Pope Benedict XVI Calls the World to Follow Mary in Responding to the Gospel of Her Son

By Pope Benedict XVI
3/18/2012
Catholic Online (www.catholic.org)

The privileged place of Mary is the Church, wherefore she is hailed as a pre-eminent and singular member of the Church

Human life passes through various stages of transition, often difficult and demanding, which require mandatory choices, sacrifices. The Mother of Jesus was placed by the Lord at the decisive moments of salvation history and has always been able to respond with full availability, the result of a deep relationship with God developed in assiduous and intense prayer. (Pope Benedict XVI)

Mary, Mother of God, our Mother

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VATICAN CITY (Catholic Online) - Pope Benedict XVI began a new cycle of teachings on Wednesday calling the faithful to grow in Christian prayer. He offered Mary as the First disciple and example of how to pray. We offer his entire message. We also invite all of our readers to Mary, Mother of God, a new virtual pilgrimage site offered by Catholic Online:

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Dear brothers and sisters,

With today's catechesis I would like to begin to speak about prayer in the Acts of the Apostles and the Letters of St. Paul. St. Luke, as we know, has given us one of the four Gospels, dedicated to the earthly life of Jesus, but he also left us what has been defined as the first book on the history of the Church, the Acts of the Apostles. In both of these books, one of the recurring elements is prayer is, from that of Jesus to that of Mary, that of the disciples, the women and the Christian community.

The Churches initial path is primarily punctuated by the action of the Holy Spirit, who transforms the Apostles into witnesses of the Risen Christ to the shedding of their blood, and the rapid spread of the Word of God in the East and West. However, before the proclamation of the Gospel was spread, Luke records the story of the Ascension of the Risen One (cf. 1.6 to 9).

The Lord delivered to the disciples the program of their existence devoted to the evangelization, and says: "You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you and you shall be my witnesses in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria and to the ends of earth "(Acts 1.8). In Jerusalem, the Apostles, who were now Eleven, after the betrayal of Judas Iscariot, are gathered in the house to pray, and it is in prayer that they await the promised gift of the Risen Christ, the Holy Spirit.

In this context of waiting, between Ascension and Pentecost, St. Luke mentions Mary, the Mother of Jesus, and her family for the last time (v. 14). He dedicated the beginning of his Gospel to Mary, the announcement of the angel of the birth and infancy of the Son of God made man.

With Mary the earthly life of Jesus begins and with Mary the first steps of the Church began, and at both moments the climate is one of listening to God in recollection. Today, therefore, I will touch on this prayerful presence of Mary in the group of disciples who will be the first nascent Church. Mary followed her Son's journey throughout his public ministry and to the foot of the cross with discretion, and now continues to follow the Church's path with a silent prayer.

At the Annunciation, in Nazareth, Mary received the Angel of God; she was attentive to his words, received and responded to his divine plan, expressing her complete openness: "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word"(Lk 1.38).

Mary, because of her inner attitude of listening, is capable of reading her own history, acknowledging with humility that it is the Lord to act. On a visit to her cousin Elizabeth, she breaks into a prayer of praise and joy, a celebration of divine grace, that filled her heart and her life, making her the Mother of the Lord (cf. Lk 1:46-55). Praise, thanksgiving, joy in the canticle of the Magnificat, Mary does not just look at what God has done in her, but also to what he did and always does in history.

Ambrose, in a famous commentary on the Magnificat, invites us to have the same spirit in prayer and says: "May Mary's soul be in each one of us to magnify the Lord and Mary's spirit be in each one of us to rejoice in God" (Expositio Evangelii secundum Lucam 2, 26: PL 15, 1561).

Even in the Upper Room in Jerusalem, in the "upper room, where he used to meet" the disciples of Jesus (cf. Acts 1.13), in an atmosphere of listening and prayer, she is present, before the doors are thrown open and they begin to proclaim Christ the Lord to all nations, teaching to observe all that He had commanded (cf. Mt 28,19-20).

The stages of the journey of Mary, from the house of Nazareth to Jerusalem, through the cross where her Son entrusts her to the apostle John, these stages of the journey of Mary are marked by the ability to maintain a persistent atmosphere of meditation, meditation on each event in the silence of her heart before God (cf. Lk 2.19 to 51) and meditation before God even to understand the will of God and become able to accept it within.

The presence of the Mother of God with the Eleven, after the Ascension, then is not just a historical record of a past thing, but takes on a meaning of great value, because she shares with them what is her most precious asset: her living memory of Jesus, in prayer and this mission of Jesus, preserving the memory of Jesus and thus also his presence.

The last mention of Mary in the two writings of St. Luke is located on the Sabbath, the day of ...

