tv\e.o(i<^^ ^

At)VJ I SQ^

mfley niEDiflieix of

ALL 6l!flC(S

BY FATHER STANISLAS,

O.F.M.CAP., S.T.D.

Translated and Adapted by

Gregory Van der Becken, O.FJM.Cop.

PHee 25f

A GRAIL PUBUCATION

Si. Meinrad Indiana



\

\

,*1



MEDIATRIX OF ALL GRACES

by Fr. Stanislaus, O.F.M.Cap.

25< a copy.

With the compliments of

We shall be pleased to have you

review this book in your periodical.

Kindly send us a marked copy of

your periodical in which the review

appears.

Sincerely yours,

Paickcd Holand,

Managing Editor

THE GRAIL

St. Meinrad, Indiana





ALL GAUGES

BY FATHER STANISLAS,

O.F.M.CAP., S.T.D.

Translated and Adapted by

Gregory Van der Becken, O.F.M.Cap.

Price 25^

A GRAIL PUBLICATION

Sl Meinrad Indiana



Nihil obstat:

Thomas Weier, O.F.M. Cap.

Censor deputatus

Imprimi potest:

Very Rev. Cyprian Abler, O.F.M. Cap

Pro vinelal

Nihil obstat:

Francis Reine, S.T.D.

Censor librorum

Imprimatur

:

F Paul C. Schulte, D.D.
Archbishop of Indianapolis

1

Copyright 1952 by

St. Meinrad’s Abbey, Inc.



MARY, MEDIATRIX OF ALL GRACES

MARY MEDIATRIX
All-powerful Mediatrix ....

Mary holds the world in her hands . . .

And with maternal love offers it to God.

Queen of the World.



THE MARIAN WAY

The Virgin is the royal road by
which the

Savior has come down to us ...

.

Beloved Brethren ....

Let us endeavor to ascend by

That road towards Him,

Who followed it to descend unto us

And through Mary

Strive to share in the

Grace of this Jesus,

Who through Mary has deigned

To come down to us

To share in our misery.

(St. Bernard 2nd sermon for
Advent: P. L. t.

CLXXXIII. 43).

D@a(^ed



CONTENTS

Translator’s Preface 1

Introduction: The Legion of Mary ... 3

I Between God And You 12

II The Gift of Christ 18

III The Gift of the Mystical Body of

Christ 24

IV Preparation of the Victim 31

V Mary And the Immolation of the
Victim 35

VI The Sorrowful Mother 42

VII Distributor of the Life of Grace . . 48

Vlll Thy Mother 53

/X Your Spiritual Life in Mary .... 61

X Summit of the Marian Life 76

EPILOGUE:

The Reign of Mary Mediatrix L 85

PRACTICES:

1. Act of Consecration to Jesus

Through Mary 98

2. Pledge of the Legion of Mary . . 100

3. Salutation to Mary 103

4. Canticle of Marian Souls 106

5. Prayer of Saint Bernard 107

6. Rendezvous of Marian Souls . . 108



OUR LADY OF THE SACRED HEART

MARY MEDIATRIX

The Virgin holds in her hand the heart of

Her little Jesus,

And her tender and penetrating look seems

To say to you:

This Divine heart with all its infinite

Treasures belongs to me.

1 dispose of its riches according to

My good pleasure ....
My child, I await hut word from you to

Draw from this treasure

And overload you with favors.

You are weak—
Come to me and I will share with you

Its powers.

You are ignorant—
Come to me, I will fill your soul with

Its Divine wisdom.

Your heart is tepid—
Come to me, I will inflame it with the

Fire of His love.

• \



; ir.

' TRANSLATOR’S PREFACE

THIS little book was originally written in the

French language, under the title Mediatrice, by Fa-

ther Stanislas, O.F.M. Cap., S.T.D., to offer a devo-

tional and yet dogmatical explanation of Mary’s part

in our Redemption, her universal Mediation.

The main purpose of the book is to explain the

term Mary Mediatrix to ALL, both young and old.

Therefore no attempt at literary achievement has been

made in this translation. In fact, it would be more pre-

cise to call it an adaptation rather than a translation

since, with the permission of the author, certain free-

doms have been taken with the English rendering of

the French work.

The book was written, as the author tells us in the

first chapter, for LITTLE ONES. Its language is so

simple that the LITTLE ONES BY NATURE (teen-

agers) as well as the LITTLE ONES BY GRACE

(all humble souls) may read and understand it with

ease. With this in mind, poetic effusions and dog-

matic terminology have been avoided wherever possi-

ble.

The translator wishes to express his gratitude to

the Very Rev. Theodosius Foley, O.F.M., Cap. (died



2 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

May 29, 1951), who graciously gave his time and

talent to the final polishing.

Fr. Gregory Van der Becken, O.F.M.Cap.



INTRODUCTION

For whom are these pages written?

They are written for all little and humble souls,

souls who are aware of their helplessness; souls dis-

trustful of themselves; souls, who, on their journey

to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and through Him to

His heavenly Father, wish to take the easy and safe

road; the road of our heavenly Mediatrix, the most

Blessed Virgin Mary.

In a very special way these pages will be useful

to the members of the Legion of Mary. We wish

to show them in detail what the Mediation of Mary

really consists of; the Mediation of her who is the

center of their spiritual life and endeavors.

Depending on a constant union with Mary and

upon an ardent love of her, the Legionary dedicates

his life to Mary without reserve. Furthermore, the

Legionary promises to strive not only after his own

personal spiritual advancement, but also after that of

his neighbor.

Basic to the apostolate is an intense personal spir-

itual life; sacrifices lovingly made and prayer well

performed. For his program of action there is a

definite rule, a discipline more military in aspect,

which however is carried out always in humble obedi-

ence. The LEGION is a KNIGHTHOOD. The



4 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

Legionary is a soldier, a Knight of Mary. Whether

he be man or woman, rich or poor, highly educated

or not, he sees himself as one sent by his Queen

on a mission to protect and promote the spiritual

welfare of her children. His particular quest is that

of 'lost sheep” in whom no one is interested. He

penetrates all levels of society. As an example of

his activity, when occasion presents itself, he will

arrange for the revalidation of a marriage, or he will

be instrumental in the baptism of an adult.

The Legionary realizes full well that of himself

he can do nothing, but at the same time he knows

that the good God has given all power into the hands

of Mary, and that THROUGH HER, HE CAN DO
ALL. In this attitude of mind lies the SECRET OF

HIS POWER AND SUCCESS.

The Legionary is seen "going about his Mother’s

business” quietly, modestly and unselfishly. He helps

his parish priest in various ways. His activities cover

the entire range of Catholic Action. This range being

quite enormous, we may ask whether this army of

Mary will not prove to be the leaven of which Jesus

speaks in the Gospel; the leaven which will be

instrumental in the "raising” of the entire "mass.”

We can easily understand why the Spiritual Director

of the Legion in Australia said on Christmas Day,

1939, that the Legion had the providential mission



Introduction 5

of "hastening the advent of that Marian Era, that

AGE OF MARY, predicted by Saint Grignion De

Montfort.”^

In any event, the diffusion of the Legion of Mary

is truly marvelous. It is one of the most powerful

movements in our modern times. It seems to have

originated in the Heart of Mary itself in behalf of

the salvation of the world.

Has the Legionary reasons to be optimistic in the

fulfillment of his holy ambition? How could he

possibly doubt when he realizes that he fights under

the leadership of Mary, the Virgin who is to the

devil "terrible like an army in battle array," the Vir-

gin who is the Dispenser of God’s treasures?

Only let him never forget that IN JESUS, MARY
IS HIS ALL; his all for his own spiritual life; his

all for the success of his apostolate. Let him realize

that before he can love her more and more, he MUST

STUDY HER WITHOUT CEASING. Therefore we

must say that THE FIRST DUTY OF THE LE-

GIONARY IS TO KNOW THE PRIVILEGES
AND THE GLORIES OF HIS HEAVENLY
MOTHER.

There are too many Christians who do not really

know Mary. Also there are some who even ignore

her. They do not seem to understand "that as con-

stant companion of Jesus, from Bethlehem to the



6 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

summit of Calvary, penetrating more than any other

creature the secrets of His Heart, distributing as her

maternal right the riches of the graces that He

merited for us, Mary is necessary for us if we wish

to arrive at the knowledge and the love of Christ. . . .

Deceived by the artifices of the devil and by false

doctrines, they believe to be able to do without her.

They are truly unfortunate who neglect Mary under

the pretext of rendering more honor to Jesus. As

if it were possible to find the Divine Infant any

other place than with His Mother.

Have we not even heard of individuals who be-

came scandalized when the marvelous beauty of this

“Paradise of God” was unveiled before them? This

“Paradise of God,” this Virgin without equal, whom

Pius IX greets “as the ineffable miracle of God”

—

velut omnium miraculorum apexJ They are scandal-

ized because, in their false reasoning, they think that

to proclaim Mary’s greatness and excellence is to

place her on an equal level with God Himself.

Now we know very well that Mary is and always

will be a CREATURE, and therefore at an infinite

distance from God the Creator. But we also know

that the same God has showered upon her such a

profusion of the riches of the divine life of grace

that Mary found herself placed, according to an ex-

pression attributed to Saint Thomas Aquinas, “at



Introduction 7

the very confines of the Divinity/' As a consequence

we need not be surprised that to the dazzled vision

of the ‘little ones” there is danger that Mary is al-

most entirely lost in the impenetrable heights of the

infinite splendor of the Godhead.^

Notwithstanding this sublime exaltation, Mary is

very near to us on account of her love for mankind.

Therefore the Legionary should approach his heaven^

ly Mother without the least fear, with a filial assur-

ance, in study and meditation. He should constantly

keep in mind that it is necessary for him to KNOW
WHAT MARY REALLY IS. It is necessary for
his own sake, for the joy and consolation of his

childlike heart. It is necessary for him to know Mary

also for the sake of others. HIS MISSION IS TO

DIFFUSE EVERYWHERE THE KNOWLEDGE

AND THE LOVE OF MARY MEDIATRIX. A

very enviable task indeed.

It is to help the Legionary to accomplish this task

that we wish to tell him WHAT MARY IS. We
will tell it in a simple manner, so that anyone who

reads may understand, and having understood he

may, in the joyfulness of his soul, live and radiate

all around him the doctrine of true life.

Let him not be troubled when critics tell him that

this doctrine of Mary’s Universal Mediation is not

yet DEFINED by Rome. This is true. The Church



8 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

has not as yet ofScially—EX CATHEDRA—declared
this doctrine. But whilst awaiting this blessed pub-

lic act of recognition, which numerous indications

permit us to hope will occur in the near future, the

Church lets us know her mind quite clearly on this

subject in her traditional teaching.

The mediation or INTERCESSION of Mary, the

distributor of all graces, is a doctrine universally

admitted. Ever since the controversy in which Saint

Alphonsus Liguori won the victory, this doctrine has

never met with any opposition.^

Regarding the ACQUISITION of grace for all

men, all theologians teach that Mary cooperated by

giving her consent to the Incarnation and Redemp-

tion. To the next question i.e. did Mary contribute

to the acquisition of grace BY HER OWN MERITS,
many theologians are of the opinion that she did.

Their opinion reads:
*

'Especially in her sorrowful

compassion at the foot of the Cross, Mary has in

union with Jesus and in dependence upon Him, satis-

fied for our sins and merited grace for all with a

merit of supreme congruity.”®

"Because Mary,” writes Pius X, "was associated

with Christ in the work of Redemption, she has

merited for us by the merit of congruity that which

Christ has merited for us condignly”^ i.e. in strict

justice, through His own merit, which is adequate



Introduction 9

and sufficient and in fact superabundant because His

merits are infinite.

So we can rightly conclude that the Society of the

Legion of Mary has nothing to fear. It may hold aloft

among the people of the entire world its 'Vexillum,”

the Standard of the Virgin, her blessed hands ready

to shower graces upon the sick world. The Legion

may proudly unfurl everywhere the Banner of Mary

the Universal Mediatrix; Mediatrix, not only useful

but necessary, in the sense we will indicate, to the

entire human race.

We sadly realize that not all souls will respond

with the same enthusiasm to this ''revelation.” Not

all will walk at the same pace in the Way of Mary.

There are so many grades of response where there

is question of love; grades differing all the way from

the ordinary Christian who is satisfied with a few

ordinary practices in honor of Mary to the fervent

Christian who performs all his actions for her and

through her. However, when souls become more

acquainted with Mary’s power and goodness, a very

great number among them, we are sure, will eagerly

want an increase of her influence in their life. Who

knows but that fidelity in her service will bring to

several those special graces ordinarily reserved for a

comparatively small number. These are they who

place their soul "under the sign” of Mary by means



10 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

of a perpetual consciousness of her presence, or ra-

ther by means of a constant realization of her help

within their soul.

May the flood of that divine light that Our Lady

of Fatima, by opening her hands, projected upon the

world; that light in which the little shepherds saw

themselves as it were immersed in God, radiate the

choicest graces upon all. In truth can there be any-

thing more valuable, more desirable, than to live

IN FULL a life in union with Jesus through Mary?

1 Cf. M. Cordier, ‘^What the Church Thinks of the

Legion of Mary,” p. 16.

2 Pius X : Encyclical, Ad Diem Ilium, for the
fiftieth anniversary of the definition of the Immac-

ulate Conception, Feb. 2, 1904. The French text of

the pontifical document cited in this work is gener-

ally borrowed from the translation made by the

‘‘Bonne Presse.”

2 Constitution, Ineffabile, on the Immaculate Con-

ception of the Blessed Virgin, Dec. 8,1854.

^ In the cited document Pius IX also proclaims

that Mary “approached the Divinity Itself as much

as is permitted to a created nature, and therefore

she is above all the praises of the angels as well as

those of men.”

5 Cf. E. Dublanchy, Dictionnaire de theologie, arti-

cle Mary, Vol. 2-2,403.

6 In theology we speak of two special kinds of

merit: “de congruOy^ by way of concession, and “de



Introduction 11

condignoy^ in strict justice. For instance, God ac-

cepts our good works and expiation as merit **de

congruoy^ not as though these have any intrinsic

claim in justice to His acceptance but because He

deigns to regard them so because of their connection

with Christ’s merit *^de condignoJ^ With Christ, the

Kedeemer, it is the opposite. Being God, our Savi-

or’s good works and atonement take on title ^*de

condignoy^ or claim in strict equity to sufficient, yea

even superabundant, reward and expiation in them-

selves.

^‘Ea tamen quoniam ... a Christo ascita in hu-

manae salutis opus, de congruo, ut aiunt, promerat

nobis, quae Christus de condigno promeruit . .
.
(Cited

Encyclical). Some theologians interpret this text

to refer to the mediation of intercession, but it seems

rather that Pius X wishes to confirm here the al-
most common opinion of the theologians, who, ever

since the sixteenth century, admit that the Blessed

Virgin merited for us by a true merit of congruity.

