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nonsense. St. Paul says, "Wisdom… we speak resisted unto blood in the struggle with sin.
among those who are mature, yet not a And you have forgotten the exhortation that is
wisdom of this world nor of the rulers of this addressed to you as sons, saying, 'My son,
world, who are passing away… But the neglect not the discipline of the Lord, neither
sensual man does not perceive the things that be thou weary when thou art rebuked by Him.
are of the Spirit of God, for it is foolishness to For whom the Lord loves, He chastises; and
him and he cannot understand, because it is He scourges every son whom He receives'…"
examined spiritually" (1Cor.6,14). Still, one of (Heb.12:4-6).
the great English Romantic poets, William
Wordsworth, referred to Mary as "Our tainted
We must say to that harlot: "I will not
nature's solitary boast."
drink of your wine!" As guests at the Marriage
Feast of the Lamb we have something far
This great feast challenges us to reject better - the Holy Eucharist. "O Sacrum
sin and strive for holiness, since Mary is the Convivium in quo Christus sumitur…," says
image of the Church, which is to become the St. Thomas Aquinas, "O Holy Banquet in
holy and spotless Bride of Christ. The Church which Christ is received, the memory of His
will be purified through these present trials, Passion is recalled, the mind is filled with
which are special graces given to renew the grace, and there is given to us a pledge of
Church in the image of the Immaculate Virgin future glory."
Mary, Mother of the Church.
The Lord has given us an incomparable
We must strive to live without sin, teacher and model of holiness in Mary. Her
keeping ourselves "unspotted from this world" Immaculate Heart, like a new ark, will carry us
(Jas.1:27). The Church's purification is our above the deluge of impurity Our Lady spoke
purification. And the instrument of that of at Fatima. Better times lie ahead for the
purification, without his intending it, is the Church through Mary's intercession. The
devil himself. "Woe to the earth," says the Venerable Mary of Agreda in her Mystical
Apocalypse, "because the devil has gone down City of God speaks of Mary's power in the last
to you in great wrath, knowing that he has but times:
a short time" (Apoc.12:12). His consort on
earth is the Great Harlot, the Scarlet Woman of
"It was revealed to me that through
the Apocalypse, of whom it is said: "…the
the intercession of the Mother of God, all
inhabitants of the earth were made drunk with
heresies will disappear. This victory over
the wine of her immorality" (Apoc.17:2). The
heresies has been reserved by Christ for His
harlot, called the great city of Babylon, we
Blessed Mother. In the last times the Lord will
may understand as the unbelieving world and
especially spread the renown of His Mother:
the apostate church, which loves the world
Mary began salvation and by Her intercession
more than the Lord Jesus Christ. She is the
it will be concluded. Before the Second
evil counterpart of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Coming of Christ, Mary must, more than ever,
and of the purified Church, the Bride of Christ.
shine in mercy, might and grace in order to
We are warned against her by a voice from
bring unbelievers into the Catholic faith. The
Heaven: "Go out from her, my people, that you
powers of Mary in the last times over the
may not share in her sins, and that you may
demons will be very conspicuous. Mary will
not receive of her plagues. For her sins have
extend the Reign of Christ over the heathens
reached even to heaven, and the Lord has
and Mohammedans, and it will be a time of
remembered her iniquities" (Apoc.8:4,5).
great joy when Mary, as Mistress and Queen
of Hearts, is enthroned."
St. Paul admonishes us to accept our
sufferings with courage: "For you have not yet
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How about that! Those who are * implicitly found in the Fathers of the
planning "Gulf War II" and boasting of Church in the parallelism between Eve and
military might are not to be the victors. The Mary (Irenaeus, Lyons, 140? - 202?);
victory over the Muslim world will take place * Found in the more general terms
through the awesome spiritual power of the about Mary: "holy", "innocent", "most pure",
Blessed Virgin Mary. Not for nothing did she "intact", "immaculate" (Irenaeus, Lyons, 140?-
choose to appear in the tiny Portuguese village 202?; Ephraem, Syria, 306-373; Ambrose,
of Fatima in 1917. The present interest of the Milan, 373-397);
Muslims in the Fatima Shrine is without doubt
* Explicit language: Mary - free from
a part of her brilliant plan for their conversion,
original sin (Augustine, Hippo, 395-430 to
seeing that the daughter of Mohammed was
Anselm, Normandy, 1033-1109);
named Fatima.
Eastern Church:
"Who is this that comes forth like the
dawn, as beautiful as the moon, as resplendent
as the sun, as awe-inspiring as bannered * celebrated a Feast of the Conception
troops?" (Cant.6:10). It is indeed the Holy and of Mary in the 8th to the 9th Century;
Immaculate Virgin Mary. Strengthened by her
powerful prayers and motherly assistance, we Western Church:
will one day see what we may call the
Immaculate Conception of the Church. With
the poet we address her: * celebrated a Feast of the Conception
of Mary in the 12th Century;
* A record of the feast in the 11th
Mother! whose virgin bosom was uncrost
Century in Great Britain; in the 12th Century
With the least shade of thought in Normandy;
to sin allied; * Record in many churches of a Feast
Woman! above all women glorified, of the Conception of Mary in France,
Our tainted nature's solitary boast… Germany, Italy and Spain in the 12th Century
William Wordsworth (Bernard, Clairvaux, 1090-1153);
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Immaculate Conception came through God's
application of the grace of Christ beforehand.