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1 - 6 of 6 Comments

Jana Kinnard
1 year ago
Well, since the Bible doesn't actually say that Mary is my or any other real Christians mother (she was only Jesus' Earthly mother by the way), then there's no real reason for me to follow her anywhere.
The Word tells us to follow Jesus as He follows the Father and that's good enough for me. "Follow me as I follow Christ" (1 Corinthians 11:1)
Zemelak
1 year ago

Idea on collecting prayer intentions:

Dear brother and sisters, I want to share you how I collect my prayer intentions and how I pray for each of them.

I have a small 64 page note book which I use to list my prayer intentions. Whenever I get a new prayer intention, I list it down. For example, if somebody dies, I write the name of this person on the prayer intention book. So each day when I pray the Rosary, I say each bead (e.g. one hail Mary) to one prayer intention. In one mystery of the Rosary (e.g. the sorrowful mysteries), I pray for 71 prayer intentions (6 our father, 53 hail mary, 6 Glory be.., 6 Fatima prayer). Whenever I go to church for holy Mass, I take the prayer intention book with me and I put it infront of me during the holy Mass. I ask Jesus to bless the intentions. I ask also the gardian angles of each souls to pray for them. Since last year, I listed 107 death cases on my prayer intention book. 107 is not the actual number of the death cases. It is just an aggregate. N.B. If I say those killed by “9/11 terrerist attack in USA”, then I take this as a single case. If I cover the first 71 cases in one Rosary one day, then the next 71 cases will be covered by the next day’s prayer. This way I cover all the listed prayer intentions on my book. Once I prayed for all the prayer intentions until the end, then I start again from the beginning. I list on my prayer intention books not only cases related to death, but also others like healing, peace, conversion, protection of our Pope, stop abortion, etc. This is how I collect my prayer intentions and how I pray for each of them. I hope some of you will find it helpful.

Dear all, this way I planned to pray for each intentions continously until the end of my life on earth. May the blessed virgin Mary help me! I need also your prayer help to be successful in this plan.

God bless you all!

ZG
Bill Sr.
1 year ago
Do you recall the story of Helen Keller? She appeared to be unable to see, hear, or communicate with anyone. At first thought one would wonder why God had created this child and put her into such a situation. Yet when we marvel at her life’s accomplishments are we not also inspired and amazed when we think of the dedication and undaunted respect for her life which Ms. Sullivan, her teacher and friend, had for Helen? This is a glowing example of love, compassion, and perseverance in doing God’s will as well as an obvious acknowledgement of the divinely inspired potential in every soul He has created. Many would call the results a miracle. The truth is it was the will of God in action for both of them. Love, compassion, and perseverance came together in service.
Fear and doubt could have stopped this “miracle” of turning what seemed to be a hopeless situation into a wonderful life of accomplishment. But fear of failure and the doubt that it could be done took a backseat to the willful spirit of service to God. If we are to do God’s will on earth fear and doubt must be cast aside. The world is filled with want and need among the people. It is the field ripe for harvest. We are the laborers God’s will sends out to gather in this harvest of souls for Him in the name of Jesus. It also answers the urgent and timely message of our late and beloved Holy Father John Paul II to “fear not” in responding to Christ’s call.
And just as in the case of Ms. Keller there is a woman who has come to help us see and hear with our hearts and come alive in a new way to the world. She was foretold at the very beginning of our history. God Himself promised her to us as we began our struggle to evolve from the darkness of sin and into the light of Gods merciful love.
History and Scripture caught a short glimpse of her when she came to deliver the Redeemer to us. Now she is ready, even at the door of our hearts awaiting her son’s triumphant return to assist our Lord in the harvest of men. She has been quietly but effectively preparing the faithful by spiritual visions and appearances all over the world, mostly to the poor and holy souls or little children, imploring them to pray for peace and live lives worthy of the promises of Christ through repentance and sacrifice seeking to bring as many to her Divine Son as possible. Soon all the world will acknowledge her presence as God’s will unfolds before us. We must prepare ourselves for Christ’s coming and painful though merciful judgment upon the world by devout prayer, frequent confession, daily mass if possible, and many rosaries. Our Holy Mother has repeated this constantly in her many apparitions and messages over the years. We need to appreciate her place and participation in God’s eternal plan like the servants at the wedding feast.
The gospels reveal Mary’s compassion and intersession at the marriage feast in Cana for the host and their guests on such a joyous celebration. She quite obviously knew her son’s capabilities at this time and also the love they jointly shared for all God’s people. Without hesitation she went to her son as the great intercessor that she is for mankind and stated simply “They have no wine,” giving Him, the one she knew to be the “son of the most high” an opportunity to reveal Himself and save the situation. Not yet ready to identify Himself in public but desiring to satisfy His mother’s wishes, He lovingly surrendered and asked “What would YOU have me do?” She, knowing her place in God’s redemptive plan as well as her motherly pride in her son, turned to the servants and told them to “Do what ever HE tells you.” This exchange and the efforts of the “servants”, marking His first miracle, was a foreshadowing of the situation today as we await Christ’s return for His “coming out” eternal wedding with His church. Likewise, through our priest and the Eucharist we, as transformed repentant sinners, can enjoy the “good wine” of salvation and eternal union with Him which began as the life giving water of our baptism.
The stain of Satan’s deceitful plan on mankind in the garden by using “the woman” is about to have a full measure of justice returned upon its author and those who have joined him. We are about to witness the testimony of God when He told the deceiver “she will crush your head with her heel”.
Our Lady, Queen of Heaven, asks that we close our eyes and ears to the lure of Satan’s call and learn from her, the mother of mercy and love of the Father for his children, and “do what ever” Christ has told us. No, we are definitely not alone nor on our own as we go out to gather in Christ’s sheep for Him. We need to realize the spiritual plurality we possess at all times. We have Christ the living truth of the gospels, the Holy Spirit as sent by our Lord, and also His blessed mother whose ultimate destiny was foretold by our loving Father. We must “Fear not for I am with you always, even until the end of this world
abey
1 year ago
When we call Mary as Mother of God, she was the woman chosen to bear the Son of God who being the second person of the Trinity, had to be born on earth as per the law for the sake of man, to his redemption. To this Mary's motherhood in respect of Jesus as the Mother of God, is based on the earthly term, but on spiritual terms which is heavenly, the original basis & in terms of the Trinity, The Father, Son & Holy Spirit she becomes not the mother, but the daughter of God, but in her humbleness calls herself as the "Handmaiden of The Lord". The first, down the line to the last, of every woman, making her the queen of Mankind & as the head of every woman or called "The Woman", as a revelation, directly represent one of the two Golden Cherubs on the "Arc of the Covenant", not to be confused with a certain queen of heavens, the false one, to whom Israel baked cakes.
M Elizabeth
1 year ago

