MEDITATIONS ON THE ROSARY 
 
 Francis Friedel, S.M. 
 
Short Meditations 
 on the Rosary 
 
 by 
 
 Francis Friedel, S. M., S T. D., Ph.D. 
 
 (Marianist) 
 
 Marianist Publications 
 Mount St. John 
 Dayton, Ohio 
 
Imprimi Potest: 
 
 JOHN A. ELBERT, S.M. 
 Provincial Superior 
 
 Nihil Obstat: 
 
 RAYMOND STOLL 
 
 Censor Librorum 
 
 Imprimatur: 
 
 KARL J. ALTER 
 
 Archbishop of Cincinnati 
 July 25. 1952 
 
 Copyright 1952 
 Marianist Publications 
 Mount St. John 
 Dayton, Ohio 
 
 Printed in U.S.A. 
 
DEDICATED TO THE LOVING MEMORY 
 OP MY 
 FATHER AND MOTHER 
 
FOREWORD 
 
 As far back as the thirteenth century, Our 
 Blessed Mother placed a powerful weapon in 
 the hands of St. Dominic in order that he and 
 those associated with him could combat the 
 heretics of his day - enemies of the Church and 
 of mankind as much as the Communists today. 
 Pius V used this same weapon to defend the 
 West against aggressors from the East in the 
 sixteenth century, when Europe was threatened 
 by a flood which would have destroyed Christi- 
 anity and civilization. In a quiet cave along the 
 Cave River in the small town of Lourdes in 
 1858, the Immaculate appeared to a fifteen-year 
 old girl, taught her to say the rosary, and com- 
 municated to her the great message of prayer 
 and sacrifice. Today at this spot stands the 
 basilica of the Holy Rosary, with its fifteen 
 chapels each depicting in glorious mosaics a 
 mystery of the rosary. 
 
 In our own day. Our Lady has again come to 
 the rescue of the world, which is being engulfed 
 by man's pride and greed. This time she clearly 
 proclaims herself to Lucia, Francisco, Jacinta 
 at Patima as the ''Queen of the Holy Rosary". 
 Here again, her great weapon in time of need 
 is the rosary. 
 
 Today, in this country, there is going on a 
 
crusade that is spreading through the world: 
 the crusade of family prayer, v;ith the rosary as 
 as its medium. With the family crumbling, a 
 bulwark has to be raised; it is the rosary that 
 will stay the inroads of divorce and infidelity. 
 The family that prays together will stay to- 
 gether. Each one of us can contribute to the 
 strengthening of the family by making family 
 prayer a part of our daily lives. We can become 
 apostles of family prayer. 
 
 In order to stimulate fervor in the recitation 
 of the rosary, a series of meditations on the 
 mysteries of the rosary is here presented. They 
 are prepared with the teen-ager in mind but can 
 be used by any person, lay or religious. They 
 can be used for the month of October or at any 
 other time of the year. 
 
 They are divided into two broad groups. Each 
 meditation considers one of the mysteries of the 
 rosary. The first set offers a meditation on the 
 mystery itself and attempts to center consid- 
 eration about the role our Blessed Mother plays 
 in bringing Christ to souls. The second group 
 attaches a special fruit to each mystery and 
 dwells on the virtue or quality to be developed 
 from the consideration of the mystery. Thus 
 each person will strive to develop the Christian 
 life to the fullest extent under the guidance of 
 our Blessed Mother. 
 
Now just a word about meditation. . . At the 
 first sound of this word people get frightened. 
 This, they say, is only for religious who can 
 afford to put in a half hour or an hour a day in 
 the formal practice of such an exercise. This 
 is beyond the range of ordinary lay people and 
 is certainly not for teen-agers. Don't be fright- 
 ened. With the help of this booklet it should not 
 be difficult at all. You don't have to take out 
 of your day more than a few minutes — two or 
 three — to make a daily meditation. If you can 
 think, if you know how to talk — and Tm sure 
 you can do that, —if you know how to pray, then 
 you should have no difficulty. Just think of 
 yourself talking to our Blessed Mother in an 
 informal, familiar way. Read over these few 
 simple thoughts suggested here. . .slowly. . . 
 deliberately. . .prayerfully. . .make them, your 
 own. 
 
