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Show HIE BLESSEDNESSoT " THE VIRGIN MOTHER in Honoring Mary, We Honor ChristDisdain fcr the Mother Implies Disdain for the Son The Reformation, in Repudiating the Idea of Devotion to the Saints of God, Sowed Seed of Agnosticism. The Kt. Rev. J. Lancaster Spalding, D.D., in ti!'' Ave -Maria. Catholics can never conceive of the Christian !'!ii"it ib contained in Bible texts., by which it . . inn.) be even adequately described, 'i he .sublimit .sublim-it psalm in praise of Mary could nut say any-;iiing any-;iiing greater of her llian ihnt she is the Mother !' .testis. Had our Divine Lord Himself spoken . i her with all the poetic depth and beauty wh'u-h i ie.it lies in the Sermon on the .Mount, His words v.Midd have been, feeble compared with the inelfa- j Me dignity which lie conferred upon her by be- "ining her Sen. Protestants go peering through iii. Bible to pick out texts that will throw some flight upon Mary, and their eyes are blind to that ..wly beauty and imm.aculate purity which drew an anyel from heaven to declare her worth and dignity, "llai'! full of grace!" said the angelic inenger, whom the light of heaven has not made' unmindful of this fair child of God and man. "'The Lord is with thee." And shall we not deem it the sweetest privilege to walk close by the side of tin's fair Mother, that so, if it may be, some shadow of the presence of the Lord may refresh our weary souls? ' What need is there of texts ? Has not St. Eli zabeth proclaimed her the most blessed of women, freighted with the peace and the joy of the world ? lias not. he' own lowly spirit, in the ecstasy of a delight which no other mother has ever known. forestalled ihe voice of mankind, to announce that I all generations shall call her Blessed? lias not ( He who Li mighty done great things to her i I The fact is above ail praise. ''Mary the Mother of Jesus'' is to me a sweeter and tenderer speech than all the eulogies . of ' her devoutest servants, ; who none the less have drawn their inspiration. from the purest and holiest love. "Thou and Thy Mother," says St. Kphrem, "alone are wholly pure. .No spot in Thee,. () Lord; in her.no stain!" "She w as alone,"'" says St. Ambrose, "and wrought the ' world's salvation." "The unsullied shell." St. Pro- clus called her, "which contains the Pearl of great price" "!tho. sacred shrine of sinlessness." "Above ihe angelic orders art thou," says St. Sophronius. "Hint hast thou borne." says St. Peter Chrysolo-gu. Chrysolo-gu. "who bears the world." "Hail throne of Cod!" t xclaims St. Germain. "House, of glory, propitiatory propiti-atory altar of the world." "For the whole hu-iu;ni hu-iu;ni ra-e." says St. Irenaeus, ''Mary is the cause of valval ion." "We salute thee," exclaimed St. Cyril of Alexandria, in presence of the Fathers of KplioMis "we salute thee Mary, Mother of God, t-eure-of the world, inextinguishable lamp, crown of virginity, sceptre and stay of the true Faith!" And 10 her ihe world-worn Dante kneels crown-ing crown-ing his immortal song with her sweet name: , " Virgin Mother, daughter of thy Son,' ( ':o;iiol beings all in lowliness t Surpassing, as in height above them all; Term by the Eternal Counsel preordained; Lmioblor of thy nature, so advanced In thee that its great Maker did not scorn T" make Himself His own creation; T'.r in ihy womb rekindling shone the love I!, veiled, whose genial influence makes now Tlii- tlower 10 germ in in eternal peace: lb re 1I10U t us of charity and lore, A:-t ;i the noonday torch; and art, beneath To in-.rial men. of hope a living spring." Tr.ie thoughts of Mary, are poetic thoughts. 1 : v oiiiv who have not known her hink coldly :.. ! tamely of her. To the pure and humble; of ! 1:. all tilings fair and lovely in nature are her v !'. !.ol-. She is Queen of heaven and of e.nrth, :o- ..f the sea, Lily of the vale, Rose without ' '). She is fair as the dawn, tender as love, a- a maiden's thoughts. St. Bernard to the all-earnest Poet of ' ; Holy Faith: " 'Xow raise thy view I ' -o ilie visage most resembling Christ; i in li. r splendor only shalt thou win i 1 ...W( r to look on Him.' Forthwith I aw 1 -ii tioo.s of gladness on her visage showered, 'in holy spirits, winging that profound, i it whatsoever I had yet beheld lb d not so much suspended me with wonder ' '' -'town me such similitude of God A i he who had to her descended once, 1 ' e,:r;h. now hail'd in heaven; and on poised wing A'- Maria, gratia plena !' sang: iio-e sweet anthem, all the blissful court 1 m all parts answering, rang: that holier joy I led 1 he deep serene." ' And Milton. 1oo, though he thought not of the ) --'-! Mary, was yet inspired by a sentiment !: devotion to her has crealed, when he sang: "So dear to Heaven is stainly chastity Thai wlwu a soul is found sincerely so, A ihoiivand liv'ry'd angels lackey her, Hning far off each thing of sin and guilt." . A Tat infinite heights of joy and gladness break above ihis lowly Virgin, of whom all we know 'hat he was meek and humble and pure, and II -Mother of Jesus"! She treads again the ) i - of Paradise; beneath her foot the serpent 1 de.-s lios; her head is bathed in zephyrs fan-. 