Intro to par. 31

Because I am so far behind, I am only going to make a few comments so that I can concentrate on catching up. 1) I never gave it much thought about how little there is on Mary's life in the Bible. 2) On pg. 9: "admission to this sanctuary--the Immaculate Heart of Mary--is God's gift to those who practice true devotion;". 3) On pg. 10: "In living true devotion one has access to Mary's merits, charity, power and humility. The more we desire to possess them, the more she grants them to us." 4) On page 11 mentioned is how we need St. Michael as our ally in this true devotion. 5) The questions are really making me think outside the box. 6) On pg 17: "The world was unworthy, says St. Augustine, to receive the Son of God directly from the Father's hands. He gave Him to Mary in order that the world might receive Him through her. The Son of God became man for our salvation; but it was in Mary and by Mary." 7) On pg 21: "the more one is devoted to Mary the more one receives the Holy Spirit and His gifts."

Ruth: Reflections par. 26 - 34

I hope to catch up on my reading today but I don't want to rush through it.  Here are just a few highlights and comments on what I have read over the last week.
par. 26 Fr. Harlow's commentary ends with "We make progress in the lifestyle of true devotion to the degree ultimately that we make progress in love." The question that popped in my mind was, "Do we ever love enough those we love?" ... and what about those that are hard to love? ... and those who we are called to love and who don't love us?   Mary please teach me and help me to love more purely all the people the Lord calls me to love.

par. 27 Right at the beginning of this section we are reminded that Jesus is still Mary's most perfect son which includes obedience and submission toward the best of all mothers. I sometimes forget of the intimacy of this holy mother and son even now. Of course, Mary "does notheing contrary to the eternal and immutable will of God." ....thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. ... it all ties together.

par. 28  notes was powerful to me. "Humility empties the soul of self-conceit and self-preoccupation in order for the soul to be filled with grace."  (Luke 1:52) "As we live this lifestyle we seek daily to be humble and to accept humiliations as part of our formationin sanctity -- that God may empower us with His grace." I am always drawn to the prayer of humility and appreciated that our last book offered that prayer as a lead in prayer for our reading and mediation times.  Humility is so beautifully exemplied in our Lady's magnificat.

par. 30 I struggled with this reading a bit when thinking about how my protestant friends fit into this. They love Jesus with their whole heart but are somewhat indifferent to Mary. Their influence actually pulled me away from Mary for many years. "He who has not Mary for his Mother has not God for his Father."  It makes sense as a statement and I know Mary as mother is part of God's plan but I can't wrap my head around it in relating to my protestant friends. I need to reread and pray about this section.

par. 34 - 34  Mary has lots of work to do.
I loved this section.  There is hope for me. From the commentary: "The Holy Spirit wants Mary to form chosen souls and He aids her in that formation process. Mary leads the soul in virtue and holiness. The Holy spirit ... finds her in those souls who practice her virtues, especially those of faith, humility, mortification, prayer, charity and hope." "The cooperation between Mary and the Holy Spirit, after having formed Jesus in human histtory, is now to form us into saints."     These sections reminded me of how frequently our pastor calls us, at daily Mass, to practice those same virtues especially humility, prayer and mortification. He really encourages us in our faith life and challenges us from the pulpit to grow in holiness by these same tools ...faith, humility, mortification, prayer, charity and hope.  Praise God for good and holy priest who are not afraid to call us to holiness.  ... "Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven".  (One additional though that just came to me is that I wonder how many people are in hell or purgatory because of priest no be pastors of souls. What a responsibility they and we have.  Let's pray for our pastors and for more good and holy leaders both ordained and lay leaders.

Time to prepare for Mass. Have a blessed Sunday


Publish Post

Tom Reflections 3/25/11

This past week in my daily devotional reading that I'm doing with the "That Man is You" men's program has been centered on the Blessed Virgin Mary, mercy, the Magnificat and the beatitude of mourning. The reading and reflections have dovetailed with St. Louis's True Devotion so I would like to share on these reflexion about our mother Mary.

+If you wish to be one of Christs beloved disciples, then learn from St. John how to take Mary into your home. There she will lead you into greater intimacy with Christ.

+Mary is the contemplative par excellence. Say the Rosary together with her. She will open for you the mysteries of Christs life. She will help you understand the pathway of God in our own life.

+Mary will not only help you to understand the pathways of God in your life but also help you embrace those pathways.

+The last words of Mary in scripture, her last teaching if you will, is "Do what ever He tells you." Such is the simplicity of her way. Mother Teresa stated the secret of her holiness was simply: "I never said no to God." Mary will help you say "yes" to God.

+Mary said "yes" to Christ all the way to the foot of the cross. Mary will help you to say "yes" to God without counting the cost. Mary's "yes" lead her to the foot of the cross where she became the Mother of Sorrows. Mary's "yes" made her "one" with Christ crucified. Mary will stand beside you so that your "yes" to the cross will be followed by a "yes" to the Resurrection.

