Thank you and may God Bless You!
JANUARY
2015
MONTH of
HOLY NAME OF JESUS
Writings, Poetry
Apparitions in Nicaragua - An Untold Story
by Brother John Samaha, S.M.
Devotion to Mary is alive and well today. A strong and genuine interest in Marian doctrine and devotion indicate that Mary's role in the Church is a timely topic among active Catholics. Witness the many publications and conferences, the resurgence in sound devotions, and improved preaching and catechesis. Exaggerations and aberrations sometimes do crop up, however, the entire picture needs to be kept in focus and the norm kept in perspective. Who is the model? Jesus himself, Son of God and Son of Mary. Mary must always be understood in relation to Jesus.
Vatican II. It would be foolish and uninformed to assume that, because of misinformation and bad press, the Second Vatican Council had de-emphasized the importance of Mary in the economy of salvation. This is a grossly mistaken notion. Quite the contrary is the fact. The evidence for this is clear and adequate.
Vatican II set Marian matters in balance again. The Council Fathers moved to correct excesses, and to vitalize indifferent and sterile attitudes. Chapter 8 of the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church (Lumen Gentium) is the most extensive and intensive Church teaching statement ever issued about the Mother of Jesus.
Even before Vatican II, the liturgy was declared the norm and model for Marian devotion by Pope Pius XII in his encyclical letter On the Sacred Liturgy (Mediator Dei, 1947). He identified authentic devotion to Mary as having fidelity to God's will and which inspires hope in Christ's promises.
In the pre-Vatican II years, the major current of Church renewal embraced the Bible...and Mary. The 1918 Code of Canon Law, in treating the prayerful invocation of the saints, counseled the faithful above all to give filial devotion in the Blessed Virgin Mary (c.1276).
We recognize three elements in devotion to Mary: (1) veneration, or the reverent acknowledgment of the dignity of the holy Virgin Mother of God; (2) invocation, or calling upon her for her motherly and queenly intercession; and (3) imitation, which may take such forms as dedication, consecration, and service. In addition to devotion in a generic sense, there are devotions to Mary; that is, particular practices of prayer and veneration. These include both liturgical practices (feasts, votive Masses, litanies) and non-liturgical practices (the rosary, the scapular, private prayers) the various forms of piety which the Church has approved. (Lumen Gentium, n. 66).
The singular veneration of Mary is based on her special role in God's plan. By grace she is the Mother of God-made-Man. Associated in the mysteries of Christ's earthly life, she remains by her presence with the glorified Christ inseparably joined to the saving work of her Son. (Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, Sacrosanctum Concilium, n. 103). The first evidence of response to the dignity of the Mother of Christ is found in the New Testament, the very origin and foundation of sound doctrine and devotion. She is part of the pattern of salvation history.
In the Vatican II postconciliar years, Church documents offer ample indication that Marian studies and devotion are alive and active. All of us are called to renew our filial homage to Mary, the Mother of the Redeemer and of the redeemed. In fact, we are living in the Age of Mary.
... Brother John Samaha, S.M.
The Angel of the Lord declared unto Mary.
R. And she conceived by the Holy Spirit. Hail Mary, full of grace...
V. Behold the handmaid of the Lord.
R. Be it done unto me according to thy word. Hail Mary, full of grace...
V. And the Word was made flesh.
R. And dwelt among us. Hail Mary, full of grace...
V. Pray for us, O' Holy Mother of God.
R. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ…
The Angelus is a prayer rich in devotion and history. This prayer commemorates the mystery of the Incarnation, the Son of God becoming the Son of Mary for our salvation; the union of the divine nature with human nature. The Angelus takes its name from its first word in the Latin version.
The Angelus traces its beginning to the 13th century. In that era, bells were often tolled at 6 am, 12 noon, and 6 pm with the Angelic salutation. Before the Vatican II liturgical renewal, the concluding prayer was the post communion prayer Masses of Our Lady in Advent; but now is the opening prayer for the 4th Sunday of Advent. Bells and morning prayers were recited to commemorate Christ's resurrection; at noon, Christ's passion; and in the evening, to recall the Incarnation, since St. Bonaventure taught that the Angel Gabriel's visit to Mary came at evening.
