" We never give more honor to Jesus than when we honor his Mother, and we honor her simply and solely to honor him all the more perfectly. We go to her only as a way leading to the goal we seek - Jesus, her Son." - Saint Louis Marie de Montfort. While Catholic veneration of the Blessed Virgin Mary has long been a confusing things for non-Catholics, the Church has vehemently insisted in the importance of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the life of Catholics. For the longest time veneration of the Blessed Virgin Mary confused me until I was taught to basic principles about Mariology. The first is that the Church was forced to turn to Mary as it unfolded the mystery of the Incarnation. The question “Is Jesus the Son of God?” could not be answered definitively by the Church until the question of “Could Mary be called the Mother of God?” had been answered. When the Church affirmed that Mary could indeed be called the “Mother of God” then it could easily answer the question of Jesus’ divinity. All throughout the development of the Creeds (Apostle and Nicene) the Church always maintain that Mary was a human being and that what could be said of her would help the Church understand the mystery of the Incarnation. The second idea that helped me understand devotion to Mary was the idea of seeing her as a role model. If I want to be a good baseball player it would serve me well to study the great hitters of history. In the same way if I wish to be a saint, then I need to study the saints and especially Mary the greatest and only sinless saint. Remembering that because Mary was sinless that did not mean she was not capable of sinning for after all Adam and Eve were sinless and they sinned.
As we begin our look at the Blessed Virgin Mary, I would like to recommend a wonderful book that I came across called: The Other Faces of Mary: Stories, Devotions, and Pictures of the Holy Virgin Around the World by Ann Ball. Ann, who is a great hagiographer (someone who writes biographies of saints), turned her attention to many different images and apparitions of Mary from around the world. A lot of the information I will present comes from reading her book.
The first image of Mary that I would like to write about this month is called Maria Bambina (The Baby Mary). This image of Mary and/or collection of images seems to trace its origin to a Poor Clare nun in Todi, Italy in 1735. No one quite knows why the original artist, a Poor Clare Nun, created the image of the Blessed Virgin Mary as a baby. The statue though would go in and out of hiding (from wars) and storage (I guess because people did not care for the image and stuck it in a closet) over the next few years. On the feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in 1884 the statue found its way into the infirmary of Sisters of Charity of Lovere where miraculous healings began to happen. In 1909 devotion to Maria Bambina was recognized by Pope Pius X and devotion spread throughout Italy. Ann Ball in her book points out that: “Today, numerous supplicants come to bring their petitions to Maria Bambina. Young couples who want the gift of a child are among the most fervent of her devotees. Many return, holding their newborns, to thank her for prayers answered.”
When I first found out about this devotion, I was surprised that such a devotion should exist. I never thought of Mary as a child. It helped me to understand that the Blessed Virgin Mary a little more. Mary was a girl in a very masculine culture who did not appreciate children. Mary was therefore at one time a nobody in the eyes of the world but even before she was born she was special in God’s eyes. Each one of us is special in God’s eye despite the world thinking most of us as nobodies. We have an important role to play in God’s plans just as Mary did. I believe that this devotion speaks to us also of the role of parents. How could eventually grow up to say “yes” to God if she did not have good parents who taught her how to pray? Tradition gives the name of Ann and Joachim to Mary’s parents.
The baker woman in her humble lodge
Received a grain of wheat from God.
For nine whole months the grain she stored.
Behold the handmaid of the Lord!
Make us the bread, Mary, Mary,
Make us the bread, we need to be fed.
The baker woman took the road which led
To Bethlehem, the House of Bread.
To knead the bread she labored through the night
And brought it forth about midnight.
Bake us the bread Mary, Mary,
Bake us the bread. We need to be fed.
She baked the bread for thirty years
By the fire of her love, and the salt of her tears
By the warmth of a heart so tend and bright
And the bread was golden brown and white.
Bring us the bread, Mary, Mary,
Bring us the bread, we need to be fed.
After thirty years the bread was done.
It was taken to town by her only son;
The soft white bread to be given free
To the hungry people of Galilee
Give us the bread Mary, Mary
Give us the bread, we need to be fed.
For thirty coins the bread was sold,
And a thousand teeth so cold, so cold
Tore it to pieces on a Friday noon
When the sun turned black and red the moon.
Break us the bread , Mary, Mary.
Break us the bread, we need to be fed.
