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Mater Christi: Meditations on Our Lady
(O Mary, Mother of grace, sweet fount of gentleness, do thou protect us from the enemy, and receive us in the hour of our death.)
And she will; she is there for her children. "Who is she?" She is our Mother; she will never forget it, though she is the Queen of Heaven, of Angels, and of Saints; and she will ever be terrible to all who dare to attack her children.
Point II.– "Who is she?""Who is she that goeth up by the desert as a pillar of smoke, of aromatical spices, of myrrh and frankincense, and of all the powders of the perfumer?" (Cant. iii. 6.) That is: Who is she who is adorned with all possible graces and virtues? "Who is she?" She is the "fairest among women" (chap. i. 7) because of her humility, answers the Angel who heard her say: Ecce ancilla Domini, at the most exalted moment of her life. "Who is she?" She is the "fairest among women" because of her conformity to God's will, say those who have heard over and over again her Fiat when the sword was piercing her soul. "Who is she?" We, too, can answer the question, for we know her. We have watched her, and meditated upon her life, from the moment of her Immaculate Conception till her holy death of love and desire; and we have seen that she has always been growing in grace and in conformity to her Divine Son. Yes, she is the "fairest among women," and she is my Mother and my model. How is it with me? Am I known to my friends, to those who live with me, to my Guardian Angel, yea, to the Blessed Trinity, as one, who is growing in virtue and grace; as one, whose conformity to Jesus and His will, is apparent from the use I make of the Ecce ancilla and the Fiat? There must be some resemblance between the child and the Mother.
Point III.– "Who is she?"For the third time the Angels ask the question: "Who is she that cometh up from the desert flowing with delights, leaning upon her Beloved?" (chap. viii. 5.) There is no doubt about it now – she is His Mother, and her Beloved is Jesus, the Son of God and of Mary. What unspeakable joy is hers to find herself once more in the arms of her Beloved! "His left hand is under my head, and His right hand shall embrace me," (chap. ii. 6), and she leans upon Him. She had never left Him really; she had been leaning on Him all the time of her exile: by her memory, by her love, by her Communions, by her constant doing of His will. This is why I can so safely lean on Mary, the Mother of Good Counsel, because to lean on her is to lean on Jesus, on Whom she leans. She nurses her children for Him.
"Who is she that cometh up from the desert?" In spirit Mary had ever been coming up. Always had she sought "the things that are above, where Christ sitteth at the right hand of God." Her treasure was in Heaven, and nothing on earth had power to attract or attach her.
How far do I copy my Mother in this? Are my affections set on things above, where Jesus and Mary are? Have things of earth no attraction for me in comparison with heavenly things? Am I ready to give them up to Him to Whom they belong when He asks for them? Is my whole heart in Heaven because my treasure is there? This is what is meant by going up from the desert. It means striving always after what is more perfect. It means that each day finds me more charitable, more faithful, more careful about occasions of sin, more like my Mother. And it means also Sursum corda (Lift up your hearts) whenever the difficulties and sorrows of the desert seem too much.
Colloquy with Mary.
Resolution. To ask myself the question often to-day: "Who is she?"
Spiritual Bouquet. "Pulchra es et decora filia Jerusalem, terribilis ut castrorum acies ordinata." (Thou art fair and comely, O Daughter of Jerusalem, terrible as an army set in array.)
Mary's Coronation
(The Fifth Glorious Mystery)"Thou wast made exceeding beautiful and wast advanced to be a Queen." (Ezech. xvi. 13.)
1st Prelude. The great sign which appeared in Heaven: "A woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars." (Apoc. xii. 1.)
2nd Prelude. The grace so to live and die, that I may one day be crowned.
Point I.– Mary's CoronationSpecie tua et pulchritudine tua, intende, prospere procede, et regna. (In thy comeliness and thy beauty go forth, proceed prosperously, and reign.) The culminating point is reached, and Mary is led in triumph to receive her crown from the Blessed Trinity. God the Father crowns her as a Victor; God the Son as a Queen; and God the Holy Ghost as a Bride. We give our crowns on earth to victors, to queens and to brides. Mary was all of these for she had conquered the devil; she was the King's Mother, and she was the spouse of the Holy Ghost.
