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The Feast of
the Queenship of Mary 1 ends the month
of May -- a month devoted to Our Lady and which began with the
crowning of her images. This Feast
honors the fact that God has restored the Davidic Kingdom, with Jesus as
the Christ (Anointed One) -- and Jesus's Mother -- Our Mother -- as its Queen
Mother. The King of Kings requires a Queen, and in Israel, it is the King's
Mother who sits on the throne and exerts power as "The Great Lady"
("gebirah" or "gevirah," as this position is known in Hebrew). Just as Bethsabee
(Bathsheba), the mother of King Solomon, acted as intercessor for the people
of Israel, Our Lady acts as intercessor for us with the King of Kings:
III Kings 2:19-20
Then Bethsabee came to king Solomon, to speak to him for Adonias: and the
king arose to meet her, and bowed to her, and sat down upon his throne: and
a throne was set for the king's mother, and she sat on his right hand. And
she said to him: I desire one small petition of thee, do not put me to confusion.
And the king said to her: My mother, ask: for I must not turn away thy face.
Psalm 44, which
prophesied Our Lord, speaks of the Queen at His right hand, one whose name
will be remembered "throughout all generations":
Unto the end,
for them that shall be changed, for the sons of Core, for understanding.
A canticle for the Beloved. My heart hath uttered a good word I speak my
works to the king; My tongue is the pen of a scrivener that writeth swiftly.
Thou art beautiful above the sons of men: grace is poured abroad in thy lips;
therefore hath God blessed thee for ever. Gird thy sword upon thy thigh,
O thou most mighty. With thy comeliness and thy beauty set out, proceed
prosperously, and reign. Because of truth and meekness and justice: and thy
right hand shall conduct thee wonderfully. Thy arrows are sharp: under thee
shall people fall, into the hearts of the king's enemies. Thy throne, O God,
is for ever and ever: the sceptre of thy kingdom is a sceptre of uprightness.
Thou hast loved justice, and hated iniquity: therefore God, thy God, hath
anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows. Myrrh and stacte
and cassia perfume thy garments, from the ivory houses: out of which the
daughters of kings have delighted thee in thy glory.
The queen stood on thy right hand, in gilded clothing; surrounded with variety.
Hearken, O daughter, and see, and incline thy ear: and forget thy people
and thy father's house. And the king shall greatly desire thy beauty; for
he is the Lord thy God, and him they shall adore. And the daughters of Tyre
with gifts, yea, all the rich among the people, shall entreat thy countenance.
All the glory of the king's daughter is within in golden borders, Clothed
round about with varieties. After her shall virgins be brought to the king:
her neighbours shall be brought to thee. They shall be brought with gladness
and rejoicing: they shall be brought into the temple of the king. Instead
of thy fathers, sons are born to thee: thou shalt make them princes over
all the earth. They shall remember thy name throughout all generations.
Therefore shall people praise thee for ever; yea, for ever and ever.
Mary evokes this Psalm in her response to St. Gabriel's Annunciation to her:
Luke 1:46-48
And Mary said: My soul doth magnify the Lord. And my spirit hath rejoiced
in God my Saviour. Because he hath regarded the humility of his handmaid;
for behold from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.
St. John's Apocalypse
reveals that he saw Our Lady crowned with stars, one for each of the twelve
tribes and the twelve Apostles. St. John saw her as Queen in Heaven, the
mother of the one who was to "rule all nations":
Apocalypse 12:1-5
And a great sign appeared in heaven: A woman clothed with the sun, and the
moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars: And being with
child, she cried travailing in birth, and was in pain to be delivered. And
there was seen another sign in heaven: and behold a great red dragon, having
seven heads, and ten horns: and on his head seven diadems: And his tail drew
the third part of the stars of heaven, and cast them to the earth: and the
dragon stood before the woman who was ready to be delivered; that, when she
should be delivered, he might devour her son. And she brought forth a man
child, who was to rule all nations with an iron rod: and her son was taken
up to God, and to his throne.
