Mother Most Amiable

(1) MARY, you are the Mother Most Amiable in the eyes of God. You are a source of never-ending joy to Him, and the object of His most tender love. God the Father loves you more than all His other creatures, for you are more than His child—you are the Mother of His only-begotten Son. You also enjoy the most tender love of the Son of God, the Divine Word, for He elevated you alone of all women in the world to the dignity of divine motherhood. As the God-Man He showed His love for you in being subject to you for thirty years, in performing His first miracle at your request, and in remembering you with tender pity on the cross when He said to the beloved Apostle John, "Son, behold thy mother."

(2) MARY, the Holy Spirit gives you all His love, for you are the Masterpiece of His power. For love of you He worked a miracle at your conception, which preserved you from the stain of original sin and infused into your soul the fullness of grace in the first instant of your existence. He enlightened the Prophets concerning you many centuries before your birth, and bade them announce to the nations of the earth the happiness which would be given to the world through you. After Your birth He watched over you with great care in order to preserve you from even the least sin. He worked wonders for you by overshadowing you with the power of His Godhead, and accomplished in your virginal womb the Incarnation of the Son of God. No creature in heaven or on earth was ever loved so much by the Blessed Trinity.

Mother Most Amiable, God loved you so much because you loved Him above all things. Help me to love God above all things all the days of my life, just as you did. Help me to guard against sin and to observe the commandments, for Jesus said, "He who has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me" (John 14,21). Let me prove my love for God by frequent Communion and prayer—the most effective means of strengthening and preserving the love of God in my heart.

(3) MARY, you are the Mother Most Amiable also to men. You love us all more than our own mothers can, for you have cherished us all in your heart ever since the day your dying Son entrusted us to your care. Your heart is full of love and mercy toward us, and is always ready to do us good. In fact, you never feel happier than when you find an opportunity of doing us a favor.

On account of your holiness you are so amiable that after God there is nothing on earth that can be compared to you. What the sun is among the stars, you are among the angels and saints. You are a Lady of surpassing mildness, love and goodness. And since you are most gracious to all, all hearts turn to you in devoted affection.

Mother Most Amiable, obtain for me the grace to cherish a tender love for you, for I can do nothing better than to imitate God in His love for you; and I certainly cannot love you more than He does. Be to me a Mother Most Amiable in life and in death, but above all for all eternity in heaven.

PRAYER

O Lord God, we beg You to forgive the sins of Your servants, that we who are unable to please You by our own deeds, may be saved by the intercession of the Mother of Your Son, our Lord. Who lives and reigns with You forever. Amen. (Feast of the Assumption, Aug. 15)

Mother Undefiled

(1) MARY, you are the Mother Undefiled because in your motherhood you did not experience the sad effects of original sin. Having conceived of the Holy Spirit, you were exempt from the sufferings of other mothers. You were favored above all women in that you conceived the Son of God without sacrificing your virginity, and brought Him forth without the pains of childbirth.

(2) MARY, you were not subject to those infirmities of body and soul with which the whole human race is burdened. As a result of original sin our understanding is darkened, our will weakened. Being free from original sin and from its effects, your understanding was clear, your judgment sound, and your knowledge such as our first parents possessed before their fall. Your will enjoyed the most complete liberty; no evil desire ever arose in your heart. Supported by grace, you could easily observe the holy law of God, since you had no interior struggles.

Even external temptations did not afflict you, because in your nature there was no inclination which the devil and the world could make use of in order to lead you to evil. You were not subject even to the weaknesses of the body in so far as they are an effect of original sin. You suffered, but your suffering was not the result of bodily weakness.

Mother Undefiled, help me to conduct myself as becomes a Christian and live chastely. Though I am weak and very much inclined to evil, let me not be discouraged, for God will give me the grace I need, and I know you will help me. Never allow me to be the slave of wicked passions and low desires. I am sincerely resolved to abandon my sins, to carry my cross patiently for the love of God and in atonement for my sins, and to devote the remainder of my life in serving God in imitation of you.

