The attention of Christians was early attracted by the love and virtues of the Heart of Mary. The Gospel itself invited this attention with exquisite discretion and delicacy. What was first excited was compassion for the Virgin Mother. It was, so to speak, at the foot of the Cross that the Christian heart first made the acquaintance of the Heart of Mary. Simeon’s prophecy paved the way and furnished the devotion with one of its favourite formulae and most popular representations: the heart pierced with a sword. But Mary was not merely passive at the foot of the Cross; “she cooperated through charity”, as St. Augustine says, “in the work of our redemption”.
It is only in the twelfth, or towards the end of the eleventh century, that slight indications of a regular devotion are perceived in a sermon by St. Bernard (De duodecim stellis).
Stronger evidences are discernible in the pious meditations on the Ave Maria and the Salve Regina, usually attributed either to St. Anselm of Lucca (d. 1080) or St. Bernard; and also in the large book De laudibus B. Mariae Virginis (Douai, 1625) by Richard de Saint-Laurent.
In St. Mechtilde (d. 1298) and St. Gertrude (d. 1302) the devotion had two earnest adherents. A little earlier it had been included by St. Thomas Becket in the devotion to the joys and sorrows of Mary, by Blessed Hermann (d.1245), one of the first spiritual children of St. Dominic, in his other devotions to Mary, and somewhat later it appeared in St. Bridget’s Book of Revelations.
St. Ambrose perceived in her the model of a virginal soul. St. Bernardine of Siena (d.1444) was more absorbed in the contemplation of the virginal heart, and it is from him that the Church has borrowed the lessons of the Second Nocturn for the feast of the Heart of Mary. St. Francis de Sales speaks of the perfections of this heart, the model of love for God, and dedicated to it his Theotimus.
In the second half of the sixteenth century and the first half of the seventeenth, ascetic authors dwelt upon this devotion at greater length. It was, however, reserved to St. Jean Eudes (d. 1681) to propagate the devotion, to make it public, and to have a feast celebrated in honor of the Heart of Mary, first at Autun in 1648 and afterwards in a number of French dioceses.
In 1799 Pius VI, then in captivity at Florence, granted the Bishop of Palermo the feast of the Most Pure Heart of Mary for some of the churches in his diocese. In 1805 Pius VII made a new concession, thanks to which the feast was soon widely observed. Such was the existing condition when a twofold movement, started in Paris, gave fresh impetus to the devotion. The two factors of this movement were first of all the revelation of the “miraculous medal” in 1830 and all the prodigies that followed, and then the establishment at Notre-Dame-des-Victoires of the Archconfraternity of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, Refuge of Sinners, which spread rapidly throughout the world and was the source of numberless graces. On 21 July 1855, the Congregation of Rites finally approved the Office and Mass of the Most Pure Heart of Mary without, however, imposing them upon the Universal Church.
REMEMBER, O most gracious Virgin Mary, that never was it known that anyone who fled to thy protection, implored thy help, or sought thy intercession was left unaided. Inspired with this confidence, I fly to thee, O Virgin of virgins, my Mother; to thee do I come; before thee I stand, sinful and sorrowful. O Mother of the Word Incarnate, despise not my petitions, but in thy mercy hear and answer me. Amen.
Finding Answers
Men and women with brilliant minds have peopled the ranks of science for centuries. It is rarely mentioned that many of them have steadfastly acknowledged God as the source of the mysteries and marvels of creation they study. One wonders why the false dichotomy between science and faith persists. Science explores many things. But it is not the origin of its discoveries.
Little Jacinta Marto, one of the newly canonized shepherd children who received the visitations of Our Lady at Fatima, did not live long after the apparitions. She caught the Spanish flu which was the pandemic at the time, and suffered greatly, offering everything up before dying, to save souls from hell. She remarked that “doctors do not treat their patients with much success because they have no love for God.” She perceived that too many did not ask Him for help, and discounted the power of His intervention.
Padre Pio, when asked if we would ever find a cure for cancer, is said to have responded that we would, and that it would be so simple that people would question why it hadn’t been discovered sooner. It makes one wonder if a genuine, humble, heartfelt prayer from a physician or scientist could finally bring an end to one of the most dreaded diseases of our time.
