Of the Birth of Mary, Part II

Of the Birth of Mary, Part II

So that our heavenly child, because she was appointed mediatress of the world, as also because she was destined to be the Mother of the Redeemer, received, at the very beginning of her existence, grace exceeding in greatness that of all the Saints together. Hence, how delightful a sight must the beautiful soul of this happy child have been to heaven and earth, although still enclosed in her mother’s womb! She was the most amiable creature in the eyes of God, because she was already loaded with grace and merit, and could say, ‘When I was a little one I pleased the Most High.’ And she was at the same time the creature of all others that had ever appeared in the world up to that moment, who loved God the most; so much so that had Mary been born immediately after her most pure conception, she would have come into the world richer in merits, and more holy, than all the Saints united. ‘Then let us only reflect how much greater her sanctity must have been at her nativity; coming into the world after acquiring all the merits that she did acquire during the whole of the nine months that she remained in the womb of her mother. And now let us pass to the consideration of the second point, that is to say, the greatness of the fidelity with which Mary immediately corresponded with Divine grace.

Second point. – It is not a private opinion only, says a learned author, but it is the opinion of all, that the holy child, when she received sanctifying grace in the womb of Saint Anne, received also the perfect use of her reason, and was also divinely enlightened, in a degree corresponding with the grace with which she was enriched. So that we may well believe, that from the first moment that her beautiful soul was united to her most pure body, she, by the light she had received from the Wisdom of God, knew well the eternal truths, the beauty of virtue, and above all, the infinite goodness of God; and how much He deserved to be loved by all, and particularly by himself, on account of the singular gifts with which He had adorned and distinguished her above all creatures, by preserving her from the stain of original sin, by bestowing on her such immense grace, and destining her to be the Mother of the Eternal Word, and Queen of the Universe.

Hence from that first moment Mary, grateful to God, began to do all that she could do, by immediately and faithfully trafficking with that great capital of grace which had been bestowed upon her; and applying herself entirely to please and love the Divine goodness, from that moment she loved Him with all her strength, and continued thus to love Him always, during the whole of the nine months preceding her birth, during which she never ceased for a moment to unite herself more and more closely with God by fervent acts of love. She was already free from original sin, and hence was exempt from every earthly affection, from every irregular movement, from every distraction, from every opposition on the part of the senses, which could in any way have hindered her from always advancing more and more in Divine love: her senses also concurred with her blessed spirit in tending towards God. Hence her beautiful soul, free from every impediment, never lingered, but always flew towards God, always loved Him, and always increased in love towards Him. It was for this reason that she called herself a plane-tree, planted by flowing waters: “As a plane-tree by the waters … was I exalted.” For she was that noble plant of God which always grew by the streams of Divine grace. And therefore she also calls herself a vine. “As a vine I have brought forth a pleasant odour.” Not only because she was so humble in the eyes of the world, but because she was like the vine, which, according to the common proverb, never ceases to grow.’ Other trees–the orange-tree, the mulberry, the pear-tree–have a determined height, which they attain; but the vine always grows, and grows to the height of the tree to which it is attached. And thus did the most Blessed Virgin always grow in perfection. Hail, then, O vine, always growing!’ says Saint Gregory Thaumaturgus; for she was always united to God, on whom alone she depended. Hence it was of her that the Holy Ghost spoke, saying, “Who is this that cometh up from the desert, flowing with delights, leaning upon her beloved?” which Saint Ambrose thus paraphrases: She it is that cometh up, clinging to the Eternal Word, as a vine to a vine-stock.’ Who is this accompanied by the Divine Word, that grows as a vine planted against a great tree?

Many learned theologians say that a soul which possesses a habit of virtue, as long as she corresponds faithfully with the actual grace which she receives from God, always produces an act equal in intensity to the habit she possesses; so much so that she acquires each time a new and double merit, equal to the sum of all the merits previously acquired.