(3) MARY, you were the Mother Undefiled also in death. You died, but not because of sickness or old age. It was your longing for Jesus and your ardent love for Him which caused your soul to escape from your body without the pain or agony of death. Your death was as calm and peaceful as if you were falling asleep.

Nor did your body see corruption either. A short time after your burial it rose from the grave, united itself with your soul, and entered heaven glorified, spiritual, and immortal. There with body and soul united, you are enthroned as the Queen of heaven in a glory and majesty greater than that of the angels and saints.

Mother Undefiled, I give myself to you, and through you to Jesus. While I have time, I will work for His glory and yours. Through your powerful prayers may I receive from Him a glorious crown and see You both in the glory of God's kingdom.

PRAYER

Lord Jesus Christ, You wanted the Most Blessed Virgin Mary, Your Mother, sinless from the first moment of her conception, to be glorified by countless miracles, grant that we, who never cease imploring her patronage, may obtain eternal happiness. Who live and reign forever. Amen. (Feast of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, Nov. 27)

Mother Inviolate

(1) MARY, you are the Mother Inviolate because your virginal purity was not in the least tainted by the conception of your divine Son, but you remained a pure, inviolate virgin as before. The prophet Isaias foretold this great miracle of God: "Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son; and they shall call his name Emmanuel (God with us)."

You conceived as a virgin. It was your peculiar privilege to possess both the joys of motherhood and the honor of virginity, as the Gospel relates: "Do not be afraid, Joseph, son of David, to take to thee Mary thy wife, for that which is begotten in her is of the Holy Spirit" (Matt. 1,20)

(2) MARY, you preserved your virginity also in the birth of Jesus. As a virgin you conceived, and as a virgin you brought forth the Son of God. As the rays of the sun penetrate glass and yet do not break or injure it in any way, so Jesus, the Son of Justice, was born of you, without violating your virginity.

Mother Inviolate, teach me to cherish holy purity as the most precious treasure of my heart, as you did. Make me modest and retired. Help me to avoid every indecent thought, word, and action. Let me never forget that the more chastely I live, the more quietly I shall die, and the greater will be my confidence when I appear before my Eternal Judge.

(3) MARY, you remained a pure, inviolate virgin after the birth of the Son of God. You would have given up the dignity of divine motherhood, had it been impossible for you to remain a virgin. How chaste was Joseph, who, after you had brought forth the Son of God, lived in perfect continence out of reverence for you and through love for virginal purity.

Mother Inviolate, I cannot practice chastity in my state of life without the aid of God's grace. Help me to pray often, especially in temptation, for God gives His grace to those who ask Him. But, above all, aid me in receiving Holy Communion frequently, which is the most important means I have of preserving holy purity, because there I am united most intimately with your loving Son, who is a Lover of pure souls.

PRAYER

May all our hope of assistance, O Lord, ever rest upon the loving kindness of Your only-begotten Son! May He, Jesus Christ, our Lord, Who when born of the Virgin, did not detract from the virginity of His Mother, but made it sacred, cleanse us of our sins on this solemn feast day of her Nativity, and make our prayers pleasing in Your sight. Through Christ our Lord. Amen. (Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Sept. 8)

Mother Most Chaste

MOTHER MOST CHASTE

(1) MARY, you are the Mother Most Chaste because there has never been a saint who loved chastity as you did. When the angel appeared and called you blessed among women, you were frightened. His message of the divine motherhood confused you, because you ardently longed for the happiness of virginity. Filled with wonder, you replied, "How shall this happen, since I do not know man?" Not for one moment did you think of accepting an honor which you must purchase at the sacrifice of your virginity, till the angel made known to you how you could become a Mother without ceasing to be a virgin. "The Holy Spirit shall come upon thee and the power of the Most High shall overshadow thee; and therefore the Holy One to be born shall be called the Son of God" (Luke 1,35). How highly you esteemed virginal chastity, preferring it even to the dignity of being the Mother of God!