And when she saw the bread so white,
The living bread she made at night,
Devoured as wolves might devour a sheep
The baker-woman began to weep
Weep for the bread, Mary, Mary
Weep for the bread, we need to be fed.
But the baker woman’s only son
Appeared to his friends when three days had run
On the road which to Emmaus led,
And they knew him in the breaking of bread.
Lift up your head, Mary , Mary
Lift up your head, for now we’ve been fed.
The image of Mary as the “Baker’s Woman” reveals how selfless Mary is and thus it is not surprising therefore Mary is always associated with the poor. She probably understand better than anyone else that loving others is the best way to love God.
"So your strength is failing you? Why don't you tell your mother about it? . . . Mother! Call her with a loud voice. She is listening to you; she sees you in danger, perhaps, and she—your holy mother Mary—offers you, along with the grace of her son, the refuge of her arms, the tenderness of her embrace . . . and you will find yourself with added strength for the new battle." --St. Josemaria Escriva. It seems like all the saints had a devotion to Mary and would pray to Blessed Virgin Mary in times of temptation. Seizing on this idea, I often recommend to those struggling with chastity to keep a rosary nearby and when there is a temptation to be unchaste to pull out the rosary and pray it. The praying of the rosary not only refocuses on Christ but also puts distance (speaking of time) between the temptation and any actions following the temptations. I believe the devil being the father of lies does not want us to wait after he presents a temptation for he would rather us not think and discover the falsehood of his lies. The image of the Blessed Virgin Mary today is called “Our Lady of Chapi” or “Mary Most Pure.” Ann Ball in her book: The Other Faces of Mary: Stories, Devotions, and Pictures of the Holy Virgin Around the World states: “The Virgin of Chapi is of a type known as a candelaria, an image of purity symbolized by the candle she holds in her right hand.” Ann Ball continues her description: “The image is approximately two feet tall. In her right hand she holds a candle and a small basket containing two turtle doves. She cradles her Divine Son on her left arm and holds a rosary in her left hand. In keeping with Hispanic tradition, the image is dressed in richly embroidered clothing. Inside the temple, both she and the babe wear beautiful crowns, and Our Lady wears a regal cloak and sometimes a decorative sash. When the Virgin of Chapi goes out to meet her clients in procession, however, her hair is braided and falls in graceful plaits similar to those of the woman of the region. She and her son don a protective cloak, and each wears a large Peruvian hat. The large dark eyes of the Virgin of Chapi are compelling. They seem to invite the repentant pilgrim to the love and mercy of her Son.”
Sometimes, I believe that there are mysteries of our faith and experiences of our life that really cannot be explain with words and so to fully explain them one must use his or her body. John Paul II in his Theology of the Body talks, pointed out that one of the reasons why a person’s body was so important was because it alone is capable of expressing the soul. For example, we only know what people are feeling because their body expresses it either through gestures, words, or both. I think one of the great mysteries expressed in this devotion to Mary is that she and Jesus remove their crowns before they go out and meet the pilgrims who have come to the shrine and then they place on the statues a normal Peruvian hat. What a beautiful symbolism of how Mary and Jesus do not Lord their heavenly status over others but rather they come down low to hear our petitions and to care for us. It speaks to me of what heaven is all about. Heaven is not a place that if I make there I will brag about my accomplishments but rather heaven is a place where I will love and be concerned with the needs of others as God is. I also like the idea of the procession where Mary and Jesus symbolically come out to those who wish to be close to them. This symbolizes of course that Mary and Jesus are always close to us and do not simply remain aloof in heaven.
Another interesting thought about the Virgin of Chapi is that her shrine has been moved a few times over the years because non-Catholics (and probably some Catholics) grew tired of the great crowds of pilgrims that would come to the shrine. It reminds me sort of the fact that Mary had to give birth to the savior in a manger because there was no room for her in any inn. Sometimes we can accept Christ and His mother into our hearts and unfortunately there are also times in which we expel Jesus and Mary from our hearts because of what others think or because they make us uncomfortable. We are challenge therefore to keep our hearts always as a dwelling place of Jesus and of His Mother Mary.