One of the truly great scientists, George Washington Carver, understood this connection well. Born a slave during the civil war, he lost his immediate family early in life. As he grew, the scientific bent of his mind along with a living faith in God, became clear. He revolutionized agriculture in the South, particularly taking crops like the peanut, which was used only for animal feed, and increasing its marketability by researching the multitude of other possible uses. The beloved staple, Peanut Butter, is one of 300 different uses he proposed after asking God to teach him about peanuts. (The Aztecs were actually the first to make a peanut paste.) He did the same for crops like sweet potatoes, pecans, soybeans, cowpeas, wild plums, and okra.
In 1924, Carver spoke to over 500 people at the Women’s Board of Domestic Missions:
“God is going to reveal to us things He never revealed before if we put our hands in His. No books ever go into my laboratory. The thing I am to do and the way are revealed to me the moment I am inspired to create something new. Without God to draw aside the curtain, I would be helpless.”
Perhaps this is a secret we need to rediscover again today!
Questions for Reflection:
George Washington Carver was a man of deep faith in both his work and his relationships. What lessons can we learn from him for our own lives and the situation in the world today?
Why do you think science and faith are presented in opposition to each other? What is the underlying premise for this and is it true or false?
Do you pray for your own doctors and their faith life? Has God ever used you as a witness or channel of grace in relating to them?
What do you think the mission statement of science and medicine should be?
The following Excerpt on George Washington Carver is taken from An American Minute by William Federer. It is a wonderful witness for today!
“My beloved friend, keep your hand in that of the Master, walk daily by His side, so that you may lead others into the realms of true happiness, where a religion of hate, (which poisons both body and soul) will be unknown, having in its place the ‘Golden Rule’ way, which is the ‘Jesus Way’ of life, will reign supreme…”wrote George Washington Carver to Jack Boyd, a YMCA official in Denver, March 1, 1927.
Carver continued:”… Then, we can walk and talk with Jesus momentarily, because we will be attuned to His will and wishes, thus making the Creation story of the world non-debatable as to its reality. God, my beloved friend, is infinite, the highest embodiment of love. We are finite, surrounded and often filled with hate. We can only understand the infinite as we loose the finite and take on the infinite. My dear friend, my friendship to you cannot possibly mean what yours does to me. I talk to God through you, you help me to see God through another angle … Most sincerely yours, G.W. Carver.”
George Washington Carver was invited to be on the staff of the Tuskegee Institute, founded by Booker T. Washington.
Booker T. Washington wrote: “It is now long ago that I learned this lesson from General Samuel Chapman Armstrong, and resolved that I would permit no man, no matter what his color might be, to narrow and degrade my soul by making me hate him.
With God’s help, I believe that I have completely rid myself of any ill feeling toward the Southern white man for any wrong that he may have inflicted upon my race. I am made to feel just as happy now when I am rendering service to Southern white men as when the service is rendered to a member of my own race. I pity from the bottom of my heart any individual who is so unfortunate as to get into the habit of holding race prejudice.”
George W. Carver wrote to Booker T. Washington, May 16, 1896: “I am looking forward to a very busy, pleasant and profitable time at your college and shall be glad to cooperate with you in doing all I can through Christ who strengtheneth me to better the condition of our people. Some months ago I read your stirring address delivered at Chicago and I said amen to all you said, furthermore you have the correct solution to the ‘race problem.'”
In 1939, George Washington Carver was awarded the Roosevelt Medal, with the declaration: “To a scientist humbly seeking the guidance of God and a liberator to men of the white race as well as the black.”
George Washington Carver was born a slave during the Civil War, possibly around the date of JULY 12, 1865, but there are no records. Within a few weeks, his father, who belonged to the next farm over, was killed in a log hauling accident.
Shortly after the Civil War, while still an infant, George was kidnapped along with his mother and sister by bushwhackers.
