“AND MARY KEPT ALL THESE THINGS, REFLECTING ON THEM IN HER HEART.” LK 2:16-21
Humbly submit your will to God (Thy Will be done) and consecrate yourself to the Sacred Heart of Jesus through Mary and Joseph.
Brothers and sisters:
When the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son,
born of a woman, born under the law,
to ransom those under the law,
so that we might receive adoption as sons.
As proof that you are sons,
God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts,
crying out, “Abba, Father!”
So you are no longer a slave but a son,
and if a son then also an heir, through God. Gal 4:4-7
The shepherds went in haste to Bethlehem and found Mary and Joseph,
and the infant lying in the manger.
When they saw this,
they made known the message
that had been told them about this child.
All who heard it were amazed
by what had been told them by the shepherds.
And Mary kept all these things,
reflecting on them in her heart.
Then the shepherds returned,
glorifying and praising God
for all they had heard and seen,
just as it had been told to them.
When eight days were completed for his circumcision,
he was named Jesus, the name given him by the angel
before he was conceived in the womb. Lk 2:16-21
Today, we celebrate the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God, a holy day of obligation (today it falls on Monday so it is not). First, we must focus on Jesus and who He is, “he was named Jesus, the name given to him by the angel before he was conceived in the womb”. We are reminded in Philippians 2:1-10 the importance of the name of Jesus and who He is, 1 If there is any encouragement in Christ, any solace in love, any participation in the Spirit, any compassion and mercy, 2 complete my joy by being of the same mind, with the same love, united in heart, thinking one thing. a3 Do nothing out of selfishness or out of vainglory; rather, humbly regard others as more important than yourselves, b4 each looking out not for his own interests, but [also] everyone for those of others.c 5 Have among yourselves the same attitude that is also yours in Christ Jesus,* 6 Who,* though he was in the form of God,d did not regard equality with God something to be grasped.* 7 Rather, he emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, coming in human likeness;* and found human in appearance,e 8 he humbled himself,f becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross.* 9 Because of this, God greatly exalted him and bestowed on him the name* that is above every name,g 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend,* of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth,h 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,* to the glory of God the Father.i
In John’s Gospel, Jesus revealed, “5 I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit, because without me you can do nothing.” JN 15:5
At the name of Jesus our knee should bend and without Him we can do nothing. Today, we celebrate the human being that God chose to bring Jesus into the world, Mary. Eve brought death, Mary brought life. Mary is the new ark of the covenant. Mary is the Mother of God.
In the Litany of the Blessed Virgin Mary, she is called Most Holy Virgin of virgins, Mother of Christ, Mother of divine grace, Mother most pure, Mother most chaste, Mother inviolate, Mother undefiled, Mother most amiable, Mother most admirable, Mother of good counsel, Mother of our Creator, Mother of our Savior, Virgin most prudent, Virgin most venerable, Virgin most renowned, Virgin most powerful, Virgin most merciful (Mediatrix of grace and mercy), Virgin most faithful, Mirror of justice, Seat of wisdom, Cause of our joy, Spiritual vessel, Vessel of honor, Singular vessel of devotion, Mystical rose, Tower of David, Tower of ivory, House of gold, Gate of Heaven, Morning star, Health of the sick, Refuge of sinners, Comforter of the afflicted, Help of Christians, Queen of angels, Queen of patriarchs, Queen of prophets, Queen of apostles, Queen of martyrs, Queen of confessors, Queen of virgins, Queen of all saints, Queen conceived without Original Sin, Queen assumed into Heaven, Queen of the most holy Rosary, and Queen of peace.
Mary’s last words in Scripture are, “Do whatever he tells you”. Jesus’s last words to her on the Cross were, “Behold your son”, referring to John and asks John to, “behold your mother”. Mary stays with the Apostles to begin the Church. She stays with us through Jesus’s words to her in John, the Apostle and all of humanity. She receives the mission to be the spiritual mother to us all! Mary leads us to Jesus’s most Sacred Heart. She has been given this mission at the foot of the Cross and she will be true to it all the way to the end.
Today’s challenge: In this new year, find one way to devote yourselves to Mary’s most Immaculate and Sorrowful Heart. 33 Days to Morning Glory, A Do-It-Yourself Retreat by Fr. Michael E. Gaitley, MIC or Consecrate yourself to the Sacred Heart of Jesus through the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Say a rosary daily, walking with Mary through a scrapbook of her life with Jesus.
“If I had an army to say the Rosary, I could conquer the world.”
(Blessed Pope Piux IX)
The Rosary is a powerful weapon to put the demons to flight and to keep oneself from sin…If you desire peace in your hearts, in your homes, and in your country, assemble each evening to recite the Rosary. Let not even one day pass without saying it, no matter how burdened you may be with many cares and labors.~Pope Pius XI
If you say the Rosary faithfully until death, I do assure you that, in spite of the gravity of your sins, you shall receive a never fading crown of glory. For even if you are now on the brink of damnation, even if you have one foot in hell, even if you have sold your soul to the devil…sooner or later you will be converted and will amend your life and save your soul. If–you say the Rosary devoutly every day of your life.~St. Louis De Montfort
The Rosary is the most excellent form of prayer and the most efficacious means of attaining eternal life. It is the remedy for all our evils, the root of all our blessings. There is no more excellent way of praying.~Pope Leo XIII
The Rosary is the Weapon for these times.~St. Pio
The Rosary is my favorite prayer.~St. Pope John Paul II
The greatest method of praying is to pray the Rosary.~Saint Francis de Sales
“No one can live continually in sin and continue to say the Rosary: either they will give up sin or they will give up the Rosary”~Bishop Hugh Doyle
The rosary is the book of the blind, where souls see and there enact the greatest drama of love the world has ever known; it is the book of the simple, which initiates them into mysteries and knowledge more satisfying than the education of other men; it is the book of the aged, whose eyes close upon the shadow of this world, and open on the substance of the next. The power of the rosary is beyond description.~Venerable Fulton Sheen
Be a servant, be a saint today!
#Christian YOLO
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