Call on Our Queen
to intercede for you with her Divine Son! The Salve Regina (Hail Holy Queen)
prayer is perfect for the day:
Hail holy Queen,
mother of mercy, our life, our sweetness, and our hope. To thee do we cry,
poor banished children of Eve. To thee do we send up our sighs, mourning
and weeping in this valley of tears. Turn then, most gracious Advocate, thine
eyes of mercy toward us. And after this our exile show unto us the blessed
Fruit of thy womb, Jesus. O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary. Amen.
Latin Version:
Salve, Regina, mater misericordiae: vita, dulcedo, et spes nostra, salve.
Ad te clamamus exsules filii Hevae. Ad te suspiramus, gementes et flentes
in hac lacrimarum valle. Eia, ergo, advocata nostra, illos tuos misericordes
oculos ad nos converte. Et Iesum, benedictum fructum ventris tui, nobis post
hoc exsilium ostende. O clemens, O pia, O dulcis Virgo Maria. Amen.
See also:
Feast of Christ the King (the
last Sunday in October), the Feast of the
Visitation (for a celebration of Mary as Ark of the New Covenant),
and the Feast of the
Assumption.
Reading
Sermon I on
the Dormition
By St. John Damascene (b. A.D. 676)
The memory of
the just takes place with rejoicing, said Solomon, the wisest of men; for
precious in God's sight is the death of His saints, according to the royal
David. If, then, the memory of all the just is a subject of rejoicing, who
will not offer praise to justice in its source, and holiness in its
treasure-house? It is not mere praise; it is praising with the intention
of gaining eternal glory. God's dwelling-place does not need our praise,
that city of God, concerning which great things were spoken, as holy. David
addresses it in these words: "Glorious things are said of thee, thou city
of God." What sort of city shall we choose for the invisible and uncircumscribed
God, who holds all things in His hand, if not that city which alone is above
nature, giving shelter without circumscription to the supersubstantial Word
of God? Glorious things have been spoken of that city by God himself. For
what is more exalted than being made the recipient of God's counsel, which
is from all eternity?
Neither human tongue nor angelic mind is able worthily to praise her through
whom it is given to us to look clearly upon the Lord's glory. What then?
Shall we be silent through fear of our insufficiency? Certainly not. Shall
we be trespassers beyond our own boundaries, and freely handle ineffable
mysteries, putting off all restraint? By no means. Mingling, rather, fear
with desire, and weaving them into one crown, with reverent hand and longing
soul, let us show forth the poor first-fruits of our intelligence in gratitude
to our Queen and Mother, the benefactress of all creation as a repayment
of our debt. A story is told of some rustics who were ploughing up the soil
when a king chanced to pass, in the splendour of his royal robes and crown,
and surrounded by countless gift bearers, standing in a circle. As there
was no gift to offer at that moment, one of them was collecting water in
his hands, as there happened to be a copious stream near by. Of this he prepared
a gift for the king, who addressed him in these words: "What is this, my
boy?" And he answered boldly: "I made the best of what I had, thinking it
was better to show my willingness, than to offer nothing. You do not need
our gifts, nor do you wish for anything from us save our good will. The need
is on our side, and the reward is in the doing. I know that glory often comes
to the grateful."
The king in wonder praised the boy's cleverness, graciously acknowledged
his willingness, and made him many rich gifts in return. Now, if that proud
monarch so generously rewarded good intentions, will not Our Lady, the Mother
of God, accept our good will, not judging us by what we accomplish? Our Lady
is the Mother of God, who alone is good and infinite in His condescension,
who preferred the two mites to many splendid gifts. She will indeed receive
us, who are paying off our debt, and make us a return out of all proportion
to what we offer. Since prayer is absolutely necessary for our needs, let
us direct our attention to it.
