Mary Immaculate, Star of the Morning

Anthems of the Immaculate Virgin Mary, Star of the Sea

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Worship (“worthy-ship”) is best interpreted as “give esteem”. We give adoration, latria, to God alone, we give veneration, dulia, worship, to the Saints–I have seen a stained glass window of John Calvin in Westminster Presbyterian by the California State Capitol–and we give extreme veneration, hyperdulia, to the Blessed Virgin Mary as the creature of God of greater dignity and holiness than all others, angels or men.

Iconoclasts blur these distinctions between the several gradations of piety, despite Adonai’s command to hear Him from between the images of angels on the ark of the covenant (Exodus 25:22), and Adonai’s command (Numbers 21:6-9) to set up brass serpents on a pole to be viewed by the people for a cure from the plague punishment for their faithlessness, to which Jesus seems to be referring about Himself in John 12:32 when He says “And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all things to myself.”.

Most people who feel scruples that our attention to Mary should not detract from the glory of Jesus, take no account, that it is His own will that we begin our efforts at properly humbling ourselves before Him, by first humbling ourselves to her.

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St. Bernard says: “Mary had no fault of her own, and far from her most innocent heart was repentance.” Of what could the heart of Mary repent when she had never admitted into it anything worthy of penance? Therefore, her pure heart was not the haunt of the devil, nor the sepulcher of vice. Rather, it was a garden and a paradise of the Holy Ghost, according to that word of the Canticle of Canticles: “A garden enclosed is my Sister, my Spouse.”

“A garden,” says St. Jerome, “a garden of delights, in which were planted the seeds of all virtues, and the perfume of virtue.” St. Bonaventure, Psalter of the Blessed Virgin Mary

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The Blessed Virgin said of her Bridegroom at the instant of the Incarnation, “He brought me into the cellar of wine.” The saints who comment on this passage tell us that each of our souls, like hers, must descend with him into that cellar where he will say, “Eat, O my friends, and drink, and be inebriated, my dearly beloved.” The saints refer to this as a definite, necessary stage in the spiritual life. Without it, there is no progress toward the Kingdom of Heaven, which is the only goal of the Catholic life, whose only language is music–the etymological root of which means “silence,” as in “mute” and “mystery.” Music is the voice of silence, and so it follows that to enter with Our Beloved Lord into that prayer of quiet and to pray to Our Blessed Lady that He might lead us there, we must learn to speak that language too, that is, we must know music and especially the music of words which is poetry. – John Senior, The Restoration of Christian Culture

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The Miracle on the Vistula

In the 1920, Bolshvik invasion of Poland, after national prayers at Jasna Góra, when our Lady appeared to the retreating Russians–but the Poles couldn’t see her because she was behind them–the Bolsheviks failed to defeat the Polish army but the Masonic government of Poland didn’t want our Lady to receive credit.

Without our Lady’s intervention, the Bolsheviks would have swept through Poland to waiting Communist cadres all through Germany, France and the rest of Continental Europe, easily overthrowing those governments, the most complete international rout since the French Revolution. Modern history would have been completely different, to an extent unimaginable to us–without the Miracle on the Vistula, by our Lady of Jasna Góra.

Sweet Morn Thou Parent of the Sun (New York, Catholic Hymn Book, Edward Dunigan and Brother, 1851), arranged to Kingsfold (the theme of Five Variants of Dives and Lazarus by Ralph Vaughan Williams)
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Remember, O most gracious Virgin Mary, that never was it known that anyone who fled to thy protection, implored thy help, or sought thine intercession was left unaided. Inspired by this confidence, I fly unto thee, O Virgin of virgins, my mother; to thee do I come, before thee I stand, sinful and sorrowful. O Mother of the Word Incarnate, despise not my petitions, but in thy mercy hear and answer me. Amen.

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Domine, non est. The prophet’s humility. [1] Lord, my heart is not exalted: nor are my eyes lofty. Neither have I walked in great matters, nor in wonderful things above me. [2] If I was not humbly minded, but exalted my soul: As a child that is weaned is towards his mother, so reward in my soul. [3] Let Israel hope in the Lord, from henceforth now and for ever. – Psalm 130

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A-ve Ma-ri__-a. Gra-ti-a ple_-na. Do-mi-nus te_-cum, Do_-mi_-nus_ te-cum. Be_-ne-di-cta tu, Be-ne-di-cta tu in mu_-li_-e-ri-bus. Et be-ne-dic_-ctus, Fruc-tus ven_-tris tu_i_, Je-sus. San-cta Ma-ri-a, Ma_-ter De__-i. O-ra pro no_-bis, Pe_-ca-to___-ri-bus, Nunc_ et in ho_ra, Mor___-tis, No_-strae. A-men.

