Category Archives: Mary

Friends in Christ. today after Mass we will pray the 1^st Saturday devotions; these devotions were given to us by Mary when she appeared at Fatima.

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The blessed Virgin has been appearing a lot in modern times; many unofficial appearances reported – many – as well as recognized ones, such as at Laus, Fatima, Lourdes, La Salette, Knock, Our Lady of Guadalupe, Our Lady of Good Help, and many others.

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But this is actually not a new phenomenon. Mary has been with us since day one. She appeared to the Apostle James in Spain in the year 40, Our Lady of the Pillar. Mary appeared to John the Wonderworker in the 3^rd century, and there are many other reports of Our Lady’s appearances to her spiritual children through the centuries.

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St. Gregory the Great – a very reliable source – tells us about a little girl named Musa. Musa was very devout to the Blessed Virgin, but she was starting to associate with bad friends, and her soul was in danger. One night, Musa had a vision in which the holy Mother of God appeared to her with many young girls of her own age dressed in white. Mary asked Musa if she wanted to join them, and she answered that she really did! Mary asked her to stop being involved with those bad friends, because in a month she will come to be with her.

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After this incident, Musa was a changed girl, to the surprise of her parents. She seemed more mature and sincere; when they asked her about this change, she explained how the Mother of God had appeared to her and asked her to enter her service, naming also the day on which she was to come back.

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25 days after the apparition, Musa became sick with fever. On the 30^th day, when she was about to die, she saw Mary again, and the beautiful girls with her. The Mother of God called her, and here St. Gregory tells us: ‘Musa answered in a clear voice: ‘Here I am, Lady, I come! Here I am, Lady, I come!’ In the same breath she delivered up her spirit and left.’

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The Blessed Virgin has been with us all through the centuries, and also with each of us through our life if we ask her. We should ask her, and then she will call us at the end, and bring us to Jesus.

Friends in Christ, this week we have returned to Ordinary Time, and this means that we are often free on Saturdays to speak of Our Lady and offer a votive Mass of the Blessed Virgin.

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If you read chapter 4 from the Book of Judges, you will see that for a time, Israel was led by a woman: Deborah. There she is called the Mother of Israel.

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Now in those days, the people were fearful, with many enemies against them; but Deborah told the general of her army to go out and fight against the Canaanites. To the general, this seemed to be a fearful task. He told Deborah: ‘If you will come with me, I will go; but if you won’t come with me, I will not go.’ ‘I will certainly go with you,’ she replied.

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Holy Mother Church affirms that Deborah is a type, a symbol, anticipating the Blessed Virgin. As Deborah was called the ‘Mother of Israel,’ Mary is called the Mother of the Church, the new Israel.

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‘I will certainly go with you,’ says Mary to us.

Comparing the Blessed Virgin to Deborah, the great Dom Chautard remarks, that Mary has a solicitude about not only the big things going on in our life, but as Our Mother, she is also concerned about every detail. In this life we are not marching against earthly enemies as were the armies of Deborah. Ours are spiritual enemies.  St. Paul says: We wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world.’ But Mary will help us fight our enemies. She brings to us the power of Christ. ‘I will certainly go with you,’ she says.

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The devil will tempt us by bad thoughts or he tempts us to give in to sadness. But even the name of Mary will put these to flight. St. Peter Damian says that it is by Mary that the violence of the infernal enemies is conquered. As Deborah sent her army commander, St. Bonaventure says that Mary sends the prince of the heavenly court, St. Michael, with all the angels to defend her servants.

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A Father Padial was at the point of death, Mary appeared to him. ‘See, she says, the angels come to congratulate you.’ At that moment, an army of demons was seen flying away in despair saying: ‘Alas, we can do nothing, for she who is without sin defends him.’

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Friends, we have difficulties, worries, temptations, and challenges every day, and we should ask our Lord to assist us, and our angel too. But let us never fail to call on this Divine Mother.

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‘Mary, this task is too hard for me to go and do, I ask you, please go with me.’

‘I will certainly go with you,’ she says.