Marian Feast Day - The Annunciation

FEAST of the ANNUNCIATION

March 25 

 

 

"The Virgin Mary utters that generous word, "be it done"

...Immediately the Heart of Jesus, ever to be adored,

has begun to pulsate with love, divine and human."

 Pius XII, On Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, 63

"The best model for our thanksgiving

[after Holy Communion]

is Mary receiving the Word in her womb. 

The most pleasing reception we can make Jesus

and the one best and most rich in graces for us

is to join with His Blessed Mother

in adoring Him present in our hearts."

St Peter Julian Eymard

(Thanks, Janette, for your daily Eucharistic devotional)

Janette: Par 30 - 36 - Mary, Mother of all; Mary, the Holy Spirit and us!

Par 30: "He who has not Mary for his Mother has not God for his Father." Its rich context in Par 30 caused me to read and re-read the passage to better comprehend - and be better able to articulate the essence. St Louis puts great and an 'essential' emphasis on this point. Fr Harlow echoes:  "The rejection of Mary as mother breaks up God's plan for the family and ultimately distorts or corrupts the relationship with the individual and God the Father."  And later:  "The head (Jesus) and its parts (one and all) must be born together coming from the same mother. If Mary is not their mother then they are born of something else - they are deformed." It is much, much more than a sense of sinking in the arms of Mary or delighting in the security of being enfolded in her robes.  These images are wonderful, to be sure, but to recognize the deep level of relationship with Mary as Mother, truly Mother, brings tremendous liberty and spiritual well being.  St Louis talks of Mary 'striking roots' (Par 34, 35) - that is, planting virtues within a soul.  And as Tom reflected (and it bears repeating!) "When the Holy Spirit...has found Mary in a soul, He flies there.  He enters in His fullness;  He communicates Himself to that soul abundantly, and to the full extent to which it makes room for His spouse.  I soared when I read that - and last weekend I was reading this excerpt at a small dinner gathering in our home.  Wow - what discussion followed!  Fr Harlow adds:  "He (HS) commmunicates His gifts to that soul in the measure to which that person is devoted to her (Mary).  The more that one is devoted to Mary, the more the Holy Spirit will overshadow that soul with charisms and graces."  Yes, our lifestyle of true devotion will sanctify us and draw us to greater love, the bonds of love, everlasting love, love eternal. Yes, Mary, our Mother, is meant to form and educate us in the ways of holiness, the ways of love.  Mary, be a Mother to me now. (Bl Mother Teresa taught hundreds to pray this 'on your five fingers').

Tom Reflections Par. 33-36

What I'm finding is that there are many important points to the true devotion to Mary that I did not understand, failed to grasp, or see the importance of, and many of these are coming to light in the reading already.

In paragraph 33, St. Augustine's insight was very meaningful. "All the predestined . . . are in the world hidden in the womb of the most holy Virgin, were they are guarded, nourished, brought up and made to grow by the good Mother, until she has brought them forth to glory after death, which is properly the day of their birth, as the church calls the death of the just". The thought of being protected and nourished in her womb and that our true birth is when we physical die and are born into eternal live with our Lord is truly beautiful and an amazing point to ponder. "Blessed is the fruit of thy womb Jesus". WOW!!!

In paragraph 35, "Mary . . . will consequently produce the greatest saints that there will be in the end of time. The formation and education of the great saints who shall come at the end of the world are reserved for her. For it is that singular and miraculous Virgin who can produce in union with the Holy Spirit, singular and extraordinary things". This ring true to me. In the past I was tainted by protestant theology i.e., since there is only one mediator, Jesus, why go to Mary or anyone else for that matter. The one big hitch to that is that the people that I have most deeply admired for there sanctity, like John Paul II, Mother Theresa, St Maximillian Kolbe, St. Therese of Lisieux and most of the great saint I have read about have all had a huge devotion to Our Lady. In the back of my mind I'd tell myself, since the saints which have attained such a high level of sanctity saw Mary as a necessity to achieve this closer walk with our Lord, then what am I holding back for. Some of it was ignorance but much of it was just plain pride and the protestation influence.

Paragraph 36 continues to develop this. "When the Holy Spirit, her spouse, has found Mary in a soul, He flies there. . . . one of the greatest reasons why the Holy Spirit does not now do startling wonders in our soul is because He does not find there a sufficiently great union with his faithful and inseparable spouse". The commentary goes on to state that "the union of Mary and the Holy Spirit in a soul produces the greatest outpouring of the charismatic gifts, there is an indissoluble union. Our life style of true devotion bring us into the heart of their spousal relationship and the bond of their love". I never was truly aware of this spousal relationship of Mary with the Holy Spirit exception for our Lord's conception. It makes since to me now that these great saint that I have admired have understood this relationship profoundly. I pray that I too begin to understand and more truly live this true devotion to Mary.

Carol--Introduction

We finally received our books yesterday. Slow night at work and so I was able to get started. Better late than never!