 May our Blessed Mother, the Seat of Wisdom, 
 inspire you with a love of mental prayer, so 
 that she may bring you closer each day to 
 herself and to Jesus and make you instrumental 
 in spreading Christliness among many souls. 
 
 Jesus! Mary! Souls! 
 
INTRODUCTION 
 
 MARY'S PLAN -MY PLAN 
 Mary's Plan 
 
 She is my spiritual mother; she has brought 
 me forth to the supernatural life as she has 
 brought Christ forth to His natural life. . . 
 
 She desires to place m.e in the bosom of her 
 maternal tenderness to form me to the likeness 
 of Christ. . . 
 
 Like St. Paul she can say to me: My child, 
 how I am in labor until Christ be formed in you. 
 She wishes only one thing — to make me another 
 Christ. . . 
 
 Since I am another Christ I must take on the 
 attitudes, the sentiments, the wishes, the 
 thoughts of Christ: I must think, judge, will, 
 work, suffer like Christ. This is perfection, 
 sanctity, holiness to which I am called. . . 
 
 In turn, since I am another Christ, I take on 
 also the feelings, the love, the devotedness, etc. 
 of Christ toward His Mother. This is Filial Piety 
 — not just another devotion but a whole way of 
 life. . . 
 
 In view of these truths, I must associate my- 
 self with Mary in her mission in the world — to 
 bring the world to Christ and Christ to the 
 
world. . . I have to become an apostle of Mary. . . 
 Like her I must show Christ to the world in my 
 own life and in my activities. . . I must influence 
 my milieu. . . I must use my competence to 
 bring the Christian influence into the lives of 
 others. . . 
 
 My Plan 
 
 1. To place myself under the direction and 
 guidance of our Blessed Mother to be formed 
 by her to the likeness of Christ. 
 
 2. To consecrate myself wholly to her and to 
 her service in whatever sphere of life I may 
 be. 
 
 3. To take on the sentiments of Christ with 
 regard to His Mother. I will frequently say 
 this prayer: O Good Jesus, by the love with 
 which Thou lovest Thy Mother, I beseech 
 Thee, grant that I may truly love her as Thou 
 truly lovest her and desirest her to be loved. 
 
 4. To nourish my spiritual life constantly and 
 keep myself always in the state of grace: 
 
 a. to say my daily prayers morning and 
 evening; 
 
 b. to say the rosary every day in my family; 
 
 c. to go to confession and Communion at 
 least weekly; 
 
 d. to try to make a retreat once a year; 
 
e. to get into the habit of a three-minute 
 daily meditation, which I can make at 
 some free moment; 
 
 f. to do some spiritual reading. 
 
 5. To make a perfect act of contrition every 
 night before going to bed; also to pray every 
 day for those who are going to die that day; 
 to pray each day for a happy death. 
 
 6. To give the example of practical Catholicity 
 within my family, among my friends and 
 acquaintances, at work, in business, in re- 
 creation. 
 
 7. To try to bring at least one convert into the 
 Church. 
 
 8. To be interested in my parish church, which 
 is the gateway of grace. 
 
 9. To associate myself with others in carrying 
 on programs that are truly apostolic — that 
 build up a stronger faith and love in myself 
 and others, that will help to bring back weak 
 or lapsed Catholics to the practice of their 
 faith or that will remove prejudices in non- 
 Catholics or attract them to the faith. 
 
 10. To become a Christopher in the full sense of 
 the term that men may see in me another 
 Christ and to bring Christ to all the strategic 
 areas of human life where I have competence 
 and influence. 
 
PRAYER BEFORE MEDITATION 
 
 Holy Spirit, come, dwell in my soul. Enlighten 
 my mind that I may know; inflame my heart that I 
 may love; strengthen my will that I may do what 
 is right. 
 
 Virgin Mother, be at my side during this 
 meditation. 
 
 My Jesus, I believe that You dwell in my heart 
 by your grace and sacramentally when I receive 
 you in Holy Communion. I adore you as my God, 
 and Creator. . . In You I live, move, and have my 
 being. I give myself wholly to You and Your 
 service. May I be faithful to You this day. Be 
 merciful to the holy souls in purgatory and to all 
 who are in their agony and are to die today. 
 