Beloved in Christ, today is the feast of Our Lady of Fatima, and this appearance of Mary in Portugal begins with children: Lucia, Francisco, and Jacinta.

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In the summer of 1916, all of the sudden, an Angel appeared to them, in fact many times. The following year, on May 13, a flash of lightning prepared the way for a beautiful Lady, and this Lady asked the children to pray for the conversion of sinners and an end to the war. Further apparitions took place on June 13 and July 13, and people began to hear about what was happening.

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In August, the children were prevented by local authorities from going. In fact, the Mayor, who was a Freemason, tried to terrorize the children; he put them in jail, and threatened to boil them in oil if they did not give up their stories. But even under such threats, the children simply told the truth of what was happening. Ultimately they were released, and they kept their appointment with the Lady two days later.

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Now the children had been saying that the Lady would provide a miracle on October 13th, and so a vast crowd gathered on that day, estimated to be 70,000 people. It was then that the miracle of the sun occurred, the sun spinning, appearing to tumble from the sky and crash toward earth, and although everyone had been soaked from the earlier rain, they found that they were completely dry. The miracle of the sun was reported by journalists in many newspapers, and of these journalists.

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The Lady identified herself to the children as the Lady of the Rosary. At Fatima, Mary has urged that prayers for sinners be made, that we do penance, and that the Rosary be recited. Why does this Blessed Virgin appear again and again in this world? To help us, and to give us hope.

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‘But I feel lost, I am caught in so many bad habits,’ you say. ‘I try to pray, but fall into so many sins. What will become of me?’  Richard of St. Lawrence[i] says, no matter how nauseous and revolting our sins may be, this good Mother of ours is unable to abandon us when we call on her.

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If we remember that Canaanite woman[ii] in the gospels when she begged Our Lord to deliver her daughter from the devil who possessed her, she said, ‘Lord, have mercy on me, my daughter is troubled by a devil.’ But since the daughter, and not the mother was tormented, she should have said, ‘Have mercy on my daughter;’ but no. She says, ‘Have mercy on ME.’ She says this because the sufferings of their children are felt by the mother as if they were their own. It is precisely in this way that Mary prays for us: ‘Have mercy on ME O Lord,’ ‘help my child,’ she says.

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Let us pray our Rosary very well today.

Our Lady of Fatima, pray for us and help us.

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[i] Glories of Mary, p. 134

[ii] Ibid., p. 74.

Friends in Christ,  today is the feast of Our Lady of Lourdes.

In 1858, the Blessed Virgin appeared to St. Bernadette in Lourdes, France. Bernadette, having told a number of people that she was seeing a beautiful Lady who prayed the rosary with her and spoke to her – well, many doubted her story at first. Her parents and teachers, and even the parish priest were skeptical of the claims of this young girl.

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Bernadette went each day, for 14 days, to the grotto to see the Blessed Virgin. By the final days, some 20,000 people were there with her, full of Faith. Why did the people have this faith? To see this, we might consider what St. Bonaventure says. Bonaventure says that the sun in the sky is a type of Jesus Christ, shining its light. But the moon is a type of the Blessed Virgin, who shines brightly in the night sky, yet in actuality, it is reflecting the light of the Sun to the earth. So to see the bright light of the moon at night, is to see the light of the Sun. The reflection is there.

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To look upon Mary is to feel the warmth of the love of Christ; she reflects it to us. With this in mind, we ask again, what was it that caused those people of Lourdes to believe that Bernadette was seeing Mary? Was it because of the miraculous spring which came forth to heal many? Did this make them believe? Was it because of Bernadette’s sincerity and persistence? Perhaps something else.

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Those 20,000 people believed Bernadette, because of the effect that Our Blessed Mother had on her. Because Mary, who reflects the light of Christ, reflected her light upon Bernadette, which they could see.