In the End My Immaculate Heart will Triumph!

Thank you for these introspective, heartfelt messages from our Blessed, Loving Mother who is constantly interceding for us!! Given the secular world attacks as of late, I feel real flow of *spirit* in the articles and news as of late coming through this site. Providence always provides! God bless everyone giving their all in this most imperative, defining moment for our Catholic Religion. It’s becoming more apparent, that we as one body, are being brought up on the stand. READY YOURSELVES, feel our Lord’s guidance in us and God’s Will Be Done!

Reading these beautifully deep texts from so long ago, they knew what was coming down the pike for our time in history, right down to finding strength in our own homes - to go out and face the world, like true warriors for Christ! We are at that point now. We must proclaim and tesify of our Great Lord Jesus Christ, who is the ONLY savior of our world! ~ Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at Hand!! Matt 3:2.

Oppression is everywhere in our world, even in our own great country, but most of society (through socialization), has kept the masses dumbed-down and questioning nothing. I have been undergoing nonconsensual, remotely applied, electronic warfare persecution from rogue elements of our government for over 9 years now. Get right with your lives! God is FIRST and FOREMOST, everything else falls away. Cherish your family and friends. Turn off your televisions, music, laptops - everything that hinders your path to God - what nourishes it is ok. Continue on your conversion to come closer to God's will for you life.

Silence is glorious and reading in the outdoors, in a peaceful, natural setting is very meditative. This is so true, the feeling and hearing of nature around you is very grounding.

We all need to be continually strengthened because our world wants to wear us down. I will not go into the particulars here, but Rome is alive and well and Sodom and Gomorrah becoming more "acceptable" almost as a norm, instead of SHOCK. That is what the satanic elites of "this world" have weaved wonderfully, especially in a society of freedom like America, where you have young, malleable minds just longing for something to believe in. Everything on TV is Narcissism, Materialism, Perversions, Muddling down and mixing of the races, everything has a reason as to why this is being down. All of this instead of making human beings work together, has made them slaves to technology and ISOLATION number one. Make everyone a "KING" in themselves-- and they need no one else!! They are OUT to SILENCE CHRIST! This is what our satanic world is pushing and making their ugly heads visible, more and more.

Give Christ the first most important hour of your day, in the morning. I don't turn on any laptop, TV, or distraction, until my work for Him is thoroughly felt and in my heart, I take notes I feel he impresses on me. Having this discipline, sets my entire day! Hallelujah. Make meditation paramount - just like Our Mother said, and do it whenever you have an opportunity. This will please our Mother and Lord even more and blesses your own life with a peace only Heaven can give! God is sooo good! *pure love* Everyone needs our prayers and we all need EACH OTHER to be a strong force for Christ! The only way, is the right way and everything else works out perfectly! When we come home and desire our innate being, that for Christ, He comes into our lives in ways that are AWE inspiring! Thank you Lord, Mother and Heavenly Father and Family for all you do to keep us resilient in our time!

http://www.piercedhearts.org/mother_adela/immaculate_heart_triumph.htm
jh
1 year ago
Look what God did and does through Our Lady's motherhood.

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