| Devotion to Our Lady |
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This page will deal with the various factual aspects concerning devotion to Our Lady. It could well be called the HISTORY section. It will look at the history and development of devotion to the Blessed Virgin. It will list key dates and events in that regard. It will also list the key facts involved in the various devotions to Mary, such as the Rosary, the various scapulars and medals, the Sabbatine Privilege, the First Saturday Devotions, etc.
THE HOLY NAME OF MARY
The Name of "Mary" in History
In 1513, a feast of "The Holy Name of Mary" was granted by Papal indult (Pope Julius II) to the diocese of Cuenta in Spain. It was assigned with proper Office on September 15, the octave day of Our Lady's Nativity. With the reform of the Breviary undertaken by Pope St. Pius V, the feast was abolished, only to be reinstituted by his successor, Pope Sixtus V, who changed the date to September 17. From there, the feast spread to the Archdiocese of Toledo (1622) and, eventually, to all of Spain and to the Kingdom of Naples (1671).
Throughout this time, permission to celebrate the feast was given to various religious orders in a prudent manner as has been the custom throughout Church history regarding feast-days, their dates, offices, liturgical expression, etc. However, this Feast of the Holy Name of Mary would one day be joyfully extended to the Universal Church, and this on account of rather dramatic circumstances involving one of Poland's great military heroes, John Sobieski (1629-1696).
While acting as field-marshal under King John Casimir, Sobieski had raised a force of 8,000 men and enough provisions to withstand a siege of Cossacks and Tartars, who were forced to retire unsuccessfully and at a loss. In 1672, under the reign of Michael Wisniowiecki, Sobieski engaged and defeated the Turkish army, who lost 20,000 men at Chocim.
'When King Michael died, Sobieski, a beloved hero at that point, was crowned King of Poland. But, even before his coronation could take place, he would again engage and drive back the Turkish hordes in separate battles including the raising of the siege at Trembowla. Once crowned, he advanced to the Ruthenian provinces, where, having too few soldiers to attack the Turks, who outnumbered his men ten to one, he literally wore out the enemy, garrisoning his troops at Zurawno. Because of this heroic effort, he was able to regain, by treaty, a good portion of the Ukraine.
With both Turks and Poles weary from battle, peace reigned for a time . . . until the Turks set their sights on Austria, setting out through Hungary with an army of approximately 300,000 men. Fleeing from Austria, Emperor Leopold asked for Sobieski's assistance, a plea which was seconded by the Papal Nuncio. In July 1683, the Grand Vizier Kara Mustapha had reached Vienna and laid siege to the city, which was being defended by only 15,000 men. Sobieski set out for Vienna in August, his forces marching behind the banner of the Blessed Virgin. Passing by the Sanctuary of Mary in Czestochowa, they implored Our Lady's help and blessing. Writing centuries later to the bishops of Poland, Pope Pius XII recalled the supplications of Sobieski to Mary at the Sanctuary on Jasna Gora (i.e., "Bright Hill"), the site of the Shrine:
"To the same Heavenly Queen, on Clear Mountain, the illustrious John Sobieski, whose eminent valor freed Christianity from the attacks of its old enemies, confided himself."
(Letter, Cum iam lustri abeat, 1951)
In September, the men joined with the German troops under John George, Elector of Saxony, and Prince Charles of Lorraine. On the eighth day of the month, the Feast of the Nativity of Mary, Sobieski prepared himself for the ensuing conflict by the reception of Holy Communion.
Battle was engaged before the walls of Vienna on September 12, 1683, with Sobieski seemingly put to flight by "the fierce Turkish forces. However, this retreat was a minor setback only. The Hussars renewed their assault and charged the Turks, this time sending the enemy into a retreat. The combat raged on, until Sobieski finally stormed the enemy camp. The Turkish forces were routed, Vienna was saved, and Sobieski sent the "Standard of the Prophet" to Pope Innocent XI along with the good news. In a letter to the Pontiff, Sobieski summed up his victory in these words: Veni, vidi, Deus vicit —"I came, I saw, God conquered!"
To commemorate this glorious victory, and render thanksgiving to God and honor to Our Lady for their solicitude in the struggle, Pope Innocent XI extended "The Feast of the Holy Name of Mary" to the Universal Church. Although the feast was originally celebrated on the Sunday after the Nativity of Mary, Pope St. Pius X (+1914) decreed that it be celebrated on September 12, in honor of the victory of the Catholic forces under John Sobieski.
The history of this feast reminds us in some ways of that of "Our Lady of the Rosary," which was instituted to celebrate and commemorate the victory of the Catholic forces over the Turkish navy at the Battle of Lepanto in 1571: "And thus Christ's faithful warriors, prepared to sacrifice their life and blood for the welfare of their Faith and their country, proceeded undauntedly to meet their foe near the Gulf of Corinth; while those who were unable to join them formed a band of pious supplicants, who called on Mary and, as one, saluted her again and again in the words of the Rosary, imploring her to grant victory to their companions engaged in battle. Our sovereign Lady did grant her aid." (Pope Leo XIII, Supremi Apostolatus, 1883)
The Meaning of the Name "Mary"
In Hebrew, the name Mary is Miryam. In Our Lady's time, Aramaic was the spoken language, and the form of the name then in use was Mariam. Derived from the root, merur, the name signifies "bitterness."
Miryam was the name of the sister of Moses; and the ancient rabbinical scholars perceiving in it a symbol of the slavery of the Israelites at the hands of the Egyptians, held that Miryam was given this name because she was born during the time of the oppression of her people. The Old Testament, chronicling as it does the "Time of Expectation" of the Redeemer, is filled with "types," or foreshadowings of people and events which would be made manifest during the "Time of Redemption," when. Christ walked the earth. Jesus Mary and Joseph, the Sacrament of Baptism, the Eucharist, the Sacrifice of Calvary, etc., are all foreshadowed in the Old Testament, but we view them there "through a glass darkly," so to speak, under the guidance of the Catholic Church, which alone possesses the authority to interpret the sacred texts.
Miryam, the sister of Moses is a "type" of the Blessed Virgin. Miryam was a prophetess who sang a canticle of thanksgiving after the safe crossing of the Red Sea and the destruction of Pharaoh's army; Mary prophesied in her Magnificat that all generations would honor her, and she sang of how God would topple the proud and raise the lowly. Miryam supported her brother, Moses, the liberator of his people; as the Co-Redemptrix who united her sufferings to those of the One Mediator on Calvary, Mary labored alongside the Redeemer, the true Liberator of His people. Just as Jesus was the "antitype" (i.e., fulfillment) of Moses, so was Our Lady the "antitype" of Miryam, the fullest realization of the courageous woman standing beside, and laboring with, the one who comes to free captives.
Throughout the centuries, Saints and scholars have put forth different interpretations for the name "Mary." A mixture of etymology and devotion has combined to produce an interesting array of meanings:
"Mary means enlightener, because she brought forth the Light of the world. In the Syriac tongue, Mary signifies Lady." (St. Isidore of Seville +636)
"Let me say something concerning this name also, which is interpreted to mean Star of the sea, and admirably suits the Virgin Mother." (St. Bernard)
"Mary means Star of the sea, for as mariners are guided to port by the ocean star, so Christians attain to glory through Mary's maternal intercession." (St. Thomas Aquinas)
"This most holy, sweet and worthy name was eminently fitted to so holy, sweet and worthy a virgin. For Mary means a bitter sea, star of the sea, the illuminated or illuminatrix. Mary is interpreted Lady. Mary is a bitter sea to the demons; to men she is the Star of the sea; to the Angels she is illuminatrix, and to all creatures she is Lady." (St. Bonaventure)
"God the Father gathered all the waters together and called them the seas or maria (Latin, seas). He gathered all His grace together and called it Mary or Maria . . .This immense treasury is none other than Mary whom the Saints call the 'treasury of the Lord.' From her fullness all men are made
rich;" (St. Louis de Montfort)
The hallowed title, "Star of the Sea," dates back to St. Jerome (+420). It has been said that the great Doctor had originally used the phrase Stilla Maris to describe Mary as a "drop of the sea," the sea being God. A copyist's error, then, could have resulted in stilla (drop) being written down as stella (star). Of course, the hallowed title, "Star of the Sea," suits Our Lady perfectly:
" 'And the Virgin's name was Mary.' Let us say a few things about this name, which can be interpreted to mean Star of the sea, an apt designation for the Virgin Mother. She is most beautifully likened to a star, for a star pours forth its light without losing anything of its nature. She gave us her Son without losing anything of her virginity. The glowing rays of a star take nothing away from its beauty. N either has the Son taken anything away from His Mother's integrity.