An opinion almost unanimous among the modern

theologians, so much so that Fr. Hugo, O.P. could

already write in 1904, in his work “La Mere de

Grace,” “The Mother of Grace,” p. 2: “that Mary

merited for us de congruo that which Christ merited

for us de condigno. It is an axiom commonly ac-

cepted by the theologians.” (Cf. Merkelbach, O.P.

:

Mariologia; Paris, Desclee De Brouwer, p. 328.)



CHAPTER 1

MARY THE MEDIATRIX OF ALL GRACES
BETWEEN GOD AND YOU

Mother, I come to thee, poor, little and feeble:

I come to thee because thou art loving and merciful.

I come to thee because thou art the sole refuge in

my misery.

I come to thee, above all. Mother, because despite my

weakness and my faults, I love thee.

Accept me in thy maternal pity, and offer me without

reserve and forever

To the most Sacred Heart of thy Divine Son Jesus.

It is a miracle of santification I implore of thee

this moment.

But art thou not . . . the treasure of God, the

Dispensatrix of life, our omnipotent Mediatrix?

Thou, who by means of thy grace distributed by

thy hands

Hast formed the hearts of so many saints.

Transform my heart for a complete surrender to love.

WHEN the Blessed Virgin on one occasion ap-
peared to the ravished eyes of Catherine Laboure,

she was represented as standing on top of the globe

with the world as a footstool for her virginal feet.



Between God And You 13

She was standing close to God. From her hands

escaped in profusion rays of divine grace, as we see

depicted on the Miraculous Medal.

In like manner Mary stands between God and

your soul.

As we have said elsewhere in this book, the

Blessed Virgin holds in creation, in the divine plan,

in the Mind of God, a place distinct from every other

creature. She is all pure and all holy. She is over-

whelmed by divine grace. Mary surpasses in per-

fection all other created perfection. Mary’s place is

immediately after Christ.

There in that place given her by God, between

Christ and our soul, Mary plays an important role

in our behalf ... She is MEDIATRIX BETWEEN

US AND OUR GOD.

What is meant when the Church bestows upon

Mary the title of Mediatrix.^ The Church means

that Mary stands between God and us in order to

reconcile us to God. The sin committed in the

Garden of Eden by Adam, the father of the human

race, had, humanly speaking, frustrated, destroyed

the plan God had made for the world. Original

sin separated you from God. It broke the sacred

bond of grace which made you a child of God, a

member of a divine family.



14 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

This sinful break was so real and complete that

you could do nothing of your own accord to mend

or repair it. You were expelled from the paternal

hearth to which God had called you in His infinite

goodness. You were wandering upon the earth where

the breath of divine life could never reach you. From

the status of a child of adoption you had fallen to

that of a child of wrath. You were doomed to re-

main forever far from God.

Far from God forever . . . Realize, if you can,

the depth of your fall . . . the immensity of your mis-

fortune ... You could not possibly go to Him, for

you were an infinite distance away from Him, a

distance no human power can traverse.

In His infinite goodness God took pity on you.

Was it not possible for God to overlook your

misery and allow you to enter His house without

further ado? His sanctity and justice could not allow

this. Why then did He not abandon you to your

fate? His tender mercy would not allow that.

So a mediator was necessary. And God provided

this mediator. He placed between Himself and you

Someone who could effect a reconciliation.

This Mediator was Jesus. He is the Mediator of

your reconciliation. He is the Mediator of your par-

don. He is the Mediator of your salvation. The Son



Between God And You 13

of God became incarnate. He became Man while not

ceasing to be God. Since He is at the same time God

and Man, He could do that which you, a mere hu-

man being, could not do, namely, bring man back

to God, unite once more God and man in the bond

of friendship.

In order to bring about this reunion, this recon-

ciliation, a ransom was demanded by divine Justice.

Through the sin of Adam you contracted a debt

towards God, a debt so enormous that it was absolute-

ly beyond your power to discharge it. But Jesus, the

God-man, placed Himself between His heavenly Fa-

ther and you. He said to His heavenly Father:
'

'Fa-

ther, since I have assumed a human nature this man

is My brother. He cannot satisfy for his debt. Fa-

ther, I offer to assume it for him. I offer to satisfy

Your infinite justice. Heavenly Father, in order to

expiate the sin of man, I will die upon the Cross.”

Divine mediation was indeed necessary.

No one is saved except by Christ. He is the

Principle of salvation for all. By Him you have been

transferred from death to life. Through Him you

once more have access to the Father and have again

become His child.

This mediation of Christ was sufficient in itself.

He alone sufficed in this task of mediation. He had

no need of anyone else to help Him.



16 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

Still, in His role of Mediator, in His work of

Redemption, He willed to be associated with one who

was one of His creatures. This chosen One, as you

know, was the Virgin Mary, His Most Blessed Moth-

er. He willed that she should be Mediatrix. He

willed that together with Him she should serve as

intermediator between God and you.

Let us always keep in mind, of course, that the

role of Mediatrix with which Jesus honors His

Blessed Mother is secondary to His own, and that

Mary is Mediatrix only because Christ willed it so.

The mediation of Mary receives its entire efficacy

from the Mediation of Christ, which was perfect and

more than sufficient in itself.^ But all this does not

lessen the truth of the statement that Mary is really

your Mediatrix. It does not lessen the truth of the

statement that, dependent and founded upon the

merits of her divine Son, she is established between

God and you for the purpose of reconciling you with

God.

Mary occupies herself with trying to make you

more and more pleasing in the eyes of God. She tries

to make you once more the beloved child of the

heavenly Father, heir of His heavenly Kingdom,

friend of Jesus, brother of Jesus.

We may compare Mary, albeit in a crude com-

parison, with a bridge thrown across the abyss of



Between God And You 17

sin which separated you from Christ. Thanks to

this bridge, communication between the world and

God, interrupted by sin, can once more be resumed.

Once more communication between the earth and

heaven has been established. By means of this bridge

you can avoid the whirpool of hell ... You can

arrive in the heavenly Fatherland.

1 The role of Mary in the Redemption, far from

diminishing the glory of the mediation of Christ, on

the contrary only enhances this glory, since Mary’s

part received its power and efficiency only in Christ

and through Christ. Some individuals, victims of

false and emotional piety, fear that the excellence

of the mediation of Christ is diminished by extolling

the part Mary took in it. Does it not show Mary to

be here, as in everything else, the little ‘‘handmaid

of the Lord”?



CHAPTER 2

MARY AND THE GIFT OF CHRIST

LET us go back in spirit to Adam in the Garden

of Eden. The revolt against God had just been

perpetrated. All is lost. But wait . . . All would be

lost if it were not for Mary. Whilst you consider

the abysmal misery into which our first parents are

fallen, hear the voice of God: “I will put enmities,’*

He says to the serpent, ''between thee and the woman,

betv^een her seed and thy seed, and she shall crush

thy head.” (Gen. Ill, 15).

The woman who will crush the head of the ser-

pent and bring peace into the world, you know is

Mary. Now Adam can leave Paradise. He has heard

God’s promise. He knows that some day the curse

will be lifted from him by the woman. He begins

to carry in his soul the memory of her who some day

will avenge his defeat. Grateful love dawns in his

heart for her who will reopen the door of life, his

Porta coeli, Gate of Heaven. Henceforth he places

all his hope in Mar)^ This hope of salvation he will

pass on as a heritage to his offspring from generation

to generation. Through the darkness of sin Mary will

shine like a bright star, a Stella matutina, the Morn-



The Gift of Christ 19

ing Star of creation. With eyes fixed on this star

the human race will wait for the blessed day of ful-

filment of God’s promise.

Of this blessed day the holy Gospel has kept the

record. Let us read the inspiring account.

"Now 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 when the angel had come to her, he said, "Hail,

full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou

among women.” When she had seen him she was

troubled at his word, and kept pondering what man-

ner of greeting this might be.

"And the angel said to her, 'Do not be afraid,

Mary, for thou hast found grace with God. And

behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb and shalt

bring forth a son; and thou shalt call his name

Jesus. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son

of the Most High; and the Lord God shall give him

the throne of David his father, and he shall be king

over the house of Jacob forever; and of his kingdom

there shall be no end.’

"But Mary said to the angel, 'How shall this

happen, since I do not know man?’

"And the angel answered and said to her, 'The

Holy Spirit shall come upon thee and the power of



20 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

the Most High shall overshadow thee; and therefore

the Holy One to be born, shall be called the Son of

God. And behold, Elizabeth thy kinswoman also has

conceived a son in her old age, and she who was

called barren is now in her sixth month; for nothing

shall be impossible with God.”

”But Mary said, ‘Behold the handmaid of the

Lord; be it done to me according to thy word.’ And

the angel departed from her.” (Luke I, 26-38).

In this manner the Word was made Flesh. The

divine plan is now realized . . . Mary is the “Mother

of God” . . . God is in our midst, hidden in the

chaste womb of Mary. And rightly so. Does He

not come from her.^ It is then but just that He should

first of all and for a certain length of time at least,

belong entirely to her. Yet in her and through

her Christ belongs to you also; and Mary knows this

well.

Contemplate her going up to Bethlehem to give

Jesus to you. Listen once more to Saint Luke, or

rather to Mary, who narrated these happy tidings to

the Evangelist and thus passed them on to you.

“Now it came to pass in those days, that there

went forth a decree from Caesar Augustus that a

census of the whole world should be taken. This

first census took place while Cyrinus was governor



The Gift of Christ 21

of Syria. And all were going, each to his own town,

to register.

"And Joseph also went from Galilee out of the

town of Nazareth into Judea to the town of David,

which is called Bethlehem—because he was of the
house and family of David—to register, together with
Mary his espoused wife, who was with child. And

it came to pass while they were there, that the days

for her to be delivered were fulfilled. And she

brought forth her first-born son, and wrapped him

in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger,

because there was no room for them in the inn.

"And there were shepherds in the same district

living in the fields and keeping watch over their

flock by night. And behold, an angel of the Lord

stood by them and the glory of God shone round

about them, and they feared exceedingly.

"And the angel said to them, 'Do not be afraid,

for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which

shall be to all the people; for there has been born

to you today in the town of David a Savior, who is

Christ the Lord.’
’’

As the light of the dawn heralds the rising of the

sun, Mary announced the coming of Christ. She was

the dawn of the Sun of Justice. And ever since this

dawn appeared, 2000 years ago, the Christian people

have exulted in its light. For well nigh 2000 years



22 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

Christianity places its hope in her, invokes her blessed

name, unceasingly sings her praises.

All through these centuries, at the times of its

greatest sorrows, Mary always favored the world with

personal visits, with her apparitions. Witness again

in our own tragic times the many apparitions of Mary

in ever so many localities of Europe. Fatima 1917,

Beauraing 1932, Banneux 1933, Bonate 1944. Long

since the world can no longer keep strict account of

the many graces received through her. Thousands of

times it has experienced her power and her goodness.

At all times she has been for humanity the divine

instrument of salvation. She still stands today be-

tween the world and God, striving to give Christ to

the world. In the darkness of our present times, in

a world which has rejected Christ, Mary shines as the

star which lights up the way for all who do not

deliberately close their eyes.

Virgin Mary, BE UNTO US THE MEDIATRIX.

In behalf of the world today do not desist from

taking upon yourself the role you played at Bethle-

hem. Mother of God, once more GIVE JESUS TO

THE WORLD!



CHAPTER 3

MARY AND THE GIFT OF THE
MYSTICAL BODY OF CHRIST

MARY gives Christ to the world. Try to under-

stand, dear reader, the full importance, the vast im-

plication of this. Mary gives you Jesus so that He

may become your very own possession; so that you

may be filled with His life; so that you, in a certain

sense, may become transformed into Him; yes, so

that you, together with all Christians, your Brethren,

may become the Mystical Body of Christ.

Here allow me to explain a truth, the knowledge

of which will greatly clarify the role of Mary, her

place in your own life.

This truth is that all of us, all Christians, con-

stitute with Christ one single body which is the

Church . . . THE MYSTICAL BODY OF CHRIST.

What does the Church mean when she teaches that

we are one body with Christ? Let me put it very

simply. WE CHRISTIANS, UNITED AMONGST
OURSELVES AND UNITED WITH CHRIST,
CONSTITUTE A SPIRITUAL UNION WHICH

BRINGS ABOUT A DEFINITE RELATION SIM-

ILAR TO THE RELATION THAT EXISTS



24 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

AMONG THE MEMBERS OF THE ORGANIC
PHYSICAL BODY.

Notice that in the human body there are various

members or organs, each one having its own particu-

lar function to fulfill. Our eyes, for example, are

destined to see; our ears to hear; our tongue to do

its share in the articulation of sound. All these var-

ious members are assembled according to a very def-

inite plan determined by the Creator. From this

arrangement there results that wonderful coordination

in the entire structure. These members are not iso-

lated, but they are conjointly responsible, one for all

and all for one. They do not work egoistically, i.e.

only for their own good and welfare. Each one is

employed eagerly and devotedly in the service and

for the usefulness of all the others. Our eyes take

in the light not merely for the sole enjoyment of see-

ing, but rather to allow the entire body to guide it-

self in its many various functions and activities.

When our hands busy themselves with our daily

tasks, it is to earn our daily bread which will sustain

the powers, health and vitality of the entire body.

Through all these various members, there circulates

the same blood, they all share the same life. Similarly

in the Church.

The Church which is the Mystical Body of Christ

is likewise composed of many various members: Jesus,



The Gift of the Mystical Body 2'y

Mary, the Holy Father, the Bishops, the priests and

all the faithful. There is a real harmonious grading

among these various members. In the Mystical Body

of Christ, the Church, Christ Himself is the Head,

i.e. Christ is to the Church what the head is to the

human body. He performs in the Mystical Body the

functions which may be compared to the functions

performed by the head of the human body. As from

the human head, the most noble part of the human

body, come movement, direction and life for the

other members, so also from Christ, our Head and

Leader, there descends into the body of the Church

its very life, the divine life of grace.

The Holy Father, the Bishops, the priests in their

respective ranks of the hierarchy may be called the

arteries of the Mystical Body. With their conse-

crated hands they dispense the holy sacraments. From

their instructions we derive the words of divine truth.

And so we can say that the divine life of grace

originates in Christ, flows through them like through

so many arteries and is distributed throughout the

entire Mystical Body.

You too, dear reader, are a member of this Mys-

tical Body. You in union with all the other faithful;

all working under the direction, the vital influence

of Christ, our Head, our Leader; all, united in the

most intimate union; each individual contributing to



26 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

the benfit of all, and all contributing their share to-

ward the benefit of the individual. It cannot be

otherwise because they all participate in the same life,

the divine life, the life of grace, the life of Christ.

Do you ask what place Mary occupies in the Mys-

tical Body of Christ.^ Here is the answer. True to

her role as Mediatrix, Mary may be called the heart

of the Mystical Body of Christ. You can readily see

the justification for this comparison. The human

heart receives impulses from the nerve centers located

in the head. It pumps blood to all parts of the human

body, thereby distributing health and vitality to all

members of that body. Mary, under the influence

of Christ and in complete dependence upon Him,

communicates the life of grace to all the members

of the Church.

