What, then, must have been the measure with which Mary was "filled with the Holy Ghost," for what was the Apostles' work compared with hers? She had always been "full of grace"—she had long been the spouse of the Holy Ghost, ever since He had overshadowed her at the Incarnation, and He had always been filling her according to her ever-increasing capacity. We have seen how, under her Son's training, her horizon was ever enlarging—how much wider it became on Calvary, how pain and joy had dilated her heart, how her intercourse with her Divine Son during those forty days had still more widened her outlook; and now, with all the fresh territory over which she was to reign, in her mind and in her heart, she had been praying—the Holy Ghost had been praying within her—for Him to come and overshadow her once again, and fill her with grace that she might be able to meet all her new responsibilities as Mother of the Church. Mary had more need of the Holy Ghost than any of the hundred and twenty souls gathered in the Cenacle; her desire to receive Him too was greater than theirs; and so we may well believe that she received Him in a fuller measure. She had no need of the gifts of tongues and miracles, which were a necessity to the Apostles, to help them in the beginning of their difficult work. Her work during the remaining years of her life was that of intercession, and it was to be carried on in secret and obscurity. The gifts she needed from the Holy Ghost were those of hiddenness, patience, humility, conformity to God's will. She needed Him in all His plenitude to pray within her with "unutterable groanings" for all the needs of the Church throughout all time. Her work was still, as it ever had been, to ponder in her heart—to meditate and hold colloquies with her Divine Son, through the agency of the Holy Spirit, about all the interests which they had in common.
Colloquy. "Our Lady of Light, Spouse of the Holy Ghost, I offer thee my whole heart, my soul and my body, to keep for Jesus, that I may be His for ever. Our Lady of Light, pray for me." (Prayer of Blessed Grignon de Montfort.)
Resolution. To think more of the Holy Spirit praying within me.
Spiritual Bouquet. "Sacrarium Spiritus Sancti, ora pro nobis." (Sanctuary of the Holy Spirit, pray for us.)
Mary's Exile
"Woe is me that my sojourning is prolonged." (Ps. cxix. 5.)
1st Prelude. A statue or picture of Our Lady.
2nd Prelude. Grace to learn how an exiled child of Eve should live.
Point I.—Mary's Exile
Tradition tells us that St John took the Holy Mother to his house in Jerusalem, and that it was there that she died, though she spent some of the time of her exile at Ephesus. In solitude and silence she pondered over all the wonderful mysteries of her life; she interceded for her new-born child, the Church, which had already so many needs; and she helped the Apostles by her prayers. They were soon scattered in different directions, "making disciples of all nations," as their Master had bidden them; and it would only be at rare intervals that they could come and see their Mother, and talk over their difficulties, and get the advice of her who saw eye to eye with her Son. But what a comfort and strength it must have been to them to know that she was always there, telling her Divine Son of their needs!
And during those long years—according to some opinions fifteen, to others, twenty-three—what was Mary's strength? The same as it had ever been—union with her Son. Every day, tradition tells us, she received Him in the Blessed Sacrament at the hands of St John. What Communions must those have been, when Mary said again: Ecce ancilla Domini, fiat mihi secundum verbum tuum, and her God was again incarnate within her! What made those Communions so intense? The fact that His love and desire in coming were reciprocated. The love and desire are never wanting on His side, but unfortunately there is so little of either on ours! It takes more than one to make a good Communion. A joining together of two is the meaning of the word. If the union is to be strong, fervent, real, lasting, each must do his part. Oh, teach me, dear Mother, how to receive thy Son in Holy Communion. Thy whole life was centred in Him; thy every thought was with Him; everything thou didst was done for Him; every moment of thy exile gladly borne for Him; every sigh a spiritual Communion; and when each day the glad moment of actual Communion came, it was just His embrace—He pressed thee to His Heart for a few minutes, telling thee it would not be long before thy exile would be over, and thou wouldst see His Face again. Thy Communions were an ecstasy of love—help me to put a little more love into mine; teach me to regard them as the Bread from Heaven sent specially for the exile; teach me to make them the centre of my life; teach me to live my whole life with Him, so that my Communion may never be interrupted. This should be the aim, surely, of every communicant; it is the ideal life; it is the life that Jesus intended when He said: "He that eateth Me, he shall live by Me." It is possible; but oh, how far I come short!
Point II.—The Reason for Mary's Exile
Why did her Son leave her behind to suffer so intensely, as He well knew she would, from the separation? Would not the Beatific Vision in Heaven have been better than her Communions on earth? Could not her intercession for the Church have been even more effectual had she been close to her Son's throne in Heaven? Could she not have been the Mother of Good Counsel in Heaven for those who had to guide the Church in its infancy, as she has been ever since?