Saturday, September 8, 2012 - Litany Lane Blog:
genealogy, Micah 5:1-4,Matthew 1:1-16, The Nativity of Mary, Basilica of St Anne, Mystical City of GOD Chapter 1 Book 7
Good Day Bloggers! genealogy, Micah 5:1-4,Matthew 1:1-16, The Nativity of Mary, Basilica of St Anne, Mystical City of GOD Chapter 1 Book 7
Wishing everyone a Blessed Week!
P.U.S.H. (Pray Until Something Happens). It has a remarkable way of producing solace, peace, patience and tranquility and of course resolution...God's always available 24/7.
We are all human. We all experience birth, life and death. We all have
flaws but we also all have the gift knowledge and free will as well,
make the most of it. Life on earth is a stepping to our eternal home in
Heaven. Its your choice whether to rise towards eternal light or lost to
eternal darkness. Material items, though needed for sustenance and
survival on earth are of earthly value only. The only thing that passes
from this earth to Heaven is our Soul, our Spirit...it's God's perpetual
gift to us...Embrace it, treasure it, nurture it, protect it...
"Raise not a hand to another unless it is to offer in peace and goodwill." ~ Zarya Parx 2012
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Today's Word: genealogy ge·ne·al·o·gy [jee-nee-ol-uh-jee]
Origin: 1250–1300; Middle English genealogie < Middle French < Late Latin geneālogia < Greek geneālogía pedigree, equivalent to geneā́ race ( see gene) + -logia -logy
noun, plural ge·ne·al·o·gies.
.
1. a record or account of the ancestry and descent of a person, family, group, etc.
2. the study of family ancestries and histories.
3. descent from an original form or progenitor; lineage; ancestry.
4. Biology . a group of individuals or species having a common ancestry: The various species of Darwin's finches form a closely knit genealogy.
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Today's Old Testament Reading - Micah 5:1-4
1 But you (Bethlehem) Ephrathah, the least of the clans of Judah, from you will come for me a future ruler of Israel whose origins go back to the distant past, to the days of old.2 Hence Yahweh will abandon them only until she who is in labour gives birth, and then those who survive of his race will be reunited to the Israelites.
3 He will take his stand and he will shepherd them with the power of Yahweh, with the majesty of the name of his God, and they will be secure, for his greatness will extend henceforth to the most distant parts of the country.
4 He himself will be peace! Should the Assyrian invade our country, should he set foot in our land, we shall raise seven shepherds against him, eight leaders of men;
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Today's Gospel Reading - Matthew 1:1-16, 18-23
Roll of the genealogy of Jesus Christ,
son of David, son of Abraham: Abraham fathered Isaac, Isaac fathered
Jacob, Jacob fathered Judah and his brothers, Judah fathered Perez and
Zerah, whose mother was Tamar, Perez fathered Hezron, Hezron fathered
Ram, Ram fathered Amminadab, Amminadab fathered Nahshon, Nahshon
fathered Salmon, Salmon fathered Boaz, whose mother was Rahab, Boaz
fathered Obed, whose mother was Ruth, Obed fathered Jesse; and Jesse
fathered King David. David fathered Solomon, whose mother had been
Uriah’s wife, Solomon fathered Rehoboam, Rehoboam fathered Abijah,
Abijah fathered Asa, Asa fathered Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat fathered
Joram, Joram fathered Uzziah, Uzziah fathered Jotham, Jotham fathered
Ahaz, Ahaz fathered Hezekiah, Hezekiah fathered Manasseh, Manasseh
fathered Amon, Amon fathered Josiah; and Josiah fathered Jechoniah and
his brothers. Then the deportation to Babylon took place. After the
deportation to Babylon: Jechoniah fathered Shealtiel, Shealtiel fathered
Zerubbabel, Zerubbabel fathered Abiud, Abiud fathered Eliakim, Eliakim
fathered Azor, Azor fathered Zadok, Zadok fathered Achim, Achim fathered
Eliud, Eliud fathered Eleazar, Eleazar fathered Matthan, Matthan
fathered Jacob; and Jacob fathered Joseph the husband of Mary; of her
was born Jesus who is called Christ.