'd by angels' wings. To her belong all things I'-"' and bright. The month of May is Mary's ""!i. For 'her the flowers blow; for her the ' i lr. n sing; and the birds are glad, and the skip-) skip-) - tloeks. And through the livelong year, morn-I morn-I ihh,u an J night, o'er hill and dale, sweet bells I i"loi,g t Le sound of Mary's name. I I he mystic charm that like a heavenly atmos- I'li-rc enwraps all Catholic lands is Nature's trib-A trib-A 10 Cod's Mother. O fairest Virgin! why 1 fcU.ubl JrV jilfcl1aiii-controversy, with its . cold I (.Continued on Page 1.) " ' 7, ' Kr ! 1 Mother, whose virgin bosom tou ,) . ' . Before her wane begins on neav- uncrossed t '.i ' ' en's blue coast, With the least shade of . ' - '") :rl Thy image falls to earth. thought to sin allied; ,' , 't.--' ? N Yet some I ween Woman, above all women glo- ''"l ' "Si' "- . Not unfor&iven tne suppliant rified, " - " 1'U 1 s 1 knee might bend Our tainted nature's solitary . f " T . is 1 ' As to a visible power, in which boast: t' 1 . " -"4 V " - did blend . Purer than foam on central v V "3 , i c?-! V'K ' tnat wa3 mixed and recon- ocean tost; ' ' ? 1 C v 'SS' " ' , ciled in thee, Brighter than eastern skies at " ; 4 ' 'v1 5 -r - Of mother's love with maiden daybreak strewn - , - - '.' ' j 'cs f , C: purity, With fancied roses, than the un- t - - - " 1 : ' - rf7 M high with low, celestial with blemished moon -;! ;- - 1 7 terrene. V ' . - ' 1 I '7 - ' , J . ' I " ' ! Iff Wordsworth. V - : J ;;v-'' V"-- y T THE BLESSEDNESS OF THE VIRGIN MOTHER. Continued from Page 1.) hands and narrow thoughts, lay hold on thee? May we not praise the moon without stopping to say her light is borrowed? The devout spirit is not critical, and he who worships is blest and does not care to analyze his sentiments. Love is the eternal eter-nal mystery, which may be felt but never can be known by man." ' "Love," says Bossuct, "is the cause of all that wo Vlicve. This word persuades me more than all fl; tooks: God. has so loved the world! Is it hard to believe that God loves, and that goodness gives itself ?" "We have believed the love," says St. John, "which God has for us." God has lved; all is said. Henceforth no mystery to me shall seem incredible. And the sweet Virgin Mother bears the Fruit of God's love to men. He is on her bosom in the Stable; Ho is in her arms' when the Kings adore Him; He nestles close to her heart in" the flight to Egypt; with her He dwells at Nazareth, Naza-reth, hidden in God. O Mother! said I not that all things fair and bright are thine? And yet athwart thy pathway, radiant with the light of heaven, lay the shodaw of the Cross, piercing thy soul like a sword. Thou art worthy to suffer most, for thy love is greatest; and those lips which first adoring touched the Infant Saviours brow must press His cold and pallid form with agony equalled only by thy love. Thou hast borne Him in thy heart ; thou hast followed Him from Bethlehem to the Cross of Calvary. He is doubly thine by the holiest love and the diviuest sorrow. Henceforth forever His adorers must be thy servants. Why should it be necessary to say that the glories glo-ries of Mary are for the sake of Jesus, and that we acknowledge her to be the first of creatures only that we may confess Him as our sole Creator? The fundamental rule of the honor which we pay to the, Blessed Virgin and to all saints is that it is I referred to God and our own salvation, ,We praise I God in those whose a.- nave -.,. rr;, . i riercy and -holiness, and t n..-rflv i-r-.i'r.-. ti,,.'v'' j esteem nothing so much as 11 i l-.v ;!S, : ., , :,.r' All worship is derived from God. ;n,d ;. .-, back to Him by all object.-, whir!: ;r.. :4 : . . ; . ti t'ul or true. We honor only th-.-- wh.. , , xl ',; it is right to imitate. Whatever i- the !.;. ,., 1 worship, says St. Augutiu ouzh? u, ;;, ,;. ,'.' ! of our lives; and the church tcache n. ... (...,v the grace to imitate what we hn.r. i ; ,, . Valsof martyrs," says Su Align-''-,- v", exhortations to martyrdom. ' And only tho.-e celebrate the pnsi- ' . who believe that chastity is a virtu.- v , angels. To take delight in great an,; i and women is me of our be.-t and m, - u ; j , ... stincts. The youth who. hopes to ! ,,,, ,. . ( , never hear enough of l)eui.tlienr -; .n ,, ;. ,; ' j feels flic poet's diviner mind will fh; i ... that is known of Shakes pea re V jht i charm and mystery which will h.-innt i : . long. The fascination of biography -1- . , ... commonplace. A great ciiaraet.-r. !..-.- :, .,'.:, dreams, gives a new ze-t to life. ;.; )( charm of poesy to the solid worth ( fa . which has had noreat men ha.-. !.-! i- , , and a religion which has no -aim- : ...... demned; it is born of criticism an-l ,-, , .... not of inspiration and of faith. What i but the praise of God in His saint.-.' 1. :.; men great kings, warriors, .prophet-.. ; ,. they all. And the New Tc-t anient i- biography of God's Son.' with tou,-i - ; .- ,,. j there revealing the meek face of Hi- ! , Mother, the bowed head of sweet S: M ... ; ,;. . Peter's eager faith, and the deeper - .l-h-,. And St. Paul today stands forth from i'r.- ; : -. pasre, clear and certain, as oii-o lie i, ,i .... M , . hill, against the Grecian sky, sowing (e.-. .,;. (To Be Continued.) |