MASS READINGS AND MEDITATION | AUGUST 15, 2020

“For greater things you were born.” (Ven. Mother Luisita)

SATURDAY AUGUST 15th Lk. 1:39-56 Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Today the Church celebrates the Assumption of Mary into Heaven, body and soul! Father Ed Broom gives us twenty Roses to put into practice and live throughout the year to honor the Blessed Virgin Mary on this great Solemnity!

MARIAN DEVOTION—LIVING IT TO THE FULL!  By Fr. Ed Broom, OMV

In his spiritual masterpiece, True Devotion to Mary, Saint Louis de Montfort expresses the exalted, sublime, and glorious role of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the plan of Redemption and in the presence of God Himself. Meditate deeply upon these words as we enter into a topic of the greatest importance for our salvation as well as the salvation of the entire world.

“Mary is the supreme masterpiece of Almighty God and He has reserved the knowledge and possession of her to Himself. She is the glorious Mother of God the Son who chose to humble and conceal her during her lifetime in order to foster humility. He called her “Woman” as if she were a stranger, although in His heart He esteemed and loved her above all men and angels. Mary is the sealed fountain and the faithful spouse of the Holy Spirit. She is the sanctuary and resting place of the Blessed Trinity, where God dwells in greater and more divine splendor than anywhere else in the universe, not excluding His dwelling above the cherubim and the seraphim. No creature may enter there without being specially privileged.” (True Devotion to Mary, Saint Louis de Montfort, #5)

 In this essay we would like to offer various practical suggestions on how we can cultivate and live out true devotion to Mary and as a consequence, learn to love more fully and completely the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Indeed, Our Lady is the shortcut to the very heart of God Himself.

FIRST, CONSECRATION TO MARY. 
At the very start of every day, upon hearing the alarm clock in the morning, let your first thoughts and words be those of your consecration to Jesus through Mary. The Cure of Ars, Saint John Marie Vianney points out that in the spiritual life if we start the day well there is a good chance that we will end it well. Start off the day offering yourself to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Great start on the highway to heaven! Saint John Damascene, a Father of the Eastern Church states: “To serve Mary and to be her courtier is the greatest honor we can possibly possess. For to serve the Queen of Heaven is already to reign on high, and to live under her commands is a greater thing than to reign.”

SECOND, BROWN SCAPULAR OF CARMEL. 
The exterior sign of our consecration to Mary is the faithful wearing of the brown scapular of Our Lady of Mount Carmel. It is worn over your shoulders and actually rests very close to your heart—very symbolic, to be in the Immaculate Heart of Mary. The Church endows the faithful with special blessings and indulgences simply upon wearing the Scapular. Of course, the kissing of the Scapular most clearly manifests our great love for Mary our Mother and her maternal and constant love for us at all times and in all places. Saint Claude de la Colombiere, the renowned Jesuit and spiritual director of Saint Margaret Mary, gives a point which is enlightening.

He said: “Because all the forms of our love for the Blessed Virgin and all its various modes of expression cannot be equally pleasing to her, and therefore do not assist us in the same degree to reach Heaven, I say, without a moment’s hesitation, that the BROWN SCAPULAR IS THE MOST FAVORED OF ALL!” (Excerpt from Garment of Grace, pages 4-5) We strongly encourage you to purchase and read Garment of Grace so as to understand better the origin and purpose of the Brown Scapular of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, as well as to read the countless miracles that have been attributed to its faithful use!