This is how Jesus Christ came to be born. His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph; but before they came to live together she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. Her husband Joseph, being an upright man and wanting to spare her disgrace, decided to divorce her informally. He had made up his mind to do this when suddenly the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because she has conceived what is in her by the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son and you must name him Jesus, because he is the one who is to save his people from their sins.’ Now all this took place to fulfil what the Lord had spoken through the prophet: Look! the virgin is with child and will give birth to a son whom they will call Immanuel, a name which means ‘God-is-with-us’.
Reflection
• Today, September 8th, Feast of the
Nativity of Our Lady, the Gospel gives us the genealogy or Identity Card
of Jesus. By means of the list of his ancestors, the Evangelist tells
the communities who Jesus is and how God acts in a surprising way in
order to fulfil his promise. On our identity card there is our name and
the name of our parents. Some persons, to say who they are, also recall
the names of the grandparents. Others, are embarrassed of their
ancestors, of their families, and hide behind appearances which deceive.
The Identity Card of Jesus has many names. On the list of names there
is a great novelty. At that time, the genealogy indicated only the name
of the men. This is why, it surprises that Matthew also mentions five
women among the ancestors of Jesus: Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, la wife of Uriah
and Mary. Why does he choose precisely these five women and not others?
This is the question which the Gospel of Matthew leaves for us.
• Matthew 1, 1-17: The long list of names – the beginning and the end of the genealogy. At the beginning and at the end of the genealogy, Matthew clearly makes us understand which is the identity of Jesus: He is the Messiah, son of David and son of Abraham. As descendant of David, Jesus is the response of God to the expectations of the Jewish people (2 S 7, 12, and 16). As descendant of Abraham, he is source of blessings and of hope for all nations of the earth (Gn 12, 13). Therefore, in this way, both the Jews and the Pagans who formed part of the communities of Syria and of Palestine at the time of Matthew could see that their hope was fulfilled in Jesus.
Drawing up the list of the ancestors of Jesus,
Matthew adopts a plan of 3 X 14 generations (Mt 1, 17). Number two is
the number of the divinity. Number 14 is two times 7, which is the
number of perfection. At that time, it was something common to interpret
or calculate God’s action by using the numbers and the dates. By means
of these symbolical calculations, Matthew reveals the presence of God
throughout the generations and expresses the conviction of the
communities who said that Jesus appeared at the time established by God.
With his coming history reaches its fulfilment.
The message of the five women mentioned in the genealogy. Jesus is the response of God to the expectation both of the Jews and of the Pagans, but it is in a completely surprising way. In the stories of the four women of the Old Testament, mentioned in the genealogy, there is something abnormal. The four of them were foreigners, and they will conceive their sons outside the normal schema of the behaviour of that time and they do not keep the requirements of the laws of purity of the time of Jesus. Tamar, a Canaanite, widow, dresses as a prostitute of Jericho to oblige Judah to be faithful to her and to give her a son (Gn 38, 1-30). Rahab, a prostitute from Jericho, makes an alliance with the Israelites. She helped them to enter into the Promised Land and professed the faith in a God who liberates from the Exodus. (Gs 2, 1-21). Bathsheba, a Hittite, wife of Uriah, was seduced, abused and made pregnant by King David, who in addition to that, ordered her husband to be killed (2 S 11, 1-27). Ruth, a Moabite, a poor widow, chose to remain with Naomi and adhere to the people of God (Rt 1, 16-18). Advised by her mother-in-law Naomi, Ruth imitates Tamar and spends the night together with Boaz, obliging him to observe the law and to give her a son. From their relation Obed was born, the grandfather of King David (Rt 3, 1-15; 4, 13-17). These four women question the models of behaviour imposed by the Patriarchal society. And thus, their conventional initiative will give continuity to the descendants of Jesus and will bring salvation to all the people. Through them, God realizes his plan and sends the promised Messiah. Truly, God’s way of acting surprises and makes one think! At the end the reader will ask: “And Mary? Is there something irregular in her? What is it? We get the response from the story of Saint Joseph which follows in (Mt 1, 18-23).
