So that our heavenly child, because she was appointed mediatrix of the world, as well as predestined for the mother of the Redeemer, even from the first moment of her life, received grace greater than that of all the saints united. Hence how lovely in the sight of heaven and earth was the beautiful soul of that happy infant, although still inclosed in the womb of its mother! In the eye of God she was the creature most worthy of love, because, already full of grace and of merit, she could, even at that time, exult and say: When I was a little child I pleased the Most High: “Cum essem parvula, placui Altissimo.” And at the same time she was the creature most full of love for God that until that time had appeared in this world; so that Mary, had she been born immediately after her most pure conception, would have come into the world more rich in merits, and more holy, than all the saints united. Now, let us consider how much more holy she was at her birth, coming to the light after the acquisition of those merits which she made during the nine months that she remained in her mother’s womb. Let us now go on to consider the second point, namely: how great was the fidelity with which Mary at once corresponded with the divine grace.
Second Point.—It is not now an individual opinion of some few divines, says a learned author,[1037] it is the opinion of the whole world, that the holy infant, when she received sanctifying grace in the womb of St. Anna, received at the same time the perfect use of reason, with a great divine light corresponding to the grace with which she was enriched. Hence we may believe, that from the first moment when her pure soul was united to her most pure body, she was enlightened with divine wisdom to comprehend eternal truths, the beauty of virtue, above all, the infinite goodness of her God, and how much he deserves to be loved by all men, but especially by her, on account of the peculiar graces with which he had adorned her and distinguished her from all creatures, preserving her from the stain of original sin, bestowing on her a grace so abundant, and destining her for the mother of the Word and the queen of the universe.
Hence Mary, from that moment grateful to her God, began to effect all that she could, using faithfully all that great treasure of grace that she had received; and wholly applying herself to please and love the divine goodness. From that moment she loved him with all her strength, and thus continued to love him through all those nine months that she lived before her birth, in which she did not cease for a moment to unite herself to God by fervent acts of love. She was free from original sin, and therefore she was also exempt from every earthly attachment, from every irregular tendency, from every distraction, from all strife of the senses, which could have prevented her from advancing constantly in the divine love. All her senses united with her blessed spirit in drawing her near to God. Hence her pure soul, freed from every hindrance, without lingering, always rose to God, always loved him, and always increased in love to him. Therefore she called herself a plane-tree planted by the waters: “Quasi platanus exaltata sum juxta aquam;”[1038] for she, indeed, was that noble tree of God that always grew beside the stream of divine grace. She also called herself a vine: As the vine I have brought forth a pleasant odor: “Ego quasi vitis fructificavi suavitatem odoris;”[1039] not only because she was so humble in the eyes of the world, but also because, as the vine never ceases to grow: “Vitis nullo fine crescit:” according to the Proverb, so the most holy Virgin always increased in perfection. The growth of other trees, as the orange, mulberry, pear, &c., is determinate, but the vine always increases, and increases in proportion to the height of the tree by which it is supported. Hail, oh vine, always vigorous! thus St. Gregory Thaumaturgus salutes her;[1040] for she was always united to her God, who was her only support. Thus it was of her that the Holy Spirit spoke, when he said: Who is this that cometh up from the desert flowing with delights, leaning on her beloved?[1041] Commenting on this, St. Ambrose says: Who is this that, accompanied by the divine Word, increases like the vine supported by a lofty tree?[1042]
Many grave theologians teach, that the soul which possesses a habit of virtue, whenever she corresponds faithfully with the actual graces which she afterwards receives from God, always produces an act equal in intensity to the habit she possesses; so that each time she acquires a new and double merit, equal to the aggregate of all the merits before acquired. This increase, as they say, was granted to the angels in the time of their probation; and if it were granted to the angels, who shall say that it was not also given to the divine mother while she lived on this earth, but especially in the time of which I am speaking, when she remained in the womb of her mother, and was certainly more faithful than the angels, in corresponding with grace? Mary, then, during all that time was redoubling continually that sublime grace, which from the first moment she possessed; for, corresponding with all her power and perfection in every act she performed, at every successive moment she redoubled her merits. Hence, if, in the first moment, she had received a thousand degrees of grace, in the second she had two thousand, in the third four thousand, in the fourth eight thousand, in the fifth sixteen thousand, in the sixth thirty thousand; and yet we have only reached the sixth moment. But multiply in this way for a whole day, multiply for nine months, and consider what treasures of grace, of merits, and of sanctity Mary brought into the world when she was born.
Let us rejoice, then, with our infant, who was born so holy, so dear to God, and so full of grace; and let us rejoice not only for her, but also for ourselves, since she came into the world full of grace, not only for her own glory, but for our good. St. Thomas says the most holy Virgin was full of grace in three ways: 1st, She was full of grace in soul, so that from the beginning her holy soul belonged entirely to God. 2d, She was full of grace in body, so that she merited to clothe the eternal Word with her pure flesh. 3d, She was full of grace for the common benefit, so that all men might share it.[1043] Some saints, adds the angelic Doctor, have so much grace, that not only is it enough for themselves, but also to save many others, not, however, all men; only to Jesus Christ and Mary was given so great a grace that it was sufficient to save all men. If any one had enough for the salvation of all, that would be the greatest; and this was in Jesus Christ and the blessed Virgin.[1044] Thus St. Thomas writes. Hence, what St. John said of Jesus—“And of his fulness we all have received”[1045]—the saints say of Mary. St. Thomas of Villanova says: Full of grace, of whose fulness all receive.[1046] Therefore St. Anselm remarks, there is no one who does not share in the grace of Mary.[1047] And is there any one in the world to whom Mary is not merciful, and on whom she does not bestow some favor?[1048] From Jesus, however (we should understand), we receive grace as from the author of grace, from Mary as the mediatrix; from Jesus as the Saviour, from Mary as the advocate; from Jesus as the fountain, from Mary as the channel.