"She is that noble star of Jacob, illuminating the whole world, penetrating from the highest heavens to the deepest depths of Hell. The warmth of her brilliance shines in the minds of men, encouraging virtue, extinguishing vice. She is that glorious star lighting the way across this vast ocean of life, glowing with merits, guiding by example.
"When you find yourself tossed by the raging storms on this great sea of life, far from land, keep your eyes fixed on this Star to avoid disaster. When the winds of temptation or the rocks of tribulation threaten, look up to the Star, call upon Mary!" (St. Bernard, Second Homily on the Missus Est)
The interpretation "Lady" for Mary was also proposed by St. Jerome, based on the Aramaic word, mar, meaning "Lord". This would render the meaning "Lady" in the regal or noble sense (as in "Lord and Lady.") Catholic sensibility, however, recognizing in Mary the simple dignity of a Mother, as well as the grandeur of a Queen, did not hesitate to add an affectionate touch to this majestic title. Mary is not just "Lady;" she is "Madonna," Notre Dame—i.e., she is Our Lady. This aspect of Mary —"Lady" or "Mistress"—is close to Our Lord's Heart. We read in the Scriptures how, for a time, the youthful Christ made Himself "subject" to her and St. Joseph, an act of Divine condescension which caused St. Bernard to wonder:
"Which shall we admire first? The tremendous submission of the Son of God, or the tremendous God-given dignity of the Mother of God? Both are marvels: both amazing. When God obeys a woman, it is humility without precedent. When a woman commands her God, it is sublime beyond measure." (First Homily on the Missus Est)
It is not difficult to see why these various interpretations of the name "Mary" should have been proposed and cherished, for they encapsulate many of our Marian doctrines and beliefs. "Bitter sea (mara = bitter; yam = sea)," for instance, in addition to the interpretation given by St. Bonaventure, also calls to mind Our Lady's Seven Sorrows and the sword which "pierced" her soul on Calvary, recalling the lamentation of the mother-in-law of Ruth, who had lost a husband and two sons: "Call me not Noemi, (that is, beautiful,) but call me Mara, (that is, bitter,) for the Almighty hath quite filled me with bitterness (Rt. 1:20)." Maror are "bitter herbs," such as are found on the seder plate at Passover.
The "Illuminated" points us to St. John's apocalyptic image of the "Woman clothed with the Sun," a dual image encompassing both the Catholic Church and Mary, the Mother and Image of the Church. In addition, the "Illuminated" has also been rendered as the "Enlightener" and, like St. Bernard, St. Aelred combines this meaning with that of the Stella Maris in a powerful passage:
"Therefore a certain Star has risen for us today: Our Lady, Saint Mary. Her name means Star of the sea; no doubt the Star of this sea which is the world. Therefore, we ought to lift up our eyes to this Star that has appeared on earth today in order that she may lead us, in order that she may enlighten us, in order that she may show us these steps so that we shall know them, in order that she may help us so that we may be able to ascend. And therefore it is a beautiful thing that Mary is placed in this stairway of which we are speaking, there where we must begin to climb. As the Evangelist says, Jacob begot Joseph, the husband of Mary, so immediately at the very moment of our conversion she appears to us and receives us into her care and enlightens us in her light and accompanies us along this laborious path." (Sermon 24, For the Nativity of Holy Mary)
There is another interpretation for the name "Mary" which is quite interesting in that it relates to the Church as well. This supposes the name to be derived from the Hebrew verb mara, meaning "to be fleshy or robust. In the East, such descriptions implying corpulence were used to indicate beauty and fecundity. Here, then, Our Lady's name would indicate "The Beautiful One," quite fitting for the Immaculate Conception. (Tota Pulchra Es, M aria! —"You are all beautiful, Mary!") The Psalms prophetically describe the Church in this manner, all alluding to the fruitfulness and spiritual gifts of the Holy Ghost:
"The mountain of God is a fat mountain. A curdled mountain, a fat mountain . . . A mountain in which God is well pleased to dwell." (Ps. 6716-17)
This image resonates with the prophecy of Isaias concerning the New Dispensation (and the Church), and with the words of Our Lord:
"And in the last days the mountain of the house of the Lord shall be prepared on the top of the mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills, and all the nations shall flow unto it (Is. 2:2) . . . You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a mountain cannot be hid." (Mt. 5:14)
It is here that the Psalms intersect with St. John's Apocalyptic vision, to present the maternal function of the Church, a virginal maternity mirroring that of Our Lady, which begets new "brethren" of Christ, new sons and daughters of Mary ("the rest of her seed," as Catholics are called by St. John in his Apocalypse) and new children of God the Father:
"But as many as received Him, He gave them power to be made the sons of God, to them that believe in His name. Who are born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God." (Jn. 1:12-13)
"The foundations thereof are in the holy mountains: The Lord loveth the gates of Sion above all the tabernacles of Jacob. Glorious things are said of Thee, O city of God . . . Shall not Sion say: This man and that man is born in her? And the Highest Himself hath founded her." (Ps. 86:1-3, 5)
The inspired texts prophesy that the Church will be "exalted"—It shall be exalted above the hills, and all the nations shall flow unto it. So, too, will be the Mother of the Church, she who prophesied that "all generations shall call Me blessed." Another proposed meaning for the Blessed Virgin's name reflects this exaltation, the majesty of the Queen of Heaven. It derives from ancient Canaanite literature, where the word mrym (pronounced somewhat like Maryam) means "height" (sharing the same derivation as marom, the Hebrew word for "height"). This would render Mary's name as "Highness" or "The Exalted One."
This fascinating-----and very, very Catholic-----desire to explore the meaning and depths of the holy name of "Mary" is not merely a pious pursuit, unrelated to any theological concerns. In the various interpretations set forth, a wealth of Marian doctrine is made manifest, not in the clinical language of theology , but in rich, colorful meditations on Our Lady's name, and sacred truths are explored and taught in language easily comprehended and appreciated by all.
In his fine book, The Wondrous Childhood of the Most Holy Mother of God, St. John Eudes offers meditations on seventeen interpretations of the name "Mary," taken from the writings of "the Holy Fathers and by some celebrated Doctors. "Among these are "God born of my race," (St. Ambrose) "Rain of the sea, falling at convenient time and season," (St. Peter Canisius) "Myrrh of the Sea," (St. Jerome) and "The hope of those who voyage on the stormy sea of this world." (St. Epiphanius) It is quite clear—from Scripture, Tradition and history—that the Church owes so much to Mary, the Mother of the Redeemer and our Mother "in the order of grace." How does the gratitude and affection of her spiritual children manifest itself in the beautiful Feast of the Holy Name of Mary, and what does this cherished name mean to those who love and venerate the Mother of God?
In 1513, a feast of "The Holy Name of Mary" was granted by Papal indult (Pope Julius II) to the diocese of Cuenta in Spain. It was assigned with proper Office on September 15, the octave day of Our Lady's Nativity. With the reform of the Breviary undertaken by Pope St. Pius V, the feast was abolished, only to be reinstituted by his successor, Pope Sixtus V, who changed the date to September 17. From there, the feast spread to the Archdiocese of Toledo (1622) and, eventually, to all of Spain and to the Kingdom of Naples (1671).
Throughout this time, permission to celebrate the feast was given to various religious orders in a prudent manner as has been the custom throughout Church history regarding feast-days, their dates, offices, liturgical expression, etc. However, this Feast of the Holy Name of Mary would one day be joyfully extended to the Universal Church, and this on account of rather dramatic circumstances involving one of Poland's great military heroes, John Sobieski (1629-1696).
