In heaven Mary is better us able to help, Mary: Day 081

In heaven Mary is better us able to help, Mary: Day 081 October 10, 2015

year_with_mary_alphonsus_1In heaven Mary is better us able to help

We should rejoice in Mary’s exalted position in heaven, says St. Alphonsus. Not only should we be glad for her blessedness; we should be grateful that she’s better able to help us there.

St. Bernardine of Siena teaches, with St. Bernard, that the saints have a share in the divine glory. But the Blessed Virgin has been, in a certain way, so greatly enriched with it, that it seems no creature could be more closely united with God than Mary is: “She has penetrated into the bottom of the deep, and she seems immersed as deeply as it is possible for a creature in that inaccessible light.” St. Albert the Great confirms this insight, saying that our queen “con- templates the majesty of God in incomparably closer proximity than all other creatures.”

Let’s rejoice, then, with Mary that God has exalted her to so high a throne in heaven. Let’s also rejoice on our own account. For even though our mother is no longer present with us on earth, having ascended in glory to heaven, yet she’s always with us in affection. In fact, since she’s nearer to God there, she knows better our miseries; her pity for us is greater; and she’s better able to help us.

“If Mary’s compassion for the miserable was great when she lived on earth,” says St. Bonaventure, “it’s far greater now that she reigns in heaven.” In the meantime, then, let’s dedicate ourselves to the service of this queen, to honor and love her as much as we can. For, as Richard of Saint Lawrence remarks, “She’s not like other rulers, who oppress their vassals with burdens and taxes. Instead, she enriches her servants with graces, merits, and rewards.” —St. Alphonsus Liguori, The Glories of Mary

IN GOD’S PRESENCE, CONSIDER . . .
If I were rescued from a burning house, but my children were still in danger inside, would I be less likely, or more, to be concerned with helping my children to safety? Now that Mary is safely in heaven, wouldn’t she feel the same way about her children still in danger on earth?

CLOSING PRAYER
From a prayer of Guarric, Abbot of Igniac: Mother of Mercy, you who sit on so lofty a throne and in such close proximity to God, enjoy your fill of the glory of your Jesus; and send us your servants, the fragment that are left.

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