Since the 15th century to our day, the Angelus prayer has been recommended by many popes. In our time, Pope Paul VI has expounded at some length the value of the Angelus in the last section of his apostolic exhortation on proper devotion to Mary, Marialis Cultus (1974).
The Angelus is made famous by the renowned painting by Jean-Francois Millet. This famous painting depicts a young man and a young woman standing in a field. They are farmers. He holds his cap reverently as he stands with head bowed. She in a white cap and long blue apron over her dress clasps her hands as a prayerful look sets her face. They pause in prayer near the end of the work day.
At the woman's feet is a basket of potatoes, and at her far side rests a wheelbarrow full of empty sacks. At the side of the man is a pitchfork spiked uprights in the ground. The breaking clouds are blushed with light as birds flit in the twilight. The viewer can almost hear the bells ringing from the spire of the church in the distant right of the painting.
The artist, Jean-Francois Millet, was born in 1814 in Gruchy, a hamlet ten miles west of Cherbourg in northwest France. Jean-Francois inherited his father's artistic talent and appreciation of beauty and art. He also absorbed his parent's piety and devotion. When the parish priests and his parents recognized that Jean-Francois was extraordinary, the priests educated him the best they could in mythology, Greek, Latin and in translation, Shakespeare, Milton and Burns. When his father realized his talent, he sent his son to Cherbourg to study art. This was the beginning of his lifelong work as an artist. Later in Paris, he finetumed his painting skills for 12 years.
It was in 1859 that Jean-Francois Millet painted "The Angelus." Vivid were his memories of the Angelus bell ringing while peasants were still working at twilight. Often he had seen his father standing, bare-headed, cap in hand, and his mother with bowed head and folded hands at the sound of the evening Angelus bell.
Millet recorded that impression to show the quiet peace of twilight, the rosy glow of sunset engulfing the fields, the church bells filling the evening air, and the devout attitude of the peasant. Surely he succeeded. When his agent, Sensier, first saw the picture of Millet's easel, the painter turned to him and asked, "Well, what do you think of it?"
"It is the Angelus," replied Sensier. "Yes," Millet said with satisfaction. "Can you hear the bells?"
Millet believed he had painted a great picture, and his genius was not recognized and acknowledged until after his death. In 1889, 14 years after his death, Millet's painting of The Angelus was put up for auction. The French who wanted to keep the painting in France bid frantically against the American art dealers. France offered 533,000 francs, about $94,000. When the gavel fell, the Angelus was declared the property of France and today it resides in the Lourvre Museum in Paris.
by Father Gary Vollmer, Las Vegas, Nevada
I am ashamed to admit that, like the rest of the country, I love watching "Who Wants to be a Millionaire?" I rarely watch TV but I find myself almost addicted to that show. I think part of the fascination is that there are three life-lines available to each contestant that they can use to help answer the multiple-choice questions. However, I was watching the show a few weeks ago and one of the contestants wasn't sure of the answer and chose not to use any of his life-lines and go the answer wrong. I couldn't believe anyone would be that foolish. He said he was saving them for later when he might really need them, but he never got that far and lost everything in the process.
During the Easter Season we may ask ourselves if we really want to go to heaven?! The answer is an obvious "yes" but some of us are just as foolish as the "millionaire" contestant because we think we can do it on our own! Like the life-lines in the game show, Jesus has given us life-lines to help us achieve eternal life. First, like the "phone-a-friend" life-line, Jesus has promised to be our friend and to walk with us on our journey to the Kingdom. His advice and guidance are priceless and all we have to do is open our heart to him in prayer, our life-line to God. Secondly, like the "audience" life-line, Jesus has given us the Church, the Body of Christ, with the sacraments and the love, support and prayers of one another to help us get to heaven. Thirdly, there is the "50-50" life-line and that's the rich, sacred tradition and history of our Church, the wisdom of the saints, the theologians, teachers, and scripture scholars of our own time who can help us eliminate wrong choices in our journey and choose paths that will help us on our way to reaching that goal of everlasting life.
