“I am all yours, and all that I have is yours, O most loving Jesus, through Mary, your most holy Mother”
Today we will continue to contemplate the Hail Mary in light of the Mystery of the Visitation.
I will be giving a video Scripture Study on the Visitation. In it, I will briefly touch on Mary as the Ark of the Covenant.
To learn more please see Dr. Brant Pitre’s study:
https://watch.formed.org/lectio-mary-with-dr-brant-pitre/season:1/videos/the-new-ark
The devil fears Mary
I will just add a few thoughts here to consider as well. In light of the grave evil we are facing, I would like us to remember that the devil fears Mary more than all Angels and men, and in a sense more than God Himself.
Fr. Gaitley mentions this in today’s teaching as well, quoting St. Louis:
“Satan,
being proud, suffers infinitely more from being beaten and punished by a
little and humble handmaid of God, and her humility humbles him more
than the divine power.”
“Many faithful are asking themselves today how
one can withstand the current storm of the great test and remain in the true
Faith. I would like to answer that with the famous words of the Most Blessed
Virgin Mary in Fatima: ‘My Immaculate Heart will be your refuge and the way
which leads you to God!’”
Father Frank Unterhalt
Therefore, let us not lose heart when the world around us appears to be inundated with evil. We have nothing to fear when we place ourselves under her mantle. Mary’s holiness terrifies satan and he runs from her (and from those who are under her care). With this in mind, let’s ponder the wondrous mystery of the Visitation:
Scripture for the Visitation: Lk 1: 39- 80
the hill country in haste to a town of Judah, 40where she entered the house of Zechariah and
greeted Elizabeth. 41When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the infant leaped in her
womb, and Elizabeth, filled with the holy Spirit,s 42cried out in a loud voice and said, “Most blessed are you among
women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb.t 43And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord* should
come to me? 44For at the moment the sound of your greeting
reached my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy. 45Blessed
are you who believed*
that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled.”u
returned to her home.
birth to a son. 58Her neighbors and relatives heard that
the Lord had shown his great mercy toward her, and they rejoiced with her.g 59*
When they came on the eighth day to circumciseh the child,
they were going to call him Zechariah after his father, 60but
his mother said in reply, “No. He will be called John.”i 61But they answered her, “There is no one among your relatives
who has this name.” 62So they made signs, asking his
father what he wished him to be called. 63He asked for a
tablet and wrote, “John is his name,” and all were amazed. 64Immediately his mouth was opened, his tongue freed, and he
spoke blessing God.j
65Then fear came upon all their neighbors, and all these
matters were discussed throughout the hill country of Judea. 66All who
heard these things took them to heart, saying, “What, then, will this child
be?” For surely the hand of the Lord was with him.
filled with the holy Spirit, prophesied, saying:
He has raised up a horn for our salvation
prophets from of old:
hate us,m
righteousness
High,
shadow,
he was in the desert until the day of his manifestation to Israel.u
Wisdom about the Hail Mary from St. Louis de Montfort
“The Angelic Salutation” is St. Louis’ favorite name for the Hail Mary… because it doesn’t quite roll off the tongue and its vernacular is somewhat foreign to our modern minds – I will replace it with: “The Hail Mary”
“The Hail Mary” is a most concise summary of all that Catholic theology teaches about the Blessed Virgin. It is divided into two parts, that of praise and petition: the first shows all that goes to make up Mary’s greatness and the second all that we need to ask her for and all that we may expect to receive through her goodness.”
“When we praise and bless Our Lady by the saying the “The Hail Mary” she always passes on these praises to Almighty God in the same way as she did when she was praised by Saint. Elizabeth. The latter blessed her in her most elevated dignity as Mother of God and Our Lady immediately returned these praises to God by her beautiful Magnificat.”
“The Hail Mary is a blessed dew that falls from heaven upon the souls of the predestinate. It gives them a marvelous spiritual fertility so that they can grow in all virtues. The more the garden of the soul is watered by this prayer the more enlightened one’s intellect becomes, the more zealous his heart, and the stronger his armor against his spiritual enemies.”
“By each Hail Mary we give Our Lady the same honor that God gave her when He sent the Archangel Gabriel to greet her for Him. How could anyone possibly think that Jesus and Mary, who often do good to those that curse them, could ever curse those that bless and honor them by the Hail Mary?”
“The Hail Mary is a sharp and flaming shaft which, joined to the Word of God, gives the preacher the strength to pierce, move and convert the most hardened hearts even if he has little or no natural gift of preaching.”
“In each Hail Mary we bless both Jesus and Mary: ‘Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is thy fruit of thy womb Jesus.’”
“If we make ourselves worthy of the greeting and blessings of Our Lady we shall certainly be filled with graces and a flood of spiritual consolations will come down into our souls.”