I was talking with a friend of mine who recently converted to Catholicism and is studying all the aspects of the Catholic faith that he can. He had just finished reading some books on Catholic moral theology. This friend went onto explain to me that he thought the big difference between Catholic morality and Protestant morality was that Catholics desire to be moral people out of their friendship with God and Protestants feel that they have to be moral in order to earn God’s love. Another way of putting it is that Catholics strive to be the type of friend that God wants me to be verses trying to earn God’s friendship. To go one step forward we might say that as Catholics we call God “Father” and we our goal in life is to be sons and daughters that He will be proud of trusting always in his love instead of spending our life trying to earn God’s love.
I really did not start to make good friendships in my life until I was in high school and I soon discovered that I acted a certain way around them in order not to ruin that friendship. I am not talking about giving into peer pressure or anything like that but I tried to be a better person when I was around them. For example, I would share one friend’s secret with another for fear of losing that friend. My friendship then with someone else created a moral standard that I needed to live up so in this example I choose not to be a gossip.
With this insight in mind, I begin my Spiritual Ponderings focused on my topic for November and that being the idea of virtue. Virtue is all about how can we be the best person that we can be or maybe another way of putting it or another way of putting it how can I be the best friend of God that I can be.
As a guide for our trip through the land of virtues, I have been using Barbara Unell and Jerry Wyckoff’s book: 20 Teachable Virtues: Practical Ways to Pass on Lessons of Virtue and Character to Your Children. For previous virtues please check out www.mayjesuschristbepraised.com.
Loyalty will be the first virtue we look at this year. Here is Drs. Unel and Wyckoff’s definition of the virtue called “loyalty”:
Loyal: 1. Faithful to one’s allegiance, as to a sovereign, government, or state: a loyal subject. 2. Faithful to one’s oath, commitments, or obligations: to be loyal to a vow. 3. Faithful to any person or thing conceived of as deserving fidelity or imposing obligations: a loyal friend.
As I was typing the above definition, I began to think of “loyalty” as maybe the fundamental virtue of the Old Testament. God constantly chooses to enter into the lives of people with the hope of establishing relationship with them. This relationship with the divine being that is God, though creates a demand for fidelity and imposes obligations upon the people that He enters into any relationship with for example Abraham is called to trust God to the point of possibly sacrificing His son Isaac, Moses had to remain faithful to the Lord even despite failing ten times to convince Pharaoh to let the Israelites go, and the Israelites are often chastised for not remaining loyal to God despite all that He does for them. God is ultimately loyal to those who trust in him (and even those who don’t).
10 Steps to Help One Develop the Virtue of Loyalty.
1. First is that we should model loyalty and thus not run away from a relationship at the first sign of a problem.
2. We should model loyalty by remaining faithful to our commitments.
3. We should talk to people about team loyalty and how our actions can add esteem or disrespect for teams that we support.
4. We should talk to people about how to remember what others have done for us.
5. We should also look for ways to help people who have helped us in the past.
6. We should reinforce family commitment (this can be done by creating family duties).
7. Remember to praise acts that show loyalty
8. Remember to point out acts that don’t show loyalty for example gossip or breaking a promise.
9. Talk about some Characters in the Bible that were loyal to God
10. What are some movie, television, or literary characters who you think demonstrate loyalty and why?
As we strive this month to look at different virtues that we can develop so that we can become a better person let us look at our next virtue: Courtesy. Remember that as a guide for trip into the land of virtues; I have been using Barbara Unell and Jerry Wyckoff’s book 20 Teachable Virtues: Practical Ways to Pass on Lessons of Virtue and Character to Your Children.
Courtesy: 1. Excellence of manners or social conduct; polite behavior. 2. A courteous, respectful, or considerate act or expression. 3. Indulgence, consent, or acquiescence. 4. Favor, help or generosity.
Saint Basil the great had the following to say about courtesy: “A tree is known by its fruit; a man by his deeds. A good deed is never lost; he who sows courtesy reaps friendship, and he who plants kindness gathers love.” Barbara Unell and Jerry Wyckoff had this to say about courtesy: “Those who are considerate enough to think of the needs of others and to be courteous increase the pleasantness of everyday life and reduce its conflicts, thus reducing the pollution of violence around them.”
What I think about most when it comes to courtesy is that it requires thought. We need to move out of our selfishness to think about other people and what they might need or appreciate. Courtesy starts with thinking about the other as a gift from God and therefore treating the gift with respect. Gestures of courtesy do not have to big others also.
Mother Teresa for me is a prime example for courtesy. The following are some quotes from Mother Teresa that I think speak elegantly about courtesy.