Mary occupies the place between Christ and us,

between the Head and the other members. Mary may

thus be called the cervix, the neck, of the Mystical

Body. In the Old Testament she is called the "'stem

of the root of Jesse.” And rightly so. Has Mary

not carried Jesus as the stem carries the flower? Now

in the human body is it not the function of the neck

to carry the head? And not only to bear the head

but to connect it with the body. It furnishes com-

munication between the head and the body. In the

human body the vital impulses of the brain pass



The Gift of the Mystical Body 27

through the cervix or neck before they can reach

the other members. So also the divine life of grace

which originates in Christ comes to us through Mary.

Now let us stop just a moment and consider the

grandeur, the sublimity of Mary’s function in the

Mystical Body. Mary communicates to all the faith-

ful, to the entire Church, the life of Christ. Mary

generates Christ in the souls of men. Mary molds the

Church. Mary gives to the world the Mystical Body

of Christ.

It is the second gift of Mary, or rather the fullness,,

the completion of her first gift. The Mystical Body

of Christ is in reality together with the humanity of

Christ but one single gift, namely the entire Christ.

Therefore, since Mary is the Mother of the physical

Body of Christ she must at the same time be the

Mother of the Mystical Body.

A similitude may help us to understand this union

of the two, this dependence of one on the other..

We find it in the writings of Grignion De Montfort,
one of God’s recently canonized saints. He is re-

nowned for his ardent devotion to the Blessed Moth-

er. It may easily happen that some day the Church

may proclaim him the Doctor of the Universal Medi-

ation of Mary. In regard to the case in point the

saint writes: '‘When a mother brings her little child

into the world she brings him into the world entirely..



28 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

The mother gives life to her infant’s entire being,

to its head, to all its other members. She cannot bring

the other members of its little body into the world

without its head nor the head without the other mem-

bers of the body.” (Le Secret de Marie, No. 12.)

Now the Blessed Virgin conceived and brought

Jesus into the world. Jesus is the Head of the Mystical

Body. Consequently she had to give at the same time

life to the other members of the Body. She had to

bring into this world the entire Christ. This includes

the Mystical Body of Christ.

An echo of this teaching is found in a remarkable

passage contained in the Encyclical Ad diem ilium.

We know that Pius X was well acquainted with the

doctrine of Saint Grignion De Montfort, the Apostle

of Mary as some call him. Pius X wrote: ”The

Blessed Virgin conceived the Son of God not only

so that taking His human nature from her He would

become man but also in order that He, using this

nature, would become the Savior of men. According-

ly in the chaste womb of the Virgin where Jesus took

upon Himself mortal flesh, there also He took upon

Himself a spiritual Body composed of all souls who

would believe in Him. And we may say that carry-

ing Jesus in her womb Mary also carried all those

souls whose spiritual life was enclosed in the life

of the Savior. All of us who are united to Christ



The Gift of the Mystical Body 29

are, as the Apostle tells us, the members of His

Body; issued from His flesh and from His bones, we

must call ourselves offspring of the womb of the

Virgin whence one day we came forth like the living

members of a body which must needs be attached to

its head.”

Strong words . . . Powerful doctrine . . . The role

of Mary is described here in forceful yet plain and

simple language. Mary gives to the world the entire

Christ, the gift of the Holy Humanity of Jesus, in-

cluding, in accordance with the divine plan . . . THE

GIFT OF THE MYSTICAL BODY OF CHRIST.



CHAPTER 4

MARY IN THE PREPARATION OF

THE VICTIM

THE Mystical Body of Christ is the gift of Mary.

In the previous chapter we were told that the rea-

son why Mary gave us the Mystical Body of Christ

is because she gives us Jesus who is the Head of

the Mystical Body. The present chapter will explain

the method by which Mary gave us this Mystical

Body. She does it by acquiring in our behalf the life

necessary to animate this body, namely the life of

grace.

Grace being a divine life, Mary cannot obtain it

but from God, and God will not part with it except

in exchange for the merits of Mary.

Mary acquired this life for the Mystical Body of

Christ by merit of "supreme congruence.” This means

a merit which is sufficient for the reparation of the

offence NOT IN OR OF ITSELF but only because

of GOD’S ACCEPTANCE of it as sufficient. This

merit of congruence Mary obtained by cooperating

with her divine Son in the work of the Redemption.

Strictly speaking, Jesus alone has paid the ran-

som for our sins. He alone merited the necessary

and superabundant grace for us and with it life and



The Gift of the Mystical Body 31

salvation. Yet Mary was intimately united, associated

with Christ in this work of ransom. And in this

we have the very essence of Mary’s mediation.

Mary became associated with the work of Redemp-

tion, first of all when she conceived in her chaste

womb the Victim who was to immolate Himself for

the salvation of all. Yes, Mary may be called CO-RE

DEMPTRIX BECAUSE SHE HAS GIVEN US THE

REDEEMER. Other reasons will follow in subse-

quent chapters.

When the Archangel Gabriel announced to her

that she had been chosen to become the Mother of

the Savior, Mary gave her consent in the following

words: ''Behold the handmaid of the Lord, be it

done to me according to thy word.” Through her

consent given at the time of the Annunciation, Mary

accepted the invitation to participate in procuring

the ransom of the human race. No doubt this con-

sent brought her the joys of the Redemption, the

joys of divine maternity . . . but ... it also brought

her tremendous sorrows.

The moment of the Incarnation was the most im-

portant moment in the history of the human race.

Salvation for all depended on the answer of Mary.

Had she refused to become the Mother of Jesus,

there would have been no ransom for us. Listen to

Saint Bernard of Clairvaux. On account of his writ-



32 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

ings, so full of unction and love for his heavenly

Queen, he is called the "Marian Doctor” His words

read like an echo of the ardent longing of the Patri-

archs. He writes: "The angel awaits your answer.

The time has come for him to return to God. We

too await that consent, O Blessed Lady. We too

await that word of mercy, we unhappy ones who

groan under the curse of God’s condemnation. Be-

hold, the price of our salvation is now offered to

thee; give thy consent and at once we are set at

liberty.

"By the Eternal Word all of us have been created,

but we all perished miserably. One single word from

thee can restore life to us; just one word, O loving

Virgin.

"Exiled from Paradise, with all his miserable off-

spring, Adam implores this favor of thee. Abraham

entreats thee for this; David asks it of thee; the Patri-

archs, thy own ancestors implore it of thee. See, the

whole world prostrate before thee awaits thy answer;

upon thy word depends the consolation of the af-

flicted, the redemption of the captives, the pardon of

the guilty, the salvation of all the children of Adam;

the salvation of thy brethren, yes, the salvation of the

entire human race.

"O sovereign Virgin, speak that word that the

earth, the infernal regions (Limbo), yes, all in



Preparation of the Victim 33

heaven itself are waiting to hear. Make haste, there-

fore, to answer the angel or rather through the angel

to answer the Lord. Say the word and receive the

Word—responde verhum et suscipe Verbum. Oh,
let that one human word ascend to heaven and the

Eternal Divine Word will descend upon earth.”

This was indeed a decisive moment for the human

race. Upon it depended its happiness or its eternal

misery. Had Mary not given her consent, her divine

maternity and with it the entire Christian religion

would have been prevented from becoming a reality.

If Mary had refused to become the Mother of God,

as willed by Him from all eternity, the Second Per-

son of the Most Holy Trinity would not have be-

come incarnate; there would have been no glad tid-

ings of the Gospel; there would have been no God

dying upon the Cross to save you; there would have

been no Church; all of us poor sinners would have

been abandoned to our misery; heaven would have

been closed forever to us all.

But the holy Virgin, generous above all others,

entirely submissive to the holy will of God, pro-

nounced her liberating "FIAT” and immediately the

Word became incarnate in her chaste womb. Mary

became the Mother of the Savior and the Redemp-

tion began. By saying ”Yes” to the angel, Mary, the

Mother of God, opened heaven to all of us.



CHAPTER 5

MARY AND THE IMMOLATION OF

THE VICTIM

BY procuring the Victim, by providing the Re-

deemer with the body which on the day of His final

sacrifice He would immolate for our ransom, Mary

saved us. She saved us, but at what a price! It

may seem that the blessed hour of the Incarnation

should bring her joy only and no sorrow. We can-

not doubt that there was joy in that blessed hour

which united Mary in such an intimate union to Him

who was her life and the soul of her soul. There are

those who even think that at that moment Mary had

a foretaste of the beatific vision. This may be true,

but these holy delights were also messengers of the

tremendous sacrifice she would have to make all

through her mortal life. It was in view of these

forthcoming sorrows that the heart of the Blessed

Virgin needed to be strengthened by compensating

joys. When Mary accepted the honors of becoming

the Mother of God, she also accepted the conse-

quences following in the wake of such a sublime

vocation. She entered in a most intimate manner into

the work of Redemption, consecrating her entire

being and her entire lifetime to every kind of martyr-



Mary and the Immolation 35

dom, even what Saint Bernard called *'the martyrdom

of the heart/*

Of all this, Mary was fully conscious when she

pronounced her *Tiat.” It is but befitting to think

that God did not keep Mary in a state of darkness

in regard to the road she was taking, especially since

every step on that road would bring her nearer to

Calvary. The Infant Savior, who came from heaven

to be her Child, must have given her some anticipa-

tion of all the sorrow He was bringing to her. Yes,

she was fully aware that He Himself would be her

martyrdom, for it was her very love for Him that

would make her life one protracted suffering.

''Listen, my daughter,” Mary said one day to Sister

Josefa Menendez, "already in my childhood days I

had knowledge of divine things and knew which

road the coming Messias was to travel. Therefore

when the angel announced to me the mystery of the

Incarnation and I saw myself chosen to be the Mother

of the Savior, my heart, in full submission to the

holy will of God, was submerged in a torrent of

bitterness and sorrow. I knew all that this tender

and divine Child would have to suffer. The prophecy

of old Simeon later on did only but confirm my

maternal anxieties.

"You can then imagine what, from that moment

on, were my sentiments whenever I contemplated



36 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

the natural charms of my Son, His face, His hands.

His feet. His entire being which I knew would be so

cruelly maltreated.

"I kissed His hands, and it seemed to me that my

lips were already stained with the blood that would

some day gush forth from their wounds. I kissed

His feet, and I could see them already nailed to the

Cross. I combed His soft hair, and I beheld it

clotted with blood, entangled in the crown of thorns.

And when at Nazareth He made His first steps and

ran to meet me. His little arms extended, I could not

restrain the tears at the thought that these same arms

would in a few years be extended on the cross upon

which He had to die.

''When He grew up into adolescence, there was

in Him such a comeliness and beauty, that no one

could look at Him without admiring Him. Only

my maternal heart became painfully oppressed when

I thought of His torments of which I already then

experienced the effects.”^

So then for a period of thirty years between the

Heart of Jesus and the heart of His Mother there

was a continuous interchange of suffering, a martyr-

dom which we poor sinners will never be able to

understand, for the reason that we cannot fathom^

the love between Jesus and Mary.

"Suffering is measured by the immensity of one’s



Mary and the Immolation 37

love,” says Cardinal Bellarmine, and the love of Mary

for Jesus is immense, tremendously tender, extremely

delicate and possesses an unbelievable capacity for

commiseration and sympathy.

To her martyrdom of apprehension we must add

the vision of both the near and distant future that

Mary had constantly before her eyes, the vision of

that life of Jesus in its helplessness, dependence,

disdain, obscurity, neglect by so many of His crea-

tures. A little serious reflection on these truths will

make you understand to some degree at least why

we can apply to the Mother that which Angela of

Foligno said to her Son: "Where does He (she)

dwell if not in the house of sorrow?”

All this however was but the beginning of Mary’s

part in our salvation. In order to merit the life of

grace more fully in your behalf it was necessary for

her to be united still more with the work of the

Redemption.

Jesus, who through His cruel passion and death

has snatched you from the flames of hell, willed to

have His immaculate Mother as associate even on

Calvary. Since it was through the Cross that He

became the Redeemer, it was through the Cross that

Mary became Redemptrix. Her cooperation in our

salvation which began with the Incarnation at Naz-

areth was continued up to the very immolation of



38 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

the divine Victim and consummated only in His

martyrdom and hers on Calvary.

'*In our praise of the Mother of God,” the saint-

ly Pope Pius X teaches, ”it is not sufficient to say
that Mary clothed the Incarnate Lord with the flesh

which would be immolated on Calvary. We should

add that it was her divinely imposed mission to

watch over the Victim, to nourish Him and on the

day decreed from all eternity to offer that Victim

on the sacrificial altar. Hence that life-long partner-

ship between the Son and His Mother, that con-

tinuous cooperation in their life and labors, which

permits us to apply equally to the One and to the

other the words of the Prophet: ”My life was filled

with sorrow and my years with lamentation.” And

when the time for the supreme sacrifice had arrived

we see His Mother standing near the Cross, immersed

in a sea of sorrow and at the same time happy over

the fact that her Son offered Himself for the salva-

tion of the human race. Yes, happy with so great

a compassion and grief that if it had been possible

she would have preferred exceedingly to take upon

herself all the torments endured by Jesus. By means

of this continuous sharing of sorrow and sentiment

between her and Christ, Mary has merited to become

with a just title the atoner for the sins of the world

and therefore the dispenser of all the blessings which



Mary and the Immolation 59

Jesus has procured for us through His death and

the shedding of His blood.

Yes, the Immaculate Mother of God, entirely with-

out the least stain of guilt, suffered the tortures of

the Cross. She suffered in her heart that which

Jesus suffered in His body and in His soul. Through

these sufferings Mary became the CO-REDEMPTRIX

OF THE HUMAN RACE.

In closest union with her suffering, agonizing, dy-

ing Son, heart-broken and sunk in deepest desolation,

Mary offered to the heavenly Father the Son whom

He had given to her. This was the price she paid

for your soul.

The Blood which streamed down the side of the

Cross; that life infinitely more precious than her own;

that life which was now ebbing away in a slow

agony . . . these were her very own. She had given

them to the divine Victim. At that moment Mary,

abdicating her maternal rights, gave complete con-

sent to the final immolation of her Son. By this su-

preme act of conformity to the holy will of God, in

union with Christ, she merited for you pardon and

life.

And life it really was for you, for Mary, meriting

grace, gave you birth into supernatural life. As an

earthly mother brings forth her child in suffering and

sorrow, so also Mary in suffering and sorrow united



40 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

to and in dependence on Christ gave you birth into

the life of grace.