What shall we say, O Queen? What words shall we use? What praise shall we
pour upon thy sacred and glorified head, thou giver of good gifts and of
riches, the pride of the human race, the glory of all creation, through whom
it is truly blessed. He whom nature did not contain in the beginning, was
born of thee. The Invisible One is contemplated face to face. O Word of God,
do Thou open my slow lips, and give their utterances Thy richest blessing;
inflame us with the grace of Thy Spirit, through whom fishermen became orators,
and ignorant men spoke supernatural wisdom, so that our feeble voices may
contribute to thy loved Mother's praises, even though greatness should be
extolled by misery. She, the chosen one of an ancient race, by a predetermined
counsel and the good pleasure of God the Father, who had begotten Thee in
eternity immaterially, brought Thee forth in the latter times, Thou who art
propitiation and salvation, justice and redemption, life of life, light of
light, and true God of true God.
The birth of her, whose Child was marvellous, was above nature and understanding,
and it was salvation to the world; her death was glorious, and truly a sacred
feast. The Father predestined her, the prophets foretold her through the
Holy Ghost. His sanctifying power overshadowed her, cleansed and made her
holy, and, as it were, predestined her. Then Thou, Word of the Father, not
dwelling in place, didst invite the lowliness of our nature to be united
to the immeasurable greatness of Thy inscrutable Godhead. Thou, who didst
take flesh of the Blessed Virgin, vivified by a reasoning soul, having first
abided in her undefiled and immaculate womb, creating Thyself, and causing
her to exist in Thee, didst become perfect man, not ceasing to be perfect
God, equal to Thy Father, but taking upon Thyself our weakness through ineffable
goodness. Through it Thou art one Christ, one Lord, one Son of God, and man
at the same time, perfect God and perfect man, wholly God and wholly man,
one Substance from two perfect natures, the Godhead and the manhood. And
in two perfect natures, the divine and the human, God is not pure God, nor
the man only man, but the Son of God and the Incarnate God are one and the
same God and man without confusion or division, uniting in Himself substantially
the attributes of both natures. Thus, He is at once uncreated and created,
mortal and immortal, visible and invisible, in place and not in place. He
has a divine will and a human will, a divine action and a human also, two
powers of choosing divine and human. He shows forth divine wonders and human
affections -- natural, I mean, and pure. Thou hast taken upon Thyself, Lord,
of Thy great mercy, the state of Adam as he was before the fall, body, soul,
and mind, and all that they involve physically, so as to give me a perfect
salvation. It is true indeed that what was not assumed was not healed. Having
thus become the mediator between God and man, Thou didst destroy enmity,
and lead back to Thy Father those who had deserted Him, wanderers to their
home, and those in darkness to the light. Thou didst bring pardon to the
contrite, and didst change mortality into immortality. Thou didst deliver
the world from the aberration of many gods, and didst make men the children
of God, partakers of Thy divine glory. Thou didst raise the human race, which
was condemned to bell, above all power and majesty, and in Thy person it
is seated on the King's eternal throne. Who was the instrument of these infinite
benefits exceeding all mind and comprehension, if not the Mother ever Virgin
who bore Thee?
Realise, Beloved in the Lord, the grace of to-day, and its wondrous solemnity.
Its mysteries are not terrible, nor do they inspire awe. Blessed are they
who have eyes to see. Blessed are they who see with spiritual eyes. This
night shines as the day. What countless angels acclaim the death of the
life-giving Mother! How the eloquence of apostles blesses the departure of
this body which was the receptacle of God. How the Word of God, who deigned
in His mercy to become her Son, ministering with His divine hands to this
immaculate and divine being, as His mother, receives her holy soul. O wondrous
Law-giver, fulfilling the law which He bad Himself laid down, not being bound
by it, for it was He who enjoined children to show reverence to their parents.
"Honour thy father and thy mother," He says. The truth of this is apparent
to every one, calling to mind even dimly the words of holy Scripture. If
according to it the souls of the just are in the hands of God, how much more
is her soul in the hands of her Son and her God. This is indisputable. Let
us consider who she is and whence she came, how she, the greatest and dearest
of all God's gifts, was given to this world. Let us examine what her life
was, and the mysteries in which she took part. Heathens in the use of funeral
orations most carefully brought forward anything which could be turned to
praise of the deceased, and at the same time encourage the living to virtue,
drawing generally upon fable and fiction, not having fact to go upon. How
then, shall we not deserve scorn if we bury in silence that which is most
true and sacred, and in very deed the source of praise and salvation to all
? Shall we not receive the same punishment as the man who hid his master's
talent ? Let us adapt our subject to the needs of those who listen, as food
is suited to the body.