1. She was crowned as a Victor, as a sign of her courage and bravery. God the Father had seen the world, which He had created and had pronounced to be "very good," spoiled by sin. The Arch-fiend had entered Paradise, and had stolen away the hearts of His children, robbing them of His grace, and leaving them and all their descendants stained by sin. To Satan God had spoken of a woman whose Child would be his enemy; and of her He said: "She shall bruise thy head." Now the old prophecy has been fulfilled, and Mary stands before Him waiting for her crown. She has crushed the serpent; she has been terrible to all God's enemies; and the crown that the Eternal Father places on the head of His daughter is a token that she is indeed a Victor.
How did Mary win the Victor's crown? By her fidelity to grace. No one ever had so many occasions of grace, and she did not miss one of them.
"There is," somewhere in the heavenly courts, "a crown laid up for me." (2 Tim. iv. 8.) But "the Lord, the just Judge" will only give it me if "I have fought a good fight." (verse 7.) "To him that shall overcome will I give to sit with Me in My Throne." (Apoc. iii. 21). "Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life." (chap. ii. 10.) "Hold fast that which thou hast, that no man take thy crown" (chap. iii. 11). All, then, depends on my efforts. I have got to be faithful, to fight, to overcome, and to hold fast. My consolation is that my Mother is interceding for me; my enemies are the same as hers, and she has overcome them. Da mihi virtutem contra hostes tuos.
2. She is crowned as a Queen. Her Son is the King of Heaven, and He crowns her as the Queen-Mother. "A throne was set for the King's Mother, and she sat on His Right Hand." (3 Kings ii. 19.) "The Queen stood at Thy Right Hand in gilded clothing, clothed round about with varieties." (Ps. xliv. 14.)
Kings and Queens wear their crowns in token of their power and authority. Jesus crowned His Mother in token of her power and authority. He made her Queen of Angels, of Patriarchs, Prophets, Apostles, Martyrs, Confessors, Virgins, and gave her not only authority over all these, but also, in a certain sense, if we may say so reverently, over Himself. He allowed her still to keep the sweet authority which she had exercised over Him at Nazareth, when He was "subject" to her; for He says to her: "My Mother, ask, for I must not turn away thy face." (3 Kings ii. 20.) How He loves us – even to the extent of pledging Himself to answer the intercessory prayer of one who He knows will make full use of her privilege – one who is even now turning to me, her child, and saying: "I will speak for thee to the King." (verse 18). Let me determine to have my share in this blessed compact between the Son and the Mother, by continually asking my Queen-Mother for her intercession. Sancta Dei Genitrix, ora pro nobis.
3. The Holy Ghost crowns her as His Spouse. "Come from Libanus, my spouse; come and thou shalt be crowned." (Cant. iv. 8.) "Faithful unto death" she had been; ever since her Immaculate Conception she had always listened to the least inspiration of grace which her Divine Spouse had suggested, and now she receives her reward, the "crown of life." The end is attained, and there is joy in the presence of the Angels of God.
Point II.– The Joy of the AngelsDe cujus Assumptione gaudent Angeli et collaudant Filium Dei. At whose Assumption the Angels rejoice and praise together the Son of God. (Introit for the Feast of the Assumption.)
What were the causes of their joy?
1. Mary's joy at her re-union with her Son.
2. Her reception and coronation as their Queen.
3. Her being placed on the throne at her Son's Right Hand.
4. The sight of her beautiful glorified body – the means of the Incarnation – before which, as before the Tabernacle, they had so often worshipped their hidden God.
5. The likeness between the Mother and the Son – a likeness which had been increasing during her years of exile, by means of the Blessed Sacrament.
6. Hearing Jesus call her Mother. "My Mother, ask."
7. Seeing the great Intercessor at her work praying for sinners, in whom they take such an interest.
And the result of their joy is that "they praise together the Son of God" – that is, they perfectly fulfil the end for which they were created, teaching us the great lesson that the more we know Mary and rejoice in her joy, her position and her work, the more we shall know and praise her Divine Son, and so fulfil the end for which we were created.
