Mulier, ecce filius tuus… Ecce Mater tua. Woman, behold thy son… Behold thy mother.
All antiquity asserts that St. John was ever a virgin, and specially on this account he was given as a son to Mary, and honored in being made to occupy the place of Jesus Christ; on which account the holy Church sings, “To him a virgin He commended his Virgin Mother.” And from the moment of the Lord’s death, as it is written, St. John received Mary into his own house, and assisted and obeyed her throughout her life, as if she had been his own mother.
Jesus said to her, Woman, behold thy son! It is doubted by none that this woman was the Blessed Virgin Mary, who, by means of her Son, would crush the head of Satan. Naturally was Mary the enemy of the serpent, because Lucifer was haughty, ungrateful, and disobedient, while she was humble, grateful, and obedient. It is said, She shall crush thy head, because Mary, by means of her Son, beat down the pride of Lucifer.
God said to the serpent, I will put enmities between- thy seed and the woman. This shows that after the fall of man, through sin, notwithstanding all that would be done by the redemption of Jesus Christ, there would be two families and two posterities in the world, the seed of Satan signifying the family of sinners, his children corrupted by him, and the seed of Mary signifying the holy family, which includes all the just, with their head Jesus Christ. Hence Mary was destined to be the mother both of the head and of the members, namely, the faithful. Therefore, St. John was not called John, but the disciple beloved by the Lord, that we might understand that Mary is the mother of every good Christian who is beloved by Jesus Christ, and in whom Jesus Christ lives by his Spirit.
The pain which the Holy Virgin endured in the Passion of her Son exceeded all the pains which a human heart can endure; but the grief of Mary was not a barren grief, like that of other mothers who behold the sufferings of their children; it was a fruitful grief, since through the merits of her so great grief, and through her love (according to the opinion of St. Augustine), as she was the natural mother of our head Jesus Christ,’ so she then became the spiritual mother of us who are his faithful members, in co-operating with him by her love in causing us to be born, and to be the children of the Church.
Saint Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle, be our protection against the malice and snares of the devil. May God rebuke him we humbly pray; and do thou, O Prince of the Heavenly host, by the power of God, thrust into hell Satan and all evil spirits who wander through the world for the ruin of souls. Amen.
Saint Michael the Archangel, invincible Prince of the Angelic hosts and glorious protector of the universal Church, I greet thee and praise thee for that splendor with which God has adorned thee so richly. I thank God for the great graces He hast bestowed upon thee, especially to remain faithful when Lucifer and his followers rebelled, and to battle victoriously for the honor of God and the Divinity of the Son of Man.
Saint Michael, I consecrate to thee my soul and body. I choose thee as my patron and protector and entrust the salvation of my soul to thy care. Be the guardian of my obligation as a child of God and of the Catholic Church as again I renounce Satan, his works and pomps.
Assist me by thy powerful intercession in the fulfillment of these sacred promises, so that imitating thy courage and loyalty to God, and trusting in thy kind help and protection, I may be victorious over the enemies of my soul and be united with God in Heaven forever.
It’s bright in the heavens and the wheels are flying Fame and honor never seem to fade The fire’s gone out but the light is never dying Who says I can’t get heavenly aid?
Ain’t talkin’, just walkin’ Carrying a dead man’s shield Heart burnin’, still yearnin’ Walkin’ with a toothache in my heel
Bob Dylan’s epic, apocalyptic ballad “Ain’t Talkin’” is a brilliant look at the history of salvation from the Garden of Eden to the garden tomb. Dylan blends American folk idiom with Biblical narrative. The above verses capture the despair of Jesus’ followers after Good Friday. Dylan also masterfully uses absurd doggerel from the folk tune “Old Dan Tucker” (”died with a toothache in his heel”) to express God’s promise to Eve in Genesis 3:15 (Satan would strike Christ’s heel, but He would crush Satan’s head).
Take a listen to the song–and don’t stop until you get to the last verse!
“Shortly we will reenact the Washing of Feet. But could we not say that our priests wash feet in the Sacrament of Penance? Isn’t a good confession an experience of having the Lord himself remove the dirt of our sins from us with the purifying power of his goodness, his mercy – so that we might come to the table? God’s love really knows no bounds, but man can put a limit on it. That is certainly also remembered tonight in Judas’ betrayal. What was his betrayal but the rejection of love, of not wanting to be loved, of not loving. Such betrayals come about through human pride – and by thinking that what counts is not love but power and success. May nothing become more important than our communion with Jesus, nothing more important than God and his love.”
Returningonce again to our regularly scheduled broadcast, let us once againrememberEgypt during what must be a terrifying Holy Week. Saint Mary of Egypt is the patroness of penitents, which should be all of us this week. Let us ask her intercession for Egypt and for ourselves.
