Our
Blessed Mother
Friday 8th May 2020
May is the month traditionally associated with Our
Lady. Winter is over and we are well into spring. The sun is making a more
frequent appearance, the leaves are covering the trees and many of the flowers
are bursting open into spectacular blooms. Everything is fresh and full of
life. This is why we remember Mary in May because, through her total ‘Yes’ to
God, she brought Life into the word.
During our parish Lenten retreat this year, Fr.
Michael Doody showed us how fundamental Our Blessed Mother is to our spiritual
life. She was given to us as a gift by the Lord himself at the Cross.
‘Near
the cross of Jesus stood his mother and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of
Clopas, and Mary of Magdala. Seeing his mother and the disciple he loved
standing near her, Jesus said to his mother, ‘Woman, this is your son.’ Then to
the disciple he said, ‘This is your mother’. And from that moment the disciple
made a place for her in his home.’ (Jn 19: 25-27).
The disciple represents us. By giving his mother
into the care of the disciple, Jesus was giving her to us. She is our second
mum who cherishes us because of her son’s love for us. A love that, even when
he was on his way to calvary carrying his cross to die a painful death, did not
waver.
We know that not only does our heavenly Mother love
us but that she cares deeply for us and is always interceding to God on our
behalf.
‘Three
days later there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee. The mother of Jesus was
there, and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited. When they ran out of
wine, since the wine provided for the wedding had all finished, the mother of
Jesus said to him, ‘They have no wine.’ Jesus said, ‘Woman, why turn to me?
My
hour has not come yet.’
His
mother said to the servants, ‘Do whatever he tells you.’
(Jn 2:1-6)
The wedding couple do not yet realise that their
special day is about to be ruined. Their hospitality to all the wedding guests
is about to be marred because the wine has finished. They will be judged,
criticised and the joy of the occasion will turn to frustration. Mary sees all
this and turns to her son. Nobody asks her, she simply sees the need and
intercedes. Jesus’ answer seems on the surface very dismissive but Mary is not
put off. She has asked on behalf of the bride and groom for help and she knows
it will be given hence her words to the servants: ‘Do whatever he tells you.’
Trust in Mary, because she is always interceding on our behalf, to have our
cares met and to bring us closer in our relationship with Jesus her son.
When a priest is ordained one of the beautiful traditions,
we have in the Church is that he gives his mother a bouquet of roses after his
First Mass. There is a rose for every year of his life. That bouquet is an
expression of the new priests love and affection for his mother. He
acknowledges, in this gesture of roses, that she has been with him throughout
his life supporting him, encouraging and sometimes reprimanding him for his own
good!
We too should give a bouquet to our Blessed Mother.
That bouquet should also contain roses, the spiritual roses of the Rosary. It
is very easy to say we have a great love for Mary, and deep devotion to her but
words are cheap if they are not carried out in actions. The Rosary is one of
those devotions that the Church has always strongly promoted because it
expresses an authentic love for Our Lady.
“Give me an army saying the Rosary and I will conquer the
world.”
Blessed Pope Pius IX
“The greatest method of praying is to
pray the Rosary.”
Saint Francis de Sales
“Some people are so foolish that they
think they can go through life without the help of the Blessed Mother. Love the
Madonna and pray the rosary, for her Rosary is the weapon against the evils of
the world today. All graces given by God pass through the Blessed Mother.”
Saint Padre Pio
“Say the Holy
Rosary. Blessed be that monotony of Hail Mary’s which purifies the monotony of
your sins!”
Saint Josemaria
Escriva
“The Rosary is a powerful weapon to put the
demons to flight and to keep oneself from sin…If you desire peace in your
hearts, in your homes, and in your country, assemble each evening to recite the
Rosary. Let not even one day pass without saying it, no matter how burdened you
may be with many cares and labours.” Pope Pius XI
“The Rosary is the most excellent form of
prayer and the most efficacious means of attaining eternal life. It is the
remedy for all our evils, the root of all our blessings. There is no more
excellent way of praying.”
Pope Leo XIII
“The Rosary is a prayer
both so humble and simple and theologically rich in Biblical content. I beg you
to pray it.”
Saint John Paul II
"There is no
problem, I tell you, no matter how difficult it is, that we cannot solve by the
prayer of the Holy Rosary."
Sister Lucia, of the seers of Fatima
Sister Lucia, of the seers of Fatima
"The
Rosary is a prayer that always accompanies me; it is also the prayer of the
ordinary people and the saints... it is a prayer from my heart."
Pope
Francis
"I
take refuge, then, in prayer, and turn to Mary, and our Lord always
triumphs." Saint Therése of Lisieux
As we can see from the
above quotes, from Saints, Mystics and Pope’s, the practice of the Rosary has
been highly recommended and encouraged. However, that does not make it an easy
prayer especially if we are tired, distracted and not confident in praying it.
I thought we could all
help each other and through the month of May begin to pray the Rosary together
as a parish. Taking it step by step and reflecting on the various mysteries and
how through them we are brought closer to Jesus. Every day next week (starting
Monday 11th May) and with the help of John, our parish webmaster,
I’ll give a reflection on one mystery a day beginning with the Joyful. Maybe as
a parish we could give time to pray a decade each day with the intention of all
those in our St. Mary’s family. Why not pray that decade with other people in
your home, over the phone with a friend or print off the reflection for someone
you know who has no access to the internet.
I invite you to
prepare yourselves for this St. Mary’s Parish Family Rosary by simply
picking up your beads and looking at them. As you do, ask yourself these
questions: Who gave you these beads? Did you buy them and where from? When was
the last time you used them? Was it during a difficult time or did you use them
to give thanks to God for a blessing? Have you ever properly used them? Who
taught you to pray? Who taught you the Rosary? Is Mary a part of your prayer
life? Does she feel remote, distant and goddess like? Do you feel comfortable
in her presence? Do you talk to her naturally about your worries and trust her
with your troubles?
Let us now turn to Mary, Queen of Peace, to pray for those who are
struggling at this time because of the Coronavirus Pandemic.
Lord, may your mother pray for us.
Let us pray for those suffering from any form of abuse, hunger &
need.
Lord, may your mother pray for us.
Let us pray for those who are not coping during this period of
isolation.
Lord, may your mother pray for us.
Let us pray for each other that one day we will be reunited again at the
foot of the Altar before the Presence of Christ in the Tabernacle.
Lord, may your mother pray for us.
Let us also pray today
as VE Day is commemorated. We pray for all those souls who have died in war and
conflict.
Eternal rest grant unto them O Lord and let
perpetual light shine upon them. May they rest in peace. Amen. May
their souls and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of
God, rest in peace. Amen.
I’ll publish our first
reflection of the Rosary on Monday. Though we may not be able to see each other
at this time our prayers will join us together.
God Bless and keep
praying
Fr. O’Brien