How sad is we choose to go through life not using these"life-lines" that God has given to us on our faith journey. What will be our final answer when we stand before the judgment seat of God?!? It had better be a good one!!!
by Roma J. Wendt
He plucks a bit of Heaven
This Master of all on earth
He forms a likeness of Himself
And asks that we give birth.
This masterpiece that He creates,
An angel - child - a Cherubim
It's then He trusts it to our care
To guide and send it back to Him.
From a homily by Saint Amadeus of Lausanne, bishop
1. Observe how fitting it was that even before her assumption the name of Mary shone forth wondrously throughout the world. Her fame spread everywhere even before she was raised above the heavens in her magnificence. Because of the honor due her Son, it was indeed fitting for the Virgin Mother to have first ruled upon earth and then be raised up to heaven in glory. It was fitting that her fame be spread in this world below, so that she might enter the heights of heaven in overwhelming blessedness. Just as she was borne from virtue to virtue by the Spirit of the Lord, she was transported from earthly renown to heavenly brightness.
2. So it was that she began to taste the fruits of her future reign while still in the flesh. At one moment she withdrew to God in ecstasy; at the next she would bend down to her neighbors with indescribable love. In heaven angels served her, while here on earth she was venerated by the service of men. Gabriel and the angels waited upon her in heaven. The virgin John, rejoicing that the Virgin Mother was entrusted to him at the cross, cared for her with the other apostles here below. The angels rejoiced to see their queen; the apostles rejoiced to see their lady, and both obeyed her with loving devotion.
3. Dwelling in the loftiest citadel of virtue, like a sea of divine grace or an unfathomable source of love that has everywhere overflowed its banks, she poured forth her bountiful waters on trusting and thirsting souls. Able to preserve both flesh and spirit from death, she bestowed health-giving salve on bodies and souls. Has anyone ever come away from her troubled or saddened or ignorant of the heavenly mysteries? Who has not returned to everyday life gladdened and joyful because his request had been granted by the Mother of God?
4. She is a bride, so gentle and affectionate, and the mother of the only true bridegroom. In her abundant goodness she has channeled the spring of reason's garden, the well of living and life-giving waters that pour forth in a rushing stream from divine Lebanon and flow down from Mount Zion until they surround the shores of every far-flung nation. With divine assistance she has redirected these waters and made them into streams of peace and pools of grace. Therefore, when the Virgin of virgins was led forth by God and her Son, the King of kings, amid the company of exulting angels and rejoicing archangels, with the heavens ringing with praise, the prophecy of the pslamist was fulfilled, in which he said to the Lord: At your right hand stands the queen, clothed in gold of Ophir.
... written by an 83 year old woman to her friend.
Dear, I'm reading more and dusting less. I'm sitting in the yard and admiring the view without fussing about the weeds in the garden. I'm spending more time with my family and friends and less time working. Whenever possible, life should be a pattern of experiences to savor, not to endure. I'm trying to recognize these moments now and cherish them.
I"m not "saving" anything; we use our good china and crystal for every special event such as losing a pound, getting the sink unstopped, or the first amaryllis blossom. I wear my good blazer to the market. My theory is if I look prosperous, I can shell out $28.49 for one small bag of groceries. I'm not saving my good perfume for special parties, but wearingit for clerks in the hardware store and tellers at the bank. "Someday: and "one of these days" are losing their grip on my vocabulary. If it's worth seeing or hearing or doing, I want to see and hear and do it now.