 PRAYER AFTER MEDITATION 
 
 Thanks, O my Jesus for the graces you have 
 given me during this brief and holy conversation. 
 Pardon any failings of which I may have been 
 guilty. 
 
 Virgin Mother, I place my resolutions for today 
 in your hands. Here is what I have to watch 
 
 today Here is what I propose to do 
 
 Obtain for me the grace to be faithful. I intend a 
 few times today to visit Jesus and you within my 
 soul and, if possible, to make at least one visit 
 to the Blessed Sacrament. 
 
/ believe 
 
 O Mary, you are the Queen of the Holy Rosary. 
 This month is dedicated to you under that title. 
 You declared yourself to be such at Patima; at 
 Lourdes you proclaimed yourself the Virgin 
 conceived without sin but at the same time 
 taught and encouraged the devotion to the Holy 
 Rosary. Keep with me during this month, sweet 
 Mother, that I may make it truly one wholly 
 dedicated to you. 
 
 For me, as a Catholic, my rosary must be the 
 emblem of my faith; by it, men will recognize 
 me as a Catholic; should anything happen to me, 
 dear Mother, let the beads serve as a silent 
 signal to call the priest to my side. May I grasp 
 the beads in my fingers as I plead with you to 
 pray for me at every moment, at this moment, and 
 especially in the moment of my death. 
 
 Each time I say the rosary, I begin it with the 
 Apostles' Creed, the Symbol of Faith. Herein is 
 contained the summary of all that I hold to be 
 true as revealed to me by God and proposed to 
 my belief by your Son's Holy Church. If someone 
 
 2 
 
were to ask me what I believe, I need not hesitate; 
 I would simply clearly profess my faith in these 
 words of the Creed: I believe in God the Father, 
 in Jesus Christ, His only Son our Lord, in the 
 Holy Spirit. Make my faith firm, simple, en- 
 lightened, living. 
 
 As I grasp the crucifix, I renew my profession 
 of faith made for me or by me at my baptism. I 
 believe in God, my Creator, Who has made heaven 
 and earth and all the universe; Who has made all 
 things, animate and inanimate; Who thought of 
 poor me from all eternity and willed to give me 
 life of the body and life of the spirit; Who raised 
 me up with the rest of men from the natural level 
 to that of a sharing in the divine nat^ire itself 
 through grace. Mother, thank God the Father for 
 His great goodness to me; praise Him; place 
 your faith with mine and offer my feeble faith 
 to Him. 
 
 Mother Mary, teach me to express my faith in 
 your Divine Son, Jesus Christ, who was made 
 flesh in your blessed womb, who was bom into 
 the world, in order to complete the work of our 
 redemption by dying for us on the cross. How 
 your heart must have glowed in contemplating 
 this Son of yours day after day in intimate 
 association with Him. Blessed were you because 
 
 you believed .1 believe in Jesus Christ, your 
 
 Son, my Lord. 
 
 3 
 
Spouse of the Holy Spirit, give me faith in this 
 Blessed Spirit, the Love of the Father and the 
 Son. He inhabited your being more fully than 
 any other being on earth; you were filled with 
 this Spirit, you were animated with His love 
 more than any other creature was capable of. 
 Beg of Him for me a strong, living faith that each 
 day my life might reflect fully my beliefs. O 
 Mother, I believe; help my unbelief; increase my 
 faith. 
 
 Blessed Mother, thank your Divine Son for 
 granting me the faith for no merit on my part; 
 thank Him for preferring me to so many others 
 in permitting me to receive and keep the gift of 
 faith. Help me to appreciate this above every 
 treasure in the world. Never let me lose it or 
 allow it to grow weak. 
 
 Every day during this montii and every day 
 throughout my life, I want to say your rosary, 
 dear Mother. Teach me to meditate on the joyful, 
 the sorrowful, and the glorious mysteries of your 
 life which are at the same time, the mysteries of 
 the life of Jesus. 
 
 Dear Mother, I will say the rosary every day 
 and become an apostle of the rosary, particularly 
 in encouraging the family rosary. Help families 
 to pray together and thus give the guarantee that 
 they will stay together. , - . 
 
