Mary Vitamin for July 23rd
Topic: The First Sorrowful Mystery of the Rosary
(In honor of the month of the Precious Blood)
Quote:
And there appeared to him an angel from heaven strengthening him. And being in
an agony, he prayed the longer. And his sweat became as drops of blood,
trickling down upon the ground.
Luke 22:43-4
Meditation:
Venerable Anne Catherine Emmerich explains that Our Lord in the garden of
Gethsemane “understood not only the consequence of every species of
concupiscence, but also its own peculiar expiatory chastisement, the
significance of all the instruments of torture connected with it; so that not
only the thought of the instrument made Him shudder, but also the sinful rage of
him that invented it, the fury and wickedness of all that had ever used it, and
the impatience of all, whether innocent or guilty, who had been tortured with
it. All these tortures and afflictions Jesus perceived in an interior
contemplation, and the sight filled Him with such horror that a bloody sweat
started from the pores of His sacred Body.”
The Life of Jesus Christ and Biblical Revelations, Volume 4, (Tan Books), 89
Does a mother suffer only when she witnesses the suffering of her child? Or does
she suffer over and over again in her heart, anticipating the suffering of her
child? Is Our Lady not aware of the avarice of Judas and the hatred of the
leaders in the Temple towards her Son? A mother in her compassion cannot help
but anticipate the pain and suffering of her child. It is not recorded in Holy
Scripture that Our Lady was present in the Garden, but her heart was always
unwaveringly united with God, and she would share in his agony on the eve of the
great manifestation of God’s passionate love for mankind. She would share, the
way a Mother shares in the suffering of her son: silently, meekly, heart
breaking, full of love, yet accepting.
Resolution:
I will meditate in the Rosary what it cost Our Lady to accept the Will of God in
the Redemption of humanity. Our Lady does not need to be present in
the Garden of Gethsemane to share in the suffering of Her Son.
Marian Vow:
The Immaculate was the universal Mediatrix of redemption, to wit, was the only
Coredemptrix who has shared in person with the Redeemer –“under Him and with
Him” (LG 56) — the work of universal redemption, cooperating actively with her
tears, mixed in the Blood of Her Crucified Son, to rescue sinful mankind, from
Adam to the last man who lives on the earth.
Marian Seraphic Pathways, Statutes #51
I give this resolution to the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Thanks be to God for graces received.
Related sites: Castle of the Immaculate
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Mary Vitamin is a daily Email support for Marian mental prayer. Each day (Monday through Friday) members will receive a brief Marian quote with a corresponding Marian meditation and resolution. The Mary Vitamin is designed to make mental prayer a little simpler and bring Our Lady into your day in a systematic way.