Joachim and Anne were the parents of Mary. Joachim kept as strict a watch
over his thoughts as a shepherd over his flock, having them entirely under
his control. For the Lord God led him as a sheep, and he wanted for none
of the best things. When I say best, let no one think I mean what is commonly
acceptable to the multitude, that upon which greedy minds are fixed, the
pleasures of life that can neither endure nor make their possessors better,
nor confer real strength. They follow the downward course of human life and
cease all in a moment, even if they abounded before. Far be it from us to
cherish these things, nor is this the portion of those who fear God. But
the good things which are a matter of desire to those who possess true knowledge,
delighting God, and fruitful to their possessors, namely, virtues, bearing
fruit in due season, that is, in eternity, will reward with eternal life
those who have laboured worthily and have persevered in their acquisition
as far as possible. The labour goes before, eternal happiness follows. Joachim
ever shepherded his thoughts. In the place of pastures, dwelling by contemplation
on the words of sacred Scripture, made glad on the restful waters of divine
grace, withdrawn from foolishness, he walked in the path of justice. And
Anne, whose name means grace, was no less a companion in her life than a
wife, blessed with all good gifts, though afflicted for a mystical reason
with sterility. Grace in very truth remained sterile, not being able to produce
fruit in the souls of men. Therefore, men declined from good and degenerated;
there was not one of understanding nor one who sought after God. Then His
divine goodness, taking pity on the work of His hands, and wishing to save
it, put an end to that mystical barrenness, that of holy Anne, I mean, and
she gave birth to a child, whose equal had never been created and never can
be. The end of barrenness proved clearly that the world's sterility would
cease and that the withered trunk would be crowned with vigorous and mystical
life.
Hence the Mother of our Lord is announced. An angel foretells her birth.
It was fitting that in this, too, she, who was to be the human Mother of
the one true and living God, should be marked out above every one else. Then
she was offered in God's holy temple, and remained there, showing to all
a great example of zeal and holiness, withdrawn from frivolous society. When,
however, she reached full age and the law required that she should leave
the temple, she was entrusted by the priests to Joseph, her bridegroom, as
the guardian of her virginity, a steadfast observer of the law from his youth.
Mary, the holy and undefiled, went to Joseph, contenting herself with her
household matters, and knowing nothing beyond her four walls.
In the fulness of time, as the divine apostle says, the angel Gabriel was
sent to this true child of God, and saluted her in the words, "Hail, full
of grace, the Lord is with thee." Beautiful is the angel's salutation to
her who is greater than an angel. He is the bearer of joy to the whole world.
She was troubled at his words, not being used to speak with men, for she
had resolved to keep her virginity unsullied. She pondered in herself what
this greeting might be. Then the angel said to her: "Fear not, Mary. Thou
hast found grace before God." In very deed, she who was worthy of grace had
found it. She found grace who had done the deeds of race, and had reaped
its fulness. She found grace who brought forth the source of grace, and was
a rich harvest of grace. She found an abyss of grace who kept undefiled her
double virginity, her virginal soul no less spotless than her body; hence
her perfect virginity. "Thou shalt bring forth a Son," he said, "and shalt
call His name Jesus" (Jesus is interpreted Saviour). "He shall save His people
from their sins." What did she, who is true wisdom, reply? She does not imitate
our first mother Eve, but rather improves upon her incautiousness, and calling
in nature to support her, thus answers the angel: "How is this to be, since
I know not man? What you say is impossible, for it goes beyond the natural
laws laid down by the Creator. I will not be called a second Eve and disobey
the will of my God. If you are not speaking godless things, explain the mystery
by saying how it is to be accomplished." Then the messenger of truth answered
her: "The Holy Spirit shall come to thee, and the power of the Most High
shall overshadow thee. Therefore He who is born to thee shall be called the
Son of God." That which is foretold is not subservient to the laws of nature.