I found reading the Act of Consecration more meaningful to myself this time. I did not realize that we could renew the Consecration daily.

Paragraphs 14 to 21 Application Questions

When I read question #2 “How does my devotion to Mary lead me to a greater dependence upon God the Father?” and question #4 “Do I trust Mary or do I feel I have to make a ‘name for myself’ on my own?” I thought of a section of the book Consecration to Mary by Fr. Helmuts Libietis pg 166ff. Hopefully my ‘connections’ aren’t too disjointed or that I’ve pulled too many things together…but this was my thinking when I read the questions.

The author (Libietis) speaks about devotion to Mary consisting in surrendering oneself to Mary and to Jesus through her. We leave everything to the free disposal of Mary, for her to use as she wills for the greater glory of God, of which she alone is perfectly aware… We give to her all our prayers and good works for her to distribute and apply where she wishes. [ My comments: If one empties oneself in devotion to Mary—then I surely am not still depending on myself and “my way” but then also I’ve emptied myself to God the Father, too. So in emptying myself—I trust Mary and am not trying to “make a name” for myself on my own. This makes me think………..when a person doesn’t know how to pray for a situation…..do I pray for this situation to be resolved in this way or another way? What is God’s will I wonder? In true devotion to Mary I’d leave it to her since she knows best.] “We must humbly request it of Our Lady, abiding always by her decision.” [Let Mary be the one inbetween since she does nothing contrary to the eternal will of God. Mary prays in perfect conformity to God’s will.]

Lisa paragraphs 18-20

I can only echo Carmela's words..... I so blindly never considered the relationship between Mary and the Holy Spirit. A great insight for me!

Carmela...Par. 18-20

This book is so beautifully packed that it is impossible to read one or two sentences without being thrust into deep prayer!

Par. 18 I love how St. Louis says "that He might make with her but one same sacrifice....by her consent". He then likens it to the offering of Isaac by Abraham. It really made me think about Mary's consent in the sacrifice of her son. That she was a full participant in, and not just a victim of, this sacrifice solely for us.

The author writes about "a divine paradox between 'imprisonment/liberty' and 'pleasure' in her womb and how this hiddenness of Jesus is a piece of the cross "in its most embryonic stage where He first lays down His life in obedience to the Father's Will." So much hiddenness in the womb of Mary and so much freedom and sacrifice all happening at the same time. I pray that we may all find ourselves hidden in this most blessed womb.

Par. 20 On the inseparability of Mary and the Holy Spirit - something I never really thought about - it gives me a whole new meaning and understanding of Mary's role in my life - a real active one. How beautiful said by St. Louis that the more the Holy Spirit finds Mary in a soul, the more "active and mighty He becomes in producing Jesus Christ in that soul, and that soul in Jesus Christ - our deepest desire.

Tom: Reflections - Par. 14-21

These paragraphs were packed with a lot of meaning for me. ... The perfect humility of our Lord's passion has always gotten my attention and Mel Gibson's movie "The Passion of the Christ" brought that into focus for me dramatically. The insight in paragraph 18 is that Jesus by living for 30 years in humble submission to Mary gave the Father more glory than by Jesus converting the whole world by working miracles. This brings into focus for me the importance of the joy we bring the Father when we humbly submit to Mary in True Devotion to her, as Jesus did.

In par 19 relating to the wedding feast of Cana the question it is asked if the married couple even know the dilemma the couple was in? How many acts of intercession to her Son does our perfect mother Mary do for us, on our behalf, without our knowledge? I intercede for my children daily, even more now than when they were younger. How much more must she, the perfect mother, intercede for us to Jesus without our knowledge and for what we really need, not for just what we think we need. What an awesome reality.

In par 20: The important insight for me here was the mention of the inseparability of the Holy Spirit and Mary, and the fact that the more Mary is in our soul the more the Holy Spirit will operate in it. It is a wonderful through to ponder. This gives increased meaning to the prayer I say often, "Come Holy Spirit, come by means of the powerful intercession of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, your well beloved spouse."

Finally on page 20 ... At Pentecost the apostles in the upper room had recourse to the Virgins intercession, in order to obtain from the Spirit the capacity for engendering Christ in their own soul. Clearly the more one is devoted to Mary the more one receives the Holy Spirit and His charismatic gifts and virtues. I am starting to get threw my thick skull what a pipeline to holiness True Devotion to Mary is. Praise God!

Reading List #2

Saturday & Sunday, March 19 and 20 are catch-up, reflection, review days to give people time to catch up and to get books if still needed. - Our son will be getting married April 2nd so my posting will be sporatic and I trust that everyone will help keep this going.  I am posting a long reading list to cover the wedding dates.  I hope everyone checks in or posts at least once a week.
Come Holy Spirit! Come by means of the powerful intercession of the Immacualte Heart of Mary your well beloved Spouse.  Come and help us grow in true Marian devotion.

