Holy Mary, Mother of God

Fr. Hugh Gillespie, SMM

T he purpose of the Devotional Series is to help all of us to see Our Lady’s goodness. As a result, we are able to witness the important role the Lord has given Our Lady. And as we come to know Our Lady more deeply, our hearts will grow in esteem and love for her.

In a prior conference, the series explored The Greatness and Mystery of the Name Mary. That conference starts to unpack who Mary is in the Eyes of God. To do so, in part, the titles of the Litany of Loreto is utilized to help frame the conversation.

The conference Mary and Our Crying Out for Mercy explores Why We Pray to Mary! Praying to Mary fits within our relationship with God. We call upon her name when we pray for mercy. Again, the Litany is utilized in this audio to help explain why we need to pray to Mary.

Our Lady and the Blessed Trinity focuses on How God Sees Mary! Looking at Our Lady we obtain a glimpse of the Holy Trinity. In the Litany, after asking The Lord for His Mercy, the prayer focuses on the Trinity, individually and collectively. See How God Sees Mary in this conference.

This discussion reflects on the Holy Mother of God and her maternity. As the Litany is further explored, we pray to Holy Mary, Mother of God. This is the focus of the conference.

Three Initial Statements in the Litany: Initial Focus: Maternity

Holy Mary. After turning toward Mary and calling her by name (Holy Mary), the Litany explores her. Further, Who is this Mary? She is in fact the Holy Mary, Mother of God. She is the Holy Virgin of Virgins. The audio’s focus is on the Maternity or the Motherhood of Our Lady.
Holy Mary, Mother of God.

Consider her dignity because of the greatness of her Son. She is not just proud of her Son. What mother has a dignity or greatness as Mary? Only one person was the Mother of God. Of all mothers, there is only one that claims this title. It was the Lord’s desire to depend upon Mary and come to the world Through Mary, With Mary, In Mary and By Mary. Hear more in the audio.

Holy and Immaculate Virgin

“Holy and Immaculate Virgin, I do not know fitting praises to extol you. The One that Heaven could not contain you cloistered within your womb.” Mary, is more spacious than the universe. As great and as big as the universe is, Mary is more spacious because she is the temple of grace through which the Lord came into the world.

In reflecting upon the title Holy Mary, Mother of God, we see something beautiful. At the instance of the Incarnation, Mary did not become bigger physically. However, inwardly, she is more spacious and greater than the universe. We who receive Holy Communion should also meditate on this. When we receive the Lord in Holy Communion, outwardly we may not change immediately, but there is a richness within us! Hear more about the significance of this presence of the Lord within us!

“Blessed are You O Virgin Mary, Who Bore the Lord, the Creator of the World. You Became the Mother of Your Maker, and You Remain Forever Virgin.” Hear more and dwell upon the title Mother of God.

The Richness of the Title of Mother of God

The Litany unpacks the term: Motherhood. There are several additional titles within the Litany: Mother of Christ, Mother of the Church, Mother of Diving Grace, Mother Most Pure, Mother Most Chaste.

Mother of Christ. Saint Louis de Montfort stresses Mary does not just give birth to the Head of the Church. Mary gives birth to its members! Jesus is first born of many brothers.

Mother of the Church. We celebrate the motherhood of Mary as not just the Mother of Christ, but the spiritual mother of all of us! She is our mother. See how much the Lord loves us! We cannot be the brother or sister of Christ without sharing His Mother and His Father! Jesus gives us His mother from The Cross. Behold your Mother! Open your eyes and see what I have done. See that you are her son/daughter. She is our mother! Fr. de Montfort suggests that we all say the following: I take you as my all! I take you as my mother! In receiving her, we receive Him as our Brother!

We Will Be Formed As The Perfect Likeness of Christ

The Holy Spirit knits us together to be members of the Body of Christ. We all share in the life of Jesus. We must turn to Mary and recognize that she is our mother. By turning to Our Lady, the Holy Spirit will do something great for us! Just as the Holy Spirit helped form the perfect man as Our Savior when He turned to Mary as His Mother, we too must do also. By turning to Mary, and recognizing her as our mother, the Holy Spirit will form those into a perfect likeness of Jesus Christ.

Mother of Divine Grace

Why is Mary Full of Grace? This is the name the Heaven gives Mary. It is the name the God gives Mary. In another conference, this is reviewed more fully. But why does Heaven give Mary this title? So she can receive God Himself!

Hear more about Mother of Divine Grace and the other titles that are outlined below in this 1 hour audio. In understanding these titles, we will know more about Mary. We will understand further How God Sees Mary. In doing so, this understanding will impact our Spiritual Life as we honor Holy Mary, Mother of God.

Holy Mary, Mother of God

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Holy Mary, Mother of God