The Necessity of the Intercession of Mary for our Salvation.
STORY
In Germany a man fell into a grievous sin; through shame he was unwilling to confess it; but, on the other hand, unable to endure the remorse of his conscience, he went to throw himself into a river; on the point of doing so, he hesitated, and weeping, he begged that God would forgive him his sin without his confessing it. One night, in his sleep, he felt someone shake his arm, and heard a voice which said, “Go to confession.” He went to the church, but yet did not confess. On another night, he again heard the same voice. He returned to the church; but when he arrived there, he declared that he would rather die than confess that sin. But before returning home he went to recommend himself to the most Blessed Virgin, whose image was in that church. He had no sooner knelt down than he found himself quite changed. He immediately arose, called a confessor, and weeping bitterly, through the grace which he had received from Mary, made an entire confession of his sins; and he afterwards declared that he experienced greater satisfaction than if he had obtained all the treasures of the world.
PRAYER
I will address you, O great Mother of God, in the words of St Bernard; “Speak, O Lady, for your Son hears you, and whatever you ask you will obtain.” Speak, speak, then, O Mary, our advocate, in favor of us poor miserable creatures. Remember that it was also for our good that you did receive so great power and so high a dignity. A God was pleased to become your debtor by taking humanity of you, in order that you might dispense at will the riches of divine mercy to sinners. We are your servants, devoted in a special manner to you; and I am one of these, I trust, even in a higher degree. We glory in living under your protection. Since you do good to all, even to those who neither know nor honor you, rather, more, to those who outrage and blaspheme you, how much more may we not hope from your benignity, which seeks out the wretched in order to relieve them, we who honor, love, and confide in you? We are great sinners, but God has enriched you with compassion and power far exceeding our iniquities. You can, and have the will to save us; and the greater is our unworthiness, the greater shall be our hope in order to glorify you the more in heaven, when by your intercession we get there. O Mother of mercy, we present you our souls, once cleansed and rendered beautiful in the blood of Jesus Christ, but, alas, since that time, defiled by sin. To you do we present them; do you purify them. Obtain for us true conversion; obtain for us the love of God, perseverance, heaven. We ask you for much; but what is it? Perhaps you can not obtain all? It is perhaps too much for the love of God bears you? Ah, no! for you have only to open your lips and ask your divine Son; he will deny you nothing. Pray, then, pray O Mary, for us; pray; you will certainly obtain all; and we shall with the same certainty obtain the kingdom of heaven.