"It was she,” the present Holy Father Pius XII

tells us, "it was she, who, exempt from original sin

as well as from all personal sin, always most closely

united to her divine Son, arctissime semper cum Fi-

lio suo conjuncta, offered Him to the eternal Father

upon Golgotha for all the children of Adam who

were stained by the deplorable fall of the first man,

joining in this offering the holocaust of maternal

right and of maternal love. In this manner, she who

was the Mother of our Head according to the flesh

became spiritually, by a new title of suffering and of

glory, the Mother of all the members of Christ ... ita

quidem ut quae corpore erat nostri Capitis Mater,

spiritu facta esset oh novum etiam doloris gloriae-

que titulum, ejus membrorum omnium Mater.”^

Since we are coming near to the Cross, let us

gratefully stop a moment before our Mother, our

Co-redemptrix. Look . . . Never could she lay more

claim to our gratitude than after standing at the foot

of the Cross, united to the martyrdom of her Son,

in our behalf. Let us endeavor to realize how costly

a price she paid for us all, and never forget that if

Jesus at Bethlehem was the Son of her joy, upon

Calvary we were the CHILDREN OF HER SOR-

ROW.



Mary and the Immolation 41

1 Appeal to Love^’ : The Message of the Sa-

cred Heart of Jesus to the World and its Messenger,

Sister Josefa Menendez; Editions of the Apostolate

of Prayer, 9 Montplaisir Street Toulouse, p. 574. This

work was rapidly translated into many languages

and preceded by a Foreword of Cardinal Pacelli

(now our present Holy Father Pius XII). One can

hear the beat of the Heart of the Divine Master,

loudly proclaiming to the world His unbelievable

love. His infinite mercy, inviting us to confidence.

‘‘My words will give light and life to an incalculable

number of souls,^’ Christ said to Josefa on Novem-

ber 15, 1923. “I will give them a special grace,

so that they will be able to enlighten and convert

many souls.”

2 Encyclical Ad diem ilium . . . Ex hac autem, Mari-

am inter et Christum communione dolorum ac volun-

tatis, promeruit ilia ut reparatrix perditi orbis dig-

nissime fieret atque ideo universorum numerum

dispensatrix quae nobis Jesus nece et sanguine com-

paravit.

3 Encyclical on the Mystical Body of Christ

:

epilogue.



CHAPTER 6

THE SORROWFUL MOTHER

MARY MEDIATRIX BY MEANS OF

THE CROSS

''Lord, we offer Thee

The merits of Mary,

Thy Mother and our Mother,

At the foot of the Cross,

In order to appease the Divine Justice.

If you remember our iniquities. Lord,

Lord, who shall be able to stand before Thee?”*

Before we proceed further we shall endeavor to

impress upon our minds and hearts the sorrows of

Mary at the foot of the Cross.

No creature has penetrated the mystery of the

* This little offering of the merits of the most

blessed Virgin which was edited and distributed by

the House of the Visitation Sisters of Paray-le-Mo-

nial and of Toulouse, 13, Dabade Street, has been en-

riched with indulgences by several Cardinals and

Bishops of' all nations. Within a few months more

than a few million copies were printed and distribut-

ed, causing a tremendous increase of devotion and

trust in Divine Providence. Some have used the

little prayer in the form of a novena. Numerous

graces have been obtained.



The Sorrowful Mother 43

Cross so profoundly as has Mary. Nothing in her

entire Passion of Christ escaped her knowledge, her

mental vision. True, the Gospel does not make men-

tion of the fact that Mary was physically present in

Gethsemane at the time of Christ’s agony in the

garden. Neither does the Gospel tell us that she

followed Jesus that night amidst the servants of the

High Priest. But, dear reader, do you think it was

necessary for the Evangelists to stress something

which was quite evident? Associated with Christ

throughout His entire life; associated with all the

works of her Son, how could it have been possible for

Mary not to be with Him at the time of His great-

est and last suffering?

Exactly in what manner she participated in those

last hours of Christ’s natural life upon earth we do

not know. It is one of God’s secrets. But we may be

certain that Mary was present, if not physically, at

least in spirit, but in a very special, mysterious, yes

miraculous way. I am sure, dear reader, you do not

doubt this.

Mary shared in her Son’s bitter agony in the Gar-

den of Olives. She witnessed this scoffing, the in-

sults, the foul spittle, the cruel blows heaped upon

Him. The whips of the scourging cut into her own

soul. When the thorns of the crown tore the sacred

brow of her Son, they lacerated her maternal heart.



44 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

Listen to the words Mary herself spoke to Saint

Bridget. ''They scourged His innocent Body. When

I heard that first blow I who was very near Him

fell down as one struck dead. When I recovered my

consciousness I saw His Body wounded and bruised

to such an extent that parts of His ribs were laid

bare. Fragments of His sacred Flesh adhered to the

scourges as they were withdrawn between each blow.

All through this horrible ordeal my Son held Him-

self quite erect. By the time the horrible spectacle

stopped His sacred Body had been so torn that it

seemed there was no longer any place left where

the scourges could fall.

"Then He put on His garments and I saw the

place where He stood literally covered with blood.

I could easily follow in His footsteps due to the

bloody traces on the pavement. They did not give

Him even an opportunity to put on His garments in

peace, but shoved and pushed to hurry Him on His

way. Whilst He was being led away like a criminal,

I saw Him wipe away the blood from His eyes.

Cum autem duceretur quasi latro, ipse filius meus

extersit sanguinem ab oculis suis”

Let us strive to imagine the compassion and suffer-

ing of the Mother as she witnessed all this.

Now Jesus walks through the streets laden with

the Cross. At one of the crossings Mary waits dis-



The Sorrowful Mother 45

consolate and in deepest anguish. When Jesus ar-

rives at the place where she stands, He stops for a

few moments. Mother and Son behold each other

face to face; not one cry, not one word is exchanged.

But in this look they fully understand each other;

in this look two souls exchanged mutual feelings;

two hearts in which love swells to infinite pro-

portions suffered an additional martyrdom of mutual

compassion.

We may be certain that this meeting was one of

the most heart-rending moments for both Jesus and

Mary. Words cannot describe this meeting. Only

contemplative love can pierce the veil.

The divine Victim surrounded by the mob has

passed by. The Mother follows her Son as soon as

the pressing mob allows her. She will be with Him

unto the end. She will drink with Him the final

dregs of the bitter chalice . .
. Jesus has reached the

summit of Golgotha. . . . Mary in turn is reaching it.

Listen to the blows of the hammers resounding in

Mary’s soul. Those cruel nails are meant for her also.

They must tear her hands also. She has a right to all

this . . . the right of her maternal love ... of her love

for Jesus who is suffering ... of her love for you,

dear reader, for whom Jesus suffers. . . .

The Cross is raised and allowed to fall into the

hole dug for it. Mary is standing near . . . immov-



46 Maryf Mediatrix of All Graces

able like unto Him who hangs immovable on the

Cross . . . like Him suffering in her entire being.

Filled with grief, bitter grief, she looks upon her

Son with all the tenderness of which her maternal

heart is capable. She beholds Him hanging on the

gibbet of infamy, unrecognizable on account of the

blood that covers His Body . . . indeed crushed like

a worm.

But the heart of Mary penetrates much deeper

than these external wounds . . . even to the very

Heart of her Son. . . . She sees His agonizing soul

plunged in the greatest shame, in a desolation, an

abandonment that is almost infinite. . . .

"I beheld my Son,” Mary told Saint Bridget,

'"hanging there in His abysmal misery. It was hardly

possible for me to remain standing, so deep was my

consternation, so great was my affliction. . . . With

a trembling voice He cried to His heavenly Father:

'FATHER, WHY HAST THOU FORSAKEN ME
. . . as if He wished to say There is no one who has

pity on Me, not even You, my heavenly Father.

"Then the light in His eyes fading . . . the expres^

sion on His face growing more sad than it had been

through His entire Passion . . . His mouth opening

. . . His tongue tinged with blood ... in this condi-

tion He cried out: 'FATHER, INTO THY

HANDS I COMMEND MY SPIRIT. . . .’



The Sorrowful Mother 47

"When I heard that voice, I trembled in all my

members. I felt in my heart a pain more piercing

than ever before, and ever after when I recalled

that voice, it seemed as though I actually heard Him

cry out those last words. . . . Immediately after this

last cry. His sacred head dropped forward. . . . His

Heart had broken under the violence of His sorrow.

"Then some one said . . . 'Mary, your Son is dead

• • • •

"Some time afterward one of the soldiers advanced

toward the Cross and plunged a lance into the side

of my Son. He did this with such violence that it

almost pierced to the other side of His Body. At

that moment my own heart felt as though it were

being pierced by the same lance.

"Finally they took His Body down from the Cross

and I received Him upon my lap. He resembled a

leper. I dried and cleaned His wounds and closed

His eyes and His mouth left open in death."

Take a little time and ponder over this account

of Mary. It was here that she reached the bottom of

the abyss of her martyrdom. Consider a little while

the manner in which she became God’s helper and

your advocate. Behold the price she paid for par-

ticipating in paying your ransom. . . . Indeed she

deserved the title MATER DOLOROSA ... THE

SORROWFUL MOTHER.



CHAPTER 7

MARY MEDIATRIX—DISTRIBUTOR OF

THE LIFE OF GRACE

AT Bethlehem Mary gave us Jesus our Redeemer.

United with Him in His suffering and through Him,

she purchased the life of grace for us. Do you think,

dear reader, that these two reasons are not sufficient

for us to praise and glorify her and to express our

appreciation and gratitude ? Of course they are. And

yet, Mary’s love for us urged her on to do still more.

Not satisfied with having purchased our supernatural

life for us, she herself administers that life to us.

She is the intermediator between God and us in the

distribution of that divine life of grace. . . . Mary is

God’s treasurer.

"God does not will,’’ says Saint Bernard, "one sim

gle grace, one single blessing to come to the earth

without passing through the hands of Mary.’’

Let us never lose sight of the fact that Mary does

not produce this life of grace. It is Jesus being God

who "produces grace and truth. But He does not

part with it except at the prayer of His Mother. Jesus



Distributor of the Life of Grace 49

is the source of grace. Mary is the channel which

receives this life at its very source and brings it down

to us.

The seraphic doctor Saint Bonaventure, one of the

illustrious doctors of the Church who passionately

loved the most Blessed Virgin, speaks in the same

terms. He shows Mary to be the source, the second-

ary source, whence the floods of spiritual life flow

abundantly upon the souls of men.^ Mary is not the

principal source, to be sure, because it is in the bosom

of the eternal Father that all grace originates. Fur-

thermore, Christ, in as much that He is Man is, as

it were, the first outlet of the riches of the Father;

but after Christ, from whom she receives all, Mary

may be compared to a tremendous reservoir or store-

house filled by God with all the heavenly gifts.

Mary became this when the Holy Spirit, over-

shadowing her on the day of the Annunciation, filled

her with such an abundance of grace that henceforth

she became capable of sanctifying all others.

Before Mary had conceived the Word, she was

already "full of grace." After the Second Person

of the adorable Trinity had assumed His human body

from her, her amount of grace grew to almost infinite

proportions. The Mother of the Word Incarnate was

the Mother of God. She now possessed Him who is

the original source of all grace. And He gave to His



30 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

Mother the power to dispose of that grace at will.

It is through Mary that all grace descends from God

upon the earth. Mary asks and Jesus gives His con-

sent. He places into her hands the treasures of heav-

en, i.e., all sanctity, all perfection, all life, all that is

good, all that is noble, all that is beautiful. Without

Mary there is nothing for us to expect, neither pardon

nor salvation. God wills it this way. Mary is the uni-

versal Mediatrix, the Distributor of all grace.

In his admiration. Saint Germanus of Constanti-

nople cries out:
*

'There is no one who is saved ex-

cept through thee, O most holy Mary; no one who

is delivered from the evils of this life except through

thee, most chaste Virgin; no one to whom is granted

any celestial gift except through thee, most pure Vir-

gin; no one who finds grace before God except

through thee, O most glorious Mother of God.”

Dear reader, does all this mean that under penal-

ty of not being heard you must address each prayer

directly to Mary? Not at all. Yet the fact is this,

prayer addresssed to God does not reach Him except

through Mary. When we pray to God, Mary prays

to God for us. And whether you pray to her directly,

or whether you pray to God without even thinking

of her, it is always she who must obtain for you the

favor you ask. This is so even in the case of the

saints. Whenever they wish to obtain a favor sol-



Distributor of the Life of Grace 51

licited through their interceession, they are not heard

except through the mediation of Mary.

At Pellevoisin in France in 1876, at one of the

apparitions of the Blessed Mother to a girl by the

name of Estelle, the Blessed Virgin herself gave

testimony to the truth that she is the distributor of

all graces. Estelle narrates that she saw an abun-

dance of little drops of rain falling from the hands

of Mary. It was a symbol of the innumerable graces

which at the prayer of Mary fall upon the world like

a refreshing dew. The girl explains further that in

each one of those little drops of rain it seemed as

though there was inscribed the name of the special

grace contained in them such as . .
.
piety, health,

confidence, conversion, protection, perfection, etc.,

etc. Then the Blessed Mother uttered the following

words which explain clearly the mediation of Mary:

'THESE GRACES,” Mary said, "I OBTAINED

FROM MY DIVINE SON, I TAKE THEM FROM
HIS HEART.” And Mary added, emphasizing the

omnipotence of her prayer over the Heart of Jesus

. . . "HE CAN REFUSE ME NOTHING.”

No, Jesus cannot refuse His Mother anything. Be-

hold her in the heavens standing between God and

us in the glory of her Universal Mediation, power-

ful through her prayers today as she was in the

past on Calvary, powerful by her suffering. Ap-



52 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

proach then with the fullest confidence her whom the

holy liturgy calls the MOTHER OF DIVINE

GRACE. Through her YOU WILL OBTAIN THE

LIFE OF GRACE.

1^‘Gratia et veritas per Jesum Christum facta

est.’^ (John 1:17)

2 Cf. Sermon III and V on the Annunciation and

Sermon IV on the Assumption. Quarrachi, t. II

and IX.



CHAPTER 8

MARY MEDIATRIX, THY MOTHER

"I WILL SOON GO TO HEAVEN. YOU WILL

REMAIN HERE BELOW FOR SOME TIME IN

ORDER TO MAKE KNOWN TO THE PEOPLE
THAT WHICH THE LORD WISHES TO PRO-

MULGATE IN THE WORLD, NAMELY THE

DEVOTION TO THE IMMACULATE HEART

OF MARY.

"BE SURE TO MAKE THE WHOLE WORLD

REMEMBER THAT IT IS THROUGH THE IM-

MACULATE HEART OF MARY THAT THE

GOOD GOD WISHES TO GRANT US HIS FA-

VORS.

"IT IS FROM THE IMMACULATE HEART

THAT THEY MUST ASK FOR THEM.”

(Words of Jacinta recommending to Lucia the

accomplishment of the mission confided to them by

Our Lady at Fatima.)

"I PROMISE SALVATION TO THOSE WHO
WILL EMBRACE THE DEVOTION TO MY IM-
MACULATE HEART. THEIR SOULS WILL BE

LOVED BY GOD WITH A LOVE OF PREDI-



54 Mary^ Mediatrix of All Graces

LECTION, AS FLOWERS PLACED BY ME BE-

FORE HIS THRONE.”

