Pentecost Anticipated
Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Father Walter Schu, LC
Luke 1:39-56
Mary set out and traveled to the hill country in haste to a town of
Judah, where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. When
Elizabeth heard Mary´s greeting, the infant leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth,
filled with the Holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice and said, "Most
blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And how
does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For at
the moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the infant in my womb
leaped for joy. Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the
Lord would be fulfilled." And Mary said: "My soul proclaims the
greatness of the Lord; my spirit rejoices in God my savior. For he has looked
upon his handmaid´s lowliness; behold, from now on will all ages call me
blessed. The Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name. His
mercy is from age to age to those who fear him. He has shown might with his
arm, dispersed the arrogant of mind and heart. He has thrown down the rulers
from their thrones but lifted up the lowly. The hungry he has filled with good
things; the rich he has sent away empty. He has helped Israel his servant,
remembering his mercy, according to his promise to our fathers, to Abraham and
to his descendants forever." Mary remained with her about three months and
then returned to her home.
Introductory Prayer: Lord, I believe in Your supreme
goodness and love. I entrust my entire self to You with all of my hopes, fears
and joys. Thank You for giving us the gift of Yourself in the Eucharist. Thank You,
too, for giving us Your own mother to be our mother during our exile on this
earth and journey home to You in heaven. Here I am, like her, to do Your will.
Petition: Mary, help me to grow in humility.
1. Prompt and Joyful Charity: What has impelled Mary to undertake
her perilous journey not only alone, but also in haste? An irresistible force
was acting within Mary: the presence of the Holy Spirit overshadowed and filled
her since the moment of the Annunciation. This same Holy Spirit has filled the
heart of Elizabeth at Mary’s greeting and moved the infant within her womb.
What is the first fruit of the fullness of the Holy Spirit? Joy. Pope Benedict
XVI comments on the relationship of joy to the truth who is Christ himself:
“Jesus Christ, who is the fullness of truth, attracts to himself the heart of
every man, dilates it, and fills it with joy. Only the truth is capable of
invading the mind and making it fully joyful. This joy expands the dimensions
of the human spirit, raising it from the anxieties of egoism, making it capable
of authentic love” (Discourse to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the
Faith, February 10, 2005).
2. Elizabeth – The Unworthy Host: Elizabeth’s moving question
reflects the one virtue necessary for a person to be invaded by the Holy
Spirit: humility. Elizabeth is profoundly aware of her own lowliness in the
face of a visit from the mother of her Lord. Mary herself echoes these
sentiments of deep humility throughout her Magnificat. What is the reason her
Creator has done great things for her, so much so that all generations will
call her blessed? It is not due to any talent or quality she might possess of
herself. There is no magnificent grandeur by which she has captivated the
Almighty. God has simply “looked upon his handmaid’s lowliness.” Do I rejoice
in my own littleness, knowing that it enables the Holy Spirit to make his
dwelling within me and do great things for Christ with my life?
3. The Hymn of God’s Praise: Mary is so filled with the Holy
Spirit that her whole being bursts forth in a hymn of joy and praise to the
Almighty. Pope Benedict reflects on Mary’s joy at the infant Lord’s presence
within her womb: “This is the joy the heart feels when we kneel to adore Jesus
in faith” (Discourse to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith,
February 10, 2005). The joy of Christ, the joy of the Holy Spirit, gratitude to
God for the great things he has done in us, impels us to bring Our Lord to
others, just as Mary brought him to Elizabeth even before his birth. As she
sings her Magnificat, Mary does not remain closed within herself, but reflects
on what God has done for her in light of his saving plan for all his people.
May the joy of the Holy Spirit bring about a new Pentecost that radiates from
our lives.
Conversation with Christ: Thank You, Lord! The great gift of Your
Holy Spirit fills our lives with the unspeakable joy of Your own presence
within us. Help me to respond with haste -- as Mary did -- to the impulses of
charity from the Holy Spirit.
Resolution: I will look for occasions to speak about Christ with others and do acts
of charity for them with joy and haste, just as Mary did in the Gospel.
Excerpts from the DIARY of Saint
Faustina Kowalska
79 O Mary, my Mother and my
Lady, I offer You my soul, my body, my life and my death, and all that will
Follow it. I place everything in Your hands. O my Mother, cover my soul with
Your virginal mantle and grant me the grace of purity of heart, soul and body.
Defend me with Your power against all enemies, and especially against those who
hide their malice behind the mask of virtue. O lovely lily! You are for me a
mirror, O my Mother!