While acting as field-marshal under King John Casimir, Sobieski had raised a force of 8,000 men and enough provisions to withstand a siege of Cossacks and Tartars, who were forced to retire unsuccessfully and at a loss. In 1672, under the reign of Michael Wisniowiecki, Sobieski engaged and defeated the Turkish army, who lost 20,000 men at Chocim.
'When King Michael died, Sobieski, a beloved hero at that point, was crowned King of Poland. But, even before his coronation could take place, he would again engage and drive back the Turkish hordes in separate battles including the raising of the siege at Trembowla. Once crowned, he advanced to the Ruthenian provinces, where, having too few soldiers to attack the Turks, who outnumbered his men ten to one, he literally wore out the enemy, garrisoning his troops at Zurawno. Because of this heroic effort, he was able to regain, by treaty, a good portion of the Ukraine.
With both Turks and Poles weary from battle, peace reigned for a time . . . until the Turks set their sights on Austria, setting out through Hungary with an army of approximately 300,000 men. Fleeing from Austria, Emperor Leopold asked for Sobieski's assistance, a plea which was seconded by the Papal Nuncio. In July 1683, the Grand Vizier Kara Mustapha had reached Vienna and laid siege to the city, which was being defended by only 15,000 men. Sobieski set out for Vienna in August, his forces marching behind the banner of the Blessed Virgin. Passing by the Sanctuary of Mary in Czestochowa, they implored Our Lady's help and blessing. Writing centuries later to the bishops of Poland, Pope Pius XII recalled the supplications of Sobieski to Mary at the Sanctuary on Jasna Gora (i.e., "Bright Hill"), the site of the Shrine:
"To the same Heavenly Queen, on Clear Mountain, the illustrious John Sobieski, whose eminent valor freed Christianity from the attacks of its old enemies, confided himself."
(Letter, Cum iam lustri abeat, 1951)
In September, the men joined with the German troops under John George, Elector of Saxony, and Prince Charles of Lorraine. On the eighth day of the month, the Feast of the Nativity of Mary, Sobieski prepared himself for the ensuing conflict by the reception of Holy Communion.
Battle was engaged before the walls of Vienna on September 12, 1683, with Sobieski seemingly put to flight by "the fierce Turkish forces. However, this retreat was a minor setback only. The Hussars renewed their assault and charged the Turks, this time sending the enemy into a retreat. The combat raged on, until Sobieski finally stormed the enemy camp. The Turkish forces were routed, Vienna was saved, and Sobieski sent the "Standard of the Prophet" to Pope Innocent XI along with the good news. In a letter to the Pontiff, Sobieski summed up his victory in these words: Veni, vidi, Deus vicit —"I came, I saw, God conquered!"
To commemorate this glorious victory, and render thanksgiving to God and honor to Our Lady for their solicitude in the struggle, Pope Innocent XI extended "The Feast of the Holy Name of Mary" to the Universal Church. Although the feast was originally celebrated on the Sunday after the Nativity of Mary, Pope St. Pius X (+1914) decreed that it be celebrated on September 12, in honor of the victory of the Catholic forces under John Sobieski.
The history of this feast reminds us in some ways of that of "Our Lady of the Rosary," which was instituted to celebrate and commemorate the victory of the Catholic forces over the Turkish navy at the Battle of Lepanto in 1571: "And thus Christ's faithful warriors, prepared to sacrifice their life and blood for the welfare of their Faith and their country, proceeded undauntedly to meet their foe near the Gulf of Corinth; while those who were unable to join them formed a band of pious supplicants, who called on Mary and, as one, saluted her again and again in the words of the Rosary, imploring her to grant victory to their companions engaged in battle. Our sovereign Lady did grant her aid." (Pope Leo XIII, Supremi Apostolatus, 1883)
The Meaning of the Name "Mary"
In Hebrew, the name Mary is Miryam. In Our Lady's time, Aramaic was the spoken language, and the form of the name then in use was Mariam. Derived from the root, merur, the name signifies "bitterness."
Miryam was the name of the sister of Moses; and the ancient rabbinical scholars perceiving in it a symbol of the slavery of the Israelites at the hands of the Egyptians, held that Miryam was given this name because she was born during the time of the oppression of her people. The Old Testament, chronicling as it does the "Time of Expectation" of the Redeemer, is filled with "types," or foreshadowings of people and events which would be made manifest during the "Time of Redemption," when. Christ walked the earth. Jesus Mary and Joseph, the Sacrament of Baptism, the Eucharist, the Sacrifice of Calvary, etc., are all foreshadowed in the Old Testament, but we view them there "through a glass darkly," so to speak, under the guidance of the Catholic Church, which alone possesses the authority to interpret the sacred texts.
Miryam, the sister of Moses is a "type" of the Blessed Virgin. Miryam was a prophetess who sang a canticle of thanksgiving after the safe crossing of the Red Sea and the destruction of Pharaoh's army; Mary prophesied in her Magnificat that all generations would honor her, and she sang of how God would topple the proud and raise the lowly. Miryam supported her brother, Moses, the liberator of his people; as the Co-Redemptrix who united her sufferings to those of the One Mediator on Calvary, Mary labored alongside the Redeemer, the true Liberator of His people. Just as Jesus was the "antitype" (i.e., fulfillment) of Moses, so was Our Lady the "antitype" of Miryam, the fullest realization of the courageous woman standing beside, and laboring with, the one who comes to free captives.
Throughout the centuries, Saints and scholars have put forth different interpretations for the name "Mary." A mixture of etymology and devotion has combined to produce an interesting array of meanings:
"Mary means enlightener, because she brought forth the Light of the world. In the Syriac tongue, Mary signifies Lady." (St. Isidore of Seville +636)
"Let me say something concerning this name also, which is interpreted to mean Star of the sea, and admirably suits the Virgin Mother." (St. Bernard)
"Mary means Star of the sea, for as mariners are guided to port by the ocean star, so Christians attain to glory through Mary's maternal intercession." (St. Thomas Aquinas)
"This most holy, sweet and worthy name was eminently fitted to so holy, sweet and worthy a virgin. For Mary means a bitter sea, star of the sea, the illuminated or illuminatrix. Mary is interpreted Lady. Mary is a bitter sea to the demons; to men she is the Star of the sea; to the Angels she is illuminatrix, and to all creatures she is Lady." (St. Bonaventure)
"God the Father gathered all the waters together and called them the seas or maria (Latin, seas). He gathered all His grace together and called it Mary or Maria . . .This immense treasury is none other than Mary whom the Saints call the 'treasury of the Lord.' From her fullness all men are made
rich;" (St. Louis de Montfort)
The hallowed title, "Star of the Sea," dates back to St. Jerome (+420). It has been said that the great Doctor had originally used the phrase Stilla Maris to describe Mary as a "drop of the sea," the sea being God. A copyist's error, then, could have resulted in stilla (drop) being written down as stella (star). Of course, the hallowed title, "Star of the Sea," suits Our Lady perfectly:
" 'And the Virgin's name was Mary.' Let us say a few things about this name, which can be interpreted to mean Star of the sea, an apt designation for the Virgin Mother. She is most beautifully likened to a star, for a star pours forth its light without losing anything of its nature. She gave us her Son without losing anything of her virginity. The glowing rays of a star take nothing away from its beauty. N either has the Son taken anything away from His Mother's integrity.
"She is that noble star of Jacob, illuminating the whole world, penetrating from the highest heavens to the deepest depths of Hell. The warmth of her brilliance shines in the minds of men, encouraging virtue, extinguishing vice. She is that glorious star lighting the way across this vast ocean of life, glowing with merits, guiding by example.