This kind of augmentation was, it is said, granted to the angels in the time of their probation; and if it was granted to the angels, who can ever deny that it was granted to the Divine Mother when living in this world, and especially during the time of which I speak, that she was in the womb of her mother, in which she was certainly more faithful than the angels in corresponding with Divine grace? Mary, then, during the whole of that time, in each moment, doubled that sublime grace which she possessed from the first instant; for, corresponding with her whole strength, and in the most perfect manner in her every act, she subsequently doubled her merits in every instant. So that supposing she had a thousand degrees of grace in the first instant, in the second she had two thousand, in the third four thousand, in the fourth eight thousand, and in the fifth sixteen thousand, in the sixth thirty-two thousand. And we are as yet only at the sixth instant; but multiplied thus for an entire day, multiplied for nine months, consider what treasures of grace, merit, and sanctity Mary had already acquired at the moment of her birth!

Let us, then, rejoice with our beloved infant, who was born so holy, so dear to God, and so full of grace. And let us rejoice, not only on her account, but also on our own; for she came into the world full of grace, not only for her own glory, but also for our good. Saint Thomas remarks, in his eighth treatise, that the most Blessed Virgin was full of grace in three ways: first, she was filled with grace as to her soul, so that from the beginning her beautiful soul belonged all to God, Secondly, she was filled with grace as to her body, so that she merited to clothe the Eternal Word with her most pure flesh. Thirdly, she was filled with grace for the benefit of all, so that all men might partake of it: She was also full of grace as to its overflowing for the benefit of all men.’ The angelical Doctor adds, that some Saints have so much grace that it is not only sufficient for themselves, but also for the salvation of many, though not for all men.’ The angelical Doctor adds, that some Saints have so much grace that it is not only sufficient for themselves, but also for the salvation of many, though not for all men; only to Jesus Christ and to Mary was such a grace given as sufficed to save all: should anyone have as much as would suffice for the salvation of all, this would be the greatest; and this was in Christ and in the Blessed Virgin.’ Thus far Saint Thomas. So that what Saint John says of Jesus, “And of His fulness we all have received,” the Saints say of Mary. Saint Thomas of Villanova calls her full of grace, of whose plenitude all receive;’ so much so that Saint Anselm says, that there is no one who does not partake of the grace of Mary.’ And who is there in the world to whom Mary is not benign, and does not dispense some mercy? Who was ever found to whom the Blessed Virgin was not propitious? Who is there whom her mercy does not reach?’ From Jesus, however, it is (we must understand) that we receive grace as the author of grace, from Mary as a mediatress; from Jesus as a Saviour, from Mary as an advocate; from Jesus as a source, from Mary as a channel.

Hence Saint Bernard says, that God established Mary as the channel of the mercies that He wished to dispense to men; therefore He filled her with grace, that each one’s part might be communicated to him from her fulness: A full aqueduct, that others may receive of her fulness, but not fulness itself.’ Therefore the Saint exhorts all to consider, with how much love God wills that we should honour this great Virgin, since He has deposited the whole treasure of His graces in her: so that whatever we possess of hope, grace, and salvation, we may thank our most loving Queen for all, since all comes to us from her hands and by her powerful intercession. He thus beautifully expresses himself: Behold with what tender feelings of devotion He wills that we should honour her! He who has placed the plenitude of all good in Mary; that thus, if we have any hope, or anything salutary in us, we may know that it was from her that it overflowed.’ Miserable is that soul which closes this channel of grace against itself, by neglecting to recommend itself to Mary! When Holofernes wished to gain possession of the city of Bethulia, he took care to destroy the aqueducts: “He commanded their aqueduct to be cut off.” And this the devil does when he wishes to become master of a soul; he causes her to give up devotion to the most Blessed Virgin Mary; and when once this channel is closed, she easily loses supernatural light, the fear of God, and finally eternal salvation. Read the following example, in which may be seen how great is the compassion of the heart of Mary, and the destruction that he brings on himself who closes this channel against himself, by giving up devotion to the Queen of Heaven.