{Our Lady at Fatima to Lucia at the second ap-

paritio )2 June 13, 1917.)

Jesus gave Mary to us as our Mother on Calvary,

or rather it was on Calvary He declared her to be our

Mother. For Mary was our Mother long before the

tragedy of the Cross. Even though she would have

to undergo much suffering before bringing us into

the life of grace, Mary was already our Mother ever

since the day of the Incarnation. From the moment

when the Word became Flesh in her chaste womb,

together with Jesus, we too became her children.

It was then on Calvary, where the participation of

Mary in the sufferings of the Cross brought to full

bloom her state of maternity in our behalf, that Jesus

solemnly declared the fact.

Let us go back in spirit to Golgotha. The hour

when He will die for us has struck. He suffers and

agonizes for our sins whilst He thinks of us all.

He knows He is leaving us and He does not want to

leave us orphans. What will He do? The beloved

Apostle Saint John who was privileged to rest his

head upon the Heart of Jesus was present there and

he describes the scene. . . . ”Now there was standing

by the cross of Jesus His Mother. . . . When Jesus

saw His Mother and the disciple standing by, whom



Thy Mother 55

He loved, he said to His mother, ‘Woman, behold

thy son.’ Then He said to the disciple, 'Behold thy

mother.’

ECCE MATER TUA . . . Behold thy mother.

This was the testament, the last will of Jesus. It

is necessary that He leave us because His death is

our ransom. He will return to His heavenly Father.

There in heaven He will prepare a place where we

will enjoy in the presence of God true peace, true

joy, true happiness without end.

But in the meantime we will be left alone . . .

without Him, our Friend, without Him, our Fa-

ther . . . without Him our God. Who, during the

time of our exile will be our consoler, our guide,

our helper? Who in His place will be able to love

us as He has? There is only one answer to that

and it is ... . Mary.

^^ECCE MATER TUA/’ The treasure most dear

to Him, most precious to Him; the object most

worthy of His love here below Jesus gives to us . . .

Mary, His Mother . . . Mary, our Mother. Mary

becomes the divine legacy . . . the last will of the

Heart of Jesus.

Do you realize the full importance of these words

—Mary, your Mother? Do you know that she is
your Mother? You have been told this fact away back



56 Maryi Mediatrix of All Graces

in your childhood days and since then you have

given her that sweetest of all names a thousand

times. But do you know exactly how she fulfills

that office?

I am confident that it will be quite easy for you

to understand now, since I made an endeavor to

prepare your mind and your heart for this sublime

truth in the previous chapters. Mary fulfills her

role as Mother in your behalf by becoming your

Mediatrix which means that all the heavenly bless-

ings and favors God has in readiness for you Mary

obtains from Him and bestows on you.^

See for yourself. What does any mother do for

her child? First of all, she gives it its body, she

brings it into the world. Next, she fosters and de-

velops that body by nourishing it with her own milk.

Finally, she overwhelms it with maternal care until

the day when the child attains fullness of its being

and powers, until it acquires full maturity.

Well now, Mary does all this for your soul. It

is through her, as I have already told you, that we

receive all grace and therefore all supernatural life.

Similarly as you would say of your earthly mother

you can say of your spiritual Mother Mary that she

has brought you into life, into your supernatural life.

She conceived you in the life of grace when, on the

day of your baptism, you first received the divine life



Thy Mother 57

into your soul. This life, remember, was purchased

by her in union with and in dependence on Jesus at

the price of the sorrowful sacrifice she made of her

Son in your behalf. Mary furthermore sustains and

develops that life in you when she bestows upon you

with a merciful generosity the innumerable graces

which nourish and fortify your soul . . . the graces

that enlighten your mind, that move your will . . . the

graces of the sacraments, especially and in particular

of the Holy Eucharist, the divine nourishment that

surpasses all other. Finally Mary will protect and

guide you as she has always done for the saints, her

children of predilection. And if you are faithful to

these graces, like they were, she will lead you as she

led them into the perfection of the supernatural life,

into sanctity.

Listen once more to Saint Grignion De Montfort:

''Mary has received a special charge over souls to

nourish them and to make them grow in God. Saint

Augustine goes so far as to say that in this world

all the predestined are, as it were, enclosed within

the bosom of Mary and that they come to see the

light of day only when this good Mother gives them

birth into life eternal. Consequently, as the infant

draws all its bodily nourishment from its earthly

mother who can give only in proportion to her own

weakness or strength, so also the predestined draw



58 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

all their spiritual nourishment and all their strength

from Marv.”^

In this way, then, Mar)’ fulfills her duties as our

Mother. Alas I how many Christians are ignorant of

this. We who know should not hesitate to instruct

others. We should tell them briefly that Mary is

our Mother because she does for us in the super-

natural order, for the life of our soul, all those things

an earthly mother does for the corporal life of her

child.

Yes, Mary is our Mother and we are her children.

What happiness and what dignity, especially when

we consider that Mary could not be the Mother of

Christ without becoming also our Mother. ^£ar}^ is

our Mother because she is the Mother of Jesus! We

should frequently strive to estimate the height to

which this fact exalts us, dear reader. Marv is our

Mother because Jesus is her Son . . . Does not this

imply that we are raised, through mercy and grace,

to the level even of Christ? Yes, Jesus is our Brother

through Alary.

And now you are informed of all that Alar)’ is for

you, just what role she plays in your life. To repeat

it briefly . . . Alar)’ is the Mother of Jesus. Because

she is the Mother of Jesus who is the Head of the

Alystical Body she is also the Alother of the members

of the Alystical Body. She is the Alother of all



Thy Mother 59

Christians who are incorporated in Christ, their Head.

Mary gives birth, supernatural birth, to your soul

and makes this divine life of grace increase in you.

Mary transforms you, making you Godlike. Mary

forms Christ within you, making you live His life.

Mary snatches you away from your poverty and your

misery to make you her child, a brother of Christ . . .

ANOTHER CHRIST.

But now do you see and fully realize that you are

living entirely in dependence upon Mary? In all

truth, you just cannot do without Mary. This is

such a tremendous and far-reaching truth that the

vast majority of people never fully realize it. You

should not be one of them. Fray that you may be-

come more and more conscious of and more and

more conscientious concerning all that is so pro-

foundly real in this motherhood of Mary.

When you think of your earthly mother, you have

no difficulty at all in realizing all that you owe to

her. You can see and feel the body she has given

you. But in the case of our spiritual existence the

life we have received from our heavenly Mother,

being supernatural, being invisible and intangible, we

are in great danger of not appreciating it at its full

value.

This is a great pity, for the supernatural is by far

more real than the material, even though the latter



60 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

may be so easily perceived by the senses. Heaven and

the things of heaven are by far more true and real

than the earth and the things of the earth. Conse-

quently the most Blessed Virgin is by far more truly

and more really our Mother than our earthly mother

is.

Mary is in all truth, in all reality, OUR MOTHER.

iJohn, 19:25-27.

2 The Liturgy of the Church unites the idea of

Mary to the idea of her being our Mediatrix. ^Xord

Jesus Christ, our Mediator with the Father, Thou

who hast constituted Thy Mother, the ever Blessed

Virgin, OUR MOTHER AND OUR MEDIATRIX
BEFORE THEE, grant propitiously that anyone
who comes to Thee to ask for favors, may have the

joy of obtaining them all through her . . .^^ (Oration

of the Mass of the Blessed Virgin Mary Mediatrix

of All Graces, Feast May 31st.)
3 '‘The Secret of Mary,’^ No. 14.



CHAPTER 9

YOUR SPIRITUAL LIFE IN MARY

YOU have come to the knowledge of what Mary

is to you. You understand now what the term Mary

Mediatrix means. You grasp now all that the term

Mary your Mother implies. There remains for you

to realize fully what your attitude should be towards

Mary.

Since Mary has been instrumental in giving you

supernatural life, and since she develops that life

in you, it is necessary for you to LIVE WITH

MARY.

Oh, would that the Blessed Mother might deign

to help me here to write down clearly this salutary

doctrine ! If, like the soil in the parable of the

Gospel into which fell good seed, your soul today

allows itself to be penetrated with this idea of "LIV-

ING WITH MARY,” "LIVING A MARIAN

LIFE,” it will surely be for you the starting point

of a new kind of existence, namely sanctity.

To "LIVE WITH MARY” . . . what does it mean?

It means to place yourself habitually and affectionate-

ly in the presence of Mary as a child before its

mother, in an attitude of entire dependence on her.



62 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

Yes, we must all assume the attitude of children, very

little children. For we are all in reality very little

compared to our heavenly Mother, that Virgin so

blessed, who from the very first moment of her ex-

istence possessed such superabimdance of grace that

it surpassed the sum total of grace given by divine

munificence to all the Angels and Saints.

Saint Grignion De Montfort was blessed with an

extraordinary talent to make people love her whom

he called *’his dear Mother.” Enlightened and guided

by this special gift he wrote with loving emphasis

on this kind of life in union with Mary. In a book

entitled Treatise on the True Devotion to the Blessed

Virgin, a beautiful work which you cannot read too

often, the Saint devoted several valuable pages to the

description and explanation of what kind of life the

true child of Mary should lead. He compares this

life with that of the boy Jacob living with his mother

Rebecca.^

”Jacob, meek and peace-loving, loved to be near

his mother as often as he could. He did not leave

her except when she sent him on an errand. He

cherished and honored her. He obeyed her diligent-

ly in all things. Above all, he strove with all his

powers to imitate the many virtues of which she was

the living image . .

.

”In like manner the true children of Mary will



Your Spiritual Life in Mary 63

be happy to remain near Mary—in her house, i.e.
they will love seclusion. They will love the interior

life, the life of prayer. They will not seek publicity.

They prefer to be alone with their Mother. They

prefer it to all the glamor and clamor of the world.

They prefer the hidden life of Nazareth, a life of

silence and oblivion. They honor Mary as their dear

and loving Mother. They love her with a tender

and strong love which does not recoil from sacri-

fices. They obey her faithfully, following her coun-

sels in everything they attempt. They avoid with

zealous care all that could displease her. When there

is a choice between two or more ways of doing good

they perform that which pleases her most. In imita-

tion of her they practice all the virtues, especially

those they know are most agreeable to her, i.e.

charity, humility, obedience, purity. They place in

her a confidence without limit. They invoke her

assistance without ceasing. They confide to her all

their troubles with a childlike candidness of heart,

and so draw upon themselves her mercy and her

sweetness. In order to obtain the pardon of their

sins through her intercession, or in order to experi-

ence her maternal kindness in trouble and weariness

they cast themselves, yes, bury themselves habitually

in her loving and virginal Heart so that they become

inflamed with her pure love and find there Jesus



64 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

who resides in her heart as on a throne of glory.”

As you can see, this life in union with Mary ab-

sorbs the activity of the entire soul. It means a con-

tinual imitation of her virtues, transforming the

child into the image of its Mother and consequently

into the image of its divine Brother Jesus Christ.

It is the intimate union of our soul with her soul;

of our heart with her heart, of our actions with her

actions.

May I suggest some practical ways in which to

realize this life in union with Mary? When you

assist at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, picture to

yourself Mary standing near the altar as she stood

near the Cross, and with her offer up her Divine Son

to His heavenly Father with the same sentiments

and for the same intentions which were hers on

Calvary.

When you receive Holy Communion acknowledge

your unworthiness but ask Mary to receive Holy Com-

munion together with you.

When you pray, offer your prayers through Mary,

so that it is no longer YOUR prayer but rather hers.

When you make the Stations of the Cross, follow

Jesus in company with Mary, endeavoring to com-

passionate in the sorrows of the Son the heart of

the Mother, offering your tears, your sympathy

through her.



Your Spiritual Life in Mary 65

When you undertake any work at all, begin the

work in the name of Mary. Be careful not to be too

anxious for success. For of what importance is earth-

ly success? Be convinced that all work takes its

value not from its success as judged by earthly

standards, but solely from the love which inspires

it. Yes, apply all your energies to the task in hand

but look only for the accomplishment of Mary’s

good pleasure.

Begin no task without first having consulted her.

Ask her with a humble insistence to be with you in

all your ways. And frequently, habitually through-

out the day, turn your thoughts upon her. Love to

greet her with the words : AVE MARIA ! HAIL

MARY ! ... AVE MATER ! HAIL MOTHER

!

Once more let us listen to the words of Saint

Grignion De Montfort. '"Mary is the tree of life. If

we wish to enjoy its fruit we must give that tree at-

tention and care, and it is a wise soul that will make

the care of that tree its principal occupation.

Make a serious effort to keep permanently in your

heart the resemblance of your Mother, so that without

ceasing you may keep bright the flame which must

consume your soul.

This kind of attention demands, of course, great

fidelity and perseverance. But fear not. As a help

in attaining this orientation of your entire being



66 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

towards Mary there is no lack of efhcacious means.

There is nothing more helpful in repressing the in-

cursions of a wandering imagination than to think

of Mary as being present right at your side. A rather

simple practice, yet capable of achieving in a short

time surprising results. I beg you to make the ex-

periment and see for yourself. The great Saint

Teresa of Avila, renowned mystic of the l6th cen-

tury, proposes and strongly recommends a similar

practice to the soul that desires to live in constant

union with Jesus.

Perhaps you will object that true devotion is less a

matter of "thinking” than it is a matter of "willing.”

There is no doubt about this being so. Our blessed

Lord Himself tells us: "You are my friends, if you

DO the things I command you.” Nevertheless, we
must never forget that true love does not stop with

frequently thinking upon the beloved but that it

is whilst THINKING upon the beloved that the

soul generates an ever-increasing love. Would you

not doubt the love of a son for his mother if he

would never or seldom think of her?

Furthermore there are those who will contend that

even a loving child does not always keep its eyes

fixed upon its mother. You are right. And I did

not say that the thought of Mary in your mind

should be uninterrupted in the strict sense of the



Your Spiritual Life in Mary 61

word; at least we can strive to attain this contin-

uous realization that some one is present within

our environment. Nevertheless, we grant, when it is

a matter of a spiritual presence, this might prove ex-

tremely difficult except for a privilege which would

come close to the miraculous. The weakness of our

poor human nature and the distractions to which we

are all the more or less subject will not allow us to

attain this happiness here below. Therefore whilst

you lovingly make the effort to retain the memory

of Mary, try to avoid all tension and strain which

would inevitably cause mental fatigue and exhaustion

and lead sooner or later to discouragement.

Neither did I intend to create the impression that

devotion and the thought of Mary had to be ex-

clusive of anything else. We must remember that the

Church proposes ever so many objects for our de-

votion and meditation. Nevertheless, be assured that

far from being a shackle, real devotion to Mary will

make your soul free.