• Mathew 1, 18-23: Saint Joseph was just. What was irregular in Mary is that she became pregnant before living together with Joseph, her promised spouse, who was a just man. Jesus says: “If your justice is not greater than the justice of the Pharisees and the Scribes, you will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven”. If Joseph had been just according to the justice of the Pharisees, he should have denounced Mary and she would have been stoned. Jesus would have died. Thanks to the true justice of Joseph, Jesus was able to be born.
Personal questions
• When I present myself to others, what do I say about myself and about my family?
• If the Evangelist mentions only these five women together with over forty men, no doubt, he wants to communicate a message, which is this message? What does all this tell us about the identity of Jesus? And what does this say about us?
• If the Evangelist mentions only these five women together with over forty men, no doubt, he wants to communicate a message, which is this message? What does all this tell us about the identity of Jesus? And what does this say about us?
Reference: Courtesy of Order of Carmelites, www.ocarm.org.
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Featured Item of the Day from Litany Lane
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Saint of the Day: Feast Day of Nativity of Mary
Feast Day: September 8
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| Nativity of Mary, 1509 Borgona |
Tradition celebrates the event as a liturgical feast in the Roman Catholic calendar of saints and in most Anglican liturgical calendars on 8 September, nine months after the solemnity of her Immaculate Conception, celebrated on 8 December. The Eastern Orthodox equivalent, the Nativity of the Theotokos pertains to the birth of the Virgin Mary in the Orthodox perspective.
This feast, like that of the Assumption of Mary, originated in Jerusalem. It began in the fifth century as the feast of the Basilica Sanctae Mariae ubi nata est, now called the Basilica of Saint Anne. In the seventh century, the feast was celebrated by the Byzantines and at Rome as the feast of the Birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The feast is also celebrated by Syrian Christians on 8 September and by Coptic Christians on 9 May (1 Bashans). The feast is also included in the Tridentine Calendar for 8 September.
The scene was frequently depicted in art, as part of cycles of the Life of the Virgin. Late medieval depictions are often valuable records of domestic interiors and their fittings - at this period the setting was often in a wealthy household.
Apostolic tradition places Mary's birthplace either in the Church of Saint Anne in Jerusalem, or in Tzippori, Israel, where Saint Anne once lived
St Anne's Church, Jerusalem
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| Birthplace of Saint Anne, Mother of Mary, Jerusalem |
Design and construction
Built between 1131 and 1138 to replace a previous Byzantine church, and shortly thereafter enlarged by several meters, the church is an excellent example of Romanesque architecture. The three-aisled basilica incorporates cross-vaulted ceilings and pillars, clear clean lines and a somewhat unadorned interior. The nave is separated from the lower lateral aisles by arcades of pointed arches. The high altar, designed by the French sculptor Philippe Kaeppelin incorporates many different scenes. On the front of the altar are depicted the Nativity (left), the Descent from the Cross (center) and the Annunciation (right); on the left-hand end is the teaching of Mary by her mother, on the right-hand end her presentation in the Temple. In the south aisle is a flight of steps leading down to the crypt, in a grotto believed by the Crusaders to be Mary's birthplace. An altar dedicated to Mary is located there. The Byzantine basilica was partly stretched over two water basins, collectively known as the Pools of Bethesda, and built upon a series of piers, one of which still stands today in its entirety.Acoustics
The church possesses amazing acoustics perfect for Gregorian chant, with sounds moving across the open space and up from the grotto. This makes the church a pilgrimage site for soloists and choirs, especially sopranos and tenors
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Today's Snippet : THE BLESSED BIRTH OF MARY IMMACULATE
Book 1, Chapter 7,
The Mystical City of God, The Divine History and
Life of The Virgin Mother of God
THE BLESSED BIRTH OF MARY IMMACULATE
The most holy Mary, being conceived without sin as described
above, was entirely absorbed in spirit and entranced by her first vision of the
Divinity. At the first instant, and in the narrow dwelling of the maternal womb,
began the love of God in her most blessed soul, never to be interrupted, but to
continue through all the eternities of that high glory, which She now enjoys at
the right hand of her divine Son.