Monday, March 21  par. 37 - 39
Tuesday, March 22  par. 40 - 42
Wednesday, March 23   par. 43 - 45
Thursday, March 24    par. 46 - 48
Friday, March 25    Application Question p. 43-44
Saturday, March 26    par 49 - 50
Sunday, March 27  par. 51 - 53
Monday, March 28   par. 54 - 56
Tuesday, March 29  par. 57 - 59
Wednesday, March 30  Application Question p. 54 -55
Thursday, March 31  par. 60 - 62
Friday, April 1    par. 63 - 64
Saturday, April 2  par. 65 - 67
Sunday, April 3   Application Questions p. 61
Monday, April 4  par. 68 - 69
Tuesday, April 5   par. 70 - 72
Wednesday, April 6  par. 73 - 75
Thursday, April 7  par. 76 - 77
Friday, April 8  Application Questions p. 69

Ruth: Applications Questions p. 21

4.  Why the Spirit choose to use Mary as his vehicle for entrance into humanity we will never know except to know that love prevailed. I think that the older I get the more I appreciate Mary's role as the new mother to mankind. My earthly mother at this point needs mothering and I often find myself turning to Mary in my need for comfort and guidance. What a blessing that Mary was choosen and gifted to us and I am so glad I have come to know and trust Mary as a gift from God rather than as a hinderance or block or as somone who takes away honor due only to God.  I have grown in my trust for Mary especially over the last 5 years as I have been under the spiritual leadership of a very holy pastor.

7.  Our pastor, prior to praying the third Glorious Mystery and at many other times prays the following prayer that I have now added to my own prayer life ....
"Come Holy Spirit, Come my means of the powerful intercession of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, your well beloved spouse."
This question is a good reminder to pray this prayer more

Ruth: Reflection on par. 20 ...

Did you notice the beautiful prayer by St. Ildephonsus at the end of par. 20?
'I beg you, holy Virgin, that I may have Jesus from the Holy Spirit, by whom you brought Jesus forth.
May my soul receive Jesus through the Holy Spirit by whom your flesh conceived Jesus...
May I love Jesus in the Holy Spirit in whom you adore Jesus as Lord and gaze upon Him as your son.'

In the author's notes on this paragraph he brings out that the more one is devoted to Mary the more one receives the Holy Spirit and His gifts and can grow in virtue. I love to see the unity of faith.  A long time ago when I was in a prayer group the Holy Spirit was the focus but Mary was left out and almost rejected. Those situations leaf spiritual scars that are slowly being healed through these awesome readings and a wonderful pastor who has True Devotion to Mary. I liked the statement that True Devotion shows "the Spirit and the Bride are operating together."

Carol--HELP! I need prayers

Everyone please say a prayer that my books arrive soon. I just got off the phone with the lady at Women of Grace. She never told me that they were waiting for a shipment of them. I have asked her to ship them overnight COD when she gets them. Looks like I'll be starting after Easter at this rate.

Ruth: Reflection on par. 17-

par. 17:  We all think about Mary as the mother of Jesus but not enought about Mary as our mother and a mother of the Church.
One of the reasons I am reading and blogging on "Echo of God" that because I want to stay focused on one spirituality. I usually jump around reading this book and that book  and get something out of each but I don't feel as through I am growing deeper in my spiritual journey.  With focusing on Marian spirituality with True Devotion books I hope to plunge deeper into the hearts of Jesus and Mary. God choose Mary as the mother of Jesus. I choose Mary to walk me deeper into the heart of Jesus, as my mother and and spiritual guide.
par. 18:  I focused here on the idea of Jesus pleasing God by being submissive to Mary for so many years.  Should we not do the same?
- My daughter-in-law is pregnant and calls the baby, Shiela, her wombmate. Mary's wombmate, for nine months, was Jesus. Can you imagine that? ...  Jesus is hidden yet still performs a miracle from within the womb. He is hidden still.  Are we hidden when Jesus works in and through us? How do we respond to compliments when we are just as happy to remain hidden. (We touched on this in an earlier post)
I never through of the womb as where Jesus first layed down His life in obedience to the Father's will. Will our hiddenness in Mary truely glorify the Father? On one level, I was looking at True Devotion from what I can get out of it but I love changing my thought to doing it to glorify God.
par. 19:  Did the couple know that they were out of wine and mary came to their rescue?  I like thinking that they did not. How many times has and will Mary silently come to our rescue?
======
Blogging really helps me slow down my reading and think it through more.  I hope you are also finding that it is helping you in some way.
May Mary guide us all to her "hidden" treasure.

Ruth: Reflections on par. 14-16

A phrase that I meditated on while reading this section was:  I want to see Jesus through Mary's eyes and see Mary through Jesus' eyes. It was powerful to ponder their relationship.