Flame of Love Devotion:
As we are contemplating the Hail Mary I wanted to share about a recent apparition, in which Mary is said to have requested that a petition be added to the Hail Mary. Here is an excerpt from a very informative article by Christine Watkins. Please see article for more information and additional devotions.
“In the troubling times in which we live, Jesus and His Mother,
through recent and movements in the heavens and in the Church, are
laying extraordinary graces in our laps for our disposal. One such
movement is “The Flame of Love of the Immaculate Heart of Mary,” a new
name given to that immense and eternal love that Mary has for all her
children.
The movement’s foundation is The Spiritual Diary of
Hungarian mystic Elizabeth Kindelmann, in which Jesus and Mary teach
Elizabeth and the faithful the divine art of suffering for the salvation
of souls. Tasks are assigned for each day of the week, involving
prayer, fasting, and night vigils, with beautiful promises attached to
them, laced with special graces for priests and the souls in purgatory.
In their messages to Elizabeth, Jesus and Mary say that “The Flame of
Love of the Immaculate Heart of Mary” is “the greatest grace given to
mankind since the Incarnation.” And in the not-so-distant future, her
flame will engulf the entire world.
Cardinal and Archbishop Péter Erdő of Esztergom-Budapest, Primate of Hungary, established a commission to study The Spiritual Diary
and the various recognitions that local bishops around the world had
given to The Flame of Love movement, as a private association of the
faithful. In 2009, the cardinal not only gave the Imprimatur to The Spiritual Diary,
but recognized Elizabeth’s mystical locutions and writings as
authentic, a “gift to the Church.” In addition, he gave his episcopal
approval of the Flame of Love movement, which has formally operated
within the Church for over twenty years. Currently, the movement is
seeking further approbation as a Public Association of the Faithful. On
June 19, 2013, Pope Francis gave to it his Apostolic Blessing. ..
THE FLAME OF LOVE PRAYER
Elizabeth Kindelmann wrote:
“I am going to record what the Blessed Virgin told me in [October of]
this year, 1962. I kept it inside for a long time without daring to
write it down. It is a petition of the Blessed Virgin: ‘When you say the
prayer that honors me, the Hail Mary, include this petition in the
following manner:
Hail Mary, full of grace … pray for us sinners, spread the effect of grace of thy Flame of Love over all of humanity, now and at the hour of our death. Amen.’”
The bishop asked Elizabeth: “Why should the very old Hail Mary be recited differently?”
“On February 2, 1982, Our Lord explained, ‘Because of the Holy
Virgin’s efficacious pleas, the Most Blessed Trinity granted the
outpouring of the Flame of Love. For her sake, you must place this
prayer in the Hail Mary so that, by its effect, humanity is converted.’
Our Lady also said, ‘I want to awaken humanity by this petition. This
is not a new formula but a constant supplication. If at any moment,
someone prays three Hail Mary’s in my honor, while referring to the
Flame of Love, they will free a soul from purgatory. During November,
one Hail Mary will free ten souls.’”
THE UNITY PRAYER
Jesus said:
“I made this prayer completely my own … This prayer is an instrument
in your hands. By collaborating with Me, Satan will be blinded by it;
and because of his blindness, souls will not be led into sin.”
May our feet journey together.
May our hands gather in unity.
May our hearts beat in unison.
May our souls be in harmony.
May our thoughts be as one.
May our ears listen to the silence together.
May our glances profoundly penetrate each other.
May our lips pray together to gain mercy from the Eternal Father.
On August 1, 1962, three months after Our Lord introduced the Unity Prayer, Our Lady said to Elizabeth:
“Now, Satan has been blinded for some hours and has ceased
dominating souls. Lust is the sin making so many victims. Because Satan
is now powerless and blind, the evil spirits are set and inert, as if
they have fallen into lethargy. They do not understand what is
happening. Satan has stopped giving them orders. Consequently, souls are
freed from the domination of the evil one and are making sound
resolutions. Once those millions of souls emerge from this event, they
will be much stronger in their resolve to stay firm.”
http://catholicmom.com/2019/06/26/practices-promises-of-the-flame-of-love-of-the-immaculate-heart-of-mary/
Action:
1. Read through the accompanying pictures and the extraordinary wisdom of St. Louis below if possible.
2. Continue to choose to enter more deeply into the daily prayer program (below) at least in this way:
Ponder and pray the Hail Mary today and the accompanying Scripture texts as you meditate and pray one decade of the Rosary – the 2nd Joyful Mystery of the Rosary- the Visitation – while praying for the grace to listen, to hear and respond to God as Mary does.
Praying
also for the grace to surrender whatever is keeping me from responding
fully – in and through and with Mary’s love and help.