THIRD, PRAY THE ANGELUS! 
One of the most pleasing prayers that causes Our Lady to rejoice is that of THE ANGELUS. Past Popes have traditionally prayed The Angelus on Sundays at noon. This beautiful prayer consisting of three Hail Marys is a short summary of the two pillars of our Catholic-Christian faith: the Incarnation and the Passion, death and Resurrection of Jesus, as well as the role of Mary in the work of our Redemption. If possible, you might get into the habit of praying The Angelus three times a day: 9 in the morning, 12 noon, and 6 p.m.  This could prove to be an excellent way to sanctify the morning hours, afternoon hours, and evening hours with the sweet and gentle fragrance of the presence of the Mystical Rose—the Blessed Virgin Mary. Pray humbly over the words of the great Franciscan Doctor of the Church, Saint Bonaventure and his great love for Mary: “Entrust your cause to her who is the Mother of mercy, and zealously offer her day by day most special marks of reverence. Endeavor to maintain within both body and soul the spotlessness of her purity, and walk in her footsteps, humbly and gently like her.”

FOURTH, TALK OFTEN TO MARY YOUR MOTHER. 
Friends are constantly thinking about each other, calling each other, texting each other, sending e-mails; friends always find blocks of time to go out and enjoy each other’s presence. Indeed, if we truly love another person, our greatest desire is to share our life and all we have and all we are with that person. The first and greatest of all the commandments is to love God with all our heart, mind, soul and strength. After our love for God should come our great love for Mary, the Mother of God, the Mother of the Church, and our Mother in the order of grace. In Spanish and Italian there is a well-known song to Mary: Santa Maria del Camino. Its meaning? On the highway of life, in our traveling towards our eternal homeland which is heaven, we earnestly desire Mary to be with us in all moments. Indeed this was one of the favorite Marian titles that Saint Ignatius treasured—in Italian: “La Madonna de la Strada”—Our Lady of the Way. May Our Lady accompany us in the midst of so many perils of body, mind, and soul to our heavenly homeland! The Founder of the Oblates of the Virgin Mary expressed this succinctly in Latin: Maria cogito, Maria invoca—Think of Mary, invoke Mary.”

FIFTH, IMITATE MARY. 
Saint Ignatius of Loyola, in the context of the Spiritual Exercises, directs us to the very center, core or heart of the Spiritual Exercises: THE PERSON OF JESUS CHRIST. Upon undertaking the all-important task of contemplating the life of Christ, Ignatius insists on begging for this specific grace: Intimate knowledge of Jesus that we love Him more ardently and follow Him more closely. There was never anyone in the world who came to know, love, and follow Jesus better than Mary. So much so, that the Dogmatic Constitution Lumen Gentium Chapter 8 highlights that Our Lady was the first disciple of Jesus! Furthermore, no one lived a more virtuous life, aside from Jesus Himself, than Mary most holy. In the classic True Devotion to Mary, Saint Louis de Montfort lists the sublime virtues of Mary that we should be encouraged to imitate and emulate in our daily struggle for perfection. “True devotion to Our Lady is holy, that is, it leads us to avoid sin and to imitate the virtues of Mary. Her ten principal virtues are: deep humility, lively faith, blind obedience, unceasing prayer, constant self-denial, surpassing purity, ardent love, heroic patience, angelic kindness, and heavenly wisdom.” (True Devotion to Mary, Saint Louis de Montfort, #108) We imitate those with whom we associate; if we are constantly walking with Jesus and Mary this is definitely a sure path to holiness of life!

SIXTH, LEARN MORE ABOUT MARY.
There is a maxim worthy of belief: “You cannot love someone you do not know.”  This is common sense! Therefore, the more we get to know Our Lady, the more we can love her, follow her, imitate her and even bring others to her. Books, articles, magazines, pamphlets, documents, periodicals written on Our Lady are limitless! For the sake of brevity, we should like to suggest one literary classic, most likely the most well-known and published work ever on Our Lady: THE GLORIES OF MARY written by one of the greatest saints and lovers of Mary in the history of the world, Doctor of the Church and Founder of the Redemptorist Order—Saint Alphonsus Maria Liguori. This spiritual gem is a sublime but simple commentary on the Marian prayer we say at the end of the most Holy Rosary—the HAIL HOLY QUEEN! Saint Alphonsus insists that we should never fear to approach Our Lady for she is pure Mercy, as we pray: “Hail Holy Queen, Mother of mercy, our life, our sweetness, and our hope.” Having talked to several people who have read prayerfully this beautiful Marian masterpiece, the common reaction is an overflowing heart of love and devotion for Mary. Saint Alphonsus was enamored with love for Mary and it overflows to those who prayerfully read this masterpiece! Order it and start reading; you will never regret it!