"When you find yourself tossed by the raging storms on this great sea of life, far from land, keep your eyes fixed on this Star to avoid disaster. When the winds of temptation or the rocks of tribulation threaten, look up to the Star, call upon Mary!" (St. Bernard, Second Homily on the Missus Est)
The interpretation "Lady" for Mary was also proposed by St. Jerome, based on the Aramaic word, mar, meaning "Lord". This would render the meaning "Lady" in the regal or noble sense (as in "Lord and Lady.") Catholic sensibility, however, recognizing in Mary the simple dignity of a Mother, as well as the grandeur of a Queen, did not hesitate to add an affectionate touch to this majestic title. Mary is not just "Lady;" she is "Madonna," Notre Dame—i.e., she is Our Lady. This aspect of Mary —"Lady" or "Mistress"—is close to Our Lord's Heart. We read in the Scriptures how, for a time, the youthful Christ made Himself "subject" to her and St. Joseph, an act of Divine condescension which caused St. Bernard to wonder:
"Which shall we admire first? The tremendous submission of the Son of God, or the tremendous God-given dignity of the Mother of God? Both are marvels: both amazing. When God obeys a woman, it is humility without precedent. When a woman commands her God, it is sublime beyond measure." (First Homily on the Missus Est)
It is not difficult to see why these various interpretations of the name "Mary" should have been proposed and cherished, for they encapsulate many of our Marian doctrines and beliefs. "Bitter sea (mara = bitter; yam = sea)," for instance, in addition to the interpretation given by St. Bonaventure, also calls to mind Our Lady's Seven Sorrows and the sword which "pierced" her soul on Calvary, recalling the lamentation of the mother-in-law of Ruth, who had lost a husband and two sons: "Call me not Noemi, (that is, beautiful,) but call me Mara, (that is, bitter,) for the Almighty hath quite filled me with bitterness (Rt. 1:20)." Maror are "bitter herbs," such as are found on the seder plate at Passover.
The "Illuminated" points us to St. John's apocalyptic image of the "Woman clothed with the Sun," a dual image encompassing both the Catholic Church and Mary, the Mother and Image of the Church. In addition, the "Illuminated" has also been rendered as the "Enlightener" and, like St. Bernard, St. Aelred combines this meaning with that of the Stella Maris in a powerful passage:
"Therefore a certain Star has risen for us today: Our Lady, Saint Mary. Her name means Star of the sea; no doubt the Star of this sea which is the world. Therefore, we ought to lift up our eyes to this Star that has appeared on earth today in order that she may lead us, in order that she may enlighten us, in order that she may show us these steps so that we shall know them, in order that she may help us so that we may be able to ascend. And therefore it is a beautiful thing that Mary is placed in this stairway of which we are speaking, there where we must begin to climb. As the Evangelist says, Jacob begot Joseph, the husband of Mary, so immediately at the very moment of our conversion she appears to us and receives us into her care and enlightens us in her light and accompanies us along this laborious path." (Sermon 24, For the Nativity of Holy Mary)
There is another interpretation for the name "Mary" which is quite interesting in that it relates to the Church as well. This supposes the name to be derived from the Hebrew verb mara, meaning "to be fleshy or robust. In the East, such descriptions implying corpulence were used to indicate beauty and fecundity. Here, then, Our Lady's name would indicate "The Beautiful One," quite fitting for the Immaculate Conception. (Tota Pulchra Es, M aria! —"You are all beautiful, Mary!") The Psalms prophetically describe the Church in this manner, all alluding to the fruitfulness and spiritual gifts of the Holy Ghost:
"The mountain of God is a fat mountain. A curdled mountain, a fat mountain . . . A mountain in which God is well pleased to dwell." (Ps. 6716-17)
This image resonates with the prophecy of Isaias concerning the New Dispensation (and the Church), and with the words of Our Lord:
"And in the last days the mountain of the house of the Lord shall be prepared on the top of the mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills, and all the nations shall flow unto it (Is. 2:2) . . . You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a mountain cannot be hid." (Mt. 5:14)
It is here that the Psalms intersect with St. John's Apocalyptic vision, to present the maternal function of the Church, a virginal maternity mirroring that of Our Lady, which begets new "brethren" of Christ, new sons and daughters of Mary ("the rest of her seed," as Catholics are called by St. John in his Apocalypse) and new children of God the Father:
"But as many as received Him, He gave them power to be made the sons of God, to them that believe in His name. Who are born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God." (Jn. 1:12-13)
"The foundations thereof are in the holy mountains: The Lord loveth the gates of Sion above all the tabernacles of Jacob. Glorious things are said of Thee, O city of God . . . Shall not Sion say: This man and that man is born in her? And the Highest Himself hath founded her." (Ps. 86:1-3, 5)
The inspired texts prophesy that the Church will be "exalted"—It shall be exalted above the hills, and all the nations shall flow unto it. So, too, will be the Mother of the Church, she who prophesied that "all generations shall call Me blessed." Another proposed meaning for the Blessed Virgin's name reflects this exaltation, the majesty of the Queen of Heaven. It derives from ancient Canaanite literature, where the word mrym (pronounced somewhat like Maryam) means "height" (sharing the same derivation as marom, the Hebrew word for "height"). This would render Mary's name as "Highness" or "The Exalted One."
This fascinating-----and very, very Catholic-----desire to explore the meaning and depths of the holy name of "Mary" is not merely a pious pursuit, unrelated to any theological concerns. In the various interpretations set forth, a wealth of Marian doctrine is made manifest, not in the clinical language of theology , but in rich, colorful meditations on Our Lady's name, and sacred truths are explored and taught in language easily comprehended and appreciated by all.
In his fine book, The Wondrous Childhood of the Most Holy Mother of God, St. John Eudes offers meditations on seventeen interpretations of the name "Mary," taken from the writings of "the Holy Fathers and by some celebrated Doctors. "Among these are "God born of my race," (St. Ambrose) "Rain of the sea, falling at convenient time and season," (St. Peter Canisius) "Myrrh of the Sea," (St. Jerome) and "The hope of those who voyage on the stormy sea of this world." (St. Epiphanius) It is quite clear—from Scripture, Tradition and history—that the Church owes so much to Mary, the Mother of the Redeemer and our Mother "in the order of grace." How does the gratitude and affection of her spiritual children manifest itself in the beautiful Feast of the Holy Name of Mary, and what does this cherished name mean to those who love and venerate the Mother of God?
A LOOK AT DEVOTION TO THE SORROWFUL HEART OF MARY
THE SORROWFUL AND IMMACULATE HEART OF MARY
an adaptation from the biography of Berthe Petit by Rev. Father Duffner, M. S. C.
BERTHE PETIT
Franciscan Tertiary
(1870-1943)
SCROLL DOWN FOR LATEST POST IN THIS SERIES OF ARTICLES (September 1)
Posted August 31, 2013
A Message From The Sacred Heart In Favour of the Devotion to the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary
OUR LADY OF FATIMA HAD ALREADY SHOWN HER IMMACULATE HEART AS SORROWFUL—and its power in being united to the Sacred Heart—at her second apparition at Fatima on June 13, 1917. Lucia says of this: “In front of the palm of Our Lady’s right hand there was a heart encircled with thorns which pierced it. We understood that it was the Immaculate Heart of Mary, outraged by the sins of humanity, and that she wanted reparation.”
Of the sixth apparition of Our Lady at Fatima, on October 13, 1917, Lucia says: “l saw Our Lord, and Our Lady who appeared to me to be Our Lady of Sorrows.”
In Lucia's vision of December 10, 1925, concerning the devotion of the five First Saturdays in reparation for the blasphemies and offences against the Immaculate Heart of Mary, the Most Holy Virgin Mary appeared to Lucia, with the Child Jesus by Her side... She held a heart surrounded with sharp thorns. At the same time the Child Jesus spoke: “Have pity on the Heart of your Most Holy Mother. It is covered with the thorns with which ungrateful men pierce it at every moment, and there is no one to remove them with an act of reparation.” Then Our Lady said to Lucia: “My daughter, look at my Heart surrounded with the thorns with which ungrateful men pierce it at every moment by their blasphemies and ingratitude. You, at least, try to console me...”
Of the last vision that Lucia experienced in June of 1929, Lucia says: “...Our Lady was beneath the right arm of the Cross ... it was Our Lady of Fatima with her Immaculate Heart... with a crown of thorns and flames...”
An appreciation of Berthe Petit by Fr. Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange, O.P.