Moses Carver, a German immigrant, sent friends to track down the thieves and offer to trade his best horse to retrieve them. Told to leave the horse and come back later, the thieves only left baby George lying on the ground, sick with the whooping cough. George never saw his mother and sister again.
Illness claimed the lives of his two other sisters and they were buried on the old Carver farm. George and his older brother, Jim, were raised on the farm in Diamond Grove, Missouri, by “Uncle” Moses and “Aunt” Sue Carver, who were childless.
In poor health as a child, George stayed near the house helping with chores, learning to cook, clean, sew, mend and wash laundry. His recreation was to spend time in the woods.
George worked his way through grade school, high school and college, eventually joining the staff at Iowa State College of Agricultural and Mechanical Arts.
In the fall of 1896, George surprised the staff by announcing his plans to give up his promising future there and join the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama which was founded by Booker T. Washington.
The staff showed Carver their appreciation by purchasing him a going away present, a microscope, which he used extensively throughout his career.
At Tuskegee,George assembled an Agricultural Department.
He visited nearby farmers and taught them farming techniques, such as crop rotation, fertilization and erosion prevention. Carver noticed that the soil was depleted due to years of repeated cotton growth and produced very poorly.
Also, an insect called the boll weevil swept through the South, destroying cotton crops and leaving farmers devastated.
Farmers heeded Carver’s advice but soon had more peanuts than the market wanted, as peanuts were primarily used as animal feed. George determined to increase the market for peanuts by discovering and popularizing hundreds of uses for them.
He continued: “Years ago I went into my laboratory and said, ‘Dear Mr. Creator, please tell me what the universe was made for? ‘The Great Creator answered, ‘You want to know too much for that little mind of yours. Ask for something more your size, little man. ‘Then I asked, ‘Please, Mr. Creator, tell me what man was made for. ‘Again the Great Creator replied, ‘You are still asking too much. Cut down on the extent and improve the intent.’
So then I asked, ‘Please, Mr. Creator, will you tell me why the peanut was made?’ ‘That’s better, but even then it’s infinite. What do you want to know about the peanut?’ ‘Mr. Creator, can I make milk out of the peanut?’ ‘What kind of milk do you want? Good Jersey milk or just plain boarding house milk?’ ‘Good Jersey milk.’ And then the Great Creator taught me to take the peanut apart and put it together again. And out of the process have come forth all these products!”
Among the numerous products displayed was a bottle of good Jersey milk. Three and-a-half ounces of peanuts produced one pint of rich milk or one quart of raw “skim” milk, called boarding house “blue john” milk.
On January 21, 1921, Carver addressed the United States House Ways and Means Committee on behalf of the United Peanut Growers Association on the use of peanuts to improve Southern economy. George expounded on the many potential uses of the peanut as a means to improve the Southern economy. Initially given only ten minutes to speak, George Carver so enthralled the committee that the Chairman said, “Go ahead Brother. Your time is unlimited!”
He spoke for one hour and forty-five minutes, explaining the many food products that could be derived from peanuts: “If you go to the first chapter of Genesis, we can interpret very clearly, I think, what God intended when he said, ‘Behold, I have given you every herb that bears seed. To you it shall be meat. ‘This is what He means about it. It shall be meat. There is everything there to strengthen and nourish and keep the body alive and healthy.”
The Committee Chairman asked Carver: “Dr. Carver, how did you learn all of these things?” Carver answered, “From an old book.” “What book?” asked the Chairman. Carver replied, “The Bible.” The Chairman inquired, “Does the Bible tell about peanuts?” “No, Sir” Carver replied, “But it tells about the God who made the peanut. I asked Him to show me what to do with the peanut, and He did.”
On November 19, 1924, Carver spoke to over 500 people at the Women’s Board of Domestic Missions: “God is going to reveal to us things He never revealed before if we put our hands in His. No books ever go into my laboratory. The thing I am to do and the way are revealed to me the moment I am inspired to create something new. Without God to draw aside the curtain, I would be helpless. Only alone can I draw close enough to God to discover His secrets.”
On March 24, 1925, Carver wrote to Robert Johnson, an employee of Chesley Enterprises of Ontario: “Thank God I love humanity; complexion doesn’t interest me one single bit.”