I'm not sure what others would've done had they known that they wouldn't be here for the tomorrow that we all take for granted. I think they would have called family members and a few close friends. They might have called a fewe former friends to apologize and mend fences for past squabbles. I like to think they would have gone out for a Chinese dinner or for whatever their favorite food was. I'm guessing; I'll never know.
It's those little things left undone that would make me angry if I knew my hours were limited. Angry because I hadn't written certain letters that I intended to write one of these days. Angry and sorry that I didn't tell my husband and parents often enough how much I truly love them. I'm trying very hard not to put off, hold back, or save anything that would add laughter. I tell mysself that it is special. Every day, every minutes, every breath truly is a gift from God!
If you received this, it is because someone cares for you. If you're too busy to take the few minutes that it takes right now to forward this, would it be the first time you didn't do the little thing that would make a difference in your relationships? Take a few minutes to send this to a few people you care about just to let them know that you're thinking of them. People say true friends must always hold hands, but true friends don't need to hold hands because they know the other hand will always be there.
by Brother John M. Samaha, S.M., Marianist Community, Cupertino, California
While the Virgin Mary probably possessed no gold to smooth her life in the household of the Holy Family, she wears a crown of gold that circles the earth. Flower gardens around the world blaze with golden blossoms that honor her. Every marigold is a living memorial to her, a token of veneration and praise.
We have no certainty how the small golden flower was named for Mary. In any event, the name of this flower was established early in the development of England as a nation, the England that became to be known as "Our Lady's Dowry." And history does offer a few clues of why this particular flower was selected to honor Our Lady. Perhaps the most important is that the plant called Marygold frequently appeared in bloom at Ladytide, that is, it bloomed during each of the festivals in honor of Mary. At that time, the flower given her name was the most abundant source of golden blossoms.
Later, botanists gave the plant the formal scientific name, calendula officinalis, the calendar flower, but the flower came into prominence only after it was christened as a living memorial to Mary. Few plants achieved greater esteem.
Flower petals, both fresh and dried, were used to give color and flavor to many types of soups and drinks. The flower was so widely used as a condiment that it was known as "herb-general of all pottage." Medieval physicians listed the marigold as a medicinal plant. A medical book dated 1578 declared, "The conserve that is made of floures of Mary-goldes cureth the thrembling of the harte." Even in the wars of the 20th century, English soldiers were given medicinal oil extracted from modern varieties of the marigold.
Present day scientists are still awed by the marigold. Some botanists believe the flower holds the key to a few baffling problems of the plant world. People of science were interested in the golden flower centuries before it attracted the attention of western Christians.
To a degree quite unique among medieval plants, Mary's gold exhibited a strange sensitivity to light from the sun. Today botanists refer to the marigold's movement as phototropism (light turning). Most, if not all, plants arrange their leaves, blossoms, and stems in response to light. Conspicuous movements by the marigold and sunflower simply dramatize a process taking place more slowly among practically all green leaf organisms. If the secret of the marigold could be unlocked, we would know how light energy stretching 93 million miles from the sun influences the movement of plants on earth. But that riddle may not be solved in our lifetime.
Today few gardeners grow the exact plant to which earlier generations gave Mary's name. Contemporary flower lovers usually identify marigolds into African and French varieties. No matter what its variety, the marigold is rich in symbolism of Our Lady. The gold petals are likened to rays of light crowning her head, the prodigal color related to the generous giving of herself to God's plan.
Sometimes described as "the flower of grief," the marigold actually weeps on occasion. Droplets gather in the flower during the night and drip off like tears when it opens in the morning. This characteristic moved Shakespeared to write in A Winter's Tale, "The Marygold that goes to bed with the sun, And with him rises weeping."
Grief mixed with joy, poverty linked with abundance of good gifts--that is the marigold's reflection of the Lady for whom it is named. If peoples and nations could achieve the spirit of Our Lady whom this flower commemorates, all life would take on new meaning and purpose. This ordinary and humble plant serves as a vivid and perennial challenge to new adventures of mind and spirit in fulfilling the Creator's will.