 4 
 
i. Gabriel Speaks to Mary 
 
 Let me behold you kneeling in prayer, Mother 
 Mary, when the Archangel Gabriel came to visit 
 you to announce to you that you were to become 
 the Mother of God and, by that token, to become 
 the Mother of men. You were then a young girl, 
 possible fifteen when the heavenly visitor steps 
 into your room. He begins his message with a 
 salutation dictated to him by God Himself. Were 
 words such as these ever heard before and 
 applied to any creature by God? Hail, full of 
 grace. . . the Lord is with thee. . . blessed art 
 thou among women. 
 
 So the Angel speaks to you as the messenger 
 of God. Then he assures you not to be afraid 
 because yours is a great mission to accomplish 
 on earth for the benefit of all mankind. Man had 
 fallen and now the moment had come to effect 
 the restoration of mankind to God's favor and 
 love. The Angel tells you that you are the 
 instrument chosen by God for that purpose, not 
 a passive instrument but a voluntary agent; you 
 are to be the Mother of God, for the Second 
 
 5 
 
Person of the Trinity had offered Himself to the 
 Heavenly Father as the Victim of Expiation for 
 mankind; He, the Godhead would assume our 
 human nature and thus through the union of 
 divinity and humanity, the chasm would be 
 bridged between God offended and offending man. 
 
 Gabriel explains to you that this can be done 
 without the cooperation of man but through the 
 operation of the Holy Spirit. The proposition is 
 presented to you; will you or will you not accept 
 to be Mother of God, Mother of the Redeemer, 
 Mother of the One to be Crucified? . . .The 
 world hangs breathless over your decision. . . It 
 is forthcoming at once. . . *'Be it done unto me 
 according to thy word''. . . 
 
 A miracle takes place. . . The Son of God 
 becomes man in your womb. . . You are the 
 Mother of God but, you become also the mother 
 of men, the mother of all Christians and the 
 co-operator in their salvation. You are at this 
 moment the Mother of the Mystical Body. At the 
 instant in which Jesus was conceived, you 
 accomplished the generation of the Mystical 
 Body. . . By your consent to the Incarnation of 
 the word, you contributed to the work of our 
 Redemption and devoted yourself to our salvation. 
 
 6 
 
Blessed Mother, we are truly your children for 
 you have brought us forth to the supernatural 
 life. . . you have a true maternal care for us. . . 
 you have a tender affection for us. . . you love 
 us PS a true Mother. 
 
 With Christ, I must be another Christ, another 
 son of Mary. . . Your ambition is that I, who 
 have been brought forth by your charity after 
 Christ, be so united with Christ, that with Him 
 I may be but one son, one and the same Christ. 
 This means. Mother, that I must be a saint and 
 a great saint. 
 
 Good Jesus, by the love with which You love 
 Your Mother, I beseech You, grant that I may 
 truly love her as You truly love her and wish 
 her to be loved. 
 
 I will slowly say the Hail Mary and stop at 
 each phrase for a moment. . . 
 
 7 
 
2, Mary Visits Elizabeth 
 
 As the Angel pointed out to you, Blessed 
 Mother Mary, how it was possible for you to 
 become the Mother of God and remain a virgin, 
 he gave you a sign by which the reality of these 
 events was to be confirmed. He told you that 
 your cousin Elizabeth, already somewhat advanced 
 in years and up until then childless would bring 
 forth a son who was to be the forerunner of your 
 own Divine Son. As soon as the Angel had left 
 you, you went *'in haste*' to the mountain country 
 where Elizabeth and Zachary, her priest-husband, 
 lived, to render her the services she would need. 
 This was a considerable journey for you on foot; 
 no conveniences for you such as we are 
 accustomed to today. Hardships and dangers 
 would not hold you back; you had a mission to 
 accomplish. 
 
 When you arrived at the home of Elizabeth and 
 Zachary, it was Elizabeth who gave expression 
 of her devotion to the Mother of God. If we seek 
 for the manifestation of devotion in Scripture, 
 we find it in the words of the Angel; we find it 
 again in the words of your cousin. How is it that 
 the Mother of my Lord should come to visit me? 
 Blessed art thou among women and blessed is 
 the fruit of thy womb. Elizabeth by divine 
 inspiration, picks up the words of Gabriel and 
 
 8 
 
continues to complete the first part of the Hail 
 Mary. Can greater words of praise be uttered? 
 Pull of grace. . . blessed among women. . . 
 blessed the fruit of thy womb. . . 
 
