Volume V, Issue 3, February 2, 2008

- "Mary Suffers with Those Who are in Affliction" by Pope Benedict XVI
- My Presence is Silent but Constant by "Anne," a Lay Apostle
- Meet Mary: The Blessed Virgin, the Bible and the Early Church by Mark Miravalle
- The Predestination of the Virgin Mother and Her Immaculate Conception, Part II by Fr. Peter Damien Fehlner, F.I.
- Mary's Offering of Jesus in the Temple by Raphael Brown
- "I Wish to be the Lady of All Nations" by The Lady of All Nations
- The Coredemptive Offering by Jean Galot, S.J.

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- "Mary Suffers with Those Who are in Affliction" by Pope Benedict XVI

We are pleased to present this beautiful statement on the sufferings of Mary, given by our beloved pontiff who is following in the footsteps of his Marian predecessor, Servant of God John Paul II. In this message for the World Day of the Sick, a number of quotes draw our attention regarding the theme of Mary’s coredemption. The pope states that Mary "did not hesitate to share the Passion of her Son, renewing on Calvary at the foot of the Cross her ‘yes’ of the Annunciation." He also states that Mary, associated with the Paschal Sacrifice, "suffers with her divine Son" and also "suffers with those who are in affliction." Finally, Pope Benedict offers a succinct synthesis of the theology of coredemption, pointing out the value of suffering for the afflicted Christians of the world: "Mysteriously united to Christ, the one who suffers with love and meek self-abandonment to the will of God becomes a living offering for the salvation of the world. … Thus, pain, received with faith, becomes the door by which to enter the mystery of the redemptive suffering of Jesus."
Asst. Ed.

Papal Message for World Day of the Sick

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

1. On February 11, Memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Lourdes, the World Day of the Sick will be celebrated, a propitious occasion to reflect on the meaning of pain and the Christian duty to take responsibility for it in whatever situation it arises. This year this significant day is connected to two important events for the life of the Church, as one already understands from the theme chosen, "The Eucharist, Lourdes and Pastoral Care for the Sick": the 150th anniversary of the apparitions of the Immaculate Mary at Lourdes, and the celebration of the International Eucharistic Congress at Quebec in Canada. In this way, a remarkable opportunity to consider the close connection that exists between the Mystery of the Eucharist, the role of Mary in the project of salvation, and the reality of human pain and suffering is offered to us.

The 150 years since the apparitions of Lourdes invite us to turn our gaze towards the Holy Virgin, whose Immaculate Conception constitutes the sublime and freely given gift of God to a woman so that she could fully adhere to divine designs with a steady and unshakable faith, despite the tribulations and the sufferings that she would have to face. For this reason, Mary is a model of total self-abandonment to God's will: she received in her heart the eternal Word and she conceived it in her virginal womb; she trusted in God and, with her soul pierced by a sword (cf. Lk 2:35), she did not hesitate to share the Passion of her Son, renewing on Calvary at the foot of the Cross her "yes" of the Annunciation. To reflect upon the Immaculate Conception of Mary is thus to allow oneself to be attracted by the "yes" which joined her wonderfully to the mission of Christ, Redeemer of humanity; it is to allow oneself to be taken and led by her hand to pronounce in one's turn "fiat" to the will of God, with all one's existence interwoven with joys and sadness, hopes and disappointments, in the awareness that tribulations, pain and suffering make rich the meaning of our pilgrimage on the earth.

http://www.motherofallpeoples.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1239

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- My Presence is Silent but Constant by "Anne," a Lay Apostle

The following presents the initial messages from Jesus to Anne regarding his own Eucharistic presence. The messages are both sublime and powerful, and we share them with you. Anne, a visionary from Ireland, has received permission from her local ordinary, Bishop Leo O’Reilly, for the distribution of messages which she receives from Jesus, God the Father, Our Blessed Mother, the angels and saints (see article, "Discernment of Lay Apostolate of Jesus Christ the Returning King," Marian Private Revelation section).
– Ed.