EXAMPLE

Trithemius, Canisius, and others, relate that in Magdeburg, a city of Saxony, there was a man called Udo, who from his youth was so destitute of talent, that he was the laughing-stock of all his companions. One day, more afflicted than usual at his own incapacity, he went to recommend himself to the most Blessed Virgin, and for this purpose was kneeling before her statue. Mary appeared to him in a vision, and said, Udo, I will console thee, and not only will I obtain thee from God sufficient capacity to free thee from the scoffs of others, but, moreover, such talents as to render thee an object of wonder; and besides this, I promise thee, that after the death of the bishop, thou shalt be chosen to fill his place.’ All that Mary said was verified. Udo made rapid progress in the sciences, and obtained the bishopric of that city. But Udo was to such a degree ungrateful to God and his benefactress, as to give up every devotion, and became a scandal to all. One night, when in bed, he heard a voice which said, Udo, cease thy wickedness; thou hast sinned enough.’ The first time he was enraged at these words, thinking it was some one who had concealed himself, and thus addressed him for his correction. Hearing the same voice a second and a third night, he began to fear that it was a voice from heaven. Yet with all this he continued his wicked life. After three months which God gave him to repent, chastisement came, and it was this: a devout canon named Frederic was one night in the church of Saint Maurice, praying that God would apply a remedy to the scandal given by the prelate, when a violent wind threw open the doors of the church, and two young men entered with lighted torches in their hands, stationing themselves on either side of the high altar. Two others followed, and extended a carpet before the altar, and placed two golden chairs on it. After this another young man came dressed as a soldier, with a sword in his hand, and standing in the midst of the church, cried out: O ye Saints of heaven, whose sacred relics are in this church, come and witness the great act of justice about to be executed by the Sovereign Judge.’ At this cry many Saints appeared, and also the twelve Apostles as assessors of this judgment; and finally Jesus Christ entered, and seated Himself on one of the chairs that had been prepared. Mary then appeared, accompanied by many holy virgins, and her Son seated her on the other chair. The Judge now commanded the criminal to be brought, and it was the miserable Udo. Saint Maurice spoke, and on the part of the scandalised people asked that justice should be executed on the prelate for his infamous life. All raised their voices and exclaimed, Lord, he deserves death.’ Let him die immediately,’ answered the Eternal Judge. But before the execution of the sentence (see how great is the compassion of Mary!) The compassionate Mother, that she might not assist at that tremendous act of justice, left the church; and then the heavenly minister, who entered with a sword amongst the first, approached Udo, and with one stroke cut off his head, and all disappeared. All remained in darkness. The canon trembling went to get a light from a lamp which was burning under the church, and found the decapitated body of Udo and the pavement all covered with blood. On the following morning, when the people had assembled in the church, the canon related the vision, and the whole history of the horrible tragedy he had witnessed. On the same day, the miserable Udo appeared, in the flames of hell, to one of his chaplains, who knew nothing of what had taken place in the church. Udo’s dead body was thrown into a marsh, and his blood remained on the pavement as a perpetual memorial, and was always kept covered with a carpet. From that time forward it became the custom to uncover it when a new bishop took possession of his see, that at the sight of such a chastisement he might learn how to regulate his life, and not be ungrateful for the graces of our Lord, and those of His most Holy Mother.

PRAYER

O holy and heavenly Infant, Thou who art the destined Mother of my Redeemer and the great Mediatress of miserable sinners, pity me. Behold at thy feet another ungrateful sinner who has recourse to thee and asks thy compassion. It is true, that for my ingratitude to God and to thee, I deserve that God and thou should abandon me; but I have heard, and believe it to be so (knowing the greatness of thy mercy), that thou dost not refuse to help any one who recommends himself to thee with confidence. O most exalted creature in the world! Since this is the case, and since there is no one but God above thee, so that compared with thee the greatest Saints of heaven are little; O Saint of Saints, O Mary! Abyss of charity, and full of grace, succour a miserable creature who by his own fault has lost the divine favour. I know that thou art so dear to God that He denies thee nothing. I know also that thy pleasure is to use thy greatness for the relief of miserable sinners. Ah, then, show how great is the favour that thou enjoyest with God, by obtaining me a divine light and flame so powerful that I may be changed from a sinner into a Saint; and detaching myself from every earthly affection, divine love may be enkindled in me. Do this, O Lady, for thou canst do it. Do it for the love of God, who has made thee so great, so powerful, and so compassionate. This is my hope. Amen.

by Saint Alphosus de Liguori
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