SEVENTH, TEMPTATIONS? TURN TO MARY.
Our life on earth is a constant battle until we die. We all must encounter, confront and battle against three major enemies: the devil, the flesh, and the world. The devil has a mortal hatred for Mary. The Book of Genesis prophesied his crushing defeat through the woman, the second Eve who is Mary: “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers. He will strike at your head, while you strike at his heel.” (Gen 3:15) When the devil is on the prowl tempting us, trying to seduce us, trying to allure us into his net or trap, then we must invoke the holy name of Mary. Indeed, very potent in the battle against Satan and his minions is praying the Hail Mary in time of temptation with great fervor, devotion and trust. “Never was it known that anyone who fled to your protection was left unaided…” (from the Marian prayer Memorare). One of the greatest preachers in the history of the Church and a Doctor of the Church is Saint Anthony. Let his words inspire you to turn to Mary in temptations and struggles: “Seek refuge in Mary because she is the city of refuge. We know that Moses set up three cities of refuge for anyone who inadvertently killed his neighbor. Now the Lord has established a refuge of mercy, Mary, even for those who deliberately commit evil. Mary provides refuge and strength for the sinner.”

EIGHTH, PROBLEMS, RUN TO MARY!
Little children are not afraid to run to their Mother when they have any sort of problem. Likewise, we should never fear running to Mary, our Heavenly Mother, when problems knock at our door. Crosses, contradictions, sufferings, and problems are part and parcel of the life of all, but especially those who decide firmly to follow in the footsteps of Jesus and Mary. A superb example for us is the person of SAINT JUAN DIEGO. This poor, simple, humble, childlike man was afflicted with a very serious problem—the seeming imminent death of his elderly uncle, Juan Bernardino. Early in the morning, while rushing to the city of Mexico to find a priest to give his uncle the Last Rites, Juan Diego encountered Our Lady of Guadalupe. With the most consoling and encouraging words, she resolved his problem and restored health to his apparently dying uncle: “Do not be afraid. I have you in the crossing of my arms, in my shadow, in the folds of my mantle.” Interpretation: Mary wants Juan Diego, as well as you and me, to find refuge in her heart, her shadow, and her very womb—so that she can form us into OTHER CHRISTS!!! Therefore, when we are loaded down with problems and crosses—run and seek refuge in the arms and Immaculate Heart of Mary! She is a loving Mother who will never neglect or forsake you!

NINTH, IMAGES OF MARY. 
When we love somebody who might not be physically present, we carry a photo of that person in our wallet, or have their picture in our home, or keep photos of them on our cell-phone. Therefore, we can look at them at will and this brings the person we love present to us—if not actually in person, at least artistically or by means of photos. Thanks be to God, in the past 2000 years there have been many artistic masterpieces done of the “Masterpiece of Creation”—Mary most holy. All of us in our homes, wallets, cars, and especially in our hearts should have an image or images of Our Lady. Paintings and pictures are countless. Beyond doubt, the most depicted person after Jesus is Mary! Choose the one or the ones that inspire you most: Our Lady of Fatima, Guadalupe, Lourdes, Perpetual Help, Immaculate Heart of Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows, the Holy Family, Our Lady Help of Christians—just to mention a few. Highly recommended is the enthroning of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary in your home. This practice produces abundant blessings upon the family, as well as those who come to visit the family. The saying is so true: “A picture is worth more than a thousand words.” An attractive picture, painting or statue of Mary is worth more than a billion words! May the great lover of the Immaculate inspire us by his words, Saint Maximilian Kolbe: “When we dedicate ourselves to Mary, we become instruments in her hands. Let us then be guided by her,  for she will provide for the needs of body and soul and overcome all difficulties and anxieties.”

