Feast of The Immaculate Heart of Mary
(Saturday after Feast of The Sacred Heart of Jesus, Movable Feast)
Two wonderful books and a 4‑volume collection of books tell great things about The Immaculate Heart of Mary: True Devotion to Mary, by St. Louis Marie de Montfort, The Glories of Mary, by St. Alphonsus de Liguori, and The Mystical City of God, by Venerable Mary of Agreda. Do we need to know about The Immaculate Heart of Mary? Isn’t She just a human being? Couldn’t we just get to know about Jesus, only, and still live well and die holily, and end up in Heaven? Those are, indeed, very good questions, and I think that the answers are: “Yes,” “Yes” and, “No.”
If we want to know the child well, don’t we need to know the father and the mother? Don’t the ancestry, as well as the environment, help shape each person, as well as the person’s reaction to these things? Isn’t The Blessed Virgin Mary the Mother of Jesus, God/Himself? Yes, she is a Human Being. She is the only, solely human being, without which we would not be able to make it to Heaven.
Let’s get some more details on The Blessed Virgin Mary. By the way, She was the main reason why lucifer would not obey and serve God — God The Son wast going to be born of a Virgin Mother, a HUMAN being, and he would not tolerate a God, who would do this. (See “The Holy Angels” webpage.) God does not need to humble Himself before us, but, in order to make up to The Father, His Divine Nature, and The Holy Ghost for Adam’s sin of pride and disobedience, God The Son decided to take the form of the most helpless human being, which exists: a Baby in the womb. He decided, even though He remained The King of the universe, with everything under His Feet, to make Himself dependent on a Human Mother for all of His Needs and, for the most part, not let anyone know that He Wast God until He began His Public Ministry, when He wast about 30 years old. St. Louis de Montfort said:
He [Jesus] gave more glory to God, His Father, during all those years of submission and dependence, than He would have given by spending them working miracles, preaching far and wide, and converting all mankind. Otherwise He would have done all these things. (True Devotion to Mary, #139).
God Is Omnipotent, Omniscient, Omnipresent, and Immutable. By taking the form of a Human Being, He allowed Himself to suffer physically, which was not possible before He became The God-Man. Thus, as He Wast and Ist Perfect, this Human Suffering was accepted, to make up to God (His Divine Nature included) for the first-created-man’s, Adam’s Sin.
Obviously, if God wast going to take the form of a Baby Human, and appear to be totally dependent (weak) on a Human Mother, The Mother could not just be anyone — She would have to be not only Perfect, but She could not have any tendency towards sin, nor any capability of sinning. If so, She would not be a good mother to God The Son, nor would She be a good mother to the rest of humanity, especially to those, who would belong to Her Son’s New-Covenant Church, called The Catholic Church, since A.D. 100. She would not be a good example to all other humans, either. So, not only did God exempt The Blessed Virgin Mary from original sin, by redeeming Her in advance, He also confirmed Her in grace, so that She would not be able to betray God in sin — She still had free will, but She could choose among the good things, not among the bad. Fr. John A. Hardon, S.J. was an advisor to Bl. Pope John Paul II as well as to Bl. Mother Teresa of Calcultta; he was sought after for most conservative conferences regarding The Faith; he wrote The Catholic Catechism, many other solid books, recorded many tapes, which teach The Faith — he was just about as solid a theologian, as we can get. He said:
ABSOLUTE SINLESSNESS. This says more than merely that Mary never sinned. She had a free will. But confirmed by supernatural grace, her will was never inclined to disobey the will of God. What should be further explained to those you catechize is that, as we grow in holiness, we do not lose our free will. But our freedom is more and more inclined to choose what is more pleasing to God. Mary’s sinlessness was not a sterile passivity. It was an ever active tendency to do what was more generous, more loving, and more perfect in the sight of God. (http://www.therealpresence.org/archives/Faith/Faith_007.htm)
Since The Blessed Virgin Mary was sinless, Her Heart was Immaculate (Impeccable, Sinless), and She cooperated completely every time, that She was given a choice, with God’s Will. She imitated Her Son as much as it is possible to do. Since there was no human male involved with God The Son’s Conception in Her Most Holy Womb — God The Spirit Wast and Ist Her Divine Spouse — all of Jesus’ Genes come from The Blessed Virgin. As Jesus, God The Son, Wast of the line of David, The Blessed Virgin also had to be of this line, although it is St. Joseph’s ancestry, which is given in the New Testament. Jesus had to resemble His Mother physically, in some way, as well.