92
Humiliation is my daily food. I understand that the bride must herself share in
everything that is the groom's; and so His cloak of mockery must cover me, too.
At those times when I suffer much, I try to remain silent, as I do not trust my
tongue which, at such moments, is inclined to talk for itself, while its duty
is to help me praise God for all the blessings and gifts which He has given me.
When I receive Jesus in Holy Communion, I ask Him fervently to deign to heal my
tongue so that I would offend neither God nor neighbor by it. I want my tongue
to praise God without cease. Great are the faults committed by the tongue. The
soul will not attain sanctity if it does not keep watch over its tongue.
178
Today we are beginning the third probation. All three of us met at Mother
Margaret's, as the other sisters were having their probation in the novitiate.
Mother Margaret began with a prayer, explained to us what the third probation
consists of, and then spoke on how great is the grace of the perpetual vows.
Suddenly I began to cry out loud. In an instant all God's graces appeared
before the eyes of my soul, and I saw myself so wretched and ungrateful toward
God. The sisters began to rebuke me, saying, "Why did she break out
crying?" But Mother Margaret came to my defense, saying that she was not
surprised.
At the
end of the hour, I went before the Blessed Sacrament and, like the greatest and
most miserable of wretches, I begged for His mercy that He might heal and
purify my poor soul. Then I heard these words, My daughter, all your
miseries have been consumed in the flame of My love, like a little twig thrown
into a roaring fire. By humbling yourself in this way, you draw upon yourself
and upon other souls an entire sea of My mercy. I answered, "Jesus, mold
my poor heart according to Your divine delight."
220 O my
eternal Lord and Creator, how am I going to thank You for this great favor;
namely, that You have deigned to choose miserable me to be Your betrothed and
that You are to unite me to yourself in an eternal bond? O dearest Treasure of
my heart, I offer You all the adoration and thanksgiving of the Saints and of
all the choirs of Angels, and I unite myself in a special way with Your Mother.
O Mary, my Mother, I humbly beg of You, cover my soul with Your virginal cloak
at this very important moment of my life, so that thus I may become dearer to
Your Son and may worthily praise Your Son's mercy before the whole world and
throughout all eternity.
260 I
had permission to visit Czestochowa while on my journey. I saw the Mother of
God [image] for the first time, when I went to attend the unveiling of the
image at five in the morning. I prayed without interruption until eleven, and
it seemed to me that I had just come. The superior of the house there [Mother
Serafin[75]] sent a sister for me, to tell me to come to breakfast
and said she was worried that I would miss my train. The Mother of God told me
many things. I entrusted my perpetual vows to Her. I felt that I was her child
and that She was my Mother. She did not refuse any of my requests.
309 Before
heaven and earth, before all the choirs of Angels, before the Most Holy Virgin
Mary, before all the Powers of heaven, I declare to the One Triune God that
today, in union with Jesus Christ, Redeemer of souls, I make a voluntary
offering of myself for the conversion of sinners, especially for those souls
who have lost hope in God's mercy. This offering consists in my accepting, with
total subjection to God's will, all the sufferings, fears and terrors with
which sinners are filled. In return, I give them all the consolations which my
soul receives from my communion with God. In a word, I offer everything for
them: Holy Masses, Holy Communions, penances, mortifications, prayers. I do not
fear the blows, blows of divine justice, because I am united with Jesus. O my
God, in this way I want to make amends to You for the souls that do not trust
in Your goodness. I hope against all hope in the ocean of Your mercy. My Lord
and my God, my portion-my portion forever, I do not base this act of oblation
on my own strength, but on the strength that flows from the merits of Jesus
Christ. I will daily repeat this act of self-oblation by pronouncing the
following prayer which You yourself have taught me, Jesus:
"O Blood and Water which gushed forth from the Heart of Jesus as a Fount of Mercy for us, I trust in You!"
"O Blood and Water which gushed forth from the Heart of Jesus as a Fount of Mercy for us, I trust in You!"
316
Once, the Mother of God came to visit me. She was sad. Her eyes were cast down.
She made it clear that She wanted to say something, and yet, on the other hand,
it was as if She did not want to speak to me about it. When I understood this,
I began to beg the Mother of God to tell me and to look at me. Just then Mary
looked at me with a warm smile and said, You are going to experience certain
sufferings because of an illness and the doctors; you will also suffer much
because of the image, but do not be afraid of anything. The next day I fell
ill and suffered a great deal, just as the Mother of God had told me. But my
soul was ready for the sufferings. Suffering is a constant companion of my
life.