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An unbeliever who was a skeptic, who went to the grotto to see Bernadette, he writes about his experience: ‘She was on her knees, her eyes wide open and fixed on the grotto. She had in her folded hands her Rosary, which she began to pray. At the 3rd Hail Mary she entered into ecstasy. As soon as the Lady appeared, Bernadette’s smile became lovely and her face changed. It was a delight to see her. Tears were streaming from both her eyes. She was smiling and her face was lovely – lovelier than anything I’ve ever seen. To see her face like that brought tears to your eyes.’[i]

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So, it was Bernadette’s face – a face of heavenly joy, seeing Mary reflected in her face, that caused those thousands of people to believe. Another witness wrote this: ‘I was facing her, only about 2 yards away; if you had only seen her eyes! It was enough to bring you to your knees.’[ii] Her smile[iii] was beyond all description – I felt that I was on the threshold of Paradise.[iv]

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That’s where Mary wants to bring us; to the arms of Jesus in Paradise.

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[i] St. Bernadette Soubirous, p. 52, 63

[ii] p. 66

[iii] It was a sight to see – thousands of people, in a profound silence, as if in Church.

[iv] p. 112, 125, 126

Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God

Friends in Christ, today we begin the New Year.

In the history of the Church, this day has been commemorated in different ways through the centuries. For the early Church in Rome, this feast day honored Mary as the Mother of God; but by the 7^th century, influence from the Eastern Church led us to emphasize more the other Marian feasts, and following the practice in Spain and France, this day began to commemorate Jesus’ infancy and Circumcision. Nevertheless, the prayers of the Mass retained the theme of the Motherhood of Mary.[ii]

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The feast of the “Maternity of the Blessed Virgin” came to be celebrated in Portugal on October 11^th; this was extended to the entire Church in 1931, and in 1969, in the reform of the calendar, it was restored to the more ancient practice of January 1^st, which we have today.

And so it is a perfect way for us to begin the New Year by honoring Mary, the Mother of God, and our Mother.

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This Divine Mother, who cradles the new-born Jesus in her arms in this Christmas season – she also remains solicitous for her other children – us.

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St. Ambose, speaking of Jesus in the womb of Mary, says that virtually, we were all there with him. And God revealed to St. Bridget in a vision that although Jesus was Mary’s first-born Son in the flesh, all of mankind are her other children according to the Spirit.

So, Jesus’ Mother is our own Mother, and she really wants to help us.

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We’ve just completed 2014; looking back, there were certainly blessings we can point to, but also challenges or troubles that happened. No one knows what 2015 will hold, only God knows, but challenges always come: whether they be worrisome, practical problems, or temptations or even failures or discouragement. Troubles come in daily life that sometimes seem insolvable, and worry only makes them worse.

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I remember growing up, you can get a knot in a shoestring or in a drawstring; it seems impossible to ever untangle it. But then we go to mom; ‘Here, I can’t get it!’ And it’s not long, that somehow mom is able to get it all undone and every knot untangled.

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Now the dear Blessed Virgin has been called, the ‘Untier of Knots.’ There is a famous painting by Johann Georg Schmidtner from around 1700 which shows this. It was commissioned by a man whose prayer was answered by Mary – an answer to a very difficult problem.

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Mary as the Untier of knots originated with St. Irenaeus back in the 2^nd century; he said that “The knot of Eve’s disobedience was loosed by the obedience of Mary.” Mary undid the knot, that Eve had gotten us into.

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A Fr. Jorge Bergoglio was studying in Germany and came to love this image; he brought a copy of this painting back with him, to Argentina. The devotion spread. Today, not only Germany, but also in Argentina and Brazil one finds widespread devotion to Mary, Untier of Knots. The painting shows Mary calmly undoing the knots in a long rope, and this is the patient Mother who wishes to help us with all the knots – the troubles in our own life.

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Sin has a way of complicating everything. Sinful habits tangle up our heart and make it seem impossible to regain our happiness and freedom. The fall into a mortal sin, or so many other problems of life, can lead us to despair, just as a knot pulled tighter and tighter becomes harder to untie. But Mary can do it.