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(CHORUS) On this day, O beautiful Mother, On this day we give thee our love. Near thee, Madonna, fondly we hover, Trusting thy gentle care to prove.	1. On this day we ask to share, Dearest Mother, thy sweet care; Aid us ere our feet astray Wander from thy guiding way. (CHORUS)
2. Queen of angels, deign to hear Lisping children’s humble prayer; Young hearts gain, O virgin pure, Sweetly to thyself allure. (CHORUS)	3. Rose of Sharon, Lovely flow’r, Beauteous bud of eden’s bow’r; Cherished lily of the valley, Virgin Mother, Queen we hail. (CHORUS)
4. Fast our days of life we run. Soon the night of death will come. Tow’r of strength in theat_ dread hour_, Come with al thy gen-tel pow’r. (CHORUS)

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1. ⁠Mother dear, O pray for me, Whilst far from heaven and thee.
I wander in a fragile bark, O’er life’s tempestuous sea.
O Virgin Mother from thy throne So bright in bliss above,
Protect thy child and cheer my path With thy sweet smile of love.
Mother dear remember me, And never cease thy care,
⁠Till in heaven eternally, Thy love and bliss I share.

2.⁠ Mother dear, O pray for me, Should pleasure’s siren lay
E’en tempt thy child to wander far From virtue’s path away
When thorns beset life’s devious way, And darkling waters flow
Then, Mary did thy weeping child Thyself a mother show
⁠Mother dear remember me, And never cease thy care,
⁠Till in heaven eternally, Thy love and bliss I share.

3. ⁠Mother dear, O Pray for me! When all looks bright and fair,
That I may all my dangers see, For surely them ’tis near.
A Mother’s prayer how much we need If prosperous be the ray
That paints with gold the flowery mead, Which blossoms in our way.
⁠Mother dear remember me, And never cease thy care,
⁠Till in heaven eternally, Thy love and bliss I share.

Call upon the Blessed Virgin to Cover you with her mantle of Humility

 …He hath regarded the humility of Hs handmaid… – The Magnificat 

A priest gave the advice that, upon being tempted against chastity, we may say three Ave Marias, a remedy without fail. We may also ask for the Blessed Virgin to cover us with her mantle of humility, when we discern that we are afflicted with pride.

From The Glories of Mary by Saint Alphonsus Liguori

Mary,” says Richard of St. Laurence, “protects us under the mantle of humility.” O my queen, I can never be really thy child unless I am humble; but dost thou not see that my sins, after having rendered me ungrateful to my Lord, have also made me proud? O my Mother, do thou supply a remedy. By the merit of thy humility obtain that I may be truly humble, and thus become thy child, Amen.

“Humility,” says St. Bernard, “is the foundation and guardian of virtues;” and with reason, for without it no other virtue can exist in a soul. Should she possess all virtues, all will depart when humility is gone. But, on the other hand, as St. Francis de Sales wrote to St. Jane Frances de Chantal, “God so loves humility, that whenever He sees it, He is immediately drawn thither.” This beautiful and so necessary virtue was unknown in the world; but the Son of God Himself came on earth to teach it by His Own example, and willed that in that virtue in particular we should endeavor to imitate Him: “Learn of Me, because I am meek and humble of heart.” Mary, being the first and most perfect disciple of Jesus Christ in the practice of all virtues, was the first also in that of humility, and by it merited to be exalted above all creatures. It was revealed to St. Matilda that the first virtue in which the Blessed Mother particularly exercised herself, from her very childhood, was that of humility.

The first effect of humility of heart is a lowly opinion of ourselves: “Mary had always so humble an opinion of herself, that, as it was revealed to the same St. Matilda, although she saw herself enriched with greater graces than all other creatures, she never preferred herself to anyone.” The Abbot Rupert, explaining the passage of the sacred Canticles, “Thou hast wounded my heart, my sister, my spouse, …with one hair of thy neck“, [Cant. 4:9] says, that the humble opinion which Mary had of herself was precisely that hair of the Spouse’s neck with which she wounded the heart of God. Not indeed that Mary considered herself a sinner: for humility is truth, as St. Teresa remarks: and Mary knew that she had never offended God: nor was it that she did not acknowledge that she had received greater graces from God than all other creatures; for an humble heart always acknowledges the special favors of the Lord, to humble herself the more: but the Divine Mother, by the greater light wherewith she knew the infinite greatness and goodness of God, also knew her own nothingness, and therefore, more than all others, humbled herself, saying with the sacred Spouse: “Do not consider that I am brown, because the sun hath altered my color.” [Cant. 1:5] That is, as St. Bernard explains it, “When I approach Him, I find myself black.” Yes, says St. Bernardine, for “the Blessed Virgin had always the majesty of God, and her own nothingness, present to her mind.” As a beggar, when clothed with a rich garment, which has been bestowed upon her, does not pride herself on it in the presence of the giver, but is rather humbled, being reminded thereby of her own poverty; so also the more Mary saw herself enriched, the more did she humble herself, remembering that all was God’s gift; whence she herself told St. Elizabeth of Hungary, that “she might rest assured that she looked upon herself as most vile and unworthy of God’s grace.” “Therefore”, St. Bernardine says, that “after the Son of God, no creature in the world was so exalted as Mary, because no creature in the world ever humbled itself so much as she did.”