 The Incarnate Word was cradled in your bosom. 
 As you brought Jesus near to Elizabeth, John 
 the Precursor hidden in the womb of his mother, 
 recognized you and leaped for joy. According 
 to general belief, it was at this moment that 
 he was cleansed from original sin even before 
 his birth and sanctified in his mother's womb. 
 This is your mission, Mother — to bring Jesus 
 to souls — and as He approaches them they are 
 cleansed and made holy. 
 
 Your own heart overflowed with love and 
 gratitude to God that you burst forth into that 
 magnificent canticle which the Church has 
 adopted as her own: My soul doth magnify the 
 Lord. . . my spirit hath rejoiced in God my 
 Savior. . . for He that is mighty hath done great 
 things in me. . . and holy is his name. . . He 
 hath regarded the lowliness of His handmaid. 
 
 Help me, Mother, to be a true Christ- bearer 
 also, to bring Jesus to souls to sanctify them. . . 
 
 9 
 
3. Jesus is Born in Bethlehem 
 
 God's ways are mysterious. The Prophet had 
 foretold that you were to bring forth the Son of 
 God in the town of David but you were living at 
 Nazareth, sweet Mother Mary. In God's design 
 a pagan emperor wishing to take a census of 
 his vast empire issued an edict that all people 
 should be registered; this meant that you and 
 Joseph, who were of the house and family of 
 David, had to go to Bethlehem. Your time was 
 drawing near to give birth to your Child but you 
 don't question God's will as expressed to you 
 by a pagan superior. You and Joseph quietly 
 prepare for the long, tedious journey in the dead 
 of winter. 
 
 No one would give you any place to stay and 
 bear your Child, Who is the God-Man. He came 
 unto His own and His own received Him not. . . 
 Nothing but refusal at Joseph's request. . .You 
 must finally take refuge in a cave where animals 
 took shelter. Here in the darkness takes place 
 the most important event in history. The Word 
 was made flesh and makes His dwelling among 
 us. 
 
 Though Jesus was born in a lonely stable, 
 the event of His birth did not go unheralded. 
 Again it is your , mission to present Jesus to 
 
 10 
 
souls, to men of good will who are willing to 
 listen to His good tidings. 
 
 The angels announce His coming to poor, 
 humble shepherds. They speed to Bethlehem and 
 find the Child wrapped in swaddling clothes and 
 laid in a manger. Like the monstrance, you hold 
 the Child in your arms and show Him to these 
 good souls that they might express to Him their 
 adoration, their love, their thanksgiving. . . 
 These, in turn, pass on the good news to others 
 who must have come to witness the marvels that 
 had taken place. What do they find? A beautiful 
 young girl, a virgin-mother, showing them the 
 Creator of the world. Then, as always, you 
 draw men to Jesus. 
 
 The poor and the humble are the first to be 
 invited to the crib-throne of Jesus but there are 
 others who are poor in spirit and meek and 
 humble of heart, though wealthy in this world's 
 goods. The wise men from the East are drawn 
 by a star to Jesus' feet; there they find you with 
 Him as always. . . '*They find the Mother and 
 the Child*', . .The shepherds give of their 
 poverty but they give; the Magi give of their 
 wealth — gold, incense, myrrh; all must give of 
 their love, their adoration, and their sacrifice. 
 
 You were the instrument of God to bring the 
 greatest Christmas gift of all to the world. . . 
 make me too an instrument of God in helping to 
 
 11 
 
bring Jesus to the souls of men. . . 
 
 Let every day be for me a Christmas day, 
 because each day brings Christ to me in the 
 Mass; let the fragrance of the grace of the Mass 
 penetrate every thought, sentiment, emotion, 
 action, volition of the day. You have made me 
 another Christ, make me a truly worthy son of 
 Mary. 
 