The most happy mother, holy Anne passed the days of her
pregnancy altogether spiritualized by the divine operations and by the sweet
workings of the Holy Ghost in all her faculties. Divine Providence, however, in
order to direct her course to greater merit and reward, ordained, that the
ballast of trouble be not wanting, for without it the cargo of grace and love is
scarcely ever secure. In order to understand better, what happened to this holy
woman, it must be remembered, that satan, after he was hurled with the other bad
angels from heaven into the infernal torments, never ceased, during the reign of
the old Law, to search through the earth hovering with lurking vigilance above
the women of distinguished holiness, in order to find Her, whose sign he had
seen (Gen. 3, 15) and whose heel was to bruise and crush his head. Lucifer’s
wrath against men was so fierce, that he would not trust this investigation to
his inferiors alone; but leaving them to operate against the virtuous women in
general, he himself attended to this matter and assiduously hovered around
those, who signalized themselves more particularly in the exercise of virtue and
in the grace of the Most High.
Filled with malice and astuteness, he observed closely the
exceeding great holiness of the excellent matron Anne and all the events of her
life; and although he could not estimate the richness of the Treasure, which was
enclosed in her blessed womb (since the Lord has concealed this as well as many
mysteries from him), yet he felt a powerful influence proceeding from saint
Anne. The fact that he could not penetrate into the source of this activity,
threw him at times into greater fury and rage. At other times he quieted himself
with the thought, that this pregnancy arose from the same causes as others in
the course of nature and that there was no special cause for alarm; for the Lord
left him to his own hallucinations and to the vagaries of his own fury.
Nevertheless the whole event was a source of great misgiving to this perverse
spirit, when he saw how quietly her pregnancy took its course and especially,
when he saw, that many angels stood in attendance. Above all he was enraged at
his weakness in resisting the force, which proceeded from the blessed Anne and
he suspected that it was not she alone, who was the cause of it.
Filled with this mistrust, the dragon determined, if
possible, to take the life of the most felicitous Anne; or, if that was
impossible, to see that she should obtain little satisfaction from her
pregnancy. For the pride of Lucifer was so boundless as to persuade him of his
ability to overcome or take away the life of Her, who was to be the Mother of
the incarnate Word, or even the life of the Messias and Redeemer of the world,
if only he could obtain knowledge of their whereabouts. His arrogance was
founded upon the superiority of his angelic nature to the condition and power of
mere human nature; as if both were not subject to grace and entirely dependent
upon the will of their Creator. Audaciously therefore he set himself to tempt
holy Anne, with many suggestions, misgivings, doubts and diffidences about the
truth of her pregnancy, alleging her protracted years. All this the demon
attempted in order to test the virtue of the saint, and to see, whether these
temptations would not afford some opening for the perversion of her will.
But the invincible matron resisted these onslaughts with
humble fortitude, patience, continued prayer and vivid faith in the Lord. She
brought to naught the perplexing lies of the dragon and on account of them
gained only additional grace and protection from on high. For besides the
protection abundantly merited by her past life She was defended and freed from
the demons by the great princes, who were guarding her most holy Daughter.
Nevertheless in his insatiable malice the enemy did not desist on that account;
and since his arrogance and pride far exceeds his powers, he sought human aid;
for with such help he always promises himself greater ease of victory. Having at
first tried to overthrow the dwelling of saint Joachim and Anne, in order that
she might be frightened and excited by the shock of its fall, but not being able
to succeed on account of the resistance of the holy angels, he incited against
saint Anne one of the foolish women of her acquaintance to quarrel with her.