"I cherish a vivid remembrance of Mile Berthe Petit, whom I met in Switzerland during the 1914-1918 war. I much appreciated the devotion to the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary. I am of the same mind as Cardinals Mercier and Bourne, that it recalls what the Blessed Virgin has received from God—both the grace of the Immaculate Conception, as well as what she herself has done and suffered for us. This invocation of the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary seems very opportune in our days of universal suffering and trial, as appears by the Consecration to the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary, made by several bishops in various dioceses of France and Belgium. The grace of the Immaculate Conception, and the initial plenitude of her charity, considerably increased in Mary her capacity for suffering from the greatest of all evils, which is sin. It is in proportion to one’s personal love of God that one suffers from sin, because of the offence given to God and the souls lost by it. Thus the Immaculate Heart of Mary was sorrowful in proportion to her purity and spotlessness, and in the measure of her initial charity, in which she grew every moment until the hour of her death. When we say “Immaculate Heart of Mary” we recall what she received from God in the first instant of her conception. When we say “Sorrowful Heart”, we recall all that Mary has suffered and offered for us, in union with her Son, from the words of holy Simeon to Calvary, and until her holy death." (Fr.Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange. O. P.)
“MY MOTHER’S HEART HAS THE RIGHT TO THE TITLE OF SORROWFUL. I DESIRE THAT IT BE SET BEFORE HER TITLE OF IMMACULATE BECAUSE SHE HERSELF HAS WON IT...”
THE MESSAGE OF BERTHE PETIT
When, in the early eighteenth century, St. Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort exposed his special form of devotion to the Blessed Virgin, he observed that “She had scarcely been seen since the first coming of Jesus Christ.” (...) “Mankind,” he commented, “as yet too little enlightened and instructed concerning the Person of the Son, might have become too strongly and humanly attached to the Virgin Mother.”
It was reserved therefore, he said, for those whom he calls “the apostles of the latter days.” to fully to reveal her. He foresaw these apostles “as saints who will surpass in sanctity the majority of other saints, who bear upon their shoulders the bloody standard of the Cross—the crucifix in their right hand, the Rosary in their left hand, and, in their hearts, the holy names of Jesus and Mary. . . . Mary will raise them up, by order of the Highest, to extend His Empire over that of the wicked.” When shall that hour come? God alone knows.
Father Faber, commenting on the prophetic note sounded by St. Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort, described him as one who lived, as it were, in touch with the Last Judgment. His message, indeed, is the fruit of this special vocation. He called for a more ardent love for Mary, with a great understanding of her intimate connection with the second coming of Her Son. His “secret” is the universal mediation of Our Lady; a devotion which now, some two hundred years later, is gradually taking concrete shape in the Church. “To approach Jesus” he wrote, “we must go to Mary, who is our mediatrix by intercession. To approach the Eternal Father, we must go to Jesus, Who is our Mediator by redemption.”
Since that time, the Blessed Virgin has indeed stooped to earth many times, to bring to us what may truly be the ultimate graces of “the latter days.”
A little over a hundred years elapsed between the death of St. Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort and the commencement of the apparitions of Our Lady. The giving of the Miraculous Medal, in 1830, was followed, in 1858, by the great events of Lourdes. In 1846 came the manifestation of the Sorrowful Virgin at La Salette. In 1871 occurred the lesser known visions of the Blessed Virgin at Pontmain. Forty-six years later the wonderful revelations of Fatima took place, in 1917. In 1933, Belgium was favored with two quite independent series of apparitions at Beauraing and Banneux, which have both been recognized by the episcopal authorities.
Each of these heavenly manifestations differs from the others, in varying beauty, but the same theme is common to all: the urgent, poignant, almost beseeching appeal of our Holy Mother for prayer and penance. The world, in its blindness of sin, is whirling to its doom ... She implores her children to rise and labor, to cast into the scales of Divine Justice a sufficient weight of prayer and reparation, above all of love, to out-balance, or outweigh, the ever-mounting load of evil.
Quite recently a particular aspect of Our Heavenly Mother was revealed to a humble, saintly woman, BERTHE PETIT, who passed to her reward as recently as 1943.
For many years, this holy Franciscan Tertiary—while leading a life of hidden sufferings in the world, a voluntary victim for the expiation of sin—received repeated revelations from Our Lord of His desire that the whole world should be publicly dedicated to the SORROWFUL and Immaculate Heart of Mary.
Our Lord deigned to expound this to Berthe: “My Mother’s Heart has the right to the title of Sorrowful. I desire that it be set before her title of "Immaculate," because she herself has won it. The Church has recognized what I Myself did for My Mother: her Immaculate Conception. Now it is necessary and it is My wish, that this title, which is by right My Mother’s, should be understood and recognized. This title she earned by her identification with all My sufferings, by her sorrow, her sacrifice, her immolation on Calvary, and indeed for the salvation of mankind.”
On the 2nd of July 1940, Berthe heard Our Lord say to her: “This is the last help which I give before the end of time: the recourse to My Mother, under the title which I desire, shall be hers throughout the whole world.”
Does not all this link up in mysterious connection with the prophecy of St. St. Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort, that the reign of Our Blessed Lady should be fulfilled in the latter days?
(to be continued throughout the month of September)
A Message From The Sacred Heart In Favour of the Devotion to the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary
OUR LADY OF FATIMA HAD ALREADY SHOWN HER IMMACULATE HEART AS SORROWFUL—and its power in being united to the Sacred Heart—at her second apparition at Fatima on June 13, 1917. Lucia says of this: “In front of the palm of Our Lady’s right hand there was a heart encircled with thorns which pierced it. We understood that it was the Immaculate Heart of Mary, outraged by the sins of humanity, and that she wanted reparation.”
Of the sixth apparition of Our Lady at Fatima, on October 13, 1917, Lucia says: “l saw Our Lord, and Our Lady who appeared to me to be Our Lady of Sorrows.”
In Lucia's vision of December 10, 1925, concerning the devotion of the five First Saturdays in reparation for the blasphemies and offences against the Immaculate Heart of Mary, the Most Holy Virgin Mary appeared to Lucia, with the Child Jesus by Her side... She held a heart surrounded with sharp thorns. At the same time the Child Jesus spoke: “Have pity on the Heart of your Most Holy Mother. It is covered with the thorns with which ungrateful men pierce it at every moment, and there is no one to remove them with an act of reparation.” Then Our Lady said to Lucia: “My daughter, look at my Heart surrounded with the thorns with which ungrateful men pierce it at every moment by their blasphemies and ingratitude. You, at least, try to console me...”
Of the last vision that Lucia experienced in June of 1929, Lucia says: “...Our Lady was beneath the right arm of the Cross ... it was Our Lady of Fatima with her Immaculate Heart... with a crown of thorns and flames...”
An appreciation of Berthe Petit by Fr. Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange, O.P.
"I cherish a vivid remembrance of Mile Berthe Petit, whom I met in Switzerland during the 1914-1918 war. I much appreciated the devotion to the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary. I am of the same mind as Cardinals Mercier and Bourne, that it recalls what the Blessed Virgin has received from God—both the grace of the Immaculate Conception, as well as what she herself has done and suffered for us. This invocation of the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary seems very opportune in our days of universal suffering and trial, as appears by the Consecration to the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary, made by several bishops in various dioceses of France and Belgium. The grace of the Immaculate Conception, and the initial plenitude of her charity, considerably increased in Mary her capacity for suffering from the greatest of all evils, which is sin. It is in proportion to one’s personal love of God that one suffers from sin, because of the offence given to God and the souls lost by it. Thus the Immaculate Heart of Mary was sorrowful in proportion to her purity and spotlessness, and in the measure of her initial charity, in which she grew every moment until the hour of her death. When we say “Immaculate Heart of Mary” we recall what she received from God in the first instant of her conception. When we say “Sorrowful Heart”, we recall all that Mary has suffered and offered for us, in union with her Son, from the words of holy Simeon to Calvary, and until her holy death." (Fr.Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange. O. P.)
“MY MOTHER’S HEART HAS THE RIGHT TO THE TITLE OF SORROWFUL. I DESIRE THAT IT BE SET BEFORE HER TITLE OF IMMACULATE BECAUSE SHE HERSELF HAS WON IT...”
