Mary, Mother of Mercy
We know that from the height of the cross, Jesus turned His dying countenance to His Mother, His sole treasure on earth.
"When Jesus saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing near, He said to His mother, 'Woman, behold, your son!' Then He said to the disciple, 'Behold, your mother! 'And from that hour the disciple took her to his own home" (Jn:26-27). In the person of John, Jesus had intended to embrace the whole world. St. Bernadine of Sienna said that in those precious moments, Mary became our Mother as well. While Jesus was praying on the cross, Mary was praying beneath it, with the holy women and John. Jesus' Heart was pierced with a lance; Mary's heart was pierced as if by a sword.
We read of Mary's Motherhood with regard to the Church in the Catechism of the Catholic Church. In paragraph #964, we read that "Mary's role in the Church is inseparable from her union with Christ and flows directly from it. This union of the mother with the Son in the work of salvation is made manifest from the time of Christ's virginal conception up to His death. It is made manifest above all at the hour of his Passion: Thus, the Blessed Virgin advanced in her pilgrimage of faith and faithfully persevered in her union with her Son unto the cross. There she stood, in keeping with the divine plan, enduring with her only begotten Son the intensity of His suffering, joining herself with His sacrifice in her mother's heart, and lovingly consenting to the immolation of this victim born of her: to be given, by the same Christ Jesus dying on the cross, as a mother to His disciple with these words: 'Woman, behold your Son.'"
And in paragraph #967, "By her complete adherence to the Father's will, to His Son's redemptive work, and to every prompting of the Holy Spirit, the Virgin Mary is the Church's model of faith and charity. Thus she is a 'preeminent and ... wholly unique member of the Church;' indeed, she is the 'Exemplary realization' of the Church." In paragraphs #968-969 we read, "Her role in relation to the Church and all of humanity goes still further. In a wholly singular way she cooperated by obedience, faith, hope, and burning charity in the Savior's work of restoring supernatural life to souls. For this reason, she is a mother to us in the order of grace. This motherhood of Mary in the order of grace continues uninterruptedly from the consent which she totally gave at the Annunciation and which she sustained without wavering beneath the cross, until the eternal fulfillment of all the elect. Taken up to heaven she did not lay aside this saving office but by her manifold intercession continues to bring us the gifts of eternal salvation.... Therefore, the Blessed Virgin is invoked in the Church under the titles of Advocate, Helper, Benefactress and Mediatrix."
Our Blessed Virgin told St. Bridget that no matter how many sins a man has committed, if he comes to her with a desire to change his life, she welcomes him She is more interested in the sincerity of his desire than in the hatefulness of his sins. She is always ready to soothe and heal the gaping wounds of his soul. That is why her name is "Mother of Mercy." She said that she is always ready to soothe and heal the gaping wounds of one's soul. Just as any good mother would want to soothe her child, so Mary wants to soothe the gaping wounds of our souls. We all know the tenderness and love we feel for our children. Can we imagine our Blessed Mother's tenderness for each one of us? She looks upon each one of us as her own special child. And as her own Son was crucified, we then became her only sons and daughters. What a treasure to have a mother so full of love and grace, ready to give us all that we need, and to draw us closer to her Son! She told St. Faustina that, "I am Mother of you all, thanks to the unfathomable mercy of God. Most pleasing to Me is that soul which faithfully carries out the will of God .... Be courageous, do not fear apparent obstacles, but fix your gaze upon the Passion of My Son, and in this way you will be victorious" (Diary, 449).
Pope John Paul II tells us in his encyclical letter, Rich in Mercy, "No one has experienced, to the same degree as the Mother of the crucified One, the mystery of the cross. No one has received into his heart, as much as Mary did, that mystery, that truly divine dimension of the redemption effected on Calvary by means of the death of the Son, together with the sacrifice of her maternal heart, together with her definitive, `fiat' . Mary then, is the one who has the deepest knowledge of the mystery of God's mercy. She knows its price, she knows how great it is. In this sense, we call her the Mother of Mercy: our Lady of Mercy, or Mother of Divine Mercy. By her maternal charity, she takes care of the brethren of her Son who still journey on earth surrounded by dangers and difficulties until they are led into their blessed home." (Mercy of God, #9 para 3)
Mary is always trying to point the way to her Son, always leading her children to her Son. In her deep humility and meekness of heart, listen to her words in her canticle from Luke 1:46-50:
"My soul magnifies the Lord,
and my spirit rejoices in God my savior,
for He regarded the low estate of His handmaiden.
For behold, henceforth all generations shall call me blessed; for
He who is mighty has done great things for me,
and holy is His name.
And His mercy is on those who fear Him
from generation to generation.
He has shown strength with His arm,
He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts,
He has put down the mighty from their thrones,
and exalted those of low degree;
He has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich He has sent empty away.
He has helped His servant Israel,
in remembrance of His mercy,
and He spoke to our fathers,
to Abraham and to his posterity forever."