This the woman did with great fury, insolently attacking saint Anne with
reproach and scorn; she did not hesitate to make mockery of her pregnancy,
saying, that she was the sport of the demon in being thus found pregnant at the
end of so many years and at so great an age.
The blessed Anne did not permit herself to be disturbed by
this attack, but in all meekness and humility bore the injuries and treated her
assailants with kindness. From that time on she looked with greater love upon
these women and lavished upon them so much the greater benefits. But their wrath
was not immediately pacified, for the demon had taken possession of them,
filling them with hate against the saint; and, as any concession to this cruel
tyrant always increases his power over his victims, he incited these miserable
dupes to plot even against the person and life of saint Anne. But they could not
put their plots into execution, because divine power interfered to foil their
natural womanly weakness. They were not only powerless against the saint, but
they were overcome by her admonitions and brought to the knowledge and amendment
of their evil course by her prayers.
The dragon was repulsed, but not vanquished; for he
immediately availed himself of a servant, who lived in the house with Joachim
and Anne, and exasperated her against the holy matron. Through her he created
even a greater annoyance than through the other women, for she was a domestic
enemy and more stubborn and dangerous than the others. I will not stay to
describe, what the enemy attempted through this servant, since it was similar to
that of the other woman, only more annoying and malicious. But with the help of
God saint Anne won a more glorious victory than before; for the watcher of
Israel slumbered not, but guarded his holy City (Ps. 120, 4) and furnished it so
well with sentinels, chosen from the strongest of his hosts, that they put to
ignominious flight Lucifer and his followers. No more were they allowed to
molest the fortunate mother, who was already expecting the birth of the most
blessed Princess of heaven, and who, enriched by heroic acts of virtue and many
merits in these conflicts, had now arrived at the fulfillment of all her highest
wishes.
The day destined for the parturition of saint Anne and for
the birth of Her, who was consecrated and sanctified to be the Mother of God,
had arrived: a day most fortunate for the world. This birth happened on the
eighth day of September, fully nine months having elapsed since the Conception
of the soul of our most holy Queen and Lady. Saint Anne was prepared by an
interior voice of the Lord, informing Her, that the hour of her parturition had
come. Full of the joy of the Holy Spirit at this information, she prostrated
herself before the Lord and besought the assistance of his grace and his
protection for a happy deliverance. The most blessed child Mary was at the same
time by divine providence and power ravished into a most high ecstasy. Hence
Mary was born into the world without perceiving it by her senses, for their
operations and faculties were held in suspense.
She was born pure and stainless, beautiful and full of grace,
thereby demonstrating, that She was free from the law and the tribute of sin.
Although She was born substantially like other daughters of Adam, yet her birth
was accompanied by such circumstances and conditions of grace, that it was the
most wonderful and miraculous birth in all creation and will eternally redound
to the praise of her Maker. At twelve o’clock in the night this divine
Luminary issued forth, dividing the night of the ancient Law and its pristine
darknesses from the new day of grace, which now was about to break into dawn.
She was clothed, handled and dressed like other infants, though her soul dwelt
in the Divinity; and She was treated as an infant, though She excelled all
mortals and even all the angels in wisdom. Her mother did not allow Her to be
touched by other hands than her own, but she herself wrapped Her in swaddling
clothes: and in this Saint Anne was not hindered by her present state of
childbirth; for she was free from the toils and labors, which other mothers
usually endure in such circumstances.
So then saint Anne received in her arms Her, who was her
Daughter, but at the same time the most exquisite Treasure of all the universe,
inferior only to God and superior to all other creatures. With fervent tears of
joy she offered this Treasure to his Majesty, saying interiorly "Lord of
infinite wisdom and power, Creator of all that exists, this Fruit of my womb,
which I have received of thy bounty, I offer to Thee with eternal thanks, for
without any merit of mine Thou hast vouchsafed it to me. Dispose Thou of the
mother and Child according to thy most holy will and look propitiously down upon
our lowliness from thy exalted throne. Be Thou eternally blessed, because Thou
hast enriched the world with a Creature so pleasing to thy bounty and because in
Her Thou hast prepared a dwelling-place and a tabernacle for the eternal Word
(Sap. 9, 8). I tender my congratulations to my holy forefathers and to the holy
Prophets, and in them to the whole human race, for this sure pledge of
Redemption, which Thou hast given them. But how shall I be able to worthily to
treat Her, whom Thou hast given me as a Daughter? I that am not worthy to be her
servant? How shall I handle the true ark of the Testament? Give me, O my Lord
and King, the necessary enlightenment to know thy will and to execute it
according to thy pleasure in the service of my Daughter."
