God made Mary a worthy habitation for his Son, Mary: Day 179

God made Mary a worthy habitation for his Son

For the honor of his Son, St. Alphonsus insists, God the Father built a perfect home, spotless and flawless.

Here is the most important reason why it was fitting for the Eternal Father to keep Mary, his daughter, unspotted by Adam’s sin. As St. Bernardine of Siena remarks, it was fitting because he destined her to be the mother of his only-begotten Son: “You were preordained in the mind of God, before all crea- tures, that you might conceive God himself as man.”

If, then, for no other purpose than the honor of his Son, who was God, it was reasonable that the Father should create Mary free from every stain. The angelic St. Thomas says: “Holiness is to be attributed to those things that are ordained for a God.” For this reason, when King David was planning the temple in Jerusalem, on a scale of magnificence fitting God, he said, “For the house will not be prepared for man, but for the Lord God” (1 Chr 29:1).

How much more reasonable is it, then, to suppose that the Sovereign Archi- tect, who destined Mary to be the mother of his own Son, adorned her soul with all most precious gifts, so that she might be a dwelling worthy of a God! The holy Church herself, in the following prayer, assures us that God prepared the body and soul of the Blessed Virgin, so as to be a worthy dwelling on earth for his only-begotten Son: “Almighty and eternal God, by the cooperation of the Holy Spirit, you prepared the body and soul of the glorious virgin and mother Mary, so that she might become a worthy habitation for your Son.” —St. Alphonsus Liguori, The Glories of Mary

IN GOD’S PRESENCE, CONSIDER . . .
If I were building new a home for my child, wouldn’t I want it to be without stain or damage? Wouldn’t God the Father want to do the same for his beloved Son?

CLOSING PRAYER
From a prayer of St. John of Damascus: Watch over us, O Queen, the dwelling place of our Lord. Lead and govern all our ways as you wish and save us from our sins. Lead us into the calm harbor of God’s will.

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