Moreover, it is an act of humility to conceal heavenly gifts. Mary wished to conceal from St. Joseph the great favor whereby she had become the Mother of God, although it seemed necessary to make it known to him, if only to remove from the mind of her poor spouse any suspicions as to her virtue, which he might have entertained on seeing her pregnant: or at least the perplexity in which it indeed threw him: for St. Joseph, on the one hand unwilling to doubt Mary’s chastity, and on the other ignorant of the mystery, “was minded to put her away privately“.[Matt. 1:19] This he would have done, had not the Angel revealed to him that his Spouse was pregnant by the operation of the Holy Ghost.

Again, a soul that is truly humble refuses her own praise; and should praises be bestowed on her, she refers them all to God. Behold, Mary is disturbed at hearing herself praised by St. Gabriel; and when St. Elizabeth said, “Blessed art thou among women … and whence is this to me, that the Mother of my Lord should come to me? … blessed art thou that hast believed,” [Luke 1:42] Mary referred all to God, and answered in that humble Canticle, “My soul doth magnify the Lord,” [Ibid.,46-47] as if she had said: Thou dost praise me, Elizabeth; but I praise the Lord, to Whom alone honor is due: thou wonderest that I should come to thee, and I wonder at the divine goodness in which alone my spirit exults: “and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour”. Thou praisest me because I have believed; I praise my God, because He hath been pleased to exalt my nothingness: “because He hath regarded the humility of His handmaid.” Hence Mary said to St. Bridget: “I humbled myself so much, and thereby merited so great a grace, because I thought, and knew, that of myself I possessed nothing. For this same reason I did not desire to be praised; I only desired that praises should be given to the Creator and Giver of all.” Wherefore an ancient author, speaking of the humility of Mary, says: “O truly blessed humility, which hath given God to men, opened Heaven, and delivered souls from Hell.”

It is also a part of humility to serve others. Mary did not refuse to go and serve Elizabeth for three months. Hence St. Bernard says, “Elizabeth wondered that Mary should have come to visit her; but that which is still more admirable is, that she came not to be ministered to, but to minister.”

Those who are humble are retiring, and choose the last places; and therefore Mary, remarks St. Bernard, when her Son was preaching in a house, as it is related by St. Matthew, [12:46] wishing to speak to Him, would not of her own accord enter, but “remained outside, and did not avail herself of her maternal authority to interrupt Him.” For the same reason also when she was with the Apostles awaiting the coming of the Holy Ghost, she took the lowest place, as St. Luke relates, “All these were persevering with one mind in prayer, with the women, and Mary, the Mother of Jesus.” [Acts 1:14] Not that St. Luke was ignorant of the Divine Mother’s merits, on account of which he should have named her in the first place, but because she had taken the last place amongst the Apostles and women; and therefore he described them all, as an author remarks, in the order in which they were. Hence St. Bernard says, “Justly has the last become the first, who being the first of all became the last.”

In fine, those who are humble, love to be contemned; therefore, we do not read that Mary showed herself in Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, when her Son was received by the people with so much honor: but on the other hand, at the death of her Son she did not shrink from appearing on Calvary, through fear of the dishonor which would accrue to her when it was known that she was the Mother of Him Who was condemned to die an infamous death as a criminal. Therefore she said to St. Bridget, “What is more humbling than to be called a fool, to be in want of all things, and to believe one’s self the most unworthy of all? Such, O daughter, was my humility; this was my joy; this was all my desire with which I thought how to please my Son alone.”

The Venerable Sister Paula of Foligno was given to understand, in an ecstasy, how great was the humility of our Blessed Lady; and giving an account of it to her confessor, she was so filled with astonishment at its greatness, that she could only exclaim, “O, the humility of the Blessed Virgin! O, Father, the humility of the Blessed Virgin, how great was the humility of the Blessed Virgin! In the world there is no such thing as humility, not even in its lowest degree, when you see the humility of Mary.” On another occasion our Lord showed St. Bridget two ladies. The one was all pomp and vanity. “She,” He said, “is Pride; but the other one whom you see with her head bent down, courteous towards all, having God alone in her mind, and considering herself as no one, is Humility: her name is Mary.” Hereby God was pleased to make known to us that the humility of His Blessed Mother was such that she was humility itself.