The Lord answered the holy matron interiorly, that she was to
treat her heavenly Child outwardly as mothers treat their daughters, without any
demonstration of reverence; but to retain this reverence inwardly, fulfilling
the laws of a true mother toward Her, and rearing Her up with all motherly love
and solicitude. All this the happy mother complied with; making use of this
permission and her mother’s rights without losing her reverence, she regaled
herself with her most holy Daughter, embracing and caressing Her in the same way
as other mothers do with their daughters. But it was always done with a proper
reverence and consciousness of the hidden and divine sacrament known only to the
mother and Daughter. The guardian angels of the sweet Child with others in great
multitudes showed their veneration and worship to Mary as She rested in the arms
of her mother; they joined in heavenly music, some of which was audible to
blessed Anne. The thousand angels appointed as guardians of the great Queen
offered themselves to her service. This was also the first time, in which the
heavenly Mistress saw them in a corporeal form with their devises and
habiliments, as I shall describe in another chapter and the Child asked them to
join with Her in the praise of the Most High and to exalt Him in her name.
At the moment of the birth of our Princess Mary the Most High
sent the archangel Gabriel as an envoy to bring this joyful news to the holy
Fathers in limbo. Immediately the heavenly ambassador descended, illumining that
deep cavern and rejoicing the just who were detained therein. He told them that
already the dawn of eternal felicity had commenced and that the reparation of
man, which was so earnestly desired and expected by the holy Patriarchs and
foretold by the Prophets, had been begun, since She, who was to be the Mother of
the Messias, had now been born; soon they would now see the salvation and glory
of the Most High. The holy prince gave them an understanding of the excellence
of the most holy Mary and of what the Omnipotent had begun to work in Her, in
order that they might better comprehend the happy beginning of the mystery,
which was to end their prolonged imprisonment. Then all the holy Patriarchs and
Prophets and the rest of the just in limbo rejoiced in spirit and in new
canticles praised the Lord for this benefit.
All these happenings at the birth of our Queen succeeded each
other in a short space of time. The first exercise of her senses in the light of
the material sun, was to recognize her parents and other creatures. The arms of
the Most High began to work new wonders in Her far above all conceptions of men,
and the first and most stupendous one was to send innumerable angels to bring
the Mother of the eternal Word body and soul into the empyrean heaven for the
fulfilling of his further intentions regarding Her. The holy princes obeyed the
divine mandate and receiving the child Mary from the arms of her holy Mother
Anne, they arranged a new and solemn procession bearing heavenward with
incomparable songs of joy the true Ark of the covenant, in order that for a
short time it might rest, not in the house of Obededon, but in the temple of the
King of kings and of the Lord of lords, where later on it was to be placed for
all eternity. This was the second step, which most holy Mary made in her life,
namely, from this earth to the highest heaven.
Who can worthily extol this wonderful prodigy of the right
hand of the Almighty? Who can describe the joy and the admiration of the
celestial spirits, when they beheld this new and wonderful work of the Most
High, and when they gathered to celebrate it in their songs? In these songs they
acknowledged and reverenced as their Queen and Mistress, Her, who was to be the
Mother of their Lord, and the source of the grace and glory, which they
possessed; for it was through his foreseen merits, that they had been made the
recipients of the divine bounty. But above all, what human tongue, or what
mortal could ever describe or comprehend the heart-secrets of that tender Child
during these events? I leave the imagination of all this to Catholic piety, and
still more to those who in the Lord are favored with an understanding of it, but
most of all to those who, by divine bounty shall have arrived at the beatific
vision face to face.