Has the devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus any

special attraction for you? By all means foster that

devotion by frequently thinking of the Heart of Jesus

and frequently assuring Him of your love. Does the

Holy Eucharist captivate your mind and heart? Try

to live within the shadow of the tabernacle. Does

the tenderness of the heavenly Father flood your



68 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

soul? Or does the most Holy Trinity absorb your

mind and heart in Its infinite mystery? Follow the

Holy Spirit wherever He leads you. However, be

firmly convinced that if you really belong to Mary,

if she has taken the place in your life which by

right belongs to her . . . the place of Universal Medi-

atrix . . . each one of those devotions mentioned above

can and will be fostered naturally and developed

peaceably and more efficaciously in a soul that is not

unmindful of Mary.

There is in that soul a certain mysterious and vital

power which will repeatedly bring it back to the

object of its love. Even in the midst of the most

absorbing task the image of the Mother of God

appears in the deep recesses of the heart; a smiling

image which will encourage a more assiduous prac-

tice of virtue.

In prayer too the soul knows and feels that it is

not entirely alone. It knows that Mary is there,

presenting its requests to the most High God. Fully

conscious of his unworthiness, but nevertheless hum-

bly anxious to offer to God all praise due Him, the

individual does not cease to unite his poor heart to

the all-pure Heart of Mary. He wants to love the

Father with the all-respectful tenderness of His well-

beloved Daughter. He wants to love the Holy Ghost

with the flame of holy fire which burns in the Heart



Your Spiritual Life in Mary 69

of His. immaculate Spouse. As the object of his

meditations, whenever he is free to choose, he pre-

fers the mysteries in which the Blessed Virgin is the

central theme.

'"When Jesus has special designs on any soul, and

He wishes to lead it to a higher degree of sanctity,’'

the Blessed Mother her self revealed to Benigna Con-

solata, ’'He puts that soul in my special care and I

immediately become its personal guardian, guide and

nurse. I do not leave that soul even for a moment,

just like a mother will not take her eyes off her

child when it is trying its first steps. A soul that

in this way becomes the special object of my care

must strive so much the more to remain in constant

union with me; think continually on me; invoke me

frequently and especially confide and entrust all to

y y

me.

Let me warn you again. In this practice all mental

tension or strain must be avoided. Take notice how-

ever that I do not say every EFFORT must be a-

voided. The soul should strive to let itself be led

wherever it pleases Mary to lead, but always in

serenity, peace and tranquillity. And whilst Mary

presides over the activity of that privileged soul en-

lightening its intellect, captivating it more and more,

that soul of its own free will does not cease to keep

itself under the loving sway of Mary’s Mediation by



70 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

which it lives. The soul exists surrounded with a

tender love, a watchful tenderness to which it sur-

renders itself with all the energies of its will.

Happy state of dependence indeed ! Truly sublime

way of life!

It is rather difficult to explain that attitude of fear

which paralyzes so many well-meaning souls in their

striving to advance in the spiritual life. It almost

seems as though they fear to come too close to Mary

their Mediatrix and by doing so they deprive them-

selves of the most necessary help and favors. The

reason for this fear is a very regrettable illusion.

Pride is not the cause of it. This little book is not

written for those who think themselves too mature,

too "big” to make themselves 'little” before their

heavenly Mother. Such unfortunate individuals are

incapable of understanding our language. The ones

I refer to as laboring under an illusion are those

honest souls who, though they earnestly seek after

God, at the same time fear that Mary would be

—

dare I say it—an obstacle in the way that leads to
Jesus.

Let me emphasize that this is a very regrettable

error, very far from the truth. The fact is that as

soon as we raise our voices in supplication to Mary

she immediately blesses us with her divine Son, the

little Jesus Himself.



Your Spiritual Life in Mary 71

In a passage which betrays a loving child of Mary

it seems that Pius X took upon himself the task of
enlightening us on this so very important matter.

In that passage which I will quote, His Holiness

strives to dissolve all difficulties, dispel all darkness

which Satan is intent upon accumulating in our

minds.

Taking as a starting point the necessity of ‘'re-

storing all things in Christ,” borrowing the words of

the Apostle, the saintly Pontiff indicates the provi-

dential means to achieve that goal. The means His

Holiness advises us is none other than to seek Christ

THROUGH MARY, because, and I quote, “there

is no route more sure, more easy to arrive unto

Christ, and through Him, to attain to the perfect

adoption of sons, which renders us holy and without

blame in the eyes of God.”

True, God could have sent Jesus to us in some

other way than through Mary. But “since it has

pleased the eternal Father that, the God-Man was

given to us through the Virgin and since she received

Him through the operation of the Holy Spirit Him-

self and then carried Him in her chaste womb and

brought Him into the world . . . what is there left

for us to do but that we receive Jesus from the hands

of Mary?”

It is from Mary also that we will receive all knowl-



72 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

edge and love for Jesus. Did she not have the privi-

lege, alone among women, to live with Him con-

stantly for thirty years of His life, under the same

roof, in the intimate relations which are to be found

only bet^^een mother and child, living the very same

life of Jesus, "'initiated into His counsels and into

the sacred designs of His adorable will? No one

therefore has known Him as Mary did, and there

is no one who could be a better teacher, no better

guide to bring us to Him. Consequently no one is

as capable as she to unite man to Christ. If eternal

life consists in knowing the Father and Him whom

He has sent, namely Jesus Christ, if since it is through

Mary that we learn to know Christ, then through

Mary also we obtain that life more easily and surely,

that life of which Jesus is the source and principle.”^

Can anyone show more clearly that Mary not only

is no obstacle to union with Christ but that she

actually is the way we must follow to arrive at that

union ?

Now what else could Mary desire, what else does

she have in mind when she "accepts” a soul into her

special care if not to make Jesus reign in that soul?

And what else could she love in us if it be not Him,

Him into whom grace transforms us, makes us live

His life. Also remember that it is in proportion to

our faithfulness, our generosity, our spirit of sacri-



Your Spiritual Life in Mary 73

iice, that we become more and more Christlike and

that in that very same proportion Mary’s love for us

develops and increases.

What Mary really aims at is to inflame our hearts

with the love that burns in her own heart. One day

our Lady said to Gemma Galgani: "Do you love

anyone more than me?” And the saintly child cud-

dled in her arms answered: "My dear Mother, I

do love someone more than you . . . Your Son.” "Oh

yes,” answered the Blessed Virgin, joyfully pressing

the child to her own bosom . . . "Yes, do love Jesus,

love Him as much as you possibly can.”

Why should it be that so very few understand

the true nature of Mary’s Mediation? That Medi-

ation of love and union with God? Why is it that

so many souls anxious and eager for union with

God hesitate to take her for their guide and helper

who is the powerful Mediatrix and the sweet Mother,

Mary ?

As far as we are concerned be assured that Jesus,

when He came to us through Mary, showed us the

very way by which we must come to Him. Do not

think you can find Jesus away from Mary. Jesus came

to you through Mary and it is through Mary that you

must go to Jesus.

Frequently repeat to yourself with the firmest con-

viction that since Mary is the Mother of divine love.



74 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

she possesses the secret of attaining to union with

God. No one else is better acquainted with the way

that leads to the Sacred Heart of her Son Jesus. And

be assured that in proportion as you are united to

her, in that same proportion you will imbibe the

life of God.

1 See “Treatise on the True Devotion to the

Blessed Virgin,’’ Marian Library, Calvary, Mont-

fort, Pontchateau, Loire-Inferieure, No. 191. The

manuscript of this work, a little masterpiece of

Marian theology, hidden in a trunk during the

French Revolution, was found only in the year 1842

by a religious of Montfort. A remarkable incidence
is that Saint Grignion De Montfort, the author of

the book, seems to have had a premonition or perhaps

a revelation of the lot which awaited the work. He

writes in No. 114 of the book: “I see a number

of ferocious animals, trembling with anger, attack-

ing with great fury, trying with their diabolical

teeth to destroy this little work ... or at least to

bury it in the darkness and oblivion of a trunk.”

The demon who becomes terribly enraged as soon

as anyone undertakes the glorification of Mary, must

have foreseen the tremendous influence that this

writing, with its forty translations and innumerable

editions, would exercise throughout this last cen-

tury in the entire Church, orientating souls to a

profound love of Mary and causing a virile and

sincere piety towards the most holy Virgin Mary.

God, no doubt, reserved this blessing for our times



Your Spiritual Life in Mary 75

of decadent faith to sustain the courage of the elect,

to keep them pure in the midst of general corruption

and to render them intrepid in the battle to come

under the leadership of the Virgin who is to the

demon ‘‘terrible as an army set in battle array.”

“The Secret of Mary,” which has been mentioned in

this book, is a brief exposition, clear and precise,

of the doctrine contained in the “Treatise.” But it

is not just a simple resume of it. From more than

one standpoint the reading of this little work proves

itself extremely useful even to those who are ac-

quainted with the contents of “The Treatise.”

2 “The Secret of Mary,” No. 72. The author com-

pares true devotion to Mary to a tree planted in

the soul by the Holy Spirit. A tree that we must
cultivate with the greatest care. He tells us that

in this case we must not depend too much upon the

authority of mere men, but solely upon the help

of Mary herself. And we should never trouble our-

selves about the tempests raised by the anger and

hatred of hell. Then this marvelous tree will give

its fruit, “the lovable and adorable Jesus, who always

was and always will be the unique fruit of Mary.”

3 Cf. Constitution **Ineffabile”



CHAPTER 10

SUMMIT OF THE MARIAN LIFE

VERY few people can surmise to what heights of

perfection the Blessed Virgin sometimes draws those

who follow her faithfully and perseveringly. In this

chapter I will endeavor to write a few lines concern-

ing the spiritual state in which, by special heavenly

favor, the soul vividly experiences the actions of

Mary upon itself.

We all are the beneficiaries of this action, of this

influence. The Universal Mediatrix, the Mother of

our divine life, Mary, without interruption, radiates

the life of grace upon us. But only to a small num-

ber of privileged souls is it given to perceive, to

sense the effects of this action upon them.

Mary becomes really present to them. Not in the

way that God is present everywhere. Our Lady is

actually substantially present only in Heaven, but

the soul becomes in a very definite way conscious of

Mary being near her.

"This experience,” writes a cloistered Carmelite

nun, "is so wonderful and so peculiar that I am at

a loss to find the proper words to express it. The



Summit of the Marian Life 11

nearest that I can come to describing it is that I feel

the most amiable Mother to be the life of my soul and

therefore the soul of my soul. I feel that Mary is

continually generating the divine life of grace within

my soul.*’^

The soul senses this presence of Mary in a way

extremely delicate and yet very real. Mary never

leaves the soul entirely. She lets it know whatever

God expects of it every moment. Over and above,

we are told, Mary goes to such an extent as to 'lend

to that soul her own heart.” Mary unites the soul’s

disposition to her own, rendering its virtues more

perfect, more acceptable to God, increasing the love

of God in that soul to a degree of ardor unknown

to it before. This love is no longer a small flame

lazily escaping from a poor, tepid heart. It becomes

rather like a "blazing furnace.”^

The soul "established in Mary” finds itself possess-

ing extreme happiness, as the Venerable Olier ex-

perienced. It becomes aware of a more abundant

participation in grace, more aware of Mary’s per-

fections and of her very life. It falls into a self-

forgetfulness more deep than ever before. Truly

blessed state when our Blessed Mother takes posses-

sion of the heart of her child in this manner! Oh,

how happy they are during the mystical raptures of

union with God!



78 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

Now we may be sure that our heavenly Mediatrix

is always on the alert, always ready to take possession

of our soul, of course for no other reason than to

hand it over to Jesus. She recalled to the Venerable

Olier that which her dear Son Himself had told him

upon a previous occasion, namely, '’that He (Christ)

would not live in him except in and through His

Blessed Mother, as though she were a kind of sacra-

ment by means of which He wished to communicate

His life of grace to him/*

Fully conscious of the influence Mary has upon its

spiritual life, the soul begins to ignore all vain fears.

Far from meeting an obstacle in the Blessed Virgin,

the soul finds that Mary proves to be, on the con-

trary, a necessary *’bond of love and union with

God.” In her and through her the soul seeks Mary,

finds her, contemplates her as though she were a

mirror—Mirror of Justice—^where the dazzling splen-
dor of the Godhead marvelously tempers and adapts

itself to the weakness of our vision, and the result

is that the soul looks at Mary but it is God it be-

holds.

Another mystic of the last century tells us: 'dn

one of those delightful moments which satisfy and

even surpass all that we can wish and hope for, I

saw that Jesus, our love, renews especially in behalf

of souls that are suffering the gift which on the



Summit of the Marian Life 79

Cross He made to humanity, the gift of the august

and most holy Mother. Mary seemed to stand be-

tween God and my soul, and yet it seemed there was

only Him and my soul. O Mystery of unity, divine

unity which unites everything to itself without con-

fusion of substance! O sacred threshold the human

mind cannot trespass but where love sees and adores

that which it cannot understand.”^

These are the heights of life in union with Mary.

On these summits, as far as the soul is concerned,

the Blessed Virgin becomes as one with God. The

soul that has experience in these ways senses the radi-

ant beauty, understands the astounding depth of the

message which the author of this little book would

like to bring to the entire world, namely that Mary

Mediatrix is eminently the gift of God, since ulti-

mately that gift is none other than Christ Himself.

Therefore, do not be scandalized when I give you

boldly the assurance that in Mary you will find all

that is good: light and power, truth and justice, wis-

dom and charity, divine life and . . . divine life in

its fullness, i.e. sanctity.

Here I ask you to read once more that page of

Holy Scripture which refers to divine wisdom, in

which you hear the song of the Holy Spirit plac-

ing His own praise upon the lips of His humble



80 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

Spouse at the same time inviting you to make the

riches of Mary your very own.

"I am the mother of fair love, and of fear, and of

knowledge, and of holy hope. In me is all grace of

the way and of the truth, in me is all hope of life,

and of virtue. Come over to me, all ye that desire

me, and be filled with my fruits.

'Tor my spirit is sweet above honey, and my in-

heritance above honey and the honeycomb.

"My mercy is unto everlasting generations.

"They that eat me, shall yet hunger; and they that

drink me, shall yet thirst.

"He that harkeneth to me, shall not be con-

founded; and they that work by me, shall not sin.

"They that explain me shall have life everlasting.’"

(Ecclus. 24:24-31)

So then, strengthened with these words of en-

couragement, follow Mary without fear. Follow her

with a heart expanded with holy joy. Follow, Chris-

tian soul, with Mary the path leading without fail

to Jesus. If you do, you will be astounded at the

amount of progress you will make in your spiritual

life.

However, never expect to achieve this without

strife. Furthermore, be assured that Mary will take

great care not to remove from your life the blessed

Cross of Jesus. You may have to advance in the ob-



Summit of the Marian Life 81

scurity of faith a long while, your entire life perhaps,

but what of it? The soul that is actually favored

with "the sweet presence of Mary” is not necessarily

the one that loves Jesus and Mary the most. The

"Little Flower,” Saint Therese of Lisieux, privileged

as she was, hardly received any consolations at all

in this life. Be sure to keep in mind that the life

of divine grace is not a matter of feeling. Grace may

be abundant in a heart tormented with aridity, and

remember also that the "one thing necessary” is not

to FEEL that we are living, but to be ALIVE.