September 1, 2003

Jesus

I am with My children. My presence is silent but constant. I am directing many of the seemingly unimportant events in your lives, so that My will can be accomplished. My children are practicing faith, and that pleases Me. But My protection is so great that My children could have an infinite amount of faith in Me and still more would be justified. My faithful ones, who are struggling to serve Me and be holy, please trust Me for I am with you. I have pledged My protection to you and I will not leave you vulnerable. Offer Me small little prayers when you are frightened or unsure and I will place My calming hands upon you, steadying and reassuring you. You will look back at this time of service to Me and you will be so grateful that you said "yes" to your God. My children, you will look upon so many souls sharing eternity with you who would be absent if not for your service. Can you imagine the joy you will share with these souls? So be brave and continue in My service, walking the path I have illuminated before you. It is there you will find your peace and your key to eternity.

http://www.motherofallpeoples.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1238 

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- Meet Mary: The Blessed Virgin, the Bible and the Early Church by Mark Miravalle

The following is an excerpt from a chapter in the recently published book Meet Mary: Getting to Know the Mother of God, Sophia Institute Press, January 2008. The book is be available via the Sophia Institute Web site, www.sophiainstitute.com.
Asst. Ed.

Mary in the Bible and the Early Church

So, who is this woman who has had cathedrals named for her, poems written about her, and battles fought in her honor? Who is this Mary?

Of the details of her life, we know little. Much of what we do know was recorded in the pages of the New Testament and passed down through the oral tradition of the early Church. Written on scrolls of parchment and the walls of the catacombs, this history gives only the briefest sketch of the woman who brought Jesus into the world. The glimpses into her life and character that we do get, however, are rich with significance, which is exactly why millions of men and women through the centuries have found in her a model of holiness, a companion in suffering, and, above all, a mother of their own.

http://www.motherofallpeoples.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1237 

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- The Predestination of the Virgin Mother and Her Immaculate Conception, Part II by Fr. Peter Damien Fehlner, F.I.

The following article is the continuation of an excerpt from a chapter in the soon-to-be-published Marian anthology, Mariology: A Guide for Priests, Deacons, Seminarians, and Consecrated Persons, Seat of Wisdom Books, A Division of Queenship, 2008. Fifteen international Mariology experts contributed to the text. The book features a foreword by Archbishop Raymond L. Burke and has 17 chapters divided into four parts: 1. Mary in Scripture and the Early Church; 2. Marian Dogma; 3. Marian Doctrine; and 4. Marian Liturgy and Devotion. The book will be available from Queenship Publications in mid-February.
Asst. Ed.

The Immaculate Conception (28)

It is commonplace today to encounter theologians who dismiss the auto-definition of Mary at Lourdes as an impossibility, typical of an over-excited mystical imagination and without theological, much less doctrinal, value (29). Such skepticism is but an aspect of a general minimizing of the Immaculate Conception as a doctrine without any immediate biblical foundation, or as a late blooming theologoumenon, coefficient of an outdated scholastic system of metaphysics and tributary to a questionable Augustinian theory of original sin, since Vatican II historical relics of a bygone age. Assertions of this kind form the basis for proposals to "dedogmatize" the Immaculate Conception and thereby reduce Mariology to the status of a marginal part of theology, dealing with truths on the lower rungs of the "hierarchy of truths," belief in which is not absolutely necessary for salvation (30).

http://www.motherofallpeoples.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1236 

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- Mary's Offering of Jesus in the Temple by Raphael Brown

After the departure of the Magi, the Mother of God said to St. Joseph:

"My master, dispose of all the offerings of the Kings as belonging to my Son and to yourself—I deserve nothing." Together they divided the gifts into three parts: one for the Temple (the incense and myrrh and some of the gold), another for the priest who had circumcised the Child, and the rest for the poor.

http://www.motherofallpeoples.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1235 

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- "I Wish to be the Lady of All Nations" by The Lady of All Nations

February 11, 1951 - Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes

I see a bright light and then I see the Lady standing before me. She says,

Then, without saying anything, the Lady remains standing in her usual posture and is looking at me continuously. Then she says, "The entire world is undergoing upheaval, but the worst thing is that the people of this world are being brought into upheaval." Then it is as if the Lady is walking along the globe and I see that the whole world is in confusion and entering into upheaval.

http://www.motherofallpeoples.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1234 

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- The Coredemptive Offering by Jean Galot, S.J.

The episode of the presentation of Jesus in the temple brings an essential complement to the revelation of the mission entrusted to the child and to the cooperation requested on the part of Mary. At the moment of the Annunciation the angel had described Jesus as the Messiah destined to inaugurate a reign that would have no end. He had said nothing about the way by which the messianic kingdom would be established, that of the redemptive sacrifice. Mary had to be enlightened regarding this sorrowful fact because she was responsible as mother to prepare her son for his mission.

http://www.motherofallpeoples.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1233 

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