635
March 25. In the morning, during meditation, God's presence enveloped me in a
special way, as I saw the immeasurable greatness of God and, at the same time,
His condescension to His creatures. Then I saw the Mother of God, who said to
me, Oh, how pleasing to God is the soul that follows faithfully the
inspirations of His grace! I gave the Savior to the world; as for you, you have
to speak to the world about His great mercy and prepare the world for the
Second Coming of Him who will come, not as a merciful Savior, but as a just
Judge. Oh, how terrible is that day! Determined is the day of justice, the day
of divine wrath. The angels tremble before it. Speak to souls about this great
mercy while it is still the time for [granting] mercy. If you keep silent now,
you will be answering for a great number of souls on that terrible day. Fear
nothing. Be faithful to the end. I sympathize with you.
1742 Be
praised, merciful God, One God in the Holy Trinity,
Unfathomable, infinite, incomprehensible,
immersing themselves in You, their minds cannot comprehend You,
So they repeat without end their eternal: Holy.
Be glorified, O merciful Creator of ours, O Lord,
Omnipotent, but full of compassion, inconceivable.
To love You is the mission of our existence,
Singing our eternal hymn: Holy...
Be blessed, merciful God, Eternal Love.
You are above the heavens, the saphires, the firmaments.
The host of pure spirits sings You praises,
With its eternal hymn: Thrice Holy.
And, gazing upon You, face to face, O God,
I see that You could have called other creatures before them.
Therefore they humble themselves before You in great humility,
For well they see that this grace comes solely from Your mercy.
One of the most beautiful spirits would not recognize Your mercy,
And, blinded by his pride, he drew others after him.
Angel of great beauty, he became Satan
And was cast down in one moment from heaven's heights into hell.
Then the faithful spirits cried, "Glory to God's mercy!"
And they stood firm in spite of the fiery test.
Glory to Jesus, the Christ abased,
Glory to His Mother, the humble and pure Virgin.
After this battle, the pure spirits plunged into the ocean of Divinity;
Contemplating and praising the depths of His mercy,
They drown in His mercy and manifold light,
Possessing in knowledge the Trinity of Persons, the Oneness of Godhead.
Unfathomable, infinite, incomprehensible,
immersing themselves in You, their minds cannot comprehend You,
So they repeat without end their eternal: Holy.
Be glorified, O merciful Creator of ours, O Lord,
Omnipotent, but full of compassion, inconceivable.
To love You is the mission of our existence,
Singing our eternal hymn: Holy...
Be blessed, merciful God, Eternal Love.
You are above the heavens, the saphires, the firmaments.
The host of pure spirits sings You praises,
With its eternal hymn: Thrice Holy.
And, gazing upon You, face to face, O God,
I see that You could have called other creatures before them.
Therefore they humble themselves before You in great humility,
For well they see that this grace comes solely from Your mercy.
One of the most beautiful spirits would not recognize Your mercy,
And, blinded by his pride, he drew others after him.
Angel of great beauty, he became Satan
And was cast down in one moment from heaven's heights into hell.
Then the faithful spirits cried, "Glory to God's mercy!"
And they stood firm in spite of the fiery test.
Glory to Jesus, the Christ abased,
Glory to His Mother, the humble and pure Virgin.
After this battle, the pure spirits plunged into the ocean of Divinity;
Contemplating and praising the depths of His mercy,
They drown in His mercy and manifold light,
Possessing in knowledge the Trinity of Persons, the Oneness of Godhead.
+The
Infinite Goodness of God in Sending Us His Only-Begotten Son.
1745 God, You did not destroy man after his fall, but in Your mercy You forgave him, You forgave in a divine way; that is, not only have You absolved him from guilt, but You have bestowed upon him every grace. Mercy has moved You to deign to descend among us and lift us up from our misery. God will descend to earth; the Immortal Lord of lords will abase Himself. But where will You descend, Lord; will it be to the temple of Solomon? Or will You have a new tabernacle built for Yourself? Where do You intend to come down? O Lord, what kind of tabernacle shall we prepare for You, since the whole earth is Your footstool?