Leave for the present, "poor little slave, to your

Queen the clear, unobstructed vision of God. Con-

tented and satisfied v/ith faith pure and simple”^

strive with all your power, even against all odds, to

live in union with Mary. Strengthened with firm

faith in her presence and consoled by her smile,

carry your daily crosses with happiness in such a way

that, torn away from your indigence in the spiritual

life, you will see yourself carried away with your

heavenly Mother into the infinite abyss of God’s

love.

We hope and pray that soon you will understand

that which I fear I have not been able to tell you in

this book. Words cannot adequately express it. We

hope and pray that you will experience that life in

union with Mary is LIFE in the full meaning of the



82 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

word. A life in which the pure soul of Maty pene-

trates your soul and transforms it more and more into

her own. A life of total dependence, a life of love

which completely captivates your heart and permeates

the very depths of your soul; a life of complete

abandonment, of unlimited confidence, of holy in-

timacy, of peace, of joy even in suffering; a life in

which you give to Mary all that belongs to you, all

that you are; a life in which Maty" communicates

to you all of her virtues, Mary becoming your sub-

stitute; Mary covering your poverty with her riches,

your weakness with her power, your tepidity with

her charity, with her love; a life which is in perfect

agreement with her sentiments, with her will, with

her good pleasure; a sweet and irresistible impulse

which turns the soul constantly towards Mary as if

by natural instinct; a veritable need of her; an ir-

resistible longing to converse with her, an unquench-

able desire to love her ever more and more.

This is but a slight intimation of what it means

to live in Mary. Do you not think that in it, even

in these feeble words, you can see sufficient reason

for you to attempt to live this life? NO ONE
KNOWS ... NO ONE CAN FORETELL, WHAT
GOD HAS IN STORE FOR THE SOUL THAT

ATTACHES ITSELF IN A CHILDLIKE MAN-

NER, WITHOUT RESERVE, TO MARY. It is



Summit of the Marian Life 83

the secret formula for a truly happy life here and

hereafter. With Mary, your Mediatrix, your Mother,

you will solve all your difficulties, you will proceed

joyfully and freely and rapidly in the way of virtue;

with her you will readily find Jesus. After having

here below in this valley of tears lived in union with

her, under her maternal love, your hand in her hand,

you will surely, most assuredly go ... to HEAVEN.

1 Mary of St. Therese. We borrow this quota-
tion and also the following from the testimony

gathered by Father Neubert in a remarkable article

on the Spiritual Life, 1937, p. 20 “‘Mystical Union

With the Blessed Virgin.’’ Fr. Neubert is also

the author of a little book which we earnestly recom-

mend to our readers, “My Ideal, Jesus Son of Mary,”

edition Xavier Mappus, Le Puy.

2 Mary Colette of the Sacred Heart, Poor Clare,

died in the odor of sanctity at Besancon towards

the end of the nineteenth century.

3 To these impressive testimonies we may add that

very recent one of Sister Therese of the Infant Jesus

(1899-1945), a humble Franciscan lay sister, a great

lover of the Eucharistic King. Her life of “sacrificial

hostage” was spent, whenever possible, within the

radiance of the monstrance. She achieved her spir-

itual development in Mary and through Mary. Rest-

ing upon the Heart of the divine Master, the sister

learned one day “what it means to be loved by

Mary whom she calls her “all.” The Blessed Mother



84 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

told her ‘‘together we will love Him. Let your heart

bury itself in mine, in order to offer to Jesus, in

union with me, a love worthy of Him.” Some time

after Mary again revealed herself to the sister “as

never before” asking her to give herself to her Moth-

er forever and in recompense Mary would “abide in

her soul” henceforth.

^ A little note on the expression “slave of Mary.”
It was chosen by Saint Grignion De Montfort to ex-

press a total loving dependence upon Mary. The

Blessed Virgin herself made use of this expression

when she gave her answer to the Angel on the day

of the Annunciation. The Greek word which was

translated into Latin by the word “ancilla”, meaning

servant, really means slave. Vd. “Treatise on the

True Devotion to Mary.” c. 2, a. 2.



EPILOGUE

THE REIGN OP MARY MEDIATRIX

DURING one of the apparitions at Fatima the

Blessed Virgin pointing to her heart surrounded with

thorns told the little shepherds that those thorns

signified the sins of men which pierced the Heart of

her Son and therefore had the same effect upon her

own heart.

The reign of Mary, like that of Jesus, cannot es-

tablish itself except in a pure heart. The Blessed

Virgin, like Jesus, is the arch-enemy of sin. And it

is the triumph of her Mediation to be able to destroy

sin whilst sowing the life of grace in the very place

where sin had sown death.

He who cooperates with Mary in her role of Medi-

ation will not deserve the reproach recently addressed

by the Holy Father in a radio broadcast to the Na-

tional Catechetical Congress in the United States.

In his message Pius XII accused our modern gener-

ation of having lost "the sense of sin.”^ He who

has taken to heart the role that Mary plays in the

salvation of the world will feel in his soul a real

aversion, a holy anger towards everything that causes



86 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

offense to God. A devotion to Mary which would

not keep us from habitual sin or which would not

inspire us with the sincere desire to amend, such a

devotion would indeed be a false and wrong kind

of homage. 2

Surely Mary is the Queen of mercy and, as she

told Saint Bridget, there is in the world no sinner so

cursed as not to excite her pity. Precisely in this Mary

demonstrates her clemency and goodness, namely in

not abandoning the guilty to divine justice. She tries

with all her power to snatch the sinner from his

state of revolt against God, from his shameful life.

Now what does our Mediatrix expect of us? Just

this, that we do what God commands, that we con-

form our will to the holy will of God. Briefly,

Mary wants us to become holy, for sanctity is nothing

else than a life of constant conformity to the divine

good pleasure.

To establish my life once for all in this conformity

there is no shorter or surer means than to try with

all my power to discover and to fulfill the good

pleasure of Mary. This is true, because Mary does

not want anything except what God wants. Now

then since Mary really does not want anything but

what God wants, we by fulfilling her good pleasure

really fulfill the good pleasure of God. The rule

of life for a Christian may be reduced very definitely



Epilogue 87

to this: to fulfill cheerfully and lovingly the good

pleasure of Mary; to form and conform his will

so completely to hers that it becomes identified with

hers, becomes one with hers; to give her all that we

have and all that we are; to ask her to dispose of it

all according to her wishes; to accept with resigna-

tion all that she permits to befall us; to hasten to

fulfill joyfully all her least desires.

A beautiful, a sublime rule of life! And yet so

simple that it is within the reach of all. It unifies,

it focuses all our endeavors upon the fulfillment of

the good pleasure of Mary.

There are more ways than one leading to the reali-

2ation of this program of life. There are those, who

in order to render more complete their dependence

on Mary and to give it a characteristic of the absolute,

of the irrevocable, yes, even of the eternal, there are

some, I repeat, who dream of binding themselves

by vow to this 'liberating dependence.” They have

"sought a formula in which to express the exuberance

of their heart’s desire” and fervently address it to

the very heart of their heavenly Mother.^

This formula we here suggest to them in the

form of an Act of Consecration and abandonment

to the good pleasure of the most Blessed Virgin Mary.

"Lord Jesus who hast said, 'I always do what

pleases my Father,’ in order to keep myself per-



88 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

petually in perfect conformity to His will which is

also Yours, and in order to persevere in a loving

attitude of humble and docile correspondence with

the Holy Spirit, I desire to live in absolute depend-

ence on Mary.

‘'Therefore:

“I, ... in the joy of my soul confide to Thy Sacred

Heart the Act which I make at this moment of com-

plete surrender of myself. I abandon myself without

any reservation to the good pleasure of the Immacu-

late Heart of Mary, Thy divine Mother, the most

Blessed Virgin Mary. I also promise from now on to

accomplish in all things that which pleases her most.

“By this complete offering of myself I recognize

thee, O Blessed Virgin, today as my Mediatrix and

my Mother. I dedicate myself to thy love, thy tender-

ness, thy joys and thy sorrows. With all the power

of my heart I unite myself to thee for time and for

eternity. Amen.”

The result of such a resolution for a soul

that is really earnest will be to place itself decidedly

and in a very effective manner under the domain of

Mary, body and soul, thoughts and actions, joys and

sufferings, also the spiritual benefits that we will

receive through the kindness of our neighbors, yes,

even those prayers that will be said in our behalf



Epilogue 89

after our death. Absolutely everything that is ours

under any title whatsoever is remitted into Mary’s

hands. Above all, one’s own will is surrendered in

love and confidence and the soul conforms faithfully,

free from any anxiety or fear, to all the wishes of

Mary. Whether she sends us disappointments, a

set-back, a trial or whether she grants favors, con-

solation and joy the soul remains in peace, quiet and

indifferent. There is a higher degree of conformity

still. Not satisfied with blind acquiescence to the dis-

positions of her maternal tenderness, in order to ''go

the whole way” in its spontaneous and joyful sub-

mission, the soul determines to detect that which will

•please its Mother most. In the strictest sense of the

word the soul makes the good pleasure of Mary its

only rule of life.

And finally, should the soul desire to take the very

last step in self-surrender, if it would like to bind

itself irrevocably to Mary, it can easily do so by the

sanction of a vow. This it can do by promising never

to revoke the willingness of complete surrender; on

the contrary, it will resolve to persevere in it faith-

fully either for a specified period of time or till

death.
^

However, in a matter of such importance we

should never become unmindful of our inborn spir-

itual weakness. Therefore, avoid all rashness, act



90 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

with the greatest prudence and only after having con-

sulted a spiritual director or confessor.®

Taking all these prudent precautions, does it not

seem to you, dear reader, that the formula offered to

souls above is a means of better directing all their

activities? Does it not seem to be a tremendous help

in rendering more definite their spiritual aspirations

and consequently their journey towards sanctity?

If nothing more, our formula shows clearly that

the most important factor in real devotion to Mary

is the union of our will, the passion to give pleasure

to our beloved Mother and therefore to observe zeal-

ously that which we could call ''the precept of Mary’*

i.e. "Do all that Jesus will tell you.”

So then, any individual of "good will” can make

use of the formula as long as he understands the

meaning of it, is willing to put it into practice and

intends to arrive, with the help of Mary, more easily

and more rapidly unto the perfect love of God. I

say, easily and more rapidly, because Mary all-good

and all-powerful over the Heart of Jesus makes it

her joy to smooth the way for those who entrust

their progress in the spiritual life to her Mediation.

Let us emphasize "to her Mediation,” because the

soul which in everything seeks the good pleasure of

Mary is the normal and logical subject of Mary’s

Mediation. Mary, the Mediatrix of divine life! Mary,



Epilogue 91

the road leading to Jesus! Mary, the link between

God and us! Does all this not tell us that she is

chosen above all others to animate with her power-

ful will our weak and impotent will and thus

strengthen it sufficiently to obey the holy will of God

in all things?

We cannot conclude this little work without ex-

pressing a desire, an ardent desire shared by many

Christians. This desire is soon to behold the dawn

of the blessed day when the doctrine of the Universal

Mediation of Mary will be solemnly proclaimed a

dogma of our holy faith.

It is our firm conviction that that day will bring

Upon the world an out-pouring of blessings and will

mark a final step in establishing the Universal Reign

of Mary. That blessed reign which Saint Grignion

De Montfort declared was one of his most ardent

wishes and which must procure, with the reign of

Christ over all nations, peace all over the world.

Our joy would be great if this little work which

we offer today to our Blessed Mother would be ac-

cepted by her and blessed by her. We sincerely hope

that it will contribute not a little to hasten the hour

of her triumph by turning the eyes and hearts of

multitudes towards their heavenly Mediatrix. For

this triumph should be brought about by the endeavor



92 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

of all Christians, of all her children. All then should

busy themselves with this project. All should loving-

ly unite themselves in a new and holy crusade of

prayer and sacrifice to obtain from Heaven the reign

of Mary.

There are not a few among the faithful who have

the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass offered for this inten-

tion. We wish that this practice would become more

widespread and that the priests of their own accord

would offer every month at least one Holy Mass for

this intention. In religious communities there could

be established the custom of celebrating the Com-

munity Mass for that intention, perhaps every Satur-

day of every month and on the feasts of the Blessed

Virgin. Oh, what a powerful means this would be

to procure the glory of Mary and to attract her bless-

ings to us all!

The intention for a Marian Mass could be formu-

lated as follows: In honor of the Sorrowful and

Immaculate Mary, Mediatrix of all graces; to obtain

the proclamation of the dogma of the Universal

Mediation of Mary and the establishment of the

reign of her heart in the world; in thanksgiving

for the innumerable benefits received from her Medi-

ation; finally, in reparation for the indifference and

ingratitude of sinners towards their Mother and

Mediatrix and in expiation of the outrages and



Epilogue 93

blasphemies with which they pierce her Immaculate

Heart.
^

In the first edition of this work the author had

among the various intentions mentioned above also

the petition for the consecration of the human race

to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. This wish has

been fulfilled, at least in part; the consecration was

made on October 31, 1942, by His Holiness Pius XII

in a radio broadcast to Portugal on the occasion of

the Jubilee year of the apparitions of Our Lady of

Fatima (May 13-Oct. 13,1917); and also on Decem-

ber 8, 1942.

The following lines contain the principal thoughts

of the broadcast.

"Queen of the Most Holy Rosary, Help of Chris-

tians, Refuge of the human race, triumphant in all

battles of God, before thy throne suppliantly we

prostrate ourselves, confident of obtaining mercy and

of finding grace and timely help in the present

calamities, not on account of any merit of our own,

for we do not possess any, solely on account of the

immense goodness of thy Maternal Heart.

"To thy Immaculate Heart, We, as common Fa-

ther of the entire Christian family, Vicar of Him

to whom was given all power in Heaven and on earth

and from whom we receive the responsibility of all

souls that people the universe redeemed by His



94 Aiary, Mediatrix of All Graces

Precious Blood: to thee, to thy Immaculate Heart,

in this tragic hour of the history of humanity We

confide. We offer. We consecrate not only Holy

Church, the Mystical Body of thy Jesus who suffers

and bleeds in so many lands, but also the entire

world torn asunder by profound discord, inflamed

with the fire of hatred, victim of its own iniquities . .

.

*

'Finally, as the Church and the entire human race

were consecrated to the Sacred Heart of thy Jesus,

placing in Him all their hopes that He would be to

them a pledge of victory and salvation, in like manner

from this day forv^ard they will be perpetually conse-

crated to thee and to thy Immaculate Heart, O

Mother and Queen of the world, so that thy love and

thy protection may hasten the triumph of the reign of

God, and that all the human race in peace with God

may proclaim thee All-blessed and with thee intone

from pole to pole the eternal Magnificat of glory and

love, of recognition of the divine Heart of Jesus, in

whom alone we can find truth, life and peace.”