Without the “Fiat” (Let It Be) of The Blessed Virgin Mary to Holy Archangel Gabriel, the human race would not be here. As we would not be able to attain Heaven, the very reason for which we were created, there would have been no reason for The Lord to create us. Since The Blessed Virgin had been conceived immaculately, without original sin, and had been confirmed in grace, and could not sin, if She had not assented to become The Mother of God, we would not be here. We owe The Blessed Virgin Mother Mary a huge debt of gratitude, love, and obedience, as Her spiritual children. She rewards us with Her Love, Her Care, Her Protection, and Her Mediation, as the First Ambassadress with God. Since God chose to come to earth and become a Human through Mary, He now chooses to bestow any grace on us, through Mary. She is the Mediator with the Mediator — Jesus — and, thus, is called the Mediatrix of all graces. What She has, is given to Her by God — She does not have this by her human nature. Jesus reigns as King in Heaven, and Mary reigns at His Right Hand as Queen Mother in Heaven.
I pray directly to The Father, The Son, and The Holy Ghost, to The Most Blessed Trinity, but my sins muffle my petitions. When I ask The Blessed Virgin Mary, White Lily of The Most Holy Trinity, to intercede for me, She cleans up my petitions, through Her Immaculate Heart, so that God will grant them, if they be His Will.
If we want to get to Heaven (and who wants to go to never-ending torture in hell?), we had better imitate, petition, honor, and love The Blessed Virgin Mary and Her Immaculate Heart, without whom we would not have been able to get to Heaven.
NOVENA PRAYERS:
Act of Consecration to The Immaculate Heart of Mary:
“O Heart of Mary, I offer, I consecrate to Thee my heart; Thou shalt ever be the object of my veneration, love, and confidence; I will pay Thee my devotions every day; I will celebrate Thy Feasts with joy; I will proclaim Thy greatness and Thy goodness without ceasing; I will neglect no means of obtaining Thee the honor and the homage, which are due unto Thee; I will bring all of the thoughts and affections of my heart into conformity with Thine; and I will make it my duty to imitate Thy Virtues, especially Thy Purity and Thy Humility. Vouchsafe, O Mary, to open to me Thy Heart, and to receive me therein, in union with all of Thy dear and faithful children. Obtain for me the grace I need to imitate Thee, as Thou hast imitated Jesus Christ; succor me in all dangers, console me in all afflictions, and teach me how to make a holy use of all of the goods and ills of life. Amen. May The Divine Heart of Jesus, The Immaculate Heart of Mary [and The Compassionate Heart of Joseph] be always, and in all places, acknowledged, praised, blessed, loved, and faithfully honored and glorified. Amen.”
Offering of a Family to Mary:
Most Blessed Virgin, our Immaculate Queen and Mother, Refuge and Consolation of the distressed, prostrate before Thy Throne with all of my family, I choose Thee as my Patroness, my Mother, and my Advocate with God. I consecrate myself forever, with all that belongs to me, to Thy Service, and I pray Thee, O Mother of God, to receive us into the number of Thy Servants, taking us into Thy Protection, succoring us during life and above all at the hour of death. Bless me, with all of my family, and permit not that anything in us should ever offend Thy Son. Protect us in all temptations, deliver us from all dangers, provide for all of our wants, counsel us in all of our doubts, console us in all of our afflictions, assist us in our sickness, and especially in the agonies of death. Permit not the wicked one to boast of having under his dominion any of us who has been solemnly consecrated to Thee, but grant that we may all be safely brought to Heaven, there to thank Thee, and, with Thee, to love and praise Jesus Christ, our Redeemer, world without end. Amen.
Act of Reparation to The Immaculate Heart of Mary
O Heart of Mary, I honor Thee as The Heart Most Pleasing to our Lord and Most Intimately United to Him. I love Thee as The Heart of The Best of mothers, and I rejoice in Thy Glorious Prerogatives. Prostrate before Thee, O heart of Mary, I make Thee this humble act of reparation for all of the outrages, which Thou hast received from me and from all of mankind. I humbly confess that I have been guilty of the greatest ingratitude towards Thee; but seeing that, through Thee, The Divine Mercy has so often had regard unto me, I venture even yet to hope that Thou wilt not abandon me. In this sweet confidence I am animated by a most earnest desire to be more faithful and more devoted to Thee. I pray Thee to accept all of the good which, henceforth, I am resolved to do, to present it to Thy Dear Son, Jesus, so that, through Thee, my Most Loving Savior may pour down His Benedictions more and more on me, and on all who are dear unto me. Amen.
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