You have indeed prepared a tabernacle for Yourself: the Blessed Virgin. Her Immaculate Womb is Your dwelling place, and the inconceivable miracle of Your mercy takes place, O Lord. The Word becomes flesh; God dwells among us, the Word of God, Mercy Incarnate. By Your descent, You have lifted us up to Your divinity. Such is the excess of Your love, the abyss of Your mercy. Heaven is amazed at the superabundance of Your love. No one fears to approach You now. You are the God of mercy. You have compassion on misery. You are our God, and we are Your people. You are our Father, and we are Your children by grace. Praise be to Your mercy, that You have deigned to descend among us.
1745 God, You did not destroy man after his fall, but in Your mercy You forgave him, You forgave in a divine way; that is, not only have You absolved him from guilt, but You have bestowed upon him every grace. Mercy has moved You to deign to descend among us and lift us up from our misery. God will descend to earth; the Immortal Lord of lords will abase Himself. But where will You descend, Lord; will it be to the temple of Solomon? Or will You have a new tabernacle built for Yourself? Where do You intend to come down? O Lord, what kind of tabernacle shall we prepare for You, since the whole earth is Your footstool?
You have indeed prepared a tabernacle for Yourself: the Blessed Virgin. Her Immaculate Womb is Your dwelling place, and the inconceivable miracle of Your mercy takes place, O Lord. The Word becomes flesh; God dwells among us, the Word of God, Mercy Incarnate. By Your descent, You have lifted us up to Your divinity. Such is the excess of Your love, the abyss of Your mercy. Heaven is amazed at the superabundance of Your love. No one fears to approach You now. You are the God of mercy. You have compassion on misery. You are our God, and we are Your people. You are our Father, and we are Your children by grace. Praise be to Your mercy, that You have deigned to descend among us.
1746 Be
adored, O God of mercy,
Because You have deigned to descend from heaven to earth.
Most humbly we adore You
For Your having vouchsafed to exalt all mankind.
Unfathomable and incomprehensible in Your mercy,
For love of us You take on flesh
From the Immaculate Virgin, ever untouched by sin,
Because You have willed it so from all ages.
The Blessed Virgin, that Snow-White Lily,
Is first to praise the omnipotence of Your mercy.
Her pure heart opens with love for the coming of the Word;
She believes the words of God's messenger and is confirmed in trust.
Heaven is astounded that God has become man,
That there is on earth a heart worthy of God Himself.
Why is it that You do not unite Yourself with a Seraph, but with a sinner, O Lord?
Oh, because, despite the purity of the virginal womb, this is a mystery of Your mercy.
O mystery of God's mercy, O God of compassion,
That You have deigned to leave the heavenly throne
And to stoop down to our misery, to human weakness,
For it is not the angels, but man who needs mercy.
To give worthy praise to the Lord's mercy,
We unite ourselves with Your Immaculate Mother,
For then our hymn will be more pleasing to You,
Because She is chosen from among men and angels.
Through Her, as through a pure crystal,
Your mercy was passed on to us.
Through Her, man became pleasing to God;
Through Her, streams of grace flowed down upon us.
Because You have deigned to descend from heaven to earth.
Most humbly we adore You
For Your having vouchsafed to exalt all mankind.
Unfathomable and incomprehensible in Your mercy,
For love of us You take on flesh
From the Immaculate Virgin, ever untouched by sin,
Because You have willed it so from all ages.
The Blessed Virgin, that Snow-White Lily,
Is first to praise the omnipotence of Your mercy.
Her pure heart opens with love for the coming of the Word;
She believes the words of God's messenger and is confirmed in trust.
Heaven is astounded that God has become man,
That there is on earth a heart worthy of God Himself.
Why is it that You do not unite Yourself with a Seraph, but with a sinner, O Lord?
Oh, because, despite the purity of the virginal womb, this is a mystery of Your mercy.
O mystery of God's mercy, O God of compassion,
That You have deigned to leave the heavenly throne
And to stoop down to our misery, to human weakness,
For it is not the angels, but man who needs mercy.
To give worthy praise to the Lord's mercy,
We unite ourselves with Your Immaculate Mother,
For then our hymn will be more pleasing to You,
Because She is chosen from among men and angels.
Through Her, as through a pure crystal,
Your mercy was passed on to us.
Through Her, man became pleasing to God;
Through Her, streams of grace flowed down upon us.
+ God's
Infinite Goodness in Redeeming Man.