“Peace begins with a smile..” ? Mother Teresa
“Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless.” ? Mother Teresa
“Every time you smile at someone, it is an action of love, a gift to that person, a beautiful thing.” ? Mother Teresa
“Let no one ever come to you without leaving better and happier. Be the living expression of God's kindness: kindness in your face, kindness in your eyes, kindness in your smile.” ? Mother Teresa
Remembering that most problems in the world happen out of neglect and not malice so therefore people who are focused on being courteous really can help make the world a better place. I also believe the courtesy is all about being the person that you wish to be. I do not think any of us dreams of growing up to be a bully always focused on our own desires. Instead I believe that we grow up desiring to be the person that others want to be around because we are a nice guy. Being courteous therefore for me is a choice to be the person that I want to be.
10 Steps to Help One Develop the Virtue of Courtesy.
1. Demonstrate courtesy for others by first practicing it.
2. Say “Please” when making a request.
3. Say “Thank You” when receiving something.
4. Try to be aware of other people’s feelings.
5. Try to return kindness to others even when not receiving it first.
6. Mediate television and watch shows the promote courtesy and not shows that promote making fun of others.
7. Try to avoid sarcasm.
8. Avoid negative name calling
9. Try to anticipate ways to help others.
10. Take time to reflect how your behavior has affected others.
A couple of weeks ago, I was searching for something on Amazon.com and decided to look at the list of books that they were recommending me to buy and one book caught my attention in a special way. This book was called: Stations of the Nativity and it was illustrated by Patrick Kelley and written by Lawrence Boadt C.S.P. I believe that part of the reason why the title caught my attention was it made me recall Archbishop Fulton Sheen’s book the Life Of Christ. In Fulton Sheen’s biography of Christ he said the following about the connection between the nativity and the crucifixion: The manger and the Cross thus stand at the two extremities of the Savior’s life! He accepted the manger because there was no room in the inn; He accepted the Cross because men said, “We will not have this Man for our king.” Disowned upon entering, rejected upon leaving. He was laid in a stranger’s stable at the beginning and a stranger’s grave at the end. An ox and ass surrounded His crib at Bethlehem; two thieves were to flank His Cross on Calvary. He was wrapped in swaddling bands in His birthplace, He was again laid in swaddling clothes in His tomb—clothes symbolic of the limitations imposed on His Divinity when He took a human form. I would like to for the month of December using Kelley’s and Boadt’s book as a guide take a closer look at the story of the nativity.
First Station: The Annunciation: Reading Luke 1:30-31, & 38.
In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin’s name was Mary. And coming to her, he said, “Hail, favored one! The Lord is with you.” But she was greatly troubled at what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father, and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” But Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I have no relations with a man?” And the angel said to her in reply, “The holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God. And behold, Elizabeth, your relative, has also conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren; for nothing will be impossible for God.” Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her.
Fr. Pastorius’s Reflection: Over the last year through different articles I have read and Bible studies that I have participated in, I have come to see how much of a nobody Mary truly was in the light of the world especially when you compare her to Zechariah the father of John the Baptist the other person that we learn from Luke that the angel Gabriel was sent (Luke 1). Zechariah was a member of the high priestly class serving in the temple and Mary is just a lowly girl from a backwards town (a hillbilly of sorts). Zechariah was trained by the greatest of Rabbis and scholars of the Law and Mary was probably taught by her parents (whom tradition has named Joachim and Anne). Zechariah though does not believe in God’s almightiness and questions the angel about God’s ability to bring about the things that the angel has announced. Mary just asks instead for instruction on how she is to proceed. Mary declares that she is the “handmaid” of the Lord. The word “handmaid” is a nice term that is pleasant to the ears but what Mary actually said was “I am the slave of the Lord.” Mary realizes that her entire life was in God’s hand and a gift much like a slave’s life was always in the hands of his or her master.
Grace to be desired: After reflecting on the first station of the Annunciation, we should pray for the grace to realize that even though the world may see us as a nobody that we are important not only to God’s plan of salvation but also to God himself. The second grace that we should pray for is a willingness to realize that all we have is from the Lord and therefore we should humbly declare ourselves to be the slaves of the Lord and strive to do his will not out of fear of punishment though but rather out of deep sense of gratitude for all that God has lovingly bestowed upon us.