His Holiness John Paul II continues in the encyclical that, "We have every right to believe that our generation too was included in the words of the Mother of God when she glorified that mercy shared in 'from generation to generation' by those who allow themselves to be guided by the fear of God. The words of Mary's Magnificat have a prophetic content that concerns not only the past of Israel but also the whole future of the People of God on earth. In fact, all of us now living on earth are the generation that is aware of the approach of the third millennium and that profoundly feels the change that is occurring in history. (Mercy of God, #10, para 1)
The Holy Father writes in Redemptoris Mater that, "For every Christian, for every human being, Mary is the one who first believed. And precisely with her faith as Spouse and Mother, she wishes to act upon all those who entrust themselves to her as her children. The more her children persevere and progress in this attitude, the nearer Mary leads them to the unsearchable riches of Christ." Father Richard Foley writes in his book, Mary and the Eucharist, that "Many of these unsearchable riches of Christ are found in the sacraments of our Church, especially in the Eucharist. Indeed, in the Eucharist they are literally embodied there for beneath the Eucharist's sacramental veil is the living fruit of Mary's womb. And our faith in His presence then is, in turn, the fruit of Mary's shining faith which in the first place sets the drama of redemption on course."
Given what Vatican II calls the indissoluble bond uniting Mary and her Son, it follows that as Mother of the Eucharistic Jesus, she now remains as closely united with the sacramental sacrifice as with its prototype at Golgotha. In other words the Virgin is present at every Mass with its High Priest and victim, renewing her maternal compassion and exercising her universal intercession. This explains why the mother of the faithful so earnestly desires that we attend Mass frequently and fervently. For thereby we become united in the most sanctifying way possible with Him through the ministry of His ordained priests, makes present before us and for our sakes, in Pope Leo the XIII's phrase, "the memorial of His measureless love for mankind."
Saint Faustina wrote on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, "From early morning, I felt the nearness of the Blessed Mother. During Holy Mass, I saw her, so lovely and so beautiful that I have no words to express even a small part of this beauty. She was all in white, with a blue sash around her waist. Her cloak was also blue, and there was a crown on her head. Marvelous light streamed forth from her whole figure. 'I am the Queen of heaven and earth, but especially the Mother of your Congregation.' She pressed me to her heart and said, 'I feel constant compassion for you.' I felt the force of her Immaculate Heart which was communicated to my soul. Now I understand why I have been preparing for this feast for two months and have been looking forward to it with such yearning" (Diary, 805).
As we yearn for heaven and our heavenly Father, let us put our hand into Mary's hand. She will lead us and guide us to her Son and home to our Father in heaven.
"0 Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us, who have recourse to Thee."
Diary of Saint Maria Faustina
449 I prepared for this feast with greater zeal than in previous years. On the morning of the feast itself, I experienced an inner struggle at the thought that I must leave this Congregation which enjoys such special protection from Mary. This struggle lasted through the meditation and through the first Mass as well. During the second Mass, I turned to our Holy Mother, telling Her that it was difficult for me to separate myself from this Congregation… “which is under Your special protection, O Mary.” Then I saw the Blessed Virgin, unspeakably beautiful. She came down from the altar to my kneeler, held me close to herself and said to me, I am Mother to you all, thanks to the unfathomable mercy of God. Most pleasing to Me is that soul which faithfully carries out the will of God. She gave me to understand that I had faithfully fulfilled the will of God and had thus found favor in His eyes. Be courageous. Do not fear apparent obstacles, but fix your gaze upon the Passion of My Son, and in this way you will be victorious.
805 From early morning, I felt the nearness of the Blessed Mother. During Holy Mass, I saw Her, so lovely and so beautiful that I have no words to express even a small part of this beauty. She was all [in] white, with a blue sash around Her waist. Her cloak was also blue, and there was a crown on Her head. Marvelous light streamed forth from Her whole figure. I am the Queen of heaven and earth, but especially the Mother of your [Congregation]. She pressed me to Her heart and said, I feel constant compassion for you. I felt the force of Her Immaculate Heart which was communicated to my soul. Now I understand why I have been preparing for this feast for two months and have been looking forward to it with such yearning. From today onwards, I am going to strive for the greatest purity of soul, that the rays of God’s grace may be reflected in all their brilliance. I long to be a crystal in order to find favor in His eyes.
Scripture
John 19:26-27
26 When Jesus saw his mother, and the disciple whom he loved standing near, he said to his mother, "Woman, behold, your son!" 27 Then he said to the disciple, "Behold, your mother!" And from that hour the disciple took her to his own home.
Luke 1:46
46 And Mary said, "My soul magnifies the Lord,
Catechism of the Catholic Church
964 Mary’s role in the Church is inseparable from her union with Christ and flows directly from it. “This union of the mother with the Son in the work of salvation is made manifest from the time of Christ’s virginal conception up to his death”; it is made manifest above all at the hour of his Passion: Thus the Blessed Virgin advanced in her pilgrimage of faith, and faithfully persevered in her union with her Son unto the cross. There she stood, in keeping with the divine plan, enduring with her only begotten Son the intensity of his suffering, joining herself with his sacrifice in her mother’s heart, and lovingly consenting to the immolation of this victim, born of her: to be given, by the same Christ Jesus dying on the cross, as a mother to his disciple, with these words: “Woman, behold your son.”
967 By her complete adherence to the Father’s will, to his Son’s redemptive work, and to every prompting of the Holy Spirit, the Virgin Mary is the Church’s model of faith and charity. Thus she is a “preeminent and... wholly unique member of the Church”; indeed, she is the “exemplary realization” (typus) of the Church.
969 “This motherhood of Mary in the order of grace continues uninterruptedly from the consent which she loyally gave at the Annunciation and which she sustained without wavering beneath the cross, until the eternal fulfilment of all the elect. Taken up to heaven she did not lay aside this saving office but by her manifold intercession continues to bring us the gifts of eternal salvation.... Therefore the Blessed Virgin is invoked in the Church under the titles of Advocate, Helper, Benefactress, and Mediatrix.”