For God, the Creator of nature, can alter its laws. And she, listening in
holy reverence to that sacred name, which she had ever desired, signified
her obedience in words full of humility and joy: "Behold the handmaid of
the Lord. Be it done unto me according to thy word."
"O the depth of the riches, of the wisdom, and of the knowledge of God,"
I will exclaim in the apostle's words. "How incomprehensible are His judgments,
and how unsearchable His ways." O inexhaustible goodness of God! O boundless
goodness! He who called what was not into being, and filled heaven and earth,
whose throne is heaven, and whose footstool is the earth, a spacious
dwelling-place, made the womb of His own servant, and in it the mystery of
mysteries is accomplished. Being God He becomes man, and is marvellously
brought forth without detriment to the virginity of His Mother. And He is
lifted up as a baby in earthly arms, who is the brightness of eternal glory,
the form of the Father's substance, by the word of whose mouth all created
things exist. O truly divine wonder! O mystery transcending all nature and
understanding! O marvellous virginity! What, O holy Mother and Virgin, is
this great mystery accomplished in thee? Blessed art thou amongst women,
and blessed is the fruit of thy womb. Thou art blessed from generation to
generation, thou who alone art worthy of being blessed. Behold all generations
shall call thee blessed as thou hast said. The daughters of Jerusalem, I
mean, of the Church, saw thee. Queens have blessed thee, that is, the spirits
of the just, and they shall praise thee for ever. Thou art the royal throne
which angels surround, seeing upon it their very King and Lord. Thou art
a spiritual Eden, holier and diviner than Eden of old. That Eden was the
abode of the mortal Adam, whilst the Lord came from heaven to dwell in thee.
The ark foreshadowed thee who hast kept the seed of the new world. Thou didst
bring forth Christ, the salvation of the world, who destroyed sin and its
angry waves. The burning bush was a figure of thee, and the tablets of the
law, and the ark of the testament. The golden urn and candelabra, the table
and the flowering rod of Aaron were significant types of thee. From thee
arose the splendour of the Godhead, the eternal Word of the Father, the most
sweet and heavenly Manna, the sacred Name above every name, the Light which
was from the beginning. The heavenly Bread of Life, the Fruit without seed,
took flesh of thee. Did not that flame foreshadow thee with its burning fire
an image of the divine fire within thee? And Abraham's tent most clearly
pointed to thee. By the Word of God dwelling in thee human nature produced
the bread made of ashes, its first fruits, from thy most pure womb, the first
fruits kneaded into bread and cooked by divine fire, becoming His divine
person, and His true substance of a living body quickened by a reasoning
and intelligent soul. I had nearly forgotten Jacob's ladder. Is it not evident
to every one that it prefigured thee, and is not the type easily recognised?
just as Jacob saw the ladder bringing together heaven and earth, and on it
angels coming down and going up, and the truly strong and invulnerable God
wrestling mystically with himself, so art thou placed between us, and art
become the ladder of God's intercourse with us, of Him who took upon Himself
our weakness, uniting us to Himself, and enabling man to see God. Thou hast
brought together what was parted. Hence angels descended to Him, ministering
to Him as their God and Lord, and men, adopting the life of angels, are carried
up to heaven.
How shall I understand the prediction of prophets? Shall I not refer them
to thee, as we can prove them to be true? What is the fleece of David which
receives the Son of the Almighty God, co-eternal and co-equal with His Father,
as rain falls upon the soil? Does it not signify thee in thy bright shining?
Who is the virgin foretold by Isaias who should conceive and bear a Son,
God ever present with us, that is, who being born a man should remain God?
What is Daniel's mountain from which arose Christ, the Corner-Stone, not
made by the hand of man ? Is it not thee, conceiving without man and still
remaining a virgin? Let the inspired Ezechiel come forth and show us the
closed gate, sealed by the Lord, and not yielding, according to his prophecy
-- let him point to its fulfilment in thee. The Lord of all came to thee,
and taking flesh did not open the door of thy virginity. The seal remains
intact. The prophets, then, foretell thee. Angels and apostles minister to
thee, O Mother of God, ever Virgin, and John the virgin apostle. Angels and
the spirits of the just, patriarchs and prophets surround thee to-day in
thy departure to thy Son. Apostles watched over the countless host of the
just who were gathered together from every corner of the earth by the divine
commands, as a cloud around the divine and living Jerusalem, singing hymns
of praise to thee, the author of our Lord's life-giving body.
