Jesus returns the favor to his mother, Mary: Day 064

Jesus returns the favor to his mother

Jesus was granted a great favor by his mother, St. Alphonsus observes, when she consented to allow him to take his flesh from her. Now the Son returns the favor by granting her intercessions for us.

St. George of Nicomedia says that Jesus Christ grants all his mother asks, as if to satisfy an obligation under which he placed himself towards her when she consented to give him his human nature. “The Son,” he says to Mary, “as if paying a debt, grants all your petitions.”

On this same matter the holy martyr St. Methodius exclaims: “Rejoice, rejoice, O Mary, for you have as your debtor that Son who gives to all and receives from none. We are all God’s debtors for all that we possess, for all is his gift. But God has been pleased to become your debtor in taking flesh from you and becoming man.”

St. Theophilus of Alexandria, in the time of St. Jerome, wrote: “The prayers of his mother are a pleasure to the Son, because he desires to grant all that is granted on her account. In this way he returns to her the favor she did him in giving him his body.”

Let’s conclude with the words of St. Bonaventure. Considering the great benefit conferred on us by our Lord in giving us Mary for our advocate, he addresses her this way: “O truly immense and admirable goodness of our God, which has been pleased to grant you, O sovereign Mother, to us miserable sin- ners for our advocate, so that you, by your powerful intercession, may obtain all that you desire for us!”

“O wonderful mercy of our God,” he continues, “who, in order that we might not flee because of the sentence that might be pronounced against us, has given us his own mother and the patroness of graces to be our advocate.” —St. Alphonsus Liguori, The Glories of Mary

IN GOD’S PRESENCE, CONSIDER . . .
When I think of someone to whom I feel deeply indebted, would my gratitude make me eager to answer that person’s request? How eager do I think Jesus is to grant his mother’s requests?

CLOSING PRAYER
From a prayer of St. Andrew of Crete: We beg you, holy Virgin, to grant us the help of your prayers with God; prayers that are more precious than all the treasures of the world; prayers that obtain for us a very great abundance of graces; prayers that confound all enemies.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Remember to subscribe to my feed so you will not miss a day! This recurring feature at The Catholic Blogger is possible through the cooperation of author Paul Thigpen and publisher Saint Benedict Press. To get your own copy of this book, click below.