Is this the final act or is it the preparation for a

more official consecration? We do not know. No
matter what the case may be, this action of the

Holy Father, placing in the Heart of Mary a human

race crushed by misery and suffering, opens wide to

the w^orld the saving way of the salutary" return

toward Mary, the divine Mediatrix.



Epilogue 95

To promote this extremely salutary measure we

know that Mary expects of us that we remain united

in prayer and sacrifice, depending trustingly upon

her Mediation which is always victorious, with child-

like hearts overflowing with love striving incessantly

to teach all men to know her and to love her, so

that soon . . . SHE MAY REIGN.

1 ‘Terhaps the greatest sin in the world is that

people have begun to lose the sense of sin.” Pius

XII sees in this loss of aptitude to recognize sin

when face to face with it the source of our moral

decadence and of the many ills in the world today.

His Holiness asks: ‘^What is there left to prevent

the hordes of God’s enemies from unleashing selfish-

ness, pride, sensuality and all the unlawful emotions

of the sinner?”

2 Constitution diem ilium”

3 Cf. P. Morineau, “The Song of the Soul with

Mary,” p. 182-183; edition Spee, Paris 1930.

4 It would be more correct to say ... it is the soul

itself that refers everything it has or will have in

the future to the intention which Mary wishes her

to form. Take notice that we may continue to pray

just as before for any person or for any grace or

intention, only it is understood that those intentions

henceforth are conditional and subordinated to those

that are now automatically absorbed by the one in-

tention of giving oneself entirely to Mary.

5 For the taking of a vow in this respect the same

formula may be used as for the Act with only a



96 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

slight alteration, namely, by substituting the word

“vow” for “act” or “I am resolved.” This would be

something equivalent to, but always from the Marian

viewpoint, the vow always to do what is more

perfect. The taking of such a vow would naturally

be advisable only for a very select number of in-

dividuals.

® Those for whom such a strict obligation could

cause trouble or disquietude of soul might take the

vow under pain of venial sin, not mortal sin, with

the result that whenever the vow would not be lived

up to, the transgression would never amount to mor-

tal sin against the vow.

7 As you may have noticed, this includes the in-

tention of reparation recommended by Our Lady of

Fatima. It is known that she promised to assist

at the moment of death with all the graces necessary

for salvation those who for five successive First

Saturdays of the month will receive the sacraments

of Penance and the Holy Eucharist, recite the Ros-

ary, and for fifteen minutes meditate on the mys-

teries of the Holy Rosary. This should be done, of

course, with the intention of honoring the Sorrowful

and Immaculate Heart, to console Mary and make

reparation for the many outrages and blasphemies

of which Christ is the object on the part of so many

ungrateful Christians. We have used the expression
“Sorrowful” and “Immaculate Heart of Mary” in

answer to the wish expressed by the Heart of Jesus

to Bertha Petit. Christ Himself told this young lady

that it was His desire to see this invocation spread

throughout the Church, similar to the ejaculatory

prayer addressed to His own Sacred Heart. The de-



Epilogue 97

votion to the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of

Mary, Christ revealed in 1940, ‘‘is the last remedy

I give before the end of time’’
;
and again the follow-

ing year . . . “Salvation will be the work of our two

Hearts, the triumph of their love for mankind.” It

is a known fact that the invocation was favorably

received by Pope Benedict XV, and Cardinal Mercier,

not satisfied with making it the subject of three

Pastoral Letters, consecrated the entire Belgian na-

tion to the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of

Mary.



PRACTICES

1. CONSECRATION TO THE SACRED

HEART OF JESUS THROUGH MARY MEDU

ATRIX.

Heart of Jesus, I come to adore Thee in order to

give myself to Thee. That I may belong entirely to

Thee, I consecrate to Thy Adorable Heart all that

I have, all that I am. I give Thee all and ask in

return only thy love.

For the purpose of loving Thee more and more I

come before Thee. I do not wish for the goods of

this world, nor earthly honors, nor success in my

undertakings, nor the esteem of men. My only wish

is to fulfill Thy most adorable and divine pleasure.

Behold, I am poor, miserable, little and sinful.

I come to Thee, however, with complete confidence,

because it is not in my own name that I come, but

in the NAME OF MARY, Thy Mother and mine.

In her Name I knock at the entrance of Thy Sacred

Heart. She is my treasure which Thou hast given to

me. This most blessed treasure I offer Thee. Let

this most holy Mother of mine be my advocate and

my all before Thy throne.



Practices 99

Mary, my Mother and Mediatrix, prostrate at thy

feet, I thy child this moment look up to thee who

art the WAY TO JESUS, 'via ad Jesum.” I wish
to go to Him. Thy path will lead me straight to Him.

If I follow thee, I will reach Him without fail. His

divine Heart will readily accept the gift of my en-

tire self when offered through thy hands.

Therefore, I consecrate myself entirely to thy Im-

maculate Heart, giving myself to thee without re-

serve. I beg thee, deign to accept as thy own pos-

session all my thoughts, words and actions, my body

and my soul. ALL THAT IS MINE IS THINE . . . .

THINE FOREVER.

Furthermore I proclaim the work of my salvation

to be in thy hands. I undertake it only because it

is thine. If I make progress in it at all it is because

thou art with me.

In thee I wish to live a truly Christian life in the

full meaning of the word, so that completely trans-

formed by means of the divine life received through

thy all-powerful Mediation I may truly become, in

imitation of thy divine Son, ANOTHER JESUS.

Thou art His Mother and also mine: render my

heart more childlike, more kind, more loving, more

strong. Briefly, make my heart like unto His. Make

me resemble Him more and more. Make me a true

BROTHER OF JESUS.



100 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

I know, holy Mother, that this resemblance can

be wrought only by means of the cross, but the

cross will be sweet and the burden light when I

carry it in union with thee. Thou art my strength,

my hope, my joy, my assurance, my light on the way.

THOU ART MY SALVATION. All my hope is
in thee. Do with me whatsoever pleases thee, only

grant to thy child the grace never to cease loving thee,

thee and thy Son Jesus. And finally grant me the

grace to make thee loved by others. Amen.

2. PLEDGE OF THE LEGION OF MARY.

In this promise which the members of the Legion

of Mary make on the day of their official reception

we may readily sense the fiery love, the absolute con-

fidence and trust, the virile energy wholly character-

istic of the Legionary.

Most Holy Spirit, I desiring to be

enrolled this day in the Legion of Mary but knowing

that of myself I am incapable of rendering Thee

worthy service, beg of Thee to come down upon

me and to replenish my heart with Thyself, so that

my poor efforts will be strengthened with Thy pow-

er and become the instrument of Thy potent designs.

But I know that Thou who hast come to regenerate

the world in Jesus Christ hast wished to come to us

only through Mary; I know that without her it is im-

possible for us to know Thee or to love Thee as we



Practices 101

ought; that Thy gifts are distributed to us only

through her: all Thy virtues, all Thy graces,

to whom she wishes and as much as she wishes and

in the manner she wishes.

And I see very clearly that the secret of success-

ful service for the Legionary consists in uniting him-

self entirely to her who was so completely united

to Thee.

It is for this reason that, taking the Vexillum, the

Banner of the Legion, which symbolizes all these

truths, I stand before Thee as her soldier and her

child, and thus proclaim my entire dependence upon

her.

She is the Mother of my soul. Her heart and mine

make but one heart. From the depths of her most

tender heart she repeats the words spoken long ago:

"Behold the handmaid of the Lord.” And once again

Thou wilt accomplish great things through her.

Let Thy power overshadow me and enter into my^

soul to enkindle it with the fire of Thy love. Let

the love in my soul be united with the love in Mary

and let my will be united to hers. Let me become

pure in her whom Thou hast created Immaculate.

O Holy Spirit, grant that Christ, my Lord, may

also grow in me. That with her. His Mother, I may

be allowed to carry Him into the world and to souls

that have such great need of Him. And that after



102 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

victory has been won, together with those souls we

may all reign eternally with Mary in the glory of the

Holy Trinity.

0 Holy Spirit, assured that Thou wilt kindly ac-

cept me, that Thou wilt deign to make use of my

service, that Thou wilt change my weakness into

strength, I take my place in the ranks of the Legion

and I dare to promise Thee faithful service.

1 will completely submit to the discipline of the

rule which binds me to my brethren, which con-

stitutes us an army and directs our ranks in the of-

fensive we take under the leadership of Mary, to

fulfill her will, to bring about Thy marvels of grace

which will renew the face of the earth and will es-

tablish, Most Holy Spirit, Thy reign over all things.

In the name of the Father and of the Son and of

the Holy Ghost. Amen.

3. SALUTATION OF MARY.

This salutation, which we reproduce with a few

changes, was originally composed by Saint John

Eudes, the apostle of the devotion to the Sacred

Hearts of Jesus and Mary. The Blessed Virgin prom-

ised the Saint to bestow special graces upon all who

recite it, assuring him that if the soul that recited

it be in the state of sin, at each salutation she would

knock on the door of his heart and urge him to open

that door to divine grace.



Practices 103

This Salutation was propagated in the 19th cen-

tury by Father Paul de Moll, a Belgian Benedictine

who died in the odor of -sanctity, Feb. 24, 1896, in

the Abbey of Tremonde, Belgium. **You will live

for the consolation of a great number of people,”

our blessed Lord told him in an apparition during

which He cured him of a mortal malady whilst the

Blessed Virgin held the priest maternally by the

hand. Father MolFs mission proved to be a veritable

chain of miracles, which he continues to work even

now in heaven. One day, whilst still living here be-

low, he said to one of his friends: ”Ask me for

anything you wish. I will obtain it for you. And when

I am in heaven, keep on asking. I will have more

time then to occupy myself with you and there my

power will be still greater.” Numerous favors have

been obtained through his intercession. Any one

who obtains graces through him is invited to make

them known to the Rt. Rev. Father Abbot of the

Abbey of Tremonde, Belgium.

SALUTATION TO THE MOST BLESSED

VIRGIN MARY, MOTHER OF GOD

I greet thee, O Mary

Daughter of God the Father.

I greet thee, O Mary

Mother of God the Son.



104 Marj, Mediatrix of All Graces

I greet thee, O Mary

Spouse of the Holy Ghost.

I greet thee, O Mary

Temple of the Most Holy Trinity.

I greet thee, O Mary

White lily of the resplendent and ever Immutable

Trinity.

I greet thee, O !Mary

Red Rose of Paradise.

I greet thee, O Mary

Virgin full of tenderness and humility, of whom

the King of Heaven willed to be bom, by whom

He willed to be nourished with thy mother milk.

I greet thee, O Mary

Virgin of virgins.

I greet thee, O ^lary

Queen of martyrs whose soul was pierced with

sorrows.

I greet thee, O Mary

Lady and Mistress to whom has been given all

power in Heaven and on earth.

I greet thee, O Mary

Queen of my heart, my s\v’eetness, my life and

entire hope.

I greet thee, O Mary

Mother most amiable.



Practices 105

I greet thee, O Mary

Mother most admirable.

I greet thee, O Mary

Mother of fair love. '

I greet thee, O Mary

Mother of mercy.

I greet thee, O Mary

conceived without sin.

Thou art full of
^

grace

the Lord is with thee.

Blessed art thou among women

And blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

Blessed be thy spouse

Saint Joseph.

Blessed be thy father

Saint Joachim.

Blessed be thy mother

Saint Ann.

Blessed be thy adopted son . ,

Saint John.
,

Blessed be thy angel .

Saint Gabriel.

Blessed be the eternal Father ' s

who has chosen thee.

Blessed be thy Son

who has loved thee.



106 Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces

Blessed be the Holy Spirit

who has espoused thee.

And blessed forever all those

who love thee and bless thee.

O Everlasting Virgin, bless us all

in the name of thy dear Son. Amen.

4. MARY’S CANTICLE.

The holy Gospel contains very few of the words

spoken by Mary during her life here below on earth.

It has however handed down to us one of her songs.

For lack of a better comparison let us call it a most

precious jewel. I refer to the MAGNIFICAT.

Gushing forth from the heart of Mary under the

inspiration of the Holy Spirit Himself, this hymn of

praise and thanksgiving should frequently, very fre-

quently, be echoed in our hearts as an expression of

the most perfect conformity of our sentiments with

those of our divine Mother.

"My soul magnifies the Lord,

and my spirit rejoices in God, my Savior,

because He has regarded the lowliness of His

handmaid;

"For behold, henceforth all generations shall call

me blessed;

because He who is mighty hath done great things

to me.



Practices 107

and holy is His name;

And for generation upon generation is His merqr,

to those who fear Him.

"He hath shown might with His arm,

He hath scattered the proud in the conceit of their

heart.

He hath put down the mighty from their throne

and exalted the lowly.

He hath filled the hungry with good things,

and the rich He hath sent away empty.

"He has given help to Israel, His servant,

mindful of His mercy

—

even as He spoke to our fathers

—

to Abraham and to his posterity forever."

(Luke 1: 37-49)

5. PRAYER OF SAINT BERNARD.

The writings of Saint Bernard are replete with

admirable pages regarding the blessed Virgin Mary.

It would indeed be difficult to speak more beauti-

fully of Mary than he did. Witness the following

prayer which we borrow from his second sermon for

Advent.

"Through thee, O most blessed Virgin, thou who

hast found grace. Mother of life. Mother of salva-

tion, through thee let us have access to thy Son, that

we may receive through thee. Him who has been

given to us through thee. Let thy integrity excuse be-



108 Mary^ Mediatrix of All Graces

fore Him the guilt of our corruption; let thy abound-

ing charity cover the rnultitude of our sins; let thy

humility so pleasing to God make amends and ob-

tain pardon for our pride; let thy glorious fecundity

supply in our behalf for our lack of merit. O thou

who art our Lady, our Mediatrix, and our Advocate,

reconcile us to thy Son, commend us to thy Son,

present us to thy Son. Grant, O most blessed Virgin,

by the grace thou hast found, by the prerogative thou

hast merited, by the mercy thou hast obtained, that

He who vouchsafed to make Himself, by thy con-

sent and cooperation, a partaker of our poverty and

infirmity, may make us by thy intercession partakers

of His own glory and happiness, Jesus Christ, thy

Son our Lord, who is over all things God blessed

forever. Amen.”

(St. Bernard’s Sermons—Mount Melleray—^Vol. 1.
p. 21—Brone and Noble, Ltd., Dublin.)

6. RENDEZVOUS.

Every afternoon, at three o’clock, let all souls de-

voted to Mary go in spirit to Calvary and recite the

following prayer.

"Most sweet Savior Jesus, who at this last hour

didst die for the salvation of all mankind, we beseech

Thee to renew to the world the gift which Thou didst

bestow upon us all from the height of the Cross,

the gift of Thy most holy Mother.



Practices 109

''We thank Thee for having given her to us, that

Mother all-good, that Mediatrix all-powerful through

her intercession, and we accept her as the most preci-

ous pledge among all the pledges we have received

from Thy Sacred Heart.”