But it is not only the Angels who are rejoicing. She is "Queen of all Saints" as well as "Queen of Angels," and the Church Triumphant is swelling the chorus of joy. Each member of that spotless multitude has already been a cause of joy in Heaven, for there is joy in the presence of the Angels of God over every sinner that doeth penance. (St Luke xv. 7.) "Joy cometh in the morning" after the night of doing penance. "No cross, no crown." It is because Mary is the "Mother of Sorrows" that she is able to be the "Cause of our joy," and we must all pass by the same route.
Help me, my Mother, to share the joy of the Angels and Saints even in the "valley of tears." It is possible, but it can only be done by a faith strong enough to see things as they really are.
And what about Mary's joy? As she stands in the midst of that great multitude of Angels and Saints, who are vying with each other to do her honour, her heart too is overflowing with joy, but it is all for her Son. The honour and worship that are being paid to her are His; they are because of "the great things He has done" for her. She is only His handmaid, and she is always singing her Magnificat: "My soul doth magnify the Lord, my spirit doth rejoice in God my Saviour." Humility is ever her greatest virtue, and she shows it on her Coronation Day by casting her crown at the Feet of Him Who redeemed her with His Blood – her Son, her Saviour, and her God.
Colloquy. The Ave Regina Cælorum: – "Hail, Queen of Heaven! Hail, Lady of the Angels! Hail, blessed root and gate, from which came light upon the world! Rejoice, O glorious Virgin, that surpassest all in beauty! Hail, most lovely Queen! and pray to Christ for us." (Anthem from Purification to Easter.)
Resolution. To work for my crown to-day.
Spiritual Bouquet. "Ora pro nobis, Sancta Dei Genitrix, ut digni efficiamur promissionibus Christi."
Salve Regina
(According to the Second Method of Prayer1)Salve. This anthem of the Blessed Virgin, which the Church bids her children use from Trinity to Advent, begins with a salutation. In addressing our Mother, we are to copy the Archangel who, when he came with a message to the lowly child at Nazareth, begins by saluting her. Hail! full of grace. But though the word, which is here put into the lips of us sinners, means, "Be thou safe and well," it is not a wholly disinterested salutation; there is an idea of wanting a favour implied in it, though we do not actually ask for it. It is like the cheerful "Good-morning, sir!" of the beggar. Our Hail here has not so much the majesty of the salutation of an Archangel as the cry of distress of a banished child.
Regina. She is appealed to as a Queen; she asks as a Queen; she is answered as a Queen; she gives as a Queen. "I pray thee speak to the King, for he cannot deny thee anything… I will speak for thee to the King… And the King arose to meet her, and bowed to her, and sat down upon his throne. And a throne was set for the King's Mother, and she sat on his right hand. And she said to him: I desire one small petition of thee; do not put me to confusion. And the King said to her: My Mother, ask, for I must not turn away thy face." (3 Kings ii. 17-20.) Such is the beautiful picture Holy Scripture portrays for us of King Solomon and his mother Bethsabee. "But a greater than Solomon is here"; and we are addressing His Mother. With what confidence then may we say our Salve Regina! She has pledged herself to speak to the King for us, and her Royal Son will give her all that she asks. She is the Queen of Patriarchs, Prophets, Apostles, Martyrs, Confessors, Virgins – yes, Queen of all Saints. Why? Because when they were "poor banished children" on earth they recognised her as their Queen, and did not address their Salve to her in vain.
Mater. Not only is she Queen of Heaven and my Queen, but also she is the Mother of each one of the banished children. "I will not leave you orphans," Jesus said when He was leaving the sorrowing disciples; and a little later, when His last moment drew near, He showed them their Mother, saying to St John, who represented the whole human race: "Behold thy Mother!" and to her: "Behold thy son," and in him all thy banished children!
What a consolation it would be to me if I realised more that I have a Mother in Heaven! My first thought in any trouble, difficulty, or perplexity would be: "Salve sancta Parens!"