O Lady, Mother of God, who gave birth in the flesh to God the Word, I know, O how well I know, that it is no honour or praise to thee when one so impure and depraved as I look up to thy icon, O ever-virgin, who didst keep thy body and soul in purity. Rightly do I inspire hatred and disgust before thy virginal purity. But I have heard that God Who was born of thee became man on purpose to call sinners to repentance. Then help me, for I have no other help. Order the entrance of the church to be opened to me. Allow me to see the venerable Tree on which He Who was born of thee suffered in the flesh and on which He shed His holy Blood for the redemption of sinners an for me, unworthy as I am. Be my faithful witness before thy son that I will never again defile my body by the impurity of fornication, but as soon as I have seen the Tree of the Cross I will renounce the world and its temptations and will go wherever thou wilt lead me.
Saint Mary of Egypt, pray for your homeland, pray for us, and pray for all penitents during this Holy Week.
This popped up on Feedly recently, linking to this sermon by John Piper, a leading evangelical and neo-Calvinist. As a convert, it kinda sums up my problem with Protestantism, or at least one of them. (Protestants who don’t know what they’re protesting are another story.)
To read this blurb, Christianity seemingly begins in 1517. Jesus is absent, and St. Paul is only invoked insofar as he was used by Reformers to support their arguments fifteen hundred years later. Granted, Piper alleges that the Reformers “recovered” the true Gospel, linking them with Christ. But this is an assertion rather than evidence. What Piper means is: “There are various ways to interpret the New Testament. Luther’s way hadn’t been used by virtually any of the Church Fathers in fifteen hundred years, but I believe it so by gum it must have been the true gospel.”
Ok, then. I’m sure if I listen to the whole sermon that Piper reaches the conclusion above (which most Protestants have, in my previous experience) with a great deal of sophisticated hermeneutics. But still.
Small disclaimer: I subscribe to the Desiring God RSS feed because the site frequently does feature good articles. And whatever my quibbles with neo-Calvinism, I think it is good for evangelicalism, which is often captivated by theologically vapid and even heretical fads.
And now back to our regularly scheduled programming…
All jokes aside, let us remember Egypt, where ISIS bombings killed dozens of Christians worshiping on Palm Sunday. We pray for the living, that God may grant them strength and courage. We pray for the dead, that their souls will receive mercy and rest in peace.
God our Father, You gave St Anthony of Egypt the courage and belief of an apostle to give up his wealth, living a life of poverty and solitude, and to found monasteries. Help us to be zealous in imitating his virtues and to follow in the footsteps of Our Lord Jesus Christ. Grant this through the same Christ Our Lord who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
It is not for his gifts that I continue in my prayers, but because he is true Life.
It is not so much by hope as by bonds of love that I am drawn. it is not for gifts, but for the Giver that I ever yearn.
It is not glory I aspire to, but it is the Glorified One whom I wish to embrace. It is not by the desire for life, but by the remembrance of him who gives life that I am ever consumed! it is not for joyous passions that I yearn, but it is because of a desire for him who is preparing them that my heart bursts out in tears. It is not rest that I seek, but it is the face of him who offers rest that I seek in prayer.
It is not for the nuptial banquet, but it is for the Bridegroom that I long. Despite the weight of my transgressions I believe with an indubitable hope, trusting in the hand of the Almighty One that not only shall I obtain pardon, but that I shall see him in person, thanks to his mercy and pity, and that I shall inherit heaven although I completely deserve to be banished.
…Receive with sweetness, O powerful Lord God, the prayer of him who was bitterness for you. …Grant that through remembrance of your hope I may remain unscathed, protected by You. Amen.
“And I see that all is vanity and vexation of spirit under the sun, and that the only good is to love God with all one’s heart and to be poor in spirit here on earth.” - St. Therese
Image: St. Clare Praying in the Choir of San Damiano by Jose Benlliure y Gil
“You’re not part of the kingdom of this world, you’re part of the kingdom of Heaven. Turn your eyes away from yourself and onto Jesus. Do what He does: give, sacrifice, love. It’s the secret of joy.” - Peter Kreeft
“Detachment is not self-denial for its own sake, but self-denial for God’s sake. It is emptying oneself to make room for God. This is our goal – to be filled with all the fullness of God! Detachment makes room in our hearts for Him. It clears out the clutter, so that we can focus on and accomplish His will. It prepares us for divine union.” - Connie Rossini
“I need to be detached from my own opinions in order to be open to the quiet inspirations of the Holy Spirit. Only then will I be able to discern what he is saying and what he desires.” - Mother Angelica
Image: Woman Praying in Church in Bochnia by Leon Wyczolkowski (1910)