The beginning of par. 14 emphasizes that Mary being a mere creature is nothing at all compared to Jesus and God really had no need for her. That reminded me of Ash Wednesday which we just celebrated and where we heard: You are dust and to dust you shall return. Just as God willed Mary to "be" so he wills us to be who we are created to be.  My reflection here stayed on our nothingness, our smallness but in a way that let me feel God's greatness and great love.

Kim - Introduction

Hello everyone! I'm Kim Smith, the one who had surgery on Ash Wednesday. Thanks for your prayers. The surgery went well, and I'm now recuperating at home for the next 1-2 weeks, so I'd appreciate your continued prayer support.

I'm from Cedar Rapids, IA, and I was part of the last blog on the True Consecration to Jesus through Mary. I loved it, and I'm looking forward to contributing to the Echo of God blog. I have my book, and I'm going to start reading and contributing tomorrow. I'll try to catch up, but like Janette, I may post on earlier assignments for a few days, if that's okay.

By the way, you can discover a treasure of Marian articles at this web site:

http://www.tfp.org/tfp-home/about-our-lady/

I hope they help to deepen your faith and trust in Our Lady.

Janette: late entry in re: par 7 and one ditto

If it is not allowable to comment on a past reading assignment, please correct me - so I won't do this in the future!  I am trying to savor the readings and am just catching up today to where we should be reading-wise on the roster. 
COMMENT in re: par 7 - I was struck in regard to the 4 aspects of Mary's virtues - that the dsecriptions attached to them 'effect all', so to speak - HEIGHT of her merits, BREADTH of her charity, LENGTH of her power, DEPTH (abyss) of her humility.  Her influence is EVERYWHERE - height, breadth, length and depth.  I lingered with that thought for quite some time - and found an authentic place of peace and comfort in its truth.
DITTO:  to Tom's reflection regarding St Michael the archangel and his connection to Mary - and the encouragement to 'earnestly seek' his intercession and protection as we grow in our love for Mary - and in our fidelity to the practice of true devotion.  I arrived at another place of peace and fortification with this thought.

Tom: Application Question p. 15 and general comment

The question that I felt compelled to address is #9. "How can I show more respect, honor, and service to our lady?"

The past 2 years I have regularly been attending a weekly Catholic men's group called "That Man is You" (www.thatmanisyou.org). It is the best Catholic men program that I have ever been involved with and I truly wish it were in every Catholic parish. It really challenges men to step up to the plate and be the Christian men and father figures we are meant to be, and it gives all the examples and great instruction on how to carry that out. Steve Bollman the program developer does an unbelievable job in these weekly presentations. Last Lent, one of the challenges he gave us in an effort to try to pray unceasingly, was to say/pray to ourselves an ejaculatory prayer and the one he suggested was Acts 17:28. "In Him we live and move and have our being". He urged us to do this at regular intervals, such as when raising from sitting or going in or out of a room or in my case before seeing a patient. I can't say that I do this consistently but I can say that I'm working on it consistently. In beginning to understand and appreciate the preeminent role that Mary has in our path to Jesus I added to Acts 17:28, "through Mary" to honor the reality of her perfect intercession for us. "In Him we live and move and have our being through Mary."

Comment: Another point that was made in the commentary is that St. Louis draws 3 conclusions. (1) Mary deserves more of our attention. (2) Her full dignity remains a secret to us. (3) Her holiness can only be revealed by grace. In the first conclusion I really liked the idea of making Marian feast days special times of examination of conscientious and renewal of our consecration to Mary. Also I wasn't aware of St. Michael's important intercessory role as an ally of all those who make the true devotion to Mary. Now when saying the St. Micheal's prayer, which is said after all Masses in our parish of St. Mary's, this will have increased meaning to me. Praise God!

Corrine, Saturday Parag 14 &16

Saturday, Paragraphs 14-16
#14 God is not dependent on any creature to carry out His will but God chose Mary out of His love for her, so as to bring about His plan of salvation through Jesus. God is so full of love…He just has to share it. He even didn’t need us….but out of love He made us.
#16 Necessity is not absolute…but hypothetical………Mary’s necessity to God in the Incarnation of the Word: St. Augustine said the world was unworthy to receive the Son of God directly from the Father. The Father gave Jesus to Mary so the world might receive Him through her. And this only happened because of her “yes”….Mary who was so full of grace. And now the Father has been allowing Mary to appear to people in our world….she is trying to get us on the right track because she loves us so much. This following is from a reflection I received online….
Our Lady, so full of the Holy Spirit, is moved constantly to bless us. She sees every need, every loneliness, every sorrow and every joy. From her Heart flow countless blessings for us! We can become hearts that flow with living water as well! Through prayer and the practice of love, we can be part of the river of blessings that God wants to send out upon the earth. We only need to be open, silent and prayerful. God will do the rest! Our Lady of Medjugorje has come to bless the world. Thank you, dear Mother, for blessing us! We say 'yes' to your blessing! May we bless in turn all those God sends our way each day.

So…as a part of our internal silence….we can bless people instead of judging them or whatever else we may be thinking.