Borne by the hands of the angels the child Mary entered the
empyrean heaven where She prostrated Herself full of love before the royal
throne in the presence of the Most High. Then (according to our way of
understanding), was verified what long before had happened in figure, when
Bethsabee entered into the presence of her son Solomon, who, while presiding
over his people of Israel, arose from his throne, received her with honor and
reverence, and seated her at his side as queen. Similarly, but in a more
glorious and admirable manner, the person of the divine Word now received the
child Mary, whom He had chosen as Mother, as Queen of the universe. Although her
real dignity and the purpose of these ineffable mysteries were unknown to Mary,
yet her infant faculties were strengthened by divine power for the reception of
these favors. New graces and gifts were bestowed upon Her, by which her
faculties were correspondingly elevated. Her powers of mind, besides being
illumined and prepared by new grace and light, were raised and proportioned to
the divine manifestation, and the Divinity displayed Itself in the new light
vouchsafed, revealing Itself to Her intuitively and clearly in a most exalted
manner. This was the first time in which the most holy soul of Mary saw the
blessed Trinity in unveiled beatific vision.
The sole witnesses of the glory of Mary in this beatific
vision, of the sacraments then again revealed to Her, of the divine effect that
overflowed into her most pure soul, was God the Author of this unheard of
wonder, and the astounded angels, who in some measure perceived these mysteries
in God Himself. The Queen seated at the side of the Lord, who was to be her Son,
and seeing Him face to face, was more successful in her prayer than Bethsabee
(III Kings 2, 21). For She prayed that He bestow the untouched Sunamite Abisag,
his inaccessible Divinity, upon his sister, human nature by the hypostatic union
be fulfilled in the person of the Word. Many times He had pledged Himself to it
among men through the ancient Patriarchs and Prophets and now Mary besought Him
to accelerate the reparation of the human race, expected for so many ages amid
the multiplied iniquity and the ruin of souls. The Most High heard this most
pleasing petition of his Mother, and acting more graciously than Solomon of old
toward his mother, He assured Her that soon his promises should be fulfilled,
and that He should descend to the world in order to assume and redeem human
nature.
In this divine consistory and tribunal of the most holy
Trinity it was determined to give a name to the Child Queen. As there is no
proper and legitimate name, except it be found in the immutable being of God
himself (for from it are participated and determined according to their right
weight and measure all things in infinite wisdom) his Majesty wished himself to
give and impose that name in heaven. He thereby made known to the angelic
spirits, that the three divine Persons, had decreed and formed the sweet names
of Jesus and Mary for the Son and Mother from the beginning before the ages, and
that they had been delighted with them and had engraved them on their eternal
memories to be as it were the Objects for whose service They should create all
things. Being informed of these and many other mysteries, the holy angels heard
a voice from the throne speaking in the person of the Father: "Our chosen
One shall be called MARY, and this name is to be powerful and magnificent. Those
that shall invoke it with devout affection shall receive most abundant graces;
those that shall honor it and pronounce it with reverence shall be consoled and
vivified, and will find in it the remedy of their evils, the treasures for their
enrichment, the light which shall guide them to heaven. It shall be terrible
against the power of hell, it shall crush the head of the serpent and it shall
win glorious victories over the princes of hell." The Lord commanded the
angelic spirits to announce this glorious name to saint Anne, so that what was
decreed in heaven might be executed on earth. The heavenly Child, lovingly
prostrate before the throne, rendered most acceptable and human thanks to the
eternal Being; and She received the name with most admirable and sweet
jubilation. If the prerogatives and graces, which She then was favored with,
were to be described, it would necessitate an extra book of many volumes. The
holy angels honored and acknowledged most holy Mary as the future Mother of the
Word and as their Queen and Mistress enthroned at the right hand of her Son;
they showed their veneration of her holy name, prostrating themselves as it
proceeded from the throne in the voice of the eternal Father, especially those,
who had it written on the devises over their breast. All of them gave forth
canticles of praise for these great and hidden mysteries. In the meanwhile the
infant Queen remained ignorant of the real cause of all that She thus
experienced, for her dignity of Mother of the incarnate Word was not revealed to
Her till the time of the Incarnation. With the same reverential jubilee did the
angels return in order to replace Her into the arms of holy Anne, to whom this
event remained a secret, as was also the absence of her Daughter; for a guardian
angel, assuming an aerial body, supplied her place for this very purpose. More
than that, during a great part of the time in which the heavenly Child remained
in the empyrean heaven, her mother was wrapped in ecstasy of highest
contemplation, and in it, although she did not know what was happening to the
Child, exalted mysteries concerning the dignity of the Mother of God, to which
She was to be chosen, were revealed to her. The prudent matron kept them
enshrined within her breast, conferring them in her thoughts with the duties she
owed to her Child.