On July 10, 1924, George Washington Carver wrote to James Hardwick: “God cannot use you as He wishes until you come into the fullness of His Glory. Do not get alarmed, my friend, when doubts creep in. That is old Satan. Pray, pray, pray. Oh, my friend, I am praying that God will come in and rid you entirely of self so you can go out after souls right, or rather have souls seek the Christ in you. This is my prayer for you always.”
Facing Our Immortality is a cancer outreach ministry for those affected by cancer, either directly or indirectly. We desire for you a sense of community and renewal through Christ, supported by monthly virtual support groups as well as specialized retreats. Peace and Grace.
REMEMBER, O most gracious Virgin Mary, that never was it known that anyone who fled to thy protection, implored thy help, or sought thy intercession was left unaided. Inspired with this confidence, I fly to thee, O Virgin of virgins, my Mother; to thee do I come; before thee I stand, sinful and sorrowful. O Mother of the Word Incarnate, despise not my petitions, but in thy mercy hear and answer me. Amen.
The Spiritual Contest And The Mind
The first, and undoubtedly the worst, bad decision ever made, was made in a battle between two superior intelligences before historical time began. Though we image the conflict with St. Michael dressed in armor and wielding a spear over Lucifer, the most beautiful of the angels now turned into a writhing, contorted, dragon-like creature, the battle was not physical but rather intellectual in nature. The arrogant supposition on the part of Lucifer, that he was greater than God in determining the “right order” of things, was resoundingly contested and conquered when St. Michael thunderously proclaimed: “Who is like unto God!” The power of those words suffused with truth and piercing light and rumbling through the far reaches of the heavens was enough to cast the demons from the seraphic realms forever.
Intelligence, a God-given gift which makes us different from the animals, and gives us a likeness to God, can be cradled in either pride or humility. Humility recognizes the gift; pride glories in the gift without acknowledging the origin. Humility generates light; pride is blind to it.
We do well to remember spiritual warfare is not out there somewhere. It takes place inside of us, in the understanding and the will, the mind, and the heart. Jesus tells us the Kingdom of God is within, and “From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent are taking it by force.” Matthew 11:12. You cannot run from this battle. Every man is put to the test within his very self.
We may feel at a distinct disadvantage in a battle where our foe knows every weakness we have and has a superior intelligence with which to fight against us. And yet, our victory is had beyond the limits of purely human reasoning and strength. When the mind, the intellect is filled with the light of faith, we are able to see things and assent to things we do not fully understand, and thus to be victorious. And when the will is informed by charity, by the love of God, it moves easily to that which is shown to it by faith.
When Jesus contends with the devil in the desert, he does not engage in dialogue, because what the devil says, is technically true. He simply reverts to the love and providence of the Father and manifests His determination to wait on Him, even in suffering, rather than follow any direction coming from a creature who has willfully cut himself off from infinite good.
All temptation follows the pattern of the first sin in the Garden. The devil attacks the understanding: “Did God really say that? That’s not true! He knows if you eat this fruit you will be just like Him, and He doesn’t want that. So He’s keeping it back from you.” Once Adam and Eve allow doubt to be sown into their minds, their hearts lose trust in God, and they choose what they should have rejected.
The same thing happens to us in our personal temptations. A thought comes to us, and we toy with it for a while and then start thinking it wouldn’t be so bad to do the thing after all. God will understand, etc. Check for the tail of the serpent when you find yourself thinking like this about things you know are expressly wrong. Our pride and our inordinate seeking after pleasure can blind us to truths which God is very clear about.
It is sobering to observe that these internal battles can affect far more than ourselves. Lucifer must have been so persuasive in his argument that he swayed 1/3 of the angelic hosts to follow him. So too, do we see the same principle play out in human history. The last century has produced ideology after ideology (nazism, fascism, socialism, communism, radical feminism, liberalism, conservatism, traditionalism, modernism, and on and on, masses of people following an often diabolically compelling and magnetic leader set on an appealing but fatally flawed idea).