THE MESSAGE OF BERTHE PETIT
When, in the early eighteenth century, St. Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort exposed his special form of devotion to the Blessed Virgin, he observed that “She had scarcely been seen since the first coming of Jesus Christ.” (...) “Mankind,” he commented, “as yet too little enlightened and instructed concerning the Person of the Son, might have become too strongly and humanly attached to the Virgin Mother.”
It was reserved therefore, he said, for those whom he calls “the apostles of the latter days.” to fully to reveal her. He foresaw these apostles “as saints who will surpass in sanctity the majority of other saints, who bear upon their shoulders the bloody standard of the Cross—the crucifix in their right hand, the Rosary in their left hand, and, in their hearts, the holy names of Jesus and Mary. . . . Mary will raise them up, by order of the Highest, to extend His Empire over that of the wicked.” When shall that hour come? God alone knows.
Father Faber, commenting on the prophetic note sounded by St. Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort, described him as one who lived, as it were, in touch with the Last Judgment. His message, indeed, is the fruit of this special vocation. He called for a more ardent love for Mary, with a great understanding of her intimate connection with the second coming of Her Son. His “secret” is the universal mediation of Our Lady; a devotion which now, some two hundred years later, is gradually taking concrete shape in the Church. “To approach Jesus” he wrote, “we must go to Mary, who is our mediatrix by intercession. To approach the Eternal Father, we must go to Jesus, Who is our Mediator by redemption.”
Since that time, the Blessed Virgin has indeed stooped to earth many times, to bring to us what may truly be the ultimate graces of “the latter days.”
A little over a hundred years elapsed between the death of St. Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort and the commencement of the apparitions of Our Lady. The giving of the Miraculous Medal, in 1830, was followed, in 1858, by the great events of Lourdes. In 1846 came the manifestation of the Sorrowful Virgin at La Salette. In 1871 occurred the lesser known visions of the Blessed Virgin at Pontmain. Forty-six years later the wonderful revelations of Fatima took place, in 1917. In 1933, Belgium was favored with two quite independent series of apparitions at Beauraing and Banneux, which have both been recognized by the episcopal authorities.
Each of these heavenly manifestations differs from the others, in varying beauty, but the same theme is common to all: the urgent, poignant, almost beseeching appeal of our Holy Mother for prayer and penance. The world, in its blindness of sin, is whirling to its doom ... She implores her children to rise and labor, to cast into the scales of Divine Justice a sufficient weight of prayer and reparation, above all of love, to out-balance, or outweigh, the ever-mounting load of evil.
Quite recently a particular aspect of Our Heavenly Mother was revealed to a humble, saintly woman, BERTHE PETIT, who passed to her reward as recently as 1943.
For many years, this holy Franciscan Tertiary—while leading a life of hidden sufferings in the world, a voluntary victim for the expiation of sin—received repeated revelations from Our Lord of His desire that the whole world should be publicly dedicated to the SORROWFUL and Immaculate Heart of Mary.
Our Lord deigned to expound this to Berthe: “My Mother’s Heart has the right to the title of Sorrowful. I desire that it be set before her title of "Immaculate," because she herself has won it. The Church has recognized what I Myself did for My Mother: her Immaculate Conception. Now it is necessary and it is My wish, that this title, which is by right My Mother’s, should be understood and recognized. This title she earned by her identification with all My sufferings, by her sorrow, her sacrifice, her immolation on Calvary, and indeed for the salvation of mankind.”
On the 2nd of July 1940, Berthe heard Our Lord say to her: “This is the last help which I give before the end of time: the recourse to My Mother, under the title which I desire, shall be hers throughout the whole world.”
Does not all this link up in mysterious connection with the prophecy of St. St. Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort, that the reign of Our Blessed Lady should be fulfilled in the latter days?
(to be continued throughout the month of September)
THE MISSION OF BERTHE PETIT
Posted September 1, 2013
Our Lord had given His servant to understand long before, that He wished her to prepare herself for a special mission to be assigned to her in due time. On August 4, 1909, it was made known to her that St. Catherine of Siena would be one of her special guides. Later on, St. Michael was given as second patron.
It is an interesting and significant fact that it was only after she had established close contact with her priest, that the nature of her mission was made known to her.
Christmas had always been for her a time of peculiar grace and light, and it was during the celebration of Midnight Mass, in 1909, that once again she was honoured by a vision of special importance.
She saw the Divine Heart of Jesus wounded, and close to it, touching it--Berthe uses the word “adhering”--the Heart of Mary, pierced with a sword. She heard these words: “Cause My Mother’s Heart—transfixed by the sorrows which rent Mine—to be loved.”
She had the same vision and heard the same words on the 31st of December and the 30th of January.
On the 7th of February 1910, Berthe saw the Hearts of Jesus and Mary “interpenetrating” one another. The Dove of the Holy Spirit was poised over them. This time Our Lord said to her: “You must think of My Mother’s Heart when you think of Mine; live in this Heart as you would in Mine; give yourself to this Heart as you would to Mine. You must foster love for this Heart, so wholly one with Mine.”
At that time Berthe’s visions were greatly multiplied. She received fresh revelations concerning the devotion almost daily, and each unfolded some further aspect of Our Lord’s desire. On one occasion, she saw the two Hearts emitting rays of light, while she heard these words: “I have told you the wish of My Heart concerning My Mother’s Heart: love it and cause it to be loved. This love will be the source of graces for you and for the world, and will draw down great blessings upon you. Yield yourself to My love. My Heart’s wish will be confided to you.”
A few days later, while she was on a pilgrimage to St. Anne, in Alsace, this promise was fulfilled by the complete revelation of her Mission. It was to obtain the Consecration of the whole world to the SORROWFUL AND IMMACULATE HEART OF MARY.
Berthe was at that time on her way to Rome, accompanied by her Mother and the Abbé Decorsant. She broke her journey at Siena, where she had more than one vision. While assisting at the priest's Mass in St. Catherine’s room, she saw the Divine Face under the Crown of thorns, in a great glory of light, at the moment of the Elevation. Our Lord said to her once more: “The world must be dedicated to the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of My Mother, as it is dedicated to Mine. Fear nothing, no matter what suffering or obstacles you may meet. Think only of fulfilling My will.”
On Easter Sunday, at Rome, again at the priests Mass, Berthe again saw the Hearts of Jesus and Mary, fused with one another under the wings of the Dove. This time she heard these words: “What I desire derives from what I did on Calvary. In giving John to My Mother for her Son, I confided to her the Sorrowful and Immaculate Maternity of the whole world.”
Our Lord then bade her make a drawing of the vision of the two Hearts adding: “I will guide your hand.” Under obedience Berthe drew what she had seen. A few months later, she received a further communication: “I desire,” said the Divine Master, “that the picture, for which I guided your hand, should be widely diffused, as well as the invocation.”
This invocation: “Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary, pray for us who have recourse to thee” was endowed with a hundred days indulgence by Cardinal Mercier, early in 1911.
Our Lord had given His servant to understand long before, that He wished her to prepare herself for a special mission to be assigned to her in due time. On August 4, 1909, it was made known to her that St. Catherine of Siena would be one of her special guides. Later on, St. Michael was given as second patron.
It is an interesting and significant fact that it was only after she had established close contact with her priest, that the nature of her mission was made known to her.
Christmas had always been for her a time of peculiar grace and light, and it was during the celebration of Midnight Mass, in 1909, that once again she was honoured by a vision of special importance.
She saw the Divine Heart of Jesus wounded, and close to it, touching it--Berthe uses the word “adhering”--the Heart of Mary, pierced with a sword. She heard these words: “Cause My Mother’s Heart—transfixed by the sorrows which rent Mine—to be loved.”
She had the same vision and heard the same words on the 31st of December and the 30th of January.
On the 7th of February 1910, Berthe saw the Hearts of Jesus and Mary “interpenetrating” one another. The Dove of the Holy Spirit was poised over them. This time Our Lord said to her: “You must think of My Mother’s Heart when you think of Mine; live in this Heart as you would in Mine; give yourself to this Heart as you would to Mine. You must foster love for this Heart, so wholly one with Mine.”