Peace be with you all!

Corrine....RE: posting

I most likely won't be able to post for almost a week. So, enjoy blogging and sharing your thoughts! When I read someone's blog it makes me realize...oh someone has trouble with that too....or..I never thought of it in that way...great new insight! I'll be anxious to either catch up or see if I can gain access to the blog the next few days. God bless you all on your spiritual journey.

Ruth - Application Questions p. 15

Question #3:  Like Corrine mentioned in her post, I find the need to pray the Litany of Humility by Cardinal Merry del Val. It is one that helps me focus on Jesus, the humility of Mary and is a good examination before Confession.

Question #4:  How do I practice silence both internally and externally?
     Noise is always in and around each of us.  The radio, TV, and inside our minds all contribute to lack of focus on the things of God.  I find for myself that I am called to externally limit the noise. I like to have the news on while doing housework. I like talk radio in the car.  .... but all are fleeting.  The internal noise is also distracting. As Corrine mentioned, in the last book, it talked about replacing interior noise with more interior God talk. Both are difficult. My interior mind jabber is as distracting as the exterior noise but I find that if I try to repeat over and over short prayers or scripture quotes I have something to keep coming back to.  I can't solve my problems with my interior jabber but I can turn them over with interior prayer.  I can praise with interior prayer rather than noise and praise is something we so often neglect.

Question #6: In the world but not of it ..... Anyone who is totally committed to live their faith is on their way to being in but not of the world. But even thought my priorities are to live my faith I still struggle with things like "simple living", reacting in love rather than resentment, alligning my mind with the mind of the Church rather than the world. It is harder than it sounds but part of living our faith.  Even turning to Mary is counter cultural and part of living in but not of the world.

Question #7:  St. Micahel ... Our pastor has us all saying, with him, the St. Michael prayer after the closing prayer at Mass. I need to think of Mary more when I pray that prayer daily.

Question #8:  Our parish is St. Mary's so my own parish is dedicated to Mary.  I love to visit Our Lady of Guadualope Shrine in LaCrosse, WI which is only 3 hours from here. When in New York I love to visit St. Anne's (Mary's mom's) Shrine in Vertmont.  I had looked into becoming a lay carmelite but that did not work out.  I find that over the last few years Mary is surrounding me with reminders of her presence.

Ruth: Reflections on p. 5 and following

p. 5  "St. Louis further reveals that admission to this sanctuary - the Immaculate Heart of Mary - is God's gift to those who practice true devotion." The phrase, Admission to this sanctuary" really struck a cord. I have had a few high stress days from some internal turmoil and the idea of a sanctuary really resonated with me. I find a great source of comfort in placing myself in the sanctuary of the hearts of Jesus & Mary.  Now to remember this gift of place.

In p. 6 it talks about Mary admitting to the wonders that God has worked in her.  Do you have a hard time when someone give a compliment or makes a statement about how the Lord is working in or through you?  I do. I find it hard to respond when someone makes a statement of any kind about the wonderous deeds the Lord is doing or has done in or through me. Mary however, in sincere humility, and far greater deeds with purity, grace, and honesty can respond in a way that echos down all generations to us.  "He that is mighty has done great things to me."  Shouldn't we be able to say the same?

p. 7 "the length of her power, which she exercises even over God Himself, is incomprehensible"  ... I through that this was a powerful phrase and reflected on it and other scriptural references showing our power over God. Prayers have changed things. Oh my! What awesome virtues are models for us: merits, charity, power and humility.

Lord, I truly desire and hope that through Mary's model and intercession I (we) can grow in merit, charity, power and humility.

Holy Mother

Eric Clapton and Luchianno Pavarotti sing Holy Mother

http://ministryvalues.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=719&Itemid=122

Song is not well known but worth hearing and by an unusal composer for a Marian song.
Clapton wrote this song in response to the suicide of his friend Richard Manuel, pianist and singer for The Band.  

Several years later, after the tragic death of his young son, Clapton wrote the big hit "Tears in Heaven." 

I know that this is a bit different and not related to the book but seeing how it is unusual and relating to Holy Mother I thought I would share.  Enjoy!

Application questions pg 15

Corrine...
My first reaction to the questions was...I'll too shallow to even attempt these. But here goes....
1. My relationship with Jesus if VERY important to me. Without Him I just couldn't exist!
3. How do I pray to be humble and hidden from the world? Mary begged (she begged!) to be hidden, to be humbled, to be poor and of no account. As some of you have commented...how difficult to do in my prideful state! One way to be more conscious of this is to pray the humility prayer....sincerely...even begging!?
4. Practice silence both internally and externally....???
If I understand the question.... Silence internally: In the previous Consecration book I read about....talk to God all those times instead of the empty self-talk that can fill non-engaged times, while driving, in check out line, in house alone, in Dr. waiting room, on a walk. ...silencing all that is around me and focusing on God. External silence...I'm not one who talks unnecessarily usually...I usually think about it long enough that the conversation has moved on to something else before I speak. Okay...external silence?? with my husband retired and around here all the time...I have to go to another part of the house to have external silence. I don't know if I get the external silence of this question. Help!
9. Show more respect, honor, love and service to Our Lady, Mary......say the core of the Consecration daily to help my focus, daily rosary, depend on Mary more, spiritual reading about Mary, consider Mary's experience during Jesus' Way of the Cross... say Mary ejaculations.
I certainly welcome anyone's comments!