TENTH, DEFEND MARY.
Imagine some mean person with bad will was attacking the good name of your Mother or Father—what an affront, and offense, and insult! Beyond a shadow of a doubt, you would try to defend the good name of the person who helped bring you into existence. Mary is our spiritual Mother and we should love her holy name and her heavenly privileges immensely. Therefore, we should strive to defend her to the max! Our Lady of Fatima revealed the principle offenses that wounded her Immaculate Heart. They are those who attack the following privileges: her Immaculate Conception, her Divine Maternity, and her Perpetual Virginity, as well as her holy images, and the scandalizing of innocent children whom Our Lady loves so much! It is incumbent upon all lovers of Mary to defend her by word, example, and lifestyle. Indeed, sometimes we can sin by our silence! The well-known political statesman, Edmund Burke asserted: “So that evil triumph, it is sufficient that good men do nothing.” This is called the sin of omission! Let us allow the words of the great Saint Alphonsus spur us on to love and defend Mary: “Many will not let devotion to the Blessed Virgin take root in their hearts. But blessed is the person who accepts this grace and keeps it. Such a devotion is in all who are the Lord’s heritage—in all who will praise Him eternally in heaven.”

ELEVENTH, RECEIVE HOLY COMMUNION ON MARY’S FEAST DAYS. 
One of the actions that causes Our Lady to rejoice exultantly is when we receive her Son Jesus in Holy Communion, but especially on Marian feast days. Mary always desires our union with Jesus. By far the most intimate union that exists in the whole created world is the union of our body, mind, heart and soul with the Eucharistic Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus in the moment of the reception of Holy Communion! One more step to upgrade your reception of Holy Communion: beg Our Lady to give you her Immaculate Heart so as to receive the Sacred Heart of Jesus with burning love in Holy Communion! Indeed Our Lady’s YES in the Annunciation was in a certain sense her first Holy Communion, because she received Jesus into the very depths of her body, mind, heart, and soul. Then, after receiving Holy Communion, follow the advice of Saint Louis de Montfort and render thanks to Jesus through the Magnificat of Our Lady: “My soul does magnify the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my savior…” (Lk. 1:46-55)

TWELFTH, ENTRUST YOUR LIFE AND DEATH TO OUR LADY. 
By far the most important moment for us on earth is the moment we die and how we die. This moment will determine for all of eternity our eternal destiny—either salvation or damnation, either heaven or hell! If we stay close to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, thinking of her constantly and loving her fervently, then she indeed will help us in this most critical moment, to breathe forth our soul in the state of grace. The other day, I actually prepared myself for death 200 times in one day! You might ask how??? Very simply: I prayed four Rosaries in one day, in which I prayed 200 times to Our Lady for the grace of a holy death with these words: “Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen.” Indeed, if we are in the habit of praying the Rosary every day (better yet, more than one Rosary) then Our Lady will be present at our dying moments to help us to breathe forth our soul in repentance, trust, and love into the hands of our loving Father and heavenly Mother. There is nothing more important in life than this: to die in the state of sanctifying grace! May Our Lady, the FULL OF GRACE, obtain for us the grace of all graces—to die in the state of grace! AMEN.

THIRTEENTH, CONSECRATE YOUR TOTAL BEING TO MARY. 
Consecrate your whole being to Mary and renew this consecration every year. There are various forms of consecration: Saint Louis de Montfort’s True Devotion to Mary; Kolbe’s consecration to the Immaculate; Father Michael Gaitley’s 33 Days to Morning Glory, as well as my own Total Consecration to Mary through the Mysteries of the Rosary by Tan Publishers. Once this consecration takes place, in which you no longer belong to yourself but are the property of Our Lady, the fruits are incredible. However, one fruit is worthy of note and a source of great consolation: trust in Our Lady’s constant presence and intercession brings interior peace of heart, mind, and soul, with freedom from anxiety and worries. Why? We belong to Our Lady, the best of Mothers, and she will watch over us and guide us and protect us, as well as our loved ones, all the days of our lives! Saint Vincent Palette spurs us on with these fiery words of love for Mary: “Those who have great devotion to Mary not only will be saved but also will, through her intercession, become great saints. Furthermore, their holiness will grow from day to day.”