 4. Jesus is Offered in the Temple 
 
 Blessed Mother, you would not dispense your- 
 self from the Law of Moses even though your 
 Son and you were above the law. This Law 
 called for a journey to the Temple to be purified. 
 How could the ceremonies of the Old Law purify 
 you who were sinless in every way? Conceived 
 without sin, free from every stain of sin, virgin 
 of virgins. . . You bore in your arms the Author 
 of the Law, yet He wished to share in the fulness 
 of our nature, in all things save sin, in order to 
 cleanse that nature from sin; you, too, would 
 share with Him in the consequences of fallen 
 nature in order to lift it up. . . . 
 
 While fulfilling the prescriptions of the Law 
 in offering Jesus who was to be the first-born of 
 many brethren, and redeeming Him by making the 
 offering of the poor, you were especially con- 
 
 12 
 
cerned again with bringing Christ to souls of 
 good will. This is your mission always, dear 
 Mother — that of co-redemptrix, that of bringing 
 Christ into the lives of men and women. 
 
 This time it is the aged Simeon who had been 
 assured by the Holy Spirit that he could not die 
 until he had seen the Holy One of God. Simeon 
 was led by this Spirit into the Temple. Many 
 others saw Mary and Joseph and the Child and 
 assumed it was no more than an ordinary couple 
 bringing their baby-boy to offer him to the Lord. 
 But Simeon, inspired by the Holy Ghost, saw 
 beyond what mortal eyes can see; the Holy Spirit 
 must have told him: this is the one, the Expected 
 One. As he took Jesus into his arms, the desires 
 of his life were fulfilled. . . now he was willing 
 to pass out of this life. . . he had seen the Light 
 unto the revelation of the Gentiles. . . and the 
 glory of Israel. . . his eyes had seen his Savior. 
 
 He had a message for you, Blessed Mary, a 
 sad message: the sword of sorrow would pierce 
 your heart; in the midst of your joy of the moment 
 there is to be the shadow of the cross. While 
 there is sorrow and sadness there is the quiet 
 of peace and joy. 
 
 Anna the prophetess, had spent many years of 
 her widowhood close to the Temple of God; she, 
 too, was privileged to receive the word of the 
 Holy Ghost that her Savior and the Savior of the 
 
 13 
 
world had finally come and she was gifted beyond 
 measure with the privilege of looking upon His 
 face. She and Simeon went forth announcing the 
 good nev/s. How many listened to them and 
 prepared themselves for the time when this baby 
 would grow up and show Himself publicly to the 
 world and proclaim His divinity and His mission 
 as Redeemer? 
 
 Am I, too, one of these who receives warnings 
 of grace; for a moment I am stirred up and 
 promptly forget or grow slack both in God*s 
 service and in my function as an apostle to help 
 bring souls to Jesus through you. . . I will go out 
 and, by the example of my life as well as by 
 my words, show forth Christ in m^e. 
 
 5. Jesus is found in the Temple 
 
 After manifesting Jesus to choice souls such 
 as Simeon and Anna in the Temple, O Blessed 
 Mother, you and Joseph kept Him close to you 
 in the intimacy of the family. You gave Him the 
 care that every loving mother gives a loved 
 child; you watched Him grow from babyhood into 
 childhood; you taught Him to speak and to walk; 
 how it must have thrilled you and Joseph to see 
 Him grow mentally and physically. How it thrilled 
 you when for the first time He called you ''Mother'*. 
 
 14 
 
He was the most obedient of children; each day 
 He shared in the little household chores. As He 
 grew older you taught Him to read; His text-book 
 was the Holy Scripture, the word of God being 
 read by God's Word. 
 
 The years passed all too rapidly and soon 
 Jesus had reached the age of twelve, the age 
 when the Jewish boy was to take upon himself 
 the responsibilities of observing the requirements 
 of the Jewish law; he was becoming a spiritual 
 adult. Here for the fourth time you were mani- 
 festing Him to souls, whom He wished to sanctify 
 and transform them into Himself and into apostles. 
 