Jordan Peterson, a popular speaker and engaging thinker says this about ideologies: “Ideologies are substitutes for true knowledge, and ideologues are always dangerous when they come to power, because a simple-minded I-know- it-all approach is no match for the complexity of existence.”
― Jordan B. Peterson, 12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos
This certainly has been evidenced over and over again in the last century, with the resulting human destruction numbering in the hundreds of millions. But this is simply spiritual warfare on a grander scale. Someone takes the bait in a bad idea, which usually has to do with creating a better existence but hides a lust for power. The attempted implementation of the idea ultimately destroys everything in its reach. The followers, and surrounding people pay the price with their lives because they are deceived into believing that utopia, (a perfect existence), here on earth is possible and that people will change and be happy if they just acquiesce to the plan.
It is merely a re-packaging of the original temptation. The serpent whispers the same lie to the modern age: your life will be better if you do what I say, not what God says. This is the seed of corruption that ruins everything from individual lives to whole nations under the sway of contaminated ideas. Pope Benedict XVI noted that: “Wherever politics (read ideologies) tries to be redemptive, it is promising too much. Where it wishes to do the work of God, it becomes not divine, but demonic.” Truth And Tolerance: Christian Belief And World Religions
Be aware of your thoughts. They have the power of heaven or hell in them.
St. Mark the Ascetic says,”Every thought has its weight and measure in God’s sight.” If we can sin in our thoughts, we can likewise do good in our thoughts, exercising faith and holding onto trust in God. May Our Blessed Mother help us to put on the mind of Christ that we may fight the good fight and be victorious in the arena of our own souls.
How aware of your thoughts are you?
How do you discipline your thoughts, if at all?
What would you say is the general tone of your thoughts throughout a day? Positive, negative, distracted, curious and unruly? How would you describe your thought life?
What does “putting on the mind of Christ” mean to you and where do you personally see the most prominent attacks against that in your thinking?
Announcing a new book by Sr. Anne Marie Walsh, Society of Our Lady Of The Most Holy Trinity (SOLT). These thoughtful reflections have been most helpful to our cherished monthly support group participants. Now these reflections, along with other treasures, are all together in one book to help you on your spiritual journey.
“Gathering The Light” is a collection of articles, reflections and poetry. Many of the articles have appeared in various Catholic publications. It is set up in such a way that it can be used for personal reflection, book studies and support groups.
We have been using a reflection from this collection every time we meet as the “Facing Our Immortality” cancer support group. In the midst of serious illness, or perhaps because of it, the desire to know the deep things of God becomes even more active and especially efficacious.
The format of “Gathering The Light” offers focal points of light meant to help us see what perhaps we have not seen before. Each article, with a few exceptions, hovers around one-thousand words. It is very manageable for busy persons trying to go a little deeper in their relationship with God. At the end, some questions for reflection are provided if needed.
This book is available for purchase from Amazon, please link here – Gathering The Light: Treasures Out Of The Darkness.
REMEMBER, O most gracious Virgin Mary, that never was it known that anyone who fled to thy protection, implored thy help, or sought thy intercession was left unaided. Inspired with this confidence, I fly to thee, O Virgin of virgins, my Mother; to thee do I come; before thee I stand, sinful and sorrowful. O Mother of the Word Incarnate, despise not my petitions, but in thy mercy hear and answer me. Amen.
Easter in a Time of Pandemic – “No Coward Soul is Mine”
It’s hard to overstate the crushing trauma and demoralization, the numbing shock, and the paralyzing fear, the apostles experienced as they watched the sufferings and death of Jesus unfold before them in a quick succession of sudden and violent events. Once the betrayal was set in motion, their entire understanding and expectations were brutally assaulted and swiftly destroyed in a matter of hours. So overwhelming was the Paschal Mystery for the closest friends of Jesus that they could not stay with Him as He went through it. St. John, the beloved disciple managed, not on his own, but by relying on the only one who had any courage and faith left: Our Blessed Mother, who had also gathered a handful of grieving women around her.
