Lumen Gentium, 58
Marian thought for February
"The Origin of the Way of the Cross:
During the whole of the scene which we have just described, the Mother of Jesus, with
Magdalen and John, had stood in a recess in the forum: they were overwhelmed with the
most bitter sorrow, which was but increased by all they heard and saw. When Jesus was
taken before Herod, John led the Blessed Virgin and Magdalen over the parts which had
been sanctified by his footsteps. They again looked at the house of Caiphas, that of Annas,
Ophel, Gethsemani, and the Garden of Olives; they stopped and contemplated each spot
where he had fallen, or where he had suffered particularly; and they wept silently at the
thought of all he had undergone. The Blessed Virgin knelt down frequently and kissed the
ground where her Son had fallen, while Magdalen wrung her hands in bitter grief, and John,
although he could not restrain his own tears, endeavoured to console his companions,
supported and led them on. Thus was the holy devotion of the ‘Way of the Cross’ first
practised; thus were the Mysteries of the Passion of Jesus first honoured, even before that
Passion was accomplished, and the Blessed Virgin, that model of spotless purity, was the
first to show forth the deep veneration felt by the Church for our dear Lord. How sweet and
consoling to follow this Immaculate Mother, passing to and fro, and bedewing the sacred
spots with her tears. But, ah! Who can describe the sharp, sharp sword of grief which then
transfixed her tender soul? She who had once borne the Saviour of the world in her chaste
womb, and suckled him for so long,—she who had truly conceived him who was the Word
of God, in God from all eternity, and truly God,—she beneath whose heart, full of grace, he
had deigned to dwell nine months, who had felt him living within her before he appeared
among men to impart the blessing of salvation and teach them his heavenly doctrines; she
suffered with Jesus, sharing with him not only the sufferings of his bitter Passion, but
likewise that ardent desire of redeeming fallen man by an ignominious death, which
consumed him.
In this touching manner did the most pure and holy Virgin lay the foundation of the
devotion called the Way of the Cross; thus at each station, marked by the sufferings of her
Son, did she lay up in her heart the inexhaustible merits of his Passion, and gather them up
as precious stones or sweet-scented flowers to be presented as a choice offering to the
Eternal Father in behalf of all true believers. The grief of Magdalen was so intense as to
make her almost like an insane person. The holy and boundless love she felt for our Lord
prompted her to cast herself at his feet, and there pour forth the feelings of her heart (as she
once poured the precious ointment on his head as he sat at table); but when on the point of
following this impulse, a dark gulf appeared to intervene between herself and him. The
repentance she felt for her faults was immense, and not less intense was her gratitude for
their pardon; but when she longed to offer acts of love and thanksgiving as precious incense
at the feet of Jesus, she beheld him betrayed, suffering, and about to die for the expiation of
her offences which he had taken upon himself, and this sight filled her with horror, and
almost rent her soul asunder with feelings of love, repentance, and gratitude. The sight of
the ingratitude of those for whom he was about to die increased the bitterness of these
feelings tenfold, and every step, word, or movement demonstrated the agony of her soul.
The heart of John was filled with love, and he suffered intensely, but he uttered not a word.
He supported the Mother of his beloved Master in this her first pilgrimage through the
stations of the Way of the Cross, and assisted her in giving the example of that devotion
which has since been practised with so much fervour by the members of the Christian
Church." (St. Anthony of Padua).
Liturgical text of the Hispanic Mozarabic rite
"Innate and supreme Father, You bestowed countless and great gifts upon the glorious Virgin Mary, enriching her by your word with the message of the angel, immaculately conceiving your Son in her by your Spirit, covering her with your divinely powerful shadow and instructing her with the pure spring of your knowledge of how she was to give birth to the Savior. Being by your will virgin before the birth, after the birth she remains virgin by your power. Her pure chastity responds to your word. Her immaculate virginity is a miracle of yours. In her favor turn your eyes to our want, pull us out of our frivolities and deliver us from our vicious tendencies" (Liturgical text of the Hispanic Mozarabic rite).
This ancient Hispanic rite was part of the group of Latin language liturgies that were constituted in the West between the fifth and seventh centuries.
Haurietis Aquas
"Another most precious gift of His Sacred Heart is, as We have said, Mary the beloved Mother of God and the most loving Mother of us all. She who gave birth to our Savior according to the flesh and was associated with Him in recalling the children of Eve to the life of divine grace has deservedly been hailed as the spiritual Mother of the whole human race. And so St. Augustine writes of her: "Clearly She is Mother of the members of the Savior (which is what we are), because She labored with Him in love that the faithful who are members of the Head might be born in the Church.'" (Luke 2:19; cf. Luke 2:51)." (Haurietis Aquas).
