Mary follows our footsteps Pope Benedict XVI urges those who live without faith, or as if they had no faith, to open themselves to the mystery of God by contemplating Mary. Some people today live as if they never had to die or as if, with death, everything were over; others, who hold that man is the one and only author of his own destiny, behave as though God did not exist, and at times they even reach the point... Read more
Marge Fenelon is a Catholic, author, speaker, and columnist.She has been writing for Catholic and secular publications for nearly two decades. More than fifteen years ago, she decided to leave behind the secular business world in order to focus her talents and energies on serving the Church and Catholic media. She is a longtime contributor to a variety of Catholic and secular publications, including Our Sunday Visitor and National Catholic Register. Her column, “The Whirl,” runs in the Milwaukee Catholic... Read more
Jesus and Mary are inseparable St. Ignatius of Loyola insists that Jesus cannot be separated from Mary; they have been united from the beginning, on earth and in heaven. The holy soul of Mary is united to the soul of Jesus, which is wor- thy of our adoration. She conceived him in her heart before receiving him in her bosom, says St. Bernard. She unites herself to him by the most lively faith, the most fiery charity, by her consent,... Read more
In 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... Read more
Mary supports us in the journey of life Pope Leo XIII recognizes the difficulties of our journey toward heaven, but he’s confident that we can reach our destination safely if we hold Mary’s hand as we walk. In Mary we see how a truly good and provident God has established for us a most suitable example of every virtue. As we look upon her and think about her, we are not cast down as though stricken by the overpowering splendor... Read more
This week Ave Maria Press sponsors the giveaway. One lucky winner will receive one copy of Our Lady, Undoer of Knots: A Living Novena (you can read my review here). I use Rafflecopter to run my giveaways which makes it simple for you and me! Enter below. The contest starts at midnight tonight EST and will end 12 AM EST 10/16 with a winner being announced later that day. a Rafflecopter giveaway Read more
Mary was poor St. Alphonsus tells how Mary’s detachment from worldly goods allowed her to be content in poverty. Our most loving Redeemer, so that we might learn from him to despise the things of the world, was pleased to be poor on earth: “Though he was rich,” says St. Paul, “for your sake he became poor, so that by his poverty you might become rich” (2 Cor 8:9). For this reason Jesus Christ exhorts each one who desires to... Read more
The devotion to Our Lady, Undoer of Knots, has garnered a lot of attention lately. This renewed focus upon this classic devotional is due largely in part to Pope Francis’ own promotion of it. Marge Fenelon has brought readers an excellent resource for use titled Our Lady, Undoer of Knots: A Living Novena. It’s a great little book I found useful in “undoing” some recent knots in my own life and think you will find it useful as well. The... Read more
In Mary, all the virtues of the saints unite Each saint excels in certain heroic virtues, St. Alphonsus declares, but Mary excels in them all. In each of the saints there were different graces. As St. Paul says, “there are varieties of gifts” (1 Cor 12:4). Each of the saints, by cooperating with the grace he had received, excelled in some particular virtue: one in saving souls, another in leading a penitential life; one in enduring torments, another in a... Read more
Mary was perfectly obedient to God Because of her freedom from original sin, St. Alphonsus explains, Our Lady could be more perfectly obedient to God than all the other saints. When the angel Gabriel announced to Mary God’s great plans for her, because of her love for obedience she would call herself only a handmaid: “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord” (Lk 1:38). “Yes,” says St. Thomas of Villanova, “for this faithful handmaid never, in either thought or... Read more
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