Misericordiæ. She is the Mother of so many virtues – of fair love, of knowledge, of good counsel, of holy hope, of divine grace – yes, and the Mother of Sorrows too; but here her children love to call her "Mother of mercy," of pity, for they are exiles, and it is she who can effect their ransom. Mercy– this is what they who say the Salve Regina need. They are poor, banished, weeping children, and they need the pity, the mercy, the sympathy of their Mother. How comes it that there is no sorrow with which the Heart of Mary cannot sympathise? How is it that "never is it heard of that her children turn to her in vain"? Because the "sword pierced her own heart also." No heart except that of her Divine Son can sympathise like the seven-times pierced heart of Mary. It is because she understands so well the sorrows of a bleeding heart, that not the smallest need of any one of her smallest children, who appeals to her, is overlooked. How merciful should they be who have such a merciful Mother! "Go thou and do in like manner," was our Blessed Lord's injunction when He had been telling of the mercy of the Good Samaritan. (St Luke x. 37.) Am I merciful in my judgments of others; merciful when I am talking of them; merciful to those who have wronged me; merciful to those who come to me for pardon; merciful in my thoughts? O Virgin most merciful, pray for me!
Vita. She is our life, for it was she who gave life to our Redeemer. It was from Mary's veins that He took the Blood which He shed for our salvation. She did not spare her Son, her only Son, (Gen. xxii. 16), but offered Him up for a sacrifice for us. In every truth she can say: "In me is all hope of life." (Ecclus. xxiv. 25.)
Dulcedo. Our sweetness. Think of her sweetness all through her life – when the Angel came to her; during the three months that she helped Elizabeth; when there was no room for her in the inn at Bethlehem; when her Son seemed to take no notice of her during His ministerial work; when she met Him on the Way of Sorrows; when she stood by the Cross; when she gently bathed His wounds and prepared His Body for the grave; when she consoled the mourning disciples; when He appeared to her on Easter Day; when she kissed His footprints as He ascended to Heaven; when the Holy Ghost came down upon her. Even from her body after the soul had left it, and even from her grave after the body had left it, there came a delicious odour, reminding all who enjoyed it of the sweetness of the Mother who had left them. And this sweetness her children must try to copy. Is my sweetness for ever proclaiming itself to all with whom I come in contact – by my patience under the little trials of everyday life, by the kind word with which I meet the sharp, sarcastic one, by my extreme care of the feelings of others, by my universal kindness, by the humility with which I bear humiliations, by the ready way in which I prefer everybody else to myself? O my Mother, pray for thy child, and teach me how to copy thee!
Et Spes Nostra. How necessary is hope to the poor banished children! Without it they would indeed be in a desperate condition; but Mary is ever inspiring them with hope. Ego Mater sanctæ spei. (I am the Mother of holy hope.) And her hope is all for her children: she has no need of it for herself. She is a true Mother – always hopeful of her children, never giving them up.
It is impossible for a child of Mary not to share her Mother's holy hope. A child of Mary cannot despair! When we think about death and final perseverance, what holy hope at once fills our hearts as we remember that we have put that terrible moment into the hands of our Mother! Ora pro nobis, nunc et in hora mortis nostræ. (Pray for us now and at the hour of our death.) "Hail, our hope!" Before these words all fears disappear. For never has it been known that those who appeal to the Mother of holy hope appeal in vain.
Salve. We repeat our salutation. We do not want her to forget us.
The importunate are ever dear to the heart of Mary as they are to the Heart of her Divine Son. Let us constantly greet her with our Salve– it will be enough to appeal to her Mother-heart, and she will give us whatever we are needing.
Ad Te. To thee. To whom should we go if not to the Mother whom Jesus has given us. "Behold thy Mother!" It is only natural that we should turn to thee. Monstra te esse matrem. Show thyself to be a mother by hearkening to our cry.
Clamamus —do we cry. It is a direct cry for help now – we make no secret of it – the children are calling aloud for their Mother – their need is so great that they care not who hears them.
Exules. At last we describe ourselves; one word is sufficient —exules. We are exiles; we are not at home; we are banished from our country. There is something so pathetic about an exile. How he cherishes any news of his dear country! How he writes every little detail of his life and of the strange land to his mother at home! How he longs for her letters!