Corrine, paragraphs 7-8, 10-12

Paragraphs 7-8
Mary's merits, charity, power and humility are immmeasurable---and in living true devotion we have access to them. The more we desire to possess them the more she grants them to us. Our Mother is waiting for our desire! St. Michael, the archangel, help us in that desire and protect us in our journey.
Paragraphs 10-12
St. Louis says...Mary deserves more attention, more praise...we need the zeal of the saints! How do I fulfill this in my life? ...really live out the devotion.
Mary's full dignity is veiled from us and only the Holy Spirit can reveal the extent of her holiness to us. Holy Spirit, help me use all these "tools" of the Catholic Church to put a fire under my "zeal". I must join the saints in.......Holy, holy, holy Mary Mother of God and Virgin!

Janette - newbie

Greetings, companions!  I write from still-snowy St Paul, Minnesota.  My book arrived this afternoon - and the Dedication page has hooked me - "We have not yet praised, exalted, honored, loved and served Mary as we ought." - St Louis de Montfort. I am most definitely in this category! When Ruth asked me to consider joining this group - my heart leapt! Two years ago in December my Grad school class from Ave Maria Univ journeyed together for a Consecration to Jesus through Mary.  I had done this about 10 years prior but somehow missed the concept of renewal each year.  That time together with classmates, including my husband, Jeff, was incredibly transforming!  I look most forward to continuing to incline my heart deeper and wider and softer to Jesus through Mary - and listening closely to the movements of other dear hearts so too inclined.

Carmela

My names is Carmela and I live in Putnam County, New York - 50 miles north of NYC. I made the Consecration 10 years ago with a group in my parish but to be quite honest, I didn't really understand the depth of it then and I've tried to renew my commitment several times over the years - not too successfully. So I am really excited to be able to do this with all of you. I have never blogged before and am not all that savvy at it! I do have the book but just started last night. In reading paragraph 2 regarding Mary's beautiful desire to be "hidden and unknown", I felt such awe at her humility, and at the same time, sadness for myself in knowing how difficult that is for me. To really be okay with being forgotten, hidden, unknown - I pray for the grace to have a heart like that someday!

Prayer Request

Kim, one of our bloggers is having surgery this morning.  Please keep Kim and all our blog contributors in your prayers.

Ruth: Ash Wednesday readings

I started reading the assigned readings this early morning at Adoration. Right off I read in the second line that devotion to Mary leads directly and quickly into knowledge of Jesus and this into zeal for evangelization. I know the truth of those words in my own heart and life.  Everything that I do in my spiritual life I yearn to share with others so that they can grow in deeper and deeper love of Jesus.
I liked the image of Mary's continued maternity, giving birth to Jesus in our lives.
Reading of Mary's perfect humility is making me really examine a constant "thorn in my side." I see that I am not responding in humility but in frustration and judgement. Maybe this study and a good Confession will help me handle this with Marian humility. Like Mary and St. Paul, I would like to be able to say, "It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me." I have a long way to go but in Christ, with Mary as my model, all things are possible.
That was my reflection from last night.  Now I have to finish the rest of the reading, meditation and reflection sometime today.

I love Lent and am so glad that you will all be part of this year's Lenten journey.

With and through Mary to our Jesus may our Lenten experience be fruitful.
=========================================================
If anyone is still trying to figure out their Lenten commitments I can tell you about the Divine Mercy Challenge & Pledge that our pastor issued.  Just let me know if you are interested in hearing about it.

Contributors

Here are the people who have signed up as contributors:
JoAnn
Kathy
djRouse
Lisa S
Carmela
Leafed Out
V.C. Yaklin
Kim
Corrine
Tom / Ruth
Mary Jo
Carol
Janette
I have been so busy that I did not post on the Introduction but starting tomorrow, Ash Wednesday, I hope that all of us who have our books will be able to dive into this new adventure.


Here is a nice Marian Morning Offering that Tom asked me to post:


Dear Mother, 
I consecrate myself and this day to you, 
in the mystery of Your Immaculate Conception, totus tuus.
Ease the doubts, the fears and the distractions of my mind.
Give me to drink of your desire; 
and let your fiat be resplendent in my life.
Amen

Corrine: Intro pgs 1-5

The author comments about Pope John Paul II’s teaching in the apostolic letter about the rosary, where the pope called on us to “contemplate with Mary the face of Christ” and that the rosary is a means of contemplating Jesus through Mary’s eyes. At one time I remember saying a version of the Stations of the Cross that was through Mary’s eyes. I remember I liked her resignation to God’s will and she knew this had to be….and her quiet and continued prayer. Quiet….