(2) MARY, you were most careful to preserve chastity. Knowing well that this tender virtue could fade in worldly soil, you withdrew into solitude as much as you could. You were kneeling in prayer when the angel came with his message. While other virgins enter the state of matrimony to become mothers, you were married to Joseph in order the more securely to remain a virgin. You placed yourself under his protection that you might avert the dangers which might threaten your virginity from the outside world.

Though you were free from all evil desires of the flesh and had no fear of temptation, yet you watched over all your thoughts and every emotion of your heart with the greatest care. Living upon earth like an angel in the flesh, you must have been continually occupied in loving God with all your heart.

(3) MARY, you love chaste souls as your dearest children. You take them under your special protection and are most happy to assist them with your prayers. You rejoiced when you received the innocent John as your son, and you were a protection and a model to him as long as you lived upon earth.

You show your love and goodness to all, yet your loving heart reaches out with special tenderness to youths, because they are most in need of your motherly care in their struggle to preserve holy purity, which is tried most in that stage of their life.

Mother Most Chaste, keep my body pure and my soul holy. Let me imitate your example by avoiding bad company and every occasion of sin that may endanger holy purity. I wish to recommend myself daily to your intercession, especially when temptation strikes. With your help I shall be victorious. Make me pure that I may serve God more faithfully in my state of life, die more peacefully, and attain the glory prepared for the virgins in heaven "who follow the Lamb wherever He goes."

PRAYER

O Lord, we beg You to grant us the grace of true humility through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God. At the same time take from our hearts the desires of the flesh and the eyes, so that, living wisely, justly and piously, we may obtain eternal rewards. Through Christ our Lord. Amen. (Feast of the Humility of Mary, July 17)

Mother Most Pure

(1) MARY, you are the Mother most pure because you were perfectly free from every stain of sin. The words of the Holy Spirit are to be applied to you: "Thou art all fair, O my love, and there is not a spot in thee" (Canticles 4,7). Even the greatest saints in the very instant of conception are tainted with original sin. You alone are an exception; you were conceived and born without original sin.

How could you, who were to crush the serpent's head, have been under the slavery of the devil even for a moment? As the chosen Daughter of the Father, the most holy Mother of the Son, and the immaculate Spouse of the Holy Spirit, you could never have been under the curse of sin. Your dignity as Mother of God demanded such a privilege. It was fitting that the God of all purity should spring from the greatest purity. God was able to grant such a privilege, and He did. And for this I praise you as Mother Most Pure.

(2) MARY, you were also preserved from all actual sin and imperfection, so that you never offended God even by the most trifling offense. On your deathbed you were as pure as when you were conceived and born. Because God had destined you to be the Mother of His Son, He gave you extraordinary graces with the help of which it was possible for you to preserve your soul from even the shadow of sin. You were ever obedient to the inspirations of grace, and you never had the least inclination to sin. You detested sin as the greatest of all evils.

Mother Most Pure, be always my model of purity. Strengthen me against mortal sin, and help me to use the graces God gives me to overcome it. Aid me in shunning even willful venial sin and everything that may lead to it.

(3) MARY, you had no inclination even to whatever was useless or dangerous to your virtue. Your heart, being filled with the love of God, had no room in it for anything that was not God or did not lead to God. You were so pure that not even a natural imperfection cast the least shadow upon your soul. Your nature, which had remained untouched by original sin, was completely under the control of the spirit, and the spirit was subject to the will of God in all things. You were the perfect model of sanctity because everything in your life was well regulated, everything in beautiful harmony.

Mother Most Pure, detach my heart from the perishable goods of this world, that I may not risk losing the eternal joys of heaven. May I hereafter have the happiness of beholding your glory in heaven, since God has promised His kingdom to those who are pure of heart: "Blessed are the pure of heart, for they shall see God" (Matt. 5,8).

PRAYER

Almighty and eternal God, Who in the Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary prepared a worthy dwelling for the Holy Spirit, mercifully grant that devoutly celebrating the feast day of this most pure Heart, we may be enabled to live according to Your own Heart. Through Christ our Lord. Amen. (Feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, Aug. 22)