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A certain man in Germany had committed a great sin, and he was ashamed to confess it; on the other hand, he could not endure the guilt that he felt and he went to cast himself into the river; but just as he was on the point of doing so, he stopped, and bursting into tears he prayed for help, and went home.

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That night in his sleep, he felt someone waking him and heard a gentle woman’s voice say: ‘Go and make your confession.’ He went to the church, but yet did not confess.  A second night he heard the same voice, and again went to the Church, but he said he would rather die than confess that sin. He was about to return home when he stopped before an image of Mary and asked her help. Hardly had he knelt down before he felt himself entirely changed. He rose, called for a priest, and made a full and sincere confession. Later he would always say that on that day he felt happier than if he had gained all the gold in the world.

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Mary can help us untie the knots in our life, if we let her, none are too difficult.

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We make many resolutions for the new year.

Let’s make one resolution, that no matter the challenges, we will follow Jesus Christ in our life no matter what.

And for the other resolution: let us never fail to call on our Mother in heaven to help us do it.

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ii.  For this reason, the Traditional Latin Mass when offered today, still retains this official theme of the Circumcision of the Lord, although the prayers of the Mass continue the ancient theme of Mary, the Mother of God.

Beloved in Christ, today is the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe[i]

To know about the origin of this Feast, we must go back to the winter of 1531. Juan Diego, a poor Aztec Indian living near Mexico City, encountered a strange event on his way to morning Mass. He heard music coming from Tepeyac Hill, and then a sweet woman’s voice calling his name. He climbed the hill and saw a lady, who looked like and dressed like his own people. She identified herself as the Virgin Mary, and told him to ask the bishop to build a church on the hill.

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So Juan headed to see the bishop, but it would not be easy. Even though the bishop saw that Juan was a humble, well-meaning Catholic, he was skeptical about the message. So Juan went and reported the bishop’s doubt to the Blessed Virgin; she asked him nevertheless, to persevere with the same message.

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Seeing his persistence and faith, the bishop asked for a sign, so that he could know for sure. She gave him a sign. Miraculously, in the middle of winter, roses bloomed on Tepeyac hill – yet there was a greater miracle to come. Juan gathered the flowers in the tilma he was wearing, and Mary, it is said, arranged the roses herself, with her own hands.

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He returned to the bishop and when he opened the tilma, allowing the flowers to fall to the floor, it was revealed that a beautiful image of Our Lady had imprinted itself on the tilma.

The bishop fell to his knees and believed. A church was built on the spot of the apparition, and 8 million people converted to the Catholic Faith.

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The tilma of Juan Diego has been the subject of much modern research. Woven of cactus fiber, it should have disintegrated in 20 years, yet after 500 years, it remains intact. Chemical analysis has not been able to reveal how the imprint was made. No paint or dyes were used. Additionally, the stars on the tilma match exactly the constellations of the Mexican sky in December of 1531.

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This dear Lady appeared at Tepeyac to show her love to the native people; but since 1999, Our Lady of Guadalupe has been declared the Patroness of all the Americas as well, so she is Our Virgin of Guadalupe!

Mary said to Juan Diego: “Understand my child, that nothing should frighten or sadden you. Let not your heart be disturbed. Am I not here, who am your Mother? Are you not under my protection?”

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She says the same to us.

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[i] Adapted from Catholicculture.org

Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception

Beloved in Christ, today is the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. It is today that we remember, the Blessed Virgin herself was conceived, from day one, without Original sin.

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Recently we spoke of the importance of ‘types,’ of symbols of the Old Testament pointing ahead to the Redemption. One important ‘type’ is that of the first woman, Eve. The story of the fall, told in Genesis – the first Sin – it was initiated by the woman, Eve. Original sin was complete, when Adam, the head of the human race, confirmed the sin.

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But these signs anticipate the Good News that would come. A new Woman, Mary, will set salvation into motion, and this will be crowned by her Son, the true Head of the human race.

So we notice the parallels between Eve and Mary. Eve listened to the wicked angel, Satan;

Mary listened to the good angel, Gabriel.