1747 God, You could have saved thousands of worlds with one word; a single sigh from Jesus would have satisfied Your justice. But You Yourself, Jesus, purely out of love for us, underwent such a terrible Passion. Your Father's justice would have been propitiated with a single sigh from You, and all Your self-abasement is solely the work of Your mercy and Your inconceivable love. On leaving the earth, O Lord, You wanted to stay with us, and so You left us Yourself in the Sacrament of the Altar, and You opened wide Your mercy to us. There is no misery that could exhaust You; You have called us all to this fountain of love, to this spring of God's compassion. Here is the tabernacle of Your mercy, here is the remedy for all our ills. To You, O living spring of mercy, all souls are drawn; some like deer, thirsting for Your love, others to wash the wound of their sins, and still others, exhausted by life, to draw strength. At the moment of Your death on the Cross, You bestowed upon us eternal life; allowing Your most holy side to be opened, You opened an inexhaustible spring of mercy for us, giving us Your dearest possession, the Blood and Water from Your Heart. Such is the omnipotence of Your mercy. From it all grace flows to us.
1747 God, You could have saved thousands of worlds with one word; a single sigh from Jesus would have satisfied Your justice. But You Yourself, Jesus, purely out of love for us, underwent such a terrible Passion. Your Father's justice would have been propitiated with a single sigh from You, and all Your self-abasement is solely the work of Your mercy and Your inconceivable love. On leaving the earth, O Lord, You wanted to stay with us, and so You left us Yourself in the Sacrament of the Altar, and You opened wide Your mercy to us. There is no misery that could exhaust You; You have called us all to this fountain of love, to this spring of God's compassion. Here is the tabernacle of Your mercy, here is the remedy for all our ills. To You, O living spring of mercy, all souls are drawn; some like deer, thirsting for Your love, others to wash the wound of their sins, and still others, exhausted by life, to draw strength. At the moment of Your death on the Cross, You bestowed upon us eternal life; allowing Your most holy side to be opened, You opened an inexhaustible spring of mercy for us, giving us Your dearest possession, the Blood and Water from Your Heart. Such is the omnipotence of Your mercy. From it all grace flows to us.
1748 Be
adored, O God, in the work of Your mercy,
Be blessed by all faithful hearts
On whom Your gaze rests,
In whom dwells Your immortal life.
O my Jesus, have mercy, sorrowful was Your life on this earth,
And in terrible torment Your work came to an end,
Hanging stretched out on the wood of the Cross,
And all this for the love of our souls.
In Your inconceivable love, You allowed Your most holy side to be opened,
And streams of Blood and Water gushed forth from Your Heart.
Here is the living fountain of Your mercy,
Here souls receive consolation and refreshment.
In the Blessed Sacrament, You left us Your mercy;
Your love deigned to arrange it so,
That, going through life, suffering and toil,
I might never doubt of Your goodness and mercy.
For even if the whole world's miseries weighed on my soul,
We must not doubt for even a moment,
But have trust in the power of God's mercy,
Because, with graciousness, God receives a contrite soul.
O unspeakable mercy of our Lord,
Source of compassion and all sweetness,
Trust, trust, O soul, though you are stained by sin,
For when you approach God, you will not taste bitterness.
Because He is a living fire of great love,
When we approach Him with sincerity,
Our miseries, sins and evil deeds vanish;
He will settle our debts when we surrender ourselves to Him.
Be blessed by all faithful hearts
On whom Your gaze rests,
In whom dwells Your immortal life.
O my Jesus, have mercy, sorrowful was Your life on this earth,
And in terrible torment Your work came to an end,
Hanging stretched out on the wood of the Cross,
And all this for the love of our souls.
In Your inconceivable love, You allowed Your most holy side to be opened,
And streams of Blood and Water gushed forth from Your Heart.
Here is the living fountain of Your mercy,
Here souls receive consolation and refreshment.
In the Blessed Sacrament, You left us Your mercy;
Your love deigned to arrange it so,
That, going through life, suffering and toil,
I might never doubt of Your goodness and mercy.
For even if the whole world's miseries weighed on my soul,
We must not doubt for even a moment,
But have trust in the power of God's mercy,
Because, with graciousness, God receives a contrite soul.
O unspeakable mercy of our Lord,
Source of compassion and all sweetness,
Trust, trust, O soul, though you are stained by sin,
For when you approach God, you will not taste bitterness.
Because He is a living fire of great love,
When we approach Him with sincerity,
Our miseries, sins and evil deeds vanish;
He will settle our debts when we surrender ourselves to Him.
(Diary of Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-I-79, 92, 178,
220, 260, 309, 316)
(Diary
of Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-II-635)
(Diary
of Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-VI-1742, 1745-1748 )
http://www.saint-faustina.com/Diary/DMIMS10.shtml