Daily Prayer Program for these 33 Days:
is important to make a commitment to strive to pray more deeply, more
intensely and with more of your heart during these days of preparation.
Here are some guidelines and suggestions for how to live these days.
Pray about how you can grow in each of these areas listed below and
while living out this prayer program it is especially important to
• To Jelena: “I’m going to reveal a spiritual secret to you:
if you want to be stronger than evil, make yourself a plan of personal
prayer. Take a certain time in the morning, read a text from Holy
Scripture, anchor the Divine word in your heart, and strive to live it
during the day, particularly during the moment of trials. In this way,
you will be stronger than evil.” (Our Lady of Medjugorje, April 19,
1984)
• St. Louis de Montfort – Mary will form the greatest saints
who ever lived – easiest shortest most sure way to sanctity
Consecration to Jesus through Mary
Day 3 of 33:
Meditate on Scripture: St. Matthew 7: 1-14
which you measure will be measured out to you.c3Why do you notice the splinter in your brother’s eye, but do not
perceive the wooden beam in your own eye?4How can you say to
your brother, ‘Let me remove that splinter from your eye,’ while the wooden
beam is in your eye?5You hypocrite,* remove the wooden beam
from your eye first; then you will see clearly to remove the splinter from your
brother’s eye.
to dogs,* or throw your pearls before swine, lest they trample them
underfoot, and turn and tear you to pieces.d
knock and the door will be opened to you.f8For everyone who asks,
receives; and the one who seeks, finds; and to the one who knocks, the door
will be opened.g9Which one of you would
hand his son a stone when he asks for a loaf of bread,*10or a snake when he asks for a fish?11If you then, who
are wicked, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will
your heavenly Father give good things to those who ask him.h
to others whatever you would have them do to you.i This
is the law and the prophets.
The Narrow Gate.
through the narrow gate;* for
the gate is wide and the road broad that leads to destruction, and those who
enter through it are many.j14How narrow the gate and
constricted the road that leads to life. And those who find it are few.
time constraints: Veni Creator, Ave Maris Stella, Magnificat, and Glory Be
Latin with English Translation
Creator
Spirit blest!
And in our souls take up thy rest;
Come with Thy grace and heavenly aid,
To fill the hearts which Thou hast made.
Great Paraclete! To Thee we cry,
O highest gift of God most high!
O font of life! O fire of love!
And sweet anointing from above.
Thou in Thy sevenfold gifts art known,
The finger of God’s hand we own;
The promise of the Father, Thou!
Who dost the tongue with power endow.
Kindle our senses ‘from above,
And make our hearts o’erflow with love;
With patience firm and virtue high
The weakness of our flesh supply.
Far from us drive the foe we dread,
And grant us Thy true peace instead;
So shall we not, with Thee for guide,
Turn from the path of life aside.
Oh, may Thy grace on us bestow
The Father and the Son to know,
And Thee through endless times confessed
Of both the eternal Spirit blest.
All glory while the ages run
Be to the Father and the Son
Who rose from death; the same to Thee,
O Holy Ghost, eternally. Amen.
in Latin with English Translation
Stella
of ocean,
God’s own Mother blest,
Ever sinless Virgin,
Gate of heavenly rest.
Ave
Which from Gabriel came,
Peace confirm within us,
Changing Eva’s name.
captives’ fetters,
Light on blindness pour,
All our ills expelling,
Every bliss implore.
Mother;
May the Word Divine,
Born for us thy Infant,
Hear our prayers through thine.
excelling,
Mildest of the mild,
Freed from guilt, preserve us,
Pure and undefiled.
Keep our life all spotless,
Make our way secure,
Till we find in Jesus
Joy forevermore.
Through the highest heaven
To the Almighty Three,
Father, Son and Spirit,
One same glory be. Amen.
Prayer of Mary – The Magnificat
proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
my spirit rejoices in God my
Savior
for he has looked with favor
on his lowly servant.
From this day all generations
will call me blessed:
the Almighty has done great
things for me,
and holy is his Name. He has mercy on those who
fear him
in every generation.
He has shown the strength of
his arm,
he has scattered the proud in
their conceit. He has cast down the mighty
from their thrones,
and has lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with
good things,
and the rich he has sent away
empty. He has come to the help of
his servant Israel
for he remembered his promise
of mercy,
the promise he made to our
fathers,
to Abraham and his children
forever.
(Lk 1:46-55)
to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit
was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end.
Amen.
Examine your conscience, pray, practice renouncement of your own will;
mortification, purity of heart. This purity is the indispensable condition for
contemplating God in heaven, to see Him on earth and to know Him by the light
of faith. The first part of the preparation should be employed in casting off
the spirit of the world which is contrary to that of Jesus Christ.