Therefore St. Bernard says that God has established Mary as the channel of the mercies which he wishes to dispense to men; and for this reason he filled her with grace, that every one might receive his portion of her fulness. A full channel, that all might partake of its fulness, but not receive the fulness itself.[1049] Hence the saint exhorts all to consider with how much love God will have us honor this great Virgin, since in her he has placed all the treasure of his blessings; that whatever we possess of hope, grace, and salvation, we may thank our most loving queen for it; since it all comes to us through her hands, and by her intercession.[1050] Miserable is that soul who closes for herself this channel of grace, by neglecting to recommend herself to Mary! When Holophernes wished to make himself master of the city of Bethulia, he ordered the aqueducts to be destroyed: “And he commanded their aqueduct to be cut off.”[1051] And this the devil does when he wishes to make himself master of a soul, he makes her abandon the devotion to the most holy Mary. When this channel is closed, she will at once lose the light and the fear of God, and finally eternal salvation. By the following example it will be seen how great is the compassion of the heart of Mary, and the ruin which he brings upon himself who closes this channel, and abandons devotion to this queen of heaven.
EXAMPLE.
It is narrated by Tritemius, Canisius, and others, that in Magdeburg, a city of Saxony, there was a certain man named Udo, who, from his youth, had been so destitute of talent that he was the ridicule of all his school-fellows. Now one day, being more than usually disheartened, he went to pray to the most holy Virgin before her image. Mary appeared to him in a dream, and said to him: “Udo, I will console you, and not only will I obtain from God for you abilities which will protect you from derision, but even talents which will make you admired; and moreover, after the death of the bishop, I promise that you shall be elected in his place.” Thus Mary said, and thus it came to pass. Udo made great progress in the sciences, and obtained the bishopric of that city. But Udo was so ungrateful to God and to his benefactress for these favors, that he neglected all his devotions and became the scandal of the place. Whilst he was in bed one night with a wicked companion, he heard a voice saying to him: “Udo, cease this sinful pastime, you have sinned enough.”[1052] At first he was irritated by these words, thinking it was some one who was reproving him; but hearing it repeated a second and a third night, he began to tremble a little, lest it should be a voice from heaven. Notwithstanding all this, he continued in his wickedness. But after God had given him three months for repentance, behold the punishment! One night a devout canon, named Frederic, was praying, in the church of St. Maurice, that God would remove the scandal which Udo gave; when, behold, the door of the church was burst open by a strong wind. Two youths entered with lighted torches in their hands, and stood on each side of the high altar. Then two others followed, who spread before the altar a carpet, and placed upon it two thrones of gold. Another youth, in military attire, followed, with a sword in his hand, and stopping in the midst of the church, cried: “Oh ye saints of heaven, whose relics are preserved in this church, come to assist at the great justice which the sovereign Judge is about to execute.” At these words many saints appeared, and also the twelve apostles, as assistants in this judgment. Lastly, Jesus Christ entered, and seated himself on one of these thrones. Afterwards Mary appeared, attended by many holy virgins, and seated herself on the other throne at the side of her Son. The Judge now ordered that the culprit should be brought forward, and he was the miserable Udo. St. Maurice spoke, and demanded, in the name of the people whom he had scandalized, justice for his infamous life. All present raised their voices and said: “Oh Lord, he merits death.” “Let him die, then,” said the eternal Judge. But before the sentence was executed (see how great is the mercy of Mary) she, the kind mother, that she might not be present at that tremendous act of justice, left the church; and then the heavenly minister, who entered among the first, with the sword, approaching Udo, with one blow severed the head from the body, and the vision vanished. The place was left dark. The canon, trembling, went for a light from a lamp which was burning under the church; and when he returned, saw the body of Udo with the head cut off, and the pavement all covered with blood. When daylight came, the people thronged the church, and the canon related the whole vision and the circumstances of that fearful tragedy. And on the same day the wretched Udo, who was condemned to hell, appeared to one of his chaplains, who knew nothing of what had taken place in the church. The body of Udo was thrown into a marsh, and his blood remained for a perpetual memorial on that pavement, which was always covered with a carpet; and from that time it became the custom to uncover it when a new bishop took possession of the church, that at the sight of such a punishment he might be mindful to lead a good life, and not be ungrateful for the graces of the Lord and of his most holy mother.
PRAYER.
Oh holy and heavenly infant Mary! thou who art the destined mother of my Redeemer and the great mediatrix of miserable sinners, have pity on me. Behold at thy feet another ungrateful creature who has recourse to thee and implores thy mercy. It is true that, for my ingratitude towards God and thee, I am deserving of being abandoned by God and by thee; but I have been told, and thus I believe, knowing how great is thy compassion, that thou wilt not refuse to help him who, with confidence, recommends himself to thee. Thou, oh most exalted of all creatures, since there is no one above thee but God, and, in comparison with thee, the greatest in heaven are but small; oh saint of saints, oh Mary, abyss of grace, full of grace, help a miserable sinner who has lost it by his own fault. I know that thou art so dear to God that he denies thee nothing. I know also that thou dost rejoice to employ thy greatness in relieving the distressed. Ah, make known how great is thy favor with God by obtaining for me a divine light and a flame so powerful that it may change me from a sinner into a saint, and, detaching me from every earthly affection, may wholly inflame me with divine love. Do this, oh Lady, because thou canst do it; do this for the love of that God who has made thee so great, so powerful, and merciful. Thus I hope. Amen.