At that time Berthe’s visions were greatly multiplied. She received fresh revelations concerning the devotion almost daily, and each unfolded some further aspect of Our Lord’s desire. On one occasion, she saw the two Hearts emitting rays of light, while she heard these words: “I have told you the wish of My Heart concerning My Mother’s Heart: love it and cause it to be loved. This love will be the source of graces for you and for the world, and will draw down great blessings upon you. Yield yourself to My love. My Heart’s wish will be confided to you.”
A few days later, while she was on a pilgrimage to St. Anne, in Alsace, this promise was fulfilled by the complete revelation of her Mission. It was to obtain the Consecration of the whole world to the SORROWFUL AND IMMACULATE HEART OF MARY.
Berthe was at that time on her way to Rome, accompanied by her Mother and the Abbé Decorsant. She broke her journey at Siena, where she had more than one vision. While assisting at the priest's Mass in St. Catherine’s room, she saw the Divine Face under the Crown of thorns, in a great glory of light, at the moment of the Elevation. Our Lord said to her once more: “The world must be dedicated to the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of My Mother, as it is dedicated to Mine. Fear nothing, no matter what suffering or obstacles you may meet. Think only of fulfilling My will.”
On Easter Sunday, at Rome, again at the priests Mass, Berthe again saw the Hearts of Jesus and Mary, fused with one another under the wings of the Dove. This time she heard these words: “What I desire derives from what I did on Calvary. In giving John to My Mother for her Son, I confided to her the Sorrowful and Immaculate Maternity of the whole world.”
Our Lord then bade her make a drawing of the vision of the two Hearts adding: “I will guide your hand.” Under obedience Berthe drew what she had seen. A few months later, she received a further communication: “I desire,” said the Divine Master, “that the picture, for which I guided your hand, should be widely diffused, as well as the invocation.”
This invocation: “Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary, pray for us who have recourse to thee” was endowed with a hundred days indulgence by Cardinal Mercier, early in 1911.
HISTORY OF THE DEVOTION TO THE HEART OF MARY
The nature of the devotion
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Just as devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus is only a form of devotion to the adorable Person of Jesus, so also is devotion to the Holy Heart of Mary but a special form of devotion to Mary. In order that, properly speaking, there may be devotion to the Heart of Mary, the attention and the homage of the faithful must be directed to the physical heart itself. However, this devotion to the heart, in itself, is not sufficient and can be superficial. The faithful must see in the Heart of Mary all that the human heart of Mary suggests, all of which it symbolizes and recalls to us of her life. It should be the living reminder: Mary’s interior life, her joys and sorrows, her virtues and hidden perfections, and, above all, her virginal love for her God, her maternal love for her Divine Son, and her motherly and compassionate love for her sinful and miserable children here below.
The consideration of Mary’s interior life and the beauties of her soul, without any thought of her physical heart, does not constitute our devotion; still less does it consist in the consideration of the Heart of Mary merely as a part of her virginal body. The two elements are essential to the devotion, just as soul and body are necessary to the constitution of man. The physical representation of the Heart of Mary is the body, while the focus on her interior life, her joys, sorrows, virtues and perfections are the soul. It can be of great profit to study the role and work of the physicsal heart in the human body and link that, by analogy, to the role and work of Mary in the Mystical Body. Endless fruits can be brought forth from that simple meditation. |
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The History of the Devotion
Devotion to Mary finds its roots in the Gospels. The attention of Christians was early attracted by the love and virtues of the Heart of Mary. The Gospel itself invited this attention with exquisite discretion and delicacy. What was first excited was compassion for the Virgin Mother. It was, so to speak, at the foot of the Cross that the Christian heart first made the acquaintance of the Heart of Mary. Simeon’s prophecy, about Mary's Heart, paved the way and furnished the devotion with one of its favourite formulae and most popular representations: the heart pierced with a sword. But Mary was not merely passive at the foot of the Cross; “she cooperated through charity”, as St. Augustine says, “in the work of our redemption”. Another Scriptural passage to help in bringing out the devotion was the twice-repeated saying of St. Luke, that Mary kept all the sayings and doings of Jesus in her heart, that there she might ponder over them and live by them. A few of the Virgin’s sayings, also recorded in the Gospel, particularly the Magnificat, disclose new features in Marian psychology. |
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Some of the Fathers also throw light upon the psychology of the Virgin, for instance, St. Ambrose, when in his commentary on St. Luke, he holds Mary up as the ideal of virginity, and St. Ephrem, when he so poetically sings of the coming of the Magi and the welcome accorded them by the humble Mother. Little by little, in consequence of the application of the Canticle of the loving relations between God and the Blessed Virgin, the Heart of Mary came to be for the Christian Church the Heart of the Spouse of the Canticles, as well as the Heart of the Virgin Mother.
Some passages from other Sapiential Books, likewise understood as referring to Mary, in whom they personify wisdom and her gentle charms, strengthened this impression. Such are the texts in which wisdom is presented as the mother of lofty love, of fear, of knowledge, and of holy hope. In the New Testament, Elizabeth proclaims Mary blessed, because she has believed the words of the angel; the Magnificat is an expression of her humility; and, in answering the woman of the people, who in order to exalt the Son proclaimed the Mother blessed, did not Jesus himself say: “Blessed rather are they that hear the word of God and keep it”, thus, in a manner, inviting us to seek in Mary that which had so endeared her to God and caused her to be selected as the Mother of Jesus? The Fathers understood His meaning, and found in these words a new reason for praising Mary. Pope St. Leo the Great says that, through faith and love, she conceived her Son spiritually, even before receiving Him into her womb, and St. Augustine tells us that she was more blessed in having borne Christ in her heart, than in having conceived Him in the flesh.
The spread of the devotion in the Later Middle Ages
However, the particular devotion to Mary’s Immaculate Heart developed much later. It is only in the twelfth, or towards the end of the eleventh century, that slight indications of a regular devotion are perceived in a sermon by St. Bernard (De duodecim stellis—On the Twelve Stars), from which an extract has been taken by the Church and used in the Offices of the Compassion and of the Seven Dolours. Stronger evidences are discernible in the pious meditations on the Ave Maria and the Salve Regina, usually attributed either to St. Anselm of Lucca (d. 1080) or St. Bernard; and also in the large book “De laudibus Beatae Mariae Virginis” — "Praises of the Blessed Virgin Mary" (Douai, 1625) by Richard de Saint-Laurent, Penitentiary of Rouen in the thirteenth century.
In St. Mechtilde (d. 1298) and St. Gertrude (d. 1301) the devotion had two earnest adherents. A little earlier it had been included by St. Thomas Becket in the devotion to the joys and sorrows of Mary, by Blessed Hermann (d.1245), one of the first spiritual children of Saint Dominic, in his other devotions to Mary, and somewhat later it appeared in St. Bridget’s “Book of Revelations”. Johannes Tauler (d. 1361) beholds in Mary the model of a mystical soul, just as St. Ambrose perceived in her the model of a virginal soul. St. Bernardine of Siena (d.1444) was more absorbed in the contemplation of the virginal heart, and it is from him that the Church has borrowed the lessons of the second nocturn for the feast of the Heart of Mary. St. Francis de Sales speaks of the perfections of this heart, the model of love for God, and dedicated to it his “Theotimus.”
During this same period one finds occasional mention of devotional practices to the Heart of Mary, e.g., in the “Antidotarium” of Nicolas du Saussay (d. 1488), in Julius II, and in the “Pharetra” of Lanspergius. In the second half of the sixteenth century and the first half of the seventeenth, ascetic authors dwelt upon this devotion at greater length.
It was, however, reserved to St. John Eudes (1601-1681) to propagate the devotion, to make it public, and to have a feast celebrated in honor of the Heart of Mary, first at Autun in 1648 and afterwards in a number of French dioceses. Its initial growth emerged with St. John Eudes' book, The Admirable Heart of Mary,.published in 1681. He established several religious societies in her honor, who were interested in upholding and promoting the devotion, of which his large book on The Admirable Heart of Mary, resembles a summary. St. John Eudes worked to establish a liturgical feast for the Heart of Mary, going so far as to compose a Mass and Office for it. St. John Eudes’ efforts to secure the approval of an office and feast initially failed at Rome and he died before his dream could be realized, but, notwithstanding this disappointment, the devotion to the Heart of Mary progressed. However, many years after his death, tt would be finally approved by Pope Pius VII in 1805 and the feast of the Most Pure Heart of Mary was then celebrated on February 8th.