As the events played out, darkness descended and stalked the followers of the Nazarene, now dead and locked inside a dark tomb behind a monstrous, immovable stone with Soldiers assigned to keep it sealed. An eerie stillness, a strange, suffocating breathlessness, unlike anything anyone had ever known, blanketed the whole earth and penetrated their own hearts, so there was no escape from it. Hope and faith beat feebly in the spirits and souls of those, (save one Woman), closest to the horrific Death of the Anointed One, the Messiah who was going to save the Chosen People. The whole world groaned, “Foundations once destroyed, what can the just man do?” Ps11
Jesus’ followers, who had known oppression, persecution, and exile in their history as a people, who had been separated from the temple and the worship of the One True God, were not ready. They were shocked by these events which had been foretold. And they were afraid. Though Jesus had tried to warn and prepare them, they did not understand Him deeply enough to hold onto the center of His entire message. We don’t understand either. We, too, have difficulty holding onto the truth about the Cross in our lives.
Despite this, the Resurrection of Jesus takes place. In the midst of trauma, fear, isolation, grave uncertainty, and a feeling of profound abandonment on the part of the disciples/apostles, Jesus rises. He definitively conquers death and wins for us freedom from sin, and the glory of everlasting life.
This Easter will be like that first Easter in many ways: we will be locked behind our doors, afraid, protecting ourselves, stupefied by what has so suddenly happened, mourning the loss of Our Lord Who has been taken away and sealed in a tomb whose entrance is barred to us.
This year there will be no public witness to the sufferings and death of Jesus, our Savior and Redeemer. Easter will not be communally celebrated with processions of light, incense, resounding notes of alleluia, flowers and bells ringing in the colors of spring and newness of life. Yet, Jesus, Who rose in an instant in the darkness of the night giving way to the dawn, will walk right through the barricades of fear, of unbelief, and unfaithfulness by first walking through our material protections: tombs, doors, and the roads we take away from the “awful” events of our lives.
He will do this for us this year just as He did on the very first Easter. We will not have the joy of physically celebrating together the most beautiful liturgy of the whole year, nor of receiving Jesus sacramentally. But this will not stop Jesus. There will be nothing to disguise or distract us from His presence if we have the hope of Easter in our eyes, and are truly yearning to see Him as the holy women did on Easter morning.
Jesus will spend the next forty days, strengthening us in our faith, just as He did, starting with Mary Magdalene, who didn’t recognize Him because she was not expecting to see Him. Peter, and the rest of the Apostles, assailed by shame and doubts will also need direct evidence before their faith is strengthened. But what joy then engulfs them when their eyes are opened, and they see beyond the limited appearances and understanding of this world.
This crisis can deepen our faith in the same way. Jesus has no barriers and is held back by nothing. He wants fearless warriors who charge right into the face of evil to conquer it in the name of the Risen One Who lives forever, no more to die. This is what the apostles became. This is what we too can become if we trust.
Emily Bronte expresses something of this in her poem: “No Coward Soul Is Mine” “There is no room for death, Nor atom that his might could render void; Thou – Thou art Being and Breath, And what Thou art may never be destroyed.”
Knowing God does not abandon His people ever, in exile, in suffering, in death and dying, we believe Our Risen Lord is always with us and promises us His glory if we persevere. Only one other person has walked through these kinds of times without faltering, and no others have done it without her. We ask Mary to attend us, teach us and keep us safe both in faith and from the invisible enemy looking for entry. We pray this virus die a timely death and forge us into great saints in the meantime in the midst of our hurt, our sorrows, fears and grief.
May we experience this Easter what St. Augustine so beautifully exclaims: “In my deepest wound I saw your glory and it dazzled me.”
Questions for Reflection:
We are much like the original disciples. Who do you identify with? St. Peter? St. John? St. Thomas? The Holy Women?
How has your faith been challenged during this time of pandemic?
What is the real message of the Resurrection and how are you going to live it?
What is your greatest sorrow at this time? What do you hope for and look forward to?
May this time be fulfilled with love for one another. The Coronavirus can separate us or unite us. Jesus was sacrificed on the cross for the salvation of ALL mankind.