On the eighth day after the birth of the great Queen
multitudes of most beautiful angels in splendid array descended from on high
bearing an escutcheon on which the name of MARY was engraved and shone forth in
great brilliancy. Appearing to the blessed mother Anne, they told her, that the
name of her daughter was to be MARY, which name they had brought from heaven,
and which divine Providence had selected and now ordained to be given to their
child by Joachim and herself. The saint called for her husband and they
conferred with each other about this disposition of God in regard to the name of
their Daughter. The more than happy father accepted the name with joy and devout
affection. They decided to call their relatives and a priest and then, with much
solemnity and festivity, they imposed the name of MARY on their Child. The
angels also celebrated this event with most sweet and ravishing music, which,
however, was heard only by the mother and her most holy Daughter.
WORDS OF THE QUEEN. (The
Virgin Mary speaks to Sister Mary of Agreda, Spain.)
My admonition to thee, whom in spite of thy weakness and
poverty I have chosen with such generous kindness as my disciple and companion,
is this: that thou strive with all thy powers to imitate me in an exercise, in
which I persevered during my whole life from the very first moment of my birth,
omitting it on not a single day, however full of cares and labors it might have
been. This exercise was the following: every day at the beginning of dawn, I
prostrated myself in the presence of the Most High, and gave Him thanks and
praise for his immutable Being, his infinite perfections, and for having created
me out of nothing; acknowledging myself as his creature and the work of his
hands, I blessed Him and adored Him, giving Him honor, magnificence and
Divinity, as the supreme Lord and Creator of myself and of all that exists. I
raised up my spirit to place it into his hands, offering myself with profound
humility and resignation to Him and asking Him to dispose of me according to his
will during that day and during all the days of my life, and to teach me to
fulfill whatever would be to his greater pleasure. This I repeated many times
during the external works of the day, and in the internal ones I first consulted
his Majesty, asking his advice, permission and benediction for all my actions.
Be very devout toward my most sweet name. I wish that thou be
convinced of the great prerogatives and privileges, which the Almighty concedes
to it, so that I myself, when I saw them in the Divinity, felt most deeply
obliged and solicitous to make a proper return; and whenever the name MARY
occurred to my mind (which happened often) and whenever I heard myself called by
that name, I was aroused to thankfulness and urged to new fervor in the service
of the Lord, who gave it to me. Thou hast the same name and I wish, that in
proportion it should cause the same effects in thee and that thou imitate me
faithfully by following the lesson given thee in this chapter, without failing
in the least point from this day onward. And if in thy weakness thou shouldst
fail, rouse thyself immediately, and in the presence of thy Lord and mine,
acknowledge thy fault, confessing it in sorrow. Repeating these holy exercises
over and again with solicitous care, thou shalt find forgiveness for
imperfections and grow accustomed to strive after what is highest in all virtues
and most pleasing and agreeable to thy own tastes and mine, thou shalt not be
denied the grace of employing thyself entirely in listening, attending to and
obeying in all things thy Spouse and Lord, who seeks in thee only what is most
pure, most holy and perfect, and a will prompt and eager to put the same into
practice.
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