The spirit of the world consists essentially in the denial of the supreme
dominion of God; a denial which is manifested in practice by sin and
disobedience; thus it is principally opposed to the spirit of Christ, which is
also that of Mary.
It manifests itself by the concupiscence of the flesh, by the concupiscence of
the eyes and by the pride of life, and by disobedience to God’s laws and the
abuse of created things. Its works are: sin in all forms, then all else by
which the devil leads to sin; works which bring error and darkness to the mind,
and seduction and corruption to the will. Its pomps are the splendor and the
charms employed by the devil to render sin alluring in persons, places and
things.
Read:
St. Louis de Montfort’s True Devotion to Mary paragraphs 17-24.
PART I: TRUE DEVOTION TO OUR LADY IN GENERAL
CHAPTER ONE
NECESSITY OF DEVOTION TO OUR LADY
Mary’s part in the Incarnation
God the Father imparted to Mary his fruitfulness as far as a
mere creature was capable of receiving it, to enable her to bring forth his Son
and all the members of his mystical body.
God the Son came into her virginal womb as a new Adam into
his earthly paradise, to take his delight there and produce hidden wonders of
grace.
found freedom in imprisoning himself in her womb. He displayed power in
allowing himself to be borne by this young maiden. He found his glory and that
of his Father in hiding his splendours from all creatures here below and
revealing them only to Mary. He glorified his independence and his majesty in
depending upon this lovable virgin in his conception, his birth, his
presentation in the temple, and in the thirty years of his hidden life. Even at
his death she had to be present so that he might be united with her in one
sacrifice and be immolated with her consent to the eternal Father, just as
formerly Isaac was offered in sacrifice by Abraham when he accepted the will of
God. It was Mary who nursed him, fed him, cared for him, reared him, and sacrificed
him for us.
The Holy Spirit could not leave such wonderful and inconceivable dependence of
God unmentioned in the Gospel, though he concealed almost all the wonderful
things that Wisdom Incarnate did during his hidden life in order to bring home
to us its infinite value and glory. Jesus gave more glory to God his Father by
submitting to his Mother for thirty years than he would have given him had he
converted the whole world by working the greatest miracles. How highly then do
we glorify God when to please him we submit ourselves to Mary, taking Jesus as
our sole model.
If we examine closely the remainder of the life of Jesus Christ,
we see that he chose to begin his miracles through Mary. It was by her word
that he sanctified Saint John the Baptist in the womb of his mother, Saint
Elizabeth; no sooner had Mary spoken than John was sanctified. This was his
first and greatest miracle of grace. At the wedding in Cana he changed water
into wine at her humble prayer, and this was his first miracle in the order of
nature. He began and continued his miracles through Mary and he will continue
them through her until the end of time.
20. God the Holy Spirit, who does not produce any divine person, became
fruitful through Mary whom he espoused. It was with her, in her and of her that
he produced his masterpiece, God-made-man, and that he produces every day until
the end of the world the members of the body of this adorable Head. For this
reason the more he finds Mary his dear and inseparable spouse in a soul the
more powerful and effective he becomes in producing Jesus Christ in that soul
and that soul in Jesus Christ.
This does not mean that the Blessed Virgin confers on the
Holy Spirit a fruitfulness which he does not already possess. Being God, he has
the ability to produce just like the Father and the Son, although he does not
use this power and so does not produce another divine person. But it does mean
that the Holy Spirit chose to make use of our Blessed Lady, although he had no
absolute need of her, in order to become actively fruitful in producing Jesus
Christ and his members in her and by her. This is a mystery of grace unknown
even to many of the most learned and spiritual of Christians.
2. Mary’s part in the sanctification of souls
The plan adopted by the three persons of the Blessed Trinity
in the Incarnation, the first coming of Jesus Christ, is adhered to each day in
an invisible manner throughout the Church and they will pursue it to the end of
time until the last coming of Jesus Christ.
God the Father gathered all the waters together and called
them the seas (maria). He gathered all his graces together and called them Mary
(Maria). The great God has a treasury or storehouse full of riches in which he
has enclosed all that is beautiful, resplendent, rare, and precious, even his
own Son. This immense treasury is none other than Mary whom the saints call the
“treasury of the Lord”. From her fullness all men are made rich.
God the Son imparted to his mother all that he gained by his
life and death, namely, his infinite merits and his eminent virtues. He made
her the treasurer of all his Father had given him as heritage. Through her he
applies his merits to his members and through her he transmits his virtues and
distributes his graces. She is his mystical channel, his aqueduct, through
which he causes his mercies to flow gently and abundantly.
We are also called to renounce Satan and all his pomps and works – and commit ourselves to Jesus through with and in Mary
living in Mary, Give me the grace to reject Satan and follow Christ more
closely”.
© Janet Moore 2019. All
Rights Reserved.