished, restored sinners to a life of grace and Who has saved men from damnation." Without doubt, your soul will be filled with the bread of grace in this life and of eternal glory in the next. Amen.
Are you groping in the darkness of ignorance and error? Go to Mary and say to her: Hail Mary; which means "Hail thou who are bathed in the light of the Sun of Justice" - and she will give you some of her light.
Have you strayed from the path leading to heaven? Then call on Mary, for her name means "Star of the Sea, the North Star which guides the ships of our souls during the voyage of this life," and she will guide you to the harbor of eternal salvation.
Are you in sorrow? Turn to Mary, for her name means also "Sea of Bitterness which has been filled with sharp pain in this world but which is now turned into a Sea of the Purest Joy in heaven," and she will turn your sorrow to joy and your afflictions into consolation.
Have you lost the state of grace? Praise and honor the numberless graces with which God has filled the Blessed Virgin and say to her: Thou art full of grace and filled with all the gifts of the Holy Spirit, and she will give you some of these graces.
Are you all alone, having lost God's protection? Pray to Mary and say:"The Lord is with thee - and this union is far nobler and more intimate than that which he has with saints and the just - because thou art one with Him. He is thy Son and His Flesh is thy flesh; thou are united to the Lord because of thy perfect likeness to Him and by your mutual love - for thou art His Mother." And then say to her: "The Three Persons of the Godhead are with thee because thou are the Temple of the Most Blessed Trinity," and she will place you once more under the protection and care of Almighty God.
Have you become an outcast and have you been accursed by God? Then say to Our Lady: "Blessed are thou above all women and above all nations, by thy purity and fertility; thou has turned God's maledictions into blessings for us," and she will bless you.
Do you hunger for the bread of grace and the bread of life? Draw near to her who bore the Living Bread Which came down from heaven and say to her: Blessed be the Fruit of thy womb Whom thou hast conceived without the slightest loss of thy virginity, Whom thou didst carry without discomfort and to Whom thou didst give birth without pain. Blessed be Jesus who has redeemed our suffering world when we were in the bondage of sin, Who has healed the world of its sickness, Who has raised the dead to life, brought home the banished, restored sinners to a life of grace and Who has saved men from damnation." Without doubt, your soul will be filled with the bread of grace in this life and of eternal glory in the next. Amen.
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