O how does the source of life pass through death to life? O how can she obey
the law of nature, who, in conceiving, surpasses the boundaries of nature?
How is her spotless body made subject to death? In order to be clothed with
immortality she must first put off mortality, since the Lord of nature did
not reject the penalty of death. She dies according to the flesh, destroys
death by death, and through corruption gains incorruption, and makes her
death the source of resurrection. O how does Almighty God receive with His
own hands the holy disembodied soul of our Lord's Mother! He honours her
truly, whom being His servant by nature, He made His Mother, in His inscrutable
abyss of mercy, when He became incarnate in very truth. We may well believe
that the angelic choirs waited to receive thy departing soul. O what a blessed
departure this going to God of thine. If God vouchsafes it to all His servants
-- and we know that He does -- what an immense difference there is between
His servants and His Mother. What, then, shall we call this mystery of thine?
Death? Thy blessed soul is naturally parted from thy blissful and undefiled
body, and the body is delivered to the grave, yet it does not endure in death,
nor is it the prey of corruption. The body of her, whose virginity remained
unspotted in child-birth, was preserved in its incorruption, and was taken
to a better, diviner place, where death is not, but eternal life. Just as
the glorious sun may be hidden momentarily by the opaque moon, it shows still
though covered, and its rays illumine the darkness since light belongs to
its essence. It has in itself a perpetual source of light, or rather it is
the source of light as God created it. So art thou the perennial source of
true light, the treasury of life itself, the richness of grace, the cause
and medium of all our goods. And if for a time thou art hidden by the death
of the body, without speaking, thou art our light, life-giving ambrosia,
true happiness, a sea of grace, a fountain of healing and of perpetual blessing.
Thou art as a fruitful tree in the forest, and thy fruit is sweet in the
mouth of the faithful. Therefore I will not call thy sacred transformation
death, but rest or going home, and it is more truly a going home. Putting
off corporeal things, thou dwellest in a happier state.
Angels with archangels bear thee up. Impure spirits trembled at thy departure.
The air raises a hymn of praise at thy passage, and the atmosphere is purified.
Heaven receives thy soul with joy. The heavenly powers greet thee with sacred
canticles and with joyous praise, saying : "Who is this most pure creature
ascending, shining as the dawn, beautiful as the moon, conspicuous as the
sun? How sweet and lovely thou art, the lily of the field, the rose among
thorns; therefore the young maidens loved thee. We are drawn after the odour
of thy ointments. The King introduced thee into His chamber. There Powers
protect thee, Principalities praise thee, Thrones proclaim thee, Cherubim
are hushed in joy, and Seraphim magnify the true Mother by nature and by
grace of their very Lord. Thou wert not taken into heaven as Elias was, nor
didst thou penetrate to the third heaven with Paul, but thou didst reach
the royal throne itself of thy Son, seeing it with thy own eyes, standing
by it in joy and unspeakable familiarity. O gladness of angels and of all
heavenly powers, sweetness of patriarchs and of the just, perpetual exultation
of prophets, rejoicing the world and sanctifying all things, refreshment
of the weary, comfort of the sorrowful, remission of sins, health of the
sick, harbour of the storm-tossed, lasting strength of mourners, and perpetual
succour of all who invoke thee."
O wonder surpassing nature and creating wonder! Death, which of old was feared
and hated, is a matter of praise and blessing. Of old it was the harbinger
of grief, dejection, tears, and sadness, and now it is shown forth as the
cause of joy and rejoicing. In the case of all God's servants, whose death
is extolled, His good pleasure is surmised from their holy end, and therefore
their death is blessed. It shows them to be perfect, blessed and immoveable
in goodness, as the proverb says: "Praise no man before his death." This,
however, we do not apply to thee. Thy blessedness was not death, nor was
dying thy perfection, nor, again, did thy departure hence help thee to security.