FOURTEENTH, FALL INTO SIN – RUN TO MARY AND JESUS. 
Due to Original Sin, which Our Lady never had, we are sinners from conception until death. Moreover, we have a strong tendency toward sin and indeed we do fall into sin! We should never give in to discouragement, much less despair. On the contrary, our love, trust, and confidence in God’s mercy should abound all the more. When we fall into sin, let us run to Mary, and then run to Jesus who is present in a special way in the Sacrament of Confession. Mothers all have experienced a time when their little toddler fell down, possibly into the mud, bruising and sullying himself. The Mother rushed to pick up her crying child, wiped off the mud, and kissed the bruises. It is exactly the same when we fall off our spiritual bike into the grimy mud of our sins: Our Lady, good Mother that she is, rushes to help us get out of the mud and return to Jesus through a good confession. “In his eagerness to show you mercy, God has given His Son as your Advocate. And then to make your confidence even stronger, He has given you another Advocate, who obtains through her prayers whatever she asks. Go to Mary, and you will see salvation.” (Saint Alphonsus Liguori)

FIFTEENTH, NAME YOUR CHILD AFTER MARY.
One of the most important duties of parents is to give their children a noble Christian NAME. Mothers and Fathers will never fail by naming their child after Mary. In concrete, this means that the child named after Mary has a special protection from her who has the most holy and powerful name, only after the holy name of JESUS! All the devils take flight at the simple name of MARY! In the Divine Comedy, Dante depicts a devil ready to drag a soul into hell where the place of torture is already prepared for this specific soul. However, Jesus intervenes, thwarting and frustrating the plans of the devil, for the simple reason that once this soul invoked the HOLY NAME OF MARY! Names for Mary are many: Mary, Maria, Lourdes, Fatima, Guadalupe, Mary Anne, Mary Therese, Conception, Rosa Maria, Maria Rosa, Rosario, etc. As a priest, what a beautiful moment I experience when I baptize a little child with the name MARY! Get into the habit also of praying the DIVINE PRAISES, in which we pray: “Blessed be the great Mother of God, Mary most Holy. Blessed be her Holy and Immaculate Conception. Blessed be her Glorious Assumption. Blessed be the NAME OF MARY, Virgin and Mother.” By the way, the Liturgical Feast Day of the Holy Name of Mary is September 12th every year, four days after the Feast Day of her Birth on September 8th.

SIXTEENTH, BECOME A MARIAN APOSTLE. 
It is inevitable that if you really love somebody, then you want to make that person known and loved. This most clearly applies to our love for both Jesus and Mary. Proclaim them from the rooftops! A suggestion, following in the footsteps of the saints, in particular SAINT MAXIMILIAN KOLBE! One of the specific manners by which Kolbe would spread devotion to Our Lady, whom he most ardently called THE IMMACULATE, was to give out freely and abundantly medals of the Immaculate Conception commonly known as the Miraculous Medal. Actually, Kolbe called the medals his “Spiritual Bullets”—spiritual ammunition to kill the enemy, the devil and his army. Be practical now! Purchase a bundle of medals—maybe 500!!!  Study the image and its most beautiful symbolism and then give the medals freely and abundantly whenever God opens up a door, and there may be many doors if we have our spiritual eyes open! One of the most famous conversions was that of the Jew, Alphonse Ratisbonne, who to placate his Catholic friend, wore the Miraculous Medal. Our Lady appeared to him in a church in Rome and he was eventually converted, then his brother was converted. Alphonse went on to become a priest and founded an order for Jewish converts to the faith—all as a result of the presence of Mary, mediated through the Miraculous Medal! Let us lift our eyes and heart to Mary, inspired by the words of the Mellifluous Doctor of the Church, Saint Bernard, who wrote one of the most beautiful Marian poems, “Stella Maris”—Our Lady, Star of the Sea. “In danger, anguish or doubt, think of Mary and call upon Mary. Following her, you will never lose your way. Praying to her, you will never sink into despair. Contemplating her, you will never go wrong.”