While St. John Eudes spread devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary in France, Fr. John Peter Pinamonti, SJ (d. 1703), proclaimed the same devotion in his missions throughout northern and central Italy. His book on the Holy Heart of Mary, a short work in Italian, was published in 1699 as seven “Considerations.” It provided simple and clear explanations of the basic doctrines on Mary and further specified devotion to her Heart.
In 1725, Joseph de Gallifet combined the cause of the Heart of Mary with that of the Heart of Jesus in order to obtain Rome’s approbation of the two devotions and the institution of the two feasts. In 1729, his project was defeated, and in 1765, the two causes were separated, to assure the success of the principal one.
In 1799 Pius VI, then in captivity at Florence, granted the Bishop of Palermo the feast of the Most Pure Heart of Mary for some of the churches in his diocese.
Some passages from other Sapiential Books, likewise understood as referring to Mary, in whom they personify wisdom and her gentle charms, strengthened this impression. Such are the texts in which wisdom is presented as the mother of lofty love, of fear, of knowledge, and of holy hope. In the New Testament, Elizabeth proclaims Mary blessed, because she has believed the words of the angel; the Magnificat is an expression of her humility; and, in answering the woman of the people, who in order to exalt the Son proclaimed the Mother blessed, did not Jesus himself say: “Blessed rather are they that hear the word of God and keep it”, thus, in a manner, inviting us to seek in Mary that which had so endeared her to God and caused her to be selected as the Mother of Jesus? The Fathers understood His meaning, and found in these words a new reason for praising Mary. Pope St. Leo the Great says that, through faith and love, she conceived her Son spiritually, even before receiving Him into her womb, and St. Augustine tells us that she was more blessed in having borne Christ in her heart, than in having conceived Him in the flesh.
The spread of the devotion in the Later Middle Ages
However, the particular devotion to Mary’s Immaculate Heart developed much later. It is only in the twelfth, or towards the end of the eleventh century, that slight indications of a regular devotion are perceived in a sermon by St. Bernard (De duodecim stellis—On the Twelve Stars), from which an extract has been taken by the Church and used in the Offices of the Compassion and of the Seven Dolours. Stronger evidences are discernible in the pious meditations on the Ave Maria and the Salve Regina, usually attributed either to St. Anselm of Lucca (d. 1080) or St. Bernard; and also in the large book “De laudibus Beatae Mariae Virginis” — "Praises of the Blessed Virgin Mary" (Douai, 1625) by Richard de Saint-Laurent, Penitentiary of Rouen in the thirteenth century.
In St. Mechtilde (d. 1298) and St. Gertrude (d. 1301) the devotion had two earnest adherents. A little earlier it had been included by St. Thomas Becket in the devotion to the joys and sorrows of Mary, by Blessed Hermann (d.1245), one of the first spiritual children of Saint Dominic, in his other devotions to Mary, and somewhat later it appeared in St. Bridget’s “Book of Revelations”. Johannes Tauler (d. 1361) beholds in Mary the model of a mystical soul, just as St. Ambrose perceived in her the model of a virginal soul. St. Bernardine of Siena (d.1444) was more absorbed in the contemplation of the virginal heart, and it is from him that the Church has borrowed the lessons of the second nocturn for the feast of the Heart of Mary. St. Francis de Sales speaks of the perfections of this heart, the model of love for God, and dedicated to it his “Theotimus.”
During this same period one finds occasional mention of devotional practices to the Heart of Mary, e.g., in the “Antidotarium” of Nicolas du Saussay (d. 1488), in Julius II, and in the “Pharetra” of Lanspergius. In the second half of the sixteenth century and the first half of the seventeenth, ascetic authors dwelt upon this devotion at greater length.
It was, however, reserved to St. John Eudes (1601-1681) to propagate the devotion, to make it public, and to have a feast celebrated in honor of the Heart of Mary, first at Autun in 1648 and afterwards in a number of French dioceses. Its initial growth emerged with St. John Eudes' book, The Admirable Heart of Mary,.published in 1681. He established several religious societies in her honor, who were interested in upholding and promoting the devotion, of which his large book on The Admirable Heart of Mary, resembles a summary. St. John Eudes worked to establish a liturgical feast for the Heart of Mary, going so far as to compose a Mass and Office for it. St. John Eudes’ efforts to secure the approval of an office and feast initially failed at Rome and he died before his dream could be realized, but, notwithstanding this disappointment, the devotion to the Heart of Mary progressed. However, many years after his death, tt would be finally approved by Pope Pius VII in 1805 and the feast of the Most Pure Heart of Mary was then celebrated on February 8th.
While St. John Eudes spread devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary in France, Fr. John Peter Pinamonti, SJ (d. 1703), proclaimed the same devotion in his missions throughout northern and central Italy. His book on the Holy Heart of Mary, a short work in Italian, was published in 1699 as seven “Considerations.” It provided simple and clear explanations of the basic doctrines on Mary and further specified devotion to her Heart.
In 1725, Joseph de Gallifet combined the cause of the Heart of Mary with that of the Heart of Jesus in order to obtain Rome’s approbation of the two devotions and the institution of the two feasts. In 1729, his project was defeated, and in 1765, the two causes were separated, to assure the success of the principal one.
In 1799 Pius VI, then in captivity at Florence, granted the Bishop of Palermo the feast of the Most Pure Heart of Mary for some of the churches in his diocese.
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During the Marian Age, which opened with the apparitions of the Miraculous Medal to St. Catherine Labouré , of the Sisters of Charity—at the convent in the Rue de Bac, Paris, in 1830—devotion to Mary’s Immaculate Heart continued to develop. In the second apparition, St. Catherine received from Our Lady the pattern or design for the Miraculous Medal. What concerns us, in our study of devotion to the Heart of Mary, is the fact that on the reverse side of the medal were images of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary positioned side by side. This detail reinforces the ever-growing devotion to the Heart of Mary and points to the unity between the two devotions of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary.
A short time later, in 1832, Father Charles du Friche des Gennettes, pastor of the Church of Our Lady of Victories in Paris, was inspired to consecrate his parish to the Most Holy and Immaculate Heart of Mary. In this time after the French Revolution, when Mass attendance was down, he composed the rules for a Confraternity of Our Lady and had it approved by the bishop. When he went to explain the rules of the Confraternity, four hundred people were in attendance. From that point on, Our Lady of Victories became a site of many miracles and conversions. |
The prodigies of Our Lady of Victories had an epilogue in the visions of Sr. Justine Bisqueyburu. On September 8, 1840, Sr. Justine received instructions to have a Badge of the Immaculate Heart of Mary (also called the Green Scapular) made and distributed specifically for the conversion of sinners. The only requirement is that the prayer on the scapular: “Immaculate Heart of Mary, pray for us now and at the hour of our death,” is said by or for the person to be converted. Up until this time, devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary had not explicitly been associated with the conversion of sinners.
The apostolic fruitfulness of the devotion soon caught the attention of St. Anthony Claret, who helped to promote it in Spain. The apparitions in France, mentioned above, along with Our Lady of Fatima, have lead to wide-spread devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, as expressed through First Saturday devotions, the wearing of the Miraculous Medal and Green Scapular, and the founding of numerous religious orders devoted to the Immaculate Heart. All of these expressions of devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary include the intention of the conversion of sinners, beginning with ourselves.
The apostolic fruitfulness of the devotion soon caught the attention of St. Anthony Claret, who helped to promote it in Spain. The apparitions in France, mentioned above, along with Our Lady of Fatima, have lead to wide-spread devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, as expressed through First Saturday devotions, the wearing of the Miraculous Medal and Green Scapular, and the founding of numerous religious orders devoted to the Immaculate Heart. All of these expressions of devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary include the intention of the conversion of sinners, beginning with ourselves.