Mary is my Mother, and I am an exile. Do I love to hear about my own country? Do I tell my Mother of all the difficulties of the way and allow her to console me with stories of the Homeland? "How shall we sing in a strange land?" It is possible, by keeping in touch with Mary. She will so inspire us with hope and with love for our heavenly country that we shall often find our hearts light enough to soar beyond this land of exile, and to join in the ceaseless praises of those who have reached home.
Queen of Heaven, give me a real desire for Heaven.
Filii Evæ. We account for our exile by explaining that we are children of Eve. We had another mother once, and she brought misery on all her children, and they were all with her "driven out from Paradise," and an angel with a flaming sword was put at the entrance to prevent their getting back. Poor children! Is there any use in crying for re-admittance? Yes, for before the justice of God drove out Eve and her children, He spoke of another Mother, who was, through her Divine Son, to undo all the harm that Eve had done, and to "open the Kingdom of Heaven to all believers." To whom, then, is it more natural for the poor banished children of Eve to turn than to the Mother whose one idea is to get them back?
And with our cries are joined those of other banished children whose cry: "How long!" is ever ascending to Heaven. It is their Mother Mary whom they long to see; for as the turn of each one's banishment expires, she it is who comes to open the gate and bring them to the "better country" which they have so long desired.
When we say our Salve, let us remember those souls who, though they are holy, are still banished children, and let us intercede with their Mother for them.
Ad Te Suspiramus. To thee do we send up our sighs. The idea is that each breath is a sigh, and a sigh meant for our Mother to hear. Well would it be for us if this were true! It would change the character of our exile. A sigh meant for Our Blessed Lady could not be one of discontent and murmuring and rebellion against our lot. The very fact that it is intended for her would make it full of love and hope and submission to God's will. It would be like the sigh of a child whose mother has promised it some little pleasure. The time seems very long to the little one, and as she sits patiently by her mother's side, a sigh escapes her now and then – a very marked and intentional sigh! What does it mean? It means that though she will not speak or do anything that her mother might not like, yet she would remind her mother of her presence and let her know that she is feeling the time very long. Does the mother mind the sighs? Oh no, for each one tells her of the love of her child, and makes her anxious to shorten the time of waiting if she can.
Gementes et Flentes. The sighs become more audible —groaning and weeping– the exiles are mourning the loss of things they can never have again till they get home. It is one of the times when they feel that the harps must be hung up, (Ps. cxxxvi.), when mirth and joy are altogether out of place. Such times will come in our land of exile; and these are the times when we shall do well to cry out to our Mother.
O Mary, look upon thy weeping children, and as the great wail of suffering humanity rises up to thee, "show thyself a Mother," the Mother of Consolation. Come to the suffering hearts that cry for thee, and make them understand that joy and gladness is for them, even in the land of their exile ever since the Sun of justice has risen over it "with healing in His wings." Whisper to each heartbroken one, words of hope and consolation; tell of reparation, of mortification, of detachment, of the immense value of suffering, till the sorrowing heart is willing, yea glad, to suffer.
In hoc Lacrymarum Valle. In this vale. Our land of exile is a Valley of Humiliation. It was here that Jesus came to stay, when He humbled Himself even to the death of the Cross; and here it is that He would have each one of His children wait till the humiliations of the valley have taught them to conquer self-love. "Be you humbled, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in the time of visitation." (1 Pet. v. 6.)
It is a vale of tears– a vale where Jesus wept; a vale which has been sanctified by the tears of a Magdalen, and a Peter, and of multitudes of others who have learnt here to be saints; a vale where every tear shed by His children is treasured by God. "Thou hast set my tears in Thy sight." (Ps. lv. 9.)
We read of two occasions on which Jesus wept – once for the sorrows of His friends (St John xi. 35), and once for the sins of His enemies. (St Luke xix. 41.) I need not then be ashamed of tears – not even if I have to say with the Psalmist: "My tears have been my bread day and night." (Ps. xli. 4.) But I must be careful that they resemble those of Jesus, that the cause of them is never self-love or self-pity, but sorrow for my own sins and those of others, and for anything which grieves the Heart of Jesus. "They that sow in tears shall reap in joy," for He Himself "will wipe away all tears from their eyes." (Ps. cxxv. 5, and Apoc. vii. 17.)