SEVENTEENTH, SHORT PRAYERS TO MARY!
Get into the habit of offering short but fervent prayers to Mary. The saints call these aspirations: “Fiery darts that pierce the heavens.” There are many, but we will offer a few: “Mary, pray for me.”  “Sweet Heart of Mary, be my salvation.”  “O Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee.”  “Hail holy Queen!”  “Mary, come to my aid and save me!” Short prayers said often as a fiery dart of love can kindle our love for both Jesus and Mary into a burning flame! Saint Bonaventure will encourage you with this short but powerful ornament to Mary: “Blessed are those who abandon themselves into our Lady’s hands. Their names are written in the Book of Life.”

EIGHTEENTH, PROMOTE MARIAN-EUCHARISTIC PROCESSIONS.
A very curious fact is the following: Lourdes, France! It is well known that many miracles have occurred in Lourdes where Our Lady appeared to Saint Bernadette Soubirous 18 times in 1858. During these apparitions, Our Lady asked the little girl to dig in the ground and as a consequence the miraculous waters of Lourdes began to flow, and they flow to this very day. With great trust in Our Lady’s intercession, many have been healed. However, of paramount importance is the following: most miracles have occurred at dusk when the priest walks in the courtyard outside the Basilica in procession with the Blessed Sacrament! There in the presence of the Eucharistic Lord Jesus, the Son of Mary, many have been healed. It stands to reason: Jesus is the DIVINE PHYSICIAN. One of the titles for Our Lady is HEALTH OF THE SICK! Therefore, let us promote and attend processions in honor of Our Lady and her Eucharistic Son, and healings will come about in body, but even more important, in the souls of sinners!!! Popes have loved Our Lady. Let us listen to the words of Saint Leo the Great about the power of Mary over the devil: “The devil is always looking for someone to devour. In the same way, Mary is always looking for someone she can help in any way.”

NINETEENTH, MAY AND OCTOBER—MONTHS OF MARY.
In her infinite wisdom, the Church has set apart two special months to honor Mary: May and October. May is the month of Mary; October is the month of the most holy Rosary. In the month of May, let us strive to offer some concrete action, every day of May, to show Mary our great love for her: prayers, sacrifices, acts of charity, readings, etc. In October, let us pray the Rosary every day, or more than one, with great fervor. Let us unite our families to pray the Rosary and sing to Our Lady hymns of great joy. Let us bring the children to the feet and Heart of Mary. “Mary is more prompt than all the saints in coming to our aid. She has a great desire to comfort us. The moment she is invoked, she welcomes our prayers and grants us her assistance.” (Saint Alphonsus Liguori)

TWENTIETH, THE ROSARY, THE ROSARY, THE ROSARY.  
The prayer that Our Lady loves most is the most Holy Rosary. Let us get into the habit of praying it often and with much attention and love, and our Lady will shower us with countless blessings! Every Hail Mary prayed well is a kiss that we send up to heaven. Our Lady of Fatima appeared six times to the children—Jacinta, Francisco, and Lucia—and at every appearance she insisted that the Rosary be prayed. Actually the official name of our Lady of Fatima is OUR LADY OF THE ROSARY. Saint Pope John Paul II in his document “The Blessed Virgin Mary and the Rosary” warmly exhorted the whole world to pray the Rosary and for two specific intentions: for the family and for world peace. The Rosary priest, Ven. Father Patrick Peyton, encourages us with these words: “The family that prays together, stays together.”  “A world at prayer is a world at peace.”