Blessed Bartolo Longo
"Just as two friends, frequently in each other's company, tend to develop similar habits, so too, by holding familiar convsersation with Jesus and the Blessed Virgin, by meditating on the mysteries of the Rosary and by living a life of communion, we can become, to the extent of our lowliness, similar to them and can learn from these supreme models a life of humility, poverty, hiddenness, patience and perfection" (Blessed Bartolo Longo).
Bartolo Longo was born in Latiano, a province of Brindisi, Italy, on February 10, 1841. He went to Naples in 1863 to finish his education and got involved in spiritism because of professors and bad company. He completely abandoned the Catholic Faith in which he had been educated. Discontent, assaults from the devil and deep sadness led him to search for help, which he found in a Catholic professor. The words of the professor were a shock for Bartolo: "You're going to die in a lunatic asylum and be condemned for eternity!" Later he went to a Dominican, Fr. Alberto Radente. On the feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in 1865, he went to Confession and returned to the Church. This caused great joy in his family, which had not ceased to beg God for his conversion since he had gone astray. After Bartolo's conversion, a thought tormeneted him: "How could he be saved after the life he lived in the past? He felt a voice inside of him say, "If you spread the Rosary you will be saved." He understood that his vocation was to spread the Rosary and devotion to Our Lady of the Rosary. In his lifetime he saw several works in favor of this mission and its extension throughout the world. A large church would be erected in honor of Our Lady of the Rosary. He did not limit himself to this mission alone, but also helped in different works of Christian charity directed especially toward orphans and the poor. He died on October 5, 1926, and was beatified by Pope John Paul II on October 26, 1980.
Saint John Berchmans
"Let us go full of confidence to Our Lady, because She has brought us to God, and is in a certain way an aqueduct from which we will easily draw the heavenly water of Christ to our gardens; She is a very rich and generous queen. What safer place than in the wounds of Jesus, and the arms of the Queen of Angels?" (Saint John Berchmans).
This ancient Hispanic rite was part of the group of Latin language liturgies that were constituted in the West between the fifth and seventh centuries.Saint John Berchmans was born in Belgium on March 13, 1599, to a good catholic family. He was one of five children, 3 of whom consecrated themselves to the Lord. He always behaved well at home, helping his mother as much as he could. He studied at the seminary in Mechelen and then entered the Jesuit novitiate of the same city. John was distinguished by his charity, study and piety. He had a great devotion to the Blessed Virgin whom he wanted to love with a very affectionate love, not wanting to stop until he achieved such love. He always lived under the gaze of this sweet Mother. During his life he was a defender of the dogma of the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary, and in the last year of his life, John had committed himself, signing with his own blood, to "affirm and defend the Dogma of the Immaculate Conception wherever it is found". He wanted to practice all the virtues and made an effort to observe perfectly his obligations, without excuses. He took advantage of his daily crosses, worked passionately for the glory of God, did everything by supernaturalizing the intention. He said "when you have to pray, pray with all love; when you have to study, study with all interest; when you have to practice a sport, practice it with all enthusiasm." He wanted to do things always with more love. He studied thinking about the future apostolate he would have and the souls he would meet. He died young saying that his greatest consolation was never having broken, in his religious life, any rule or order of his superiors and never having committed a venial sin. Before dying he pressed close to his chest a crucifix, a rosary and the book of the Rules, saying "these are my three most beloved garments, with them I die happy." He died on August 13, 1621. His last words were: Jesus, Mary.
Saint Catherine Labouré
"This globe which you see represents the whole world, especially France, and each person in particular. These rays symbolize the graces I shed upon those who ask for them. The gems from which rays do not fall are the graces for which souls forget to ask" (Our Lady to Saint Catherine Labouré).
Saint Catherine was born in France in 1806. Her mother passed away when Catherine was 9 years old. This made her entrust herself to the Virgin Mary in a special way so that She would be her Mother. Since a young age, Catherine desired to dedicate her life to God in the religious life. Her father resisted her going because there was no one to attend to the duties at home. Disconsolate, she begged the Lord insistently to grant her what she desired: to become a religious. One night in a dream, she saw an elderly priest who said to her, "One day you will help me take care of the sick." When she was 24, she visited her sister and saw in the convent Saint Vincent de Paul's portrait. She recognized the elderly priest from her dream and understood that she had to dedicate her life there. After insisting a great deal, she obtained permission and was accepted by the community. On November 27, 1830, she was praying in the convent's chapel when the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to her, completely radiant and shedding beautiful rays of light from her hands to the earth. She entrusted Catherine the making of an image of the apparition and a medal. On one side, the medal would have the Virgin Mary's initials--m and a cross--with the quote, "Oh Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee." The medal was made, and through it many miracles and special graces were obtained for those who wore it and prayed the prayer on it. From 1830 until 1876, when she died, Catherine lived in the convent and no one thought that she was the one the Virgin Mary had appeared to. Eight months before her death, Catherine told her new superior about all of the apparitions in detail, and it was known who was the one who had seen and heard the Virgin Mary. Pope Pius XII declared her a saint in 1947.