Yes, prayerfully going through another book about the Consecration to Jesus through Mary, is like taking one more layer off….one time through is not enough. There is really more to learn each time.

I liked when the author pointed out a “core” of the consecration…and that the core could be renewed daily. I have to remember to keep in mind….the baptismal promises and the consecration throughout this study….the “core” daily.

New members are still welcome

Remember to invite your friends to participate.  This blog is still open to new people.  Invite other people to grow in their love and appreciation for Jesus and His and our wonderful mother, Mary.

Our 1st week's reading schedule has been posted in an earlier email.

Hi, I'm Mary Jo from Cedar Rapids. I am new at this (blogging) so hopefully I won't mess it up too much! I read True Devotion twenty some years ago and am looking forward to reading it now and studying it in depth!

Corrine: my intro

Since I am "high maintenance" in the spiritual growth area, I welcome this new book to try to help my growth in devotion to Jesus through Mary after the recent blog. I've done numerous book blogs that Ruth has brought about. In the past I've found it helpful to express myself in the blog to help me remember what I've read or what struck me. I am from Dubuque, Iowa and take part in what Springtime of Hope offers and also bible study. Come Holy Spirit, enlighten us! St. Michael, protect us!

Carol

Hi! I'm Carol from Plattsburgh NY. My husband, Clayton, and my daughter, Jessica, are both going to do the readings along with me and since neither of them like to blog, if they have any questions, I will post them for conversation and help as I did on the previous blog. We are waiting on the arrival of our books any day. Hopefully, they will arrive on time. I was able to purchase them from Women of Grace for $20 each. I have the website in case anyone needs it. Our local Christian book store's price was $26 each. I saved quite a bit even with shipping and handling since I was buying 3 books.

I look forward to starting. The last book was tremendously informative and interesting. I can't wait to get started.

First Reading Assignments

+JMJ+

Be sure to prayerfully read and meditate on each section.  Try not to just rush through the readings. We want to try to incorporate True Devotion into our lives.

Let's begin:


Prior to Ash Wednesday please read the Introdution, page 1-6 and post when you can and if you want.

Ash Wednesday, March 9:  Par. 1 - 6  (always include the commentary for each paragraph)

Thursday, March 10: Par. 7 - 13

Friday, March 11:  Application Questions p. 15 (pray and reflect on the questions and post on any of the questions that you want.

Satuday, March 12:  Par. 14 - 16

Sunday, March 13: Par. 17 - 21

Monday, March 14: Application Questions p. 21-22

Tuesday, March 15:  Par. 22 - 26

Wednesday, March 16: Par. 27 - 31

Thursday, March 17: Par. 32 - 36

Friday, March 18: Application Questions p. 33

We will reavaluate the pace as we go. Your input is important.

Ruth: How this will work

                                                                     +JMJ+

The text of True Devotion appears in italics throughout the book. Following each parapraph is the author's paragraph commentary on what St. Louis is describing. When a paragraph is assigned you will also read the accompanying commentary.  At the end of each major section are "Questions for Application" which are intended to aid us in stopping to consider how we can live the lifestyle of true devotion.
For some this book and blog may be your introduction to True Devotion and for others this may be an effort to go deeper in your love for Jesus through our mother, Mary. For all this is a journey to Jesus with and through Mary.

Once a week I will post the reading assignments. If you think we are going to slow or fast let me know but I want to take smaller "chunks" than we did in our last study and I hope that more comments, questions and discussion will occur. Having said that I don't want anyone to feel pressured to post or to hesitate to post. This is your blog, our blog. Let us share our journey growing closer to the Sacred Heart of Jesus through the motherly heart of Mary.

I always suggest that you read and reflect on the assigned reading prior to readig the postings of others on a section so that others don't influence your posting.  When you post put you name in the title line and then the section you are posting on so that others can avoid reading it until they have read the section.

Some of you will post alot and some will just be "readers".  Here is a note I received about the last blog:
"I didn't contribute to the last blog but I did enjoy the study and reading others blogs.  Great learning experience to deepen my faith and understanding."   I hope that most of you will post but do what the Spirit leads you.  Just remember there is no grading and no right or wrong comments.  This is a learning and growing opportunity.  Our aim is to help each other grow in our faith and love for the Lord with and through His Mother. 


Please post a little introduction and tell us if you have your book.


God bless you.  

Hello! My name is Vaughan- I'm a parishioner at St. Mary (East Dubuque, IL), and live on my parents' farm near Dubuque. I participated in the St Louis De Montfort Consecration to Mary offered at our parish in November/December of last year, and the St Maximillian Kolbe nine-day consecration in February.

Looking forward to growing with you all in completely conforming our lives to Our Blessed Mother.

Mary, seat of Wisdom, pray for us.