Eve was disobedient to God, Mary was obedient to God’s will.

Eve gave the poison fruit of sin to the world, Mary gave us the saving Fruit of her womb.

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The parallels are purposeful. But another should occur to us as well: Eve was originally made without sin, she and Adam had grace. Well, what about Mary? Mary too was made without sin, but she remained sinless and faithful, and so became the true Mother of all the Living.

Mary was conceived without Original Sin, and that means that from the beginning, she was Full of Grace.

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St. Irenaus, 1800 years ago would say that although the human race found death through Eve, it is saved through Mary; and Blessed Raymond Jordano says, ‘every good, every help, every grace, that men have received and will receive from God until the end of time, will come to them by the intercession of Mary.’[i]

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We here, all know the wonders worked by our great Patron, St. John Vianney, the conversion of his whole parish. But we must also know of an important weapon St. John had to help him accomplish this: it was the Blessed Virgin.

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We may know that he had loved Mary from his childhood; we may also know that she appeared to him and he conversed with her; but we may not know, that he blessed a statue of Mary for each home in his village – they say it was a remarkable sight to see the statues of Mary that adorned the front of every single house in town.

St. John also gave each family a color picture of Mary for the inside of their home, blessed and signed by himself.

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In 1814 he erected a large statue of Mary Immaculate at his Church, and put around her neck a heart of white ribbon, with all the names of his parishioners written on it; and he consecrated his parish to – ‘Mary Conceived without Sin.’[ii]

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As she did then, so now – this Immaculate Mother can make our hearts burn with the love of Jesus – if we let her.

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[i] Glories of Mary, 112

[ii] The Secret of the Cure D’Ars, Henri Gheon, p. 228. Also, http://www.olrl.org

Friends in Christ.  today is Saturday, the day of Our Lady.[i] Many of the great saints have said that devotion to Mary  is a sign of predestination – of salvation.  St. Augustine, St. Ephraim, Cyril, Germanus, Anselm, St. Bernard, and so many others have said this.  That to love Mary is a sign that we will go to heaven.  

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But to win the heart of the Blessed Virgin, it is not sufficient to honor her statue, or wear the scapular, or say that we are consecrated to her, no.  External things are only secondary to devotion.  

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Gentilucci says, it would be a grave error to suppose that devotion to Mary is more efficacious for salvation than obedience to her Son. Obedience to her Son is what Mary wants. Unless we pray, and do penance, help the needy,  forgive our neighbor, receive the sacraments, –  unless we observe God’s law,  we will end up like the Pharisees whom Christ criticized for their superficial life.  

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Our devotion to the Blessed Virgin must consist in a life  that tries to imitate her and her Son in the way we live. Mary shows us: humility, purity, charity, her obedience –  all the virtues.  

A child who said that he loves his mother, but then listens to none of the advice she gives  and remains a bad – how can this be honoring his mother?   

But if we honor Mary with the intention of having her as our model; seeking to be more and more like her Son – then we will infallibly arrive at the safety of heaven.   

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As guilty as a sinner may be,  whatever are the disorders of his life –  let him put his confidence in the Blessed Virgin; by going to this Mother and trying to please her, he will be turned from sinner into saint.  The sinner must only bring a desire to change, to repent, and with this, Mary will certainly help him.   

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A child of the Blessed Virgin should be making every effort to avoid sin and act with heroic virtue.  In that movie ‘The Passion of the Christ,’  there is the scene when Our Lord is being brutally scourged. He starts to weaken and slump down, getting discouraged; but then Jesus sees his Mother watching and praying for him, and with this one glance of hers, he is filled with renewed courage.   

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An athlete may be losing heart during a game, the fatigue is overwhelming him – but if he looks in the stands, and sees his mother there cheering for him, well – it’s a game changer.  He gives him new strength to persevere.  

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Living out our life, trying to be other ‘christs,’ under the watchful, motherly gaze of Mary is a game-changer.  It is our salvation.

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[i] ideas and quotes from ‘Life of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary, Gentilucci, p. 500