MARY'S APPROACH

 There is a striking approach to troubling events that can be observed in Mary. Mary seemed, according to the Bible passages, to be untroubled by the various issues that should have ordinarily troubled her. Look at the peaceful response at Gabriel’s message (Lk. 1:38), the peaceful pondering at Simeon’s warnings (Lk. 2:51), the calmness at Cana(Jn. 2:4), the submission at the Cross (Jn. 19:27) and the patience at the upper room (Acts. 1:14). Mary shows an attitude towards things that may not be referred to as abnormal but uncommon amongst the Children of Adam. 

More than Beautiful

 

Have you seen a beauty today?

 One that could capture God's heart

That comfortably in her womb, He chose to lay. 

After the fall, which did God annoy

 All creation awaited her coming

 The second Eve and cause of our joy.

Our Blessed Mother and Her Perfect Faith

 

"But Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I have no relations with a man?” And the angel said to her in reply, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God. And behold, Elizabeth, your relative, has also conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren; for nothing will be impossible for God.” Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her." Luke 1:34-38.

We are presented with the wondrous witness of the Virgin-Mother of God, her witness is one of perfect faith!

WHEN THE CHIPS ARE DOWN

 

Reflecting on the origins and spread of various Marian devotions such as the Franciscan crown and the Rosary as well as on her many apparitions, one recurrent theme was underlined, that is, Mary comes to the rescue whenever the chips are down, be it the chips of an individual or of the entire world. The underlying message is, also, the same, which is that true devotion to Mary is not just good for but is essential to our growth and witness as Christians.

MARY, THE ARK OF THE COVENANT

    

         It is no news that one of the titles of the Blessed Virgin reads as the Ark of the Covenant. First, we must make some exposition of what the ark is or was for the Jewish people. The Ark of the Covenant – the holiest object in ancient Israel is a wooden box made of acacia with a golden ornament and overshadowed by a carved cherubim; it ultimately signified God’s presence among his people. Within Solomon’s temple, the ark occupied the holy of holies. The ark contained within it the tablets of stone on which God had traced the Ten Commandments. It also contained a relic of the manna, the food God provided his people to sustain their journey in the wilderness; and again, the ark also contained Aaron’s rod, the symbol of his priestly office.

IS THERE SALVATION OUTSIDE THE CHURCH?

ONE SHEPHERD AND ONE FLOCK

Many have raised the question countless times as regards the salvation of those who existed before the coming of the one mediator between God and man (1Tim2:5), the man Jesus Christ. Scripture makes it lucid that there is no salvation in anyone else except in Christ, precisely it states: “for of all the names in the world given to men, this is the only one by which we can be saved.”  What then is the implication of such over-bearing statement? Are we thus to understand that all who existed before the incarnation episode in human history are doomed forever? Sequel to that, are we also to suppose that any human who through no fault of his or her own, has not come to know or hear about Jesus, cannot attain salvation? 

The Rosary: A Prayer of Presence

 

The most fundamental component of the Holy Rosary is the ‘Hail Mary.’ Analytically, it is the smallest unit to which the Rosary can be reduced before it completely loses recognition as the Rosary. The Rosary is essentially the ‘Hail Mary.’ However, the beautiful and powerful prayer of the Rosary sometimes unwittingly obscures the Hail Mary itself. Were the number of Rosaries some of us have said over the entire course of our lives reduced materially into straight-chained chaplets, with beads the size of peanuts, the length might encircle entire states. So, I believe that in a number of cases and without intending to, we say so many Rosaries that, without intending to, we lose sight of the Hail Mary with the attendant implication that our prayer life suffers a vitiation in quality and efficacy. This understanding is perhaps put in clearer perspective when we consider an observation  by one of the former Spanish side’s finest coaches, Vicente del Bosque, concerning Sergio Busquets, a Spanish player of no mean legendary repute himself. He said “When you watch the game, you don’t see Sergio Busquets,

MARIA FAUSTINA - THE EXTENT OF GOD'S MERCY

"Let no soul, even the most miserable, fall prey to doubt; as far as one is alive, one can be a great saint" St. Maria Faustina

This particular quote of St. Maria Faustina has always comforted and encouraged me.

Today, being her Feast, I meditated deeply on the various implications of this simple verse. The first implication that brings itself to the fore is the depth of God's mercy portrayed