4 December 2012 Immaculate Conception Novena “Draw us, O Immaculate Virgin, we will run after thee in the odour of thy ointments.” (Song of Songs 1:3) Day 5 -- Mystical Rose Having Jesus beside us always through a life of prayer. St Luke confirms Mary’s contemplative spirit on three separate events: On Christmas Eve in Bethlehem; on returning from Jerusalem; and after Mary and Joseph find the child Jesus teaching in the temple. Most probably she confided to the Apostles this natural interior disposition. The Blessed Mother treasures in her heart the great and small events of her simple life in the light of faith. Mary is a supreme example of interior recollection. Her insistent prayer rises to heaven like the sweet perfume of the rose. “Our Lady’s praise and petition to God constantly advance with fresh vigor since she started in Our Lord’s service; her love ever vibrant and virginal. The fragrance of her prayer is stirred by the breeze of our petition and the stormy winds that blow throughout the world. She joins our thanksgiving and petition to her own, and presents it to the Father through Jesus Christ her Son.” (F M Moschner, “Mystical Rose”, p201) When Mary looks or smiles at Jesus or even just think about him, she is speaking to God. Truly what prayer is. (J H Newman, “Mystical Rose”) Our Lady always acted with the express desire to please her Son. Our prayer leads us to identify fully with Jesus. Thus we regard even the relatively minor details of each day with supernatural delight. Our Lord learned from his Mother many prayers that had been passed down from generation to generation among the people of Israel. We, too may recall prayers that we learned from our own mothers. Our Lady’s example encourages us to deepen our prayer. The incense of our prayer must rise constantly to God our Father. We ask Our Lady, who is in heaven, body and soul, to petition Jesus for us: “Remember O Blessed Virgin Mother of God to intercede before him on our behalf.” (“Graduale Romanum”, 1979, 422) Prayer strengthens us against temptation. The Lord addresses these words to us as he did to the disciples in Gethsemane: “Why do you sleep? Rise up and pray, that you may not enter into temptation.” (Lk 22:46) We must pray always. Through this union with the Lord, we remain vigilant in the face of adversity. The Blessed Virgin shows us how to ponder truths of the Faith in our heart. We also come to perceive the events of our life in the light of God’s presence. Apparent disaster and success, the difficulties at work or in the family assume their deepest meaning in prayer. Like Mary our model, we can habitually seek the Lord in the intimacy of our soul in grace. “Be joyful and gladdened in your interior recollection with him, for you have him so close to you. Desire him there, adore him there. Do not go in pursuit of him outside yourself. You will only become distracted and wearied thereby, and you shall not find him, or enjoy him more securely, or sooner, or more intimately, than by seeking him within you.” (St John of the Cross, “Spiritual Canticle”, 1, 8) If during our daily conversation with God we always seek Mary’s intercession, we will immediately experience her efficacious help. In our mental prayer, a personal dialogue with the Lord, we come to understand better the content of Sacred Scripture, and to perceive with greater clarity what he expects from us. “There is a growth of insight into the realities and words that are being used in such communication. This comes about in various ways. It comes through the contemplation and study of believers who ponder these things in their own hearts (cf Lk 2:19,51).” (Second Vatican Council, “Dei Verbum”, 8) Vocal prayer is also most pleasing to God when done as a meditation. “Spontaneous prayers are simple, ardent phrases addressed to God and to his Mother, our Mother as well. I still renew, morning and evening, and habitually, the offering I learned from my parents: ‘O my Lady, my Mother! I offer myself entirely to you, and in proof of my filial love I consecrate to you this day my eyes, my ears, my tongue, my heart ...’” (St Josemaria Escrivá, “Friends of God”, 296) Our ardent devotion for these simple prayers help us fulfil a duty of charity by teaching them to others. Let us resolve to recite our customary prayers, especially the Rosary, with increased affection and devotion. No other person knew how to deal as intimately with the Lord as his Mother did. Ref: Cf F Fernandez, “In Conversation with God”, 7:303-9 The ‘hidden’ Rose Mary is the most beautiful flower that ever came into the spiritual world. The power of God’s grace brought forth all flowers of holiness and glory from this forsaken barren earth. And Mary is the Queen of spiritual flowers. Therefore, she is fittingly called the ‘Rose’, because the rose is the most beautiful of all flowers. She is also ‘Mystical’ or hidden. Why ‘hidden’? The answer offers a third reason for believing in her assumption, body and soul, into heaven soon after her death. The Church has consistently and most tenderly revered the bodies of the Saints except the Blessed Virgin’s body and its separate relics. It is inconceivable that the ‘Queen of Martyrs’, the ‘Queen of All Saints’, the very Mother of our Lord should be neglected! Why then is she the ‘hidden Rose’? Because that sacred body is in heaven. Ref: John Henry Newman, “Mary the Second Eve”, 28-9 ‘Mystical Rose. Pray for us.’ Pessimism 285 “It is indeed just that the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit should crown the Blessed Virgin as Queen and Lady of all created things. “You have to make use of her power. With the daring of a child join in this celebration in heaven. For myself, since I have no precious stones or virtues to offer, I crown the Mother of God and my Mother with my failings, once they have been purified. “She is expecting something from you, too.” Ref: St Josemaria Escrivá, “The Forge” • Our Lady of “La Chapelle”, at Abbeville. This church was built about the year 1400, on a small hill, where formerly they worshipped idols.—(Antiquites d’Abbeville, liv. i.) “Catholic Gems or Treasures of the Church” Historical Calendar (www.bethlehemobserver.com); (www/divinewill.org/feastsofourlady.html); (www.iskandar.com/ourlady/ourladyfeasts.html); (www.miraclehunter.com/marian_apparitions/calendar/index.html); (maryfest.htm / www.starharbor.com/santiago/m_feasts.html) • “Notre-Dame de La Chapelle”. Abbeville, France. ... (www.marylinks.org/Mary-Calendar.htm)