Thou art the beginning, middle, and end of all goods transcending mind, for
thy Son in His conception and divine dwelling in thee is made our sure and
true security. Thus thy words were true: from the moment of His conception,
not from thy death, thou didst say all generations should call thee blessed.
It was thou who didst break the force of death, paying its penalty, and making
it gracious. Hence, when thy holy and sinless body was taken to the tomb,
the choirs of angels bore it, and were all around, leaving nothing undone
for the honour of our Lord's Mother, whilst apostles and all the assembly
of the Church burst into prophetic song, saying: "We shall be filled with
the good things of Thy house, holy is Thy temple, wonderful in justice."
And again: "The Most High has sanctified His tabernacle. The mountain of
God is a fertile mountain, the mountain in which it pleased God to dwell."
The apostolic band lifting the true ark of the Lord God on their shoulders,
as the priests of old the typical ark, and placing thy body in the tomb,
made it, as if another Jordan, the way to the true land of the gospel, the
heavenly Jerusalem, the mother of all the faithful, God being its Lord and
architect. Thy soul did not descend to Limbo, neither did thy flesh see
corruption. Thy pure and spotless body was not left in the earth, but the
abode of the Queen, of God's true Mother, was fixed in the heavenly kingdom
alone.
O how did heaven receive her who is greater than heaven? How did she, who
had received God, descend into the grave? This truly happened, and she was
held by the tomb. It was not after bodily wise that she surpassed heaven.
For how can a body measuring three cubits, and continually losing flesh,
be compared with the dimensions of heaven ? It was rather by grace that she
surpassed all height and depth, for that which is divine is incomparable.
O sacred and wonderful, holy and worshipful body, ministered to now by angels,
standing by in lowly reverence. Demons tremble: men approach with faith,
honouring and worshipping her, greeting her with eyes and lips, and drawing
down upon themselves abundant blessings. Just as a rich scent sprinkled upon
clothes or places, leaves its fragrance even after it has been withdrawn,
so now that holy, undefiled, and divine body, filled with heavenly fragrance,
the rich source of grace, is laid in the tomb that it may be translated to
a higher and better place. Nor did she leave the grave empty; her body imparted
to it a divine fragrance, a source of healing, and of all good for those
who approach it with faith.
We, too, approach thee to-day, O Queen; and again, I say, O Queen, O Virgin
Mother of God, staying our souls with our trust in thee, as with a strong
anchor. Lifting up mind, soul and body, and all ourselves to thee, rejoicing
in psalms and hymns and spiritual canticles, we reach through thee One who
is beyond our reach on account of His Majesty. If, as the divine Word made
flesh taught us, honour shown to servants, is honour shown to our common
Lord, how can honour shown to thee, His Mother, be slighted? How is it not
most desirable? Art thou not honoured as the very breath of life? Thus shall
we best show our service to our Lord Himself. What do I say to our Lord?
It is sufficient that those who think of Thee should recall the memory of
Thy most precious gift as the cause of our lasting joy. How it fills us with
gladness! How the mind that dwells on this holy treasury of Thy grace enriches
itself.
This is our thank-offering to thee, the first fruits of our discourses, the
best homage of my poor mind, whilst I am moved by desire of thee, and full
of my own misery. But do thou graciously receive my desire, knowing that
it exceeds my power. Watch over us, O Queen, the dwelling-place of our Lord.
Lead and govern all our ways as thou wilt. Save us from our sins. Lead us
into the calm harbour of the divine will. Make us worthy of future happiness
through the sweet and face-to-face vision of the Word made flesh through
thee. With Him, glory, praise, power, and majesty be to the Father and to
the holy and life-giving Spirit, now and for ever. Amen.
Footnote:
1 This Feast is 31 May on the traditional calendar, capping
the month of May which is dedicated to Our Lady and begins with the
crowning of her icons. On the Novus
Ordo calendar, the Feast falls on 22 August, after the
Feast of the Assumption on
15 August.
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