 After fulfilling the requirements of the law 
 with relation to the Paschal feast, you and your 
 friends were returning home; you had not noticed 
 that Jesus was not with the group. Only at the 
 end of the day when the families grouped together 
 for the evening meal and rest, you became aware 
 that He was not around. You and Joseph became 
 anxious; all your inquiries as to His whereabouts 
 were useless. The two of you had to go back to 
 Jerusalem and after searching in vain for three 
 days, you chanced to come back to one of the 
 Temple rooms where the doctors of the Law met; 
 there was your twelve-year old boy living proof 
 of the greatest learning; He was asking and 
 answering the questions of these learned men 
 of the law, astonishing them by the wisdom of 
 
 15 
 
His answers; never had they heard so much 
 learning and that from a stripling of a boy. Where 
 did He get His learning? Here was the Word of 
 God revealing Himself to the leaders in Israel. I 
 wonder what their reaction was. Did they just go 
 about their daily routine making an occasional 
 comment about this wonder-boy and, in due time, 
 forgetting Him. Were there some who about 
 eighteen years later would recall this memory 
 and become one of His followers? 
 
 But for you at the moment, Mary, there was 
 only one thing: you had your Boy back. Your 
 anxiety was at an end. When you seemed to 
 reproach Him for causing you this worry, His 
 simple, clear answer was that He had to be 
 about His Father's business. It was like giving 
 a pre- view of His mission to come. 
 
 Mother Mary, your grief at the loss of Jesus 
 might be compared to the grief that souls should 
 experience when they have lost Jesus oy sin; 
 but, unfortunately most souls are hardly con- 
 scious of what a great loss is theirs. Let me 
 not be separated from Jesus by sin. If I should 
 have the misfortune to fall into sin, let me hasten 
 to return to Him and to feel some of the joy 
 which was yours when Jesus was restored to you. 
 
 16 
 
1. Jesus Agonizes in the Garden, . . . c 
 
 O Mary, for a long period of time you had 
 Jesus with you, . .During this time He was 
 preparing Himself for His mission. . .during this 
 time, your spouse St. Joseph departed this life 
 in your company and that of Jesus. The day 
 finally dawned when Jesus said farewell and you 
 knew what this parting meant. 
 
 A short space of three years was to be devoted 
 to the public ministry. Not all who heard the 
 consoling words of the Redeemer would seek 
 salvation at its source. . .not all who saw His 
 miracles would accept Him as Savior. Your 
 spirit was filled with horror and dread as you 
 saw the mounting envy and hatred in your Son's 
 enemies. What had He done to them and for them, 
 except good? Yet they could no longer stand Him 
 . . .they must rid themselves of Him and con- 
 sumimate His death. . .now was to be fulfilled 
 the prophecy of Simeon . . .the sword was to 
 pierce your heart through and through. 
 
 One of Jesus' own disciples betrays Him for a 
 small sum of money. . .Before going forth to His 
 
 17 
 
Passion and death Jesus must still give the 
 final and definitive proof of His love for men by 
 leaving them His own Body and Blood in the 
 Blessed Sacrament and creating the priests to 
 carry on this work until the end of time. 
 
 If you did not accompany Jesus into the Garden, 
 Blessed Mother, you were at least with Him in 
 spirit and witnessed the awful agony by which 
 His soul was torn. You heard His anguished cry: 
 My Father, let this cup of suffering pass from 
 me, but if I must drink it, may Your Will be done. 
 
 What was it that tore the Divine Heart of 
 Christ in the Garden? He saw the unspeakable 
 sufferings He was to undergo in the Passion. He 
 saw the scourging. . .the crowning with thorns 
 . . .the march to Calvary. . .the nailing to the 
 cross. . .the hour of agony on the cross in the 
 face of a hateful multitude. . .and He shrank, for 
 He was humian and feared suffering. Worse than 
 this was the agony of His soul when He passed 
 in review the horrible picture of sin. . .the sins 
 of mankind from that of the first man down to the 
 sin of the last man on earth. . .an overwhelming 
 flood of iniquity. It was because of this that He 
 was giving His life to reconcile sinful man to 
 the all-holy God. Still worse, was the thought 
 that so many would ignore the moving mercy of 
 Your Son who would stretch out His arms in 
 forgiveness but thousands and millions of souls 
 
 18 
 
would pass by the Cross unheeding and march 
 straight on to their eternal destruction in hell. 
 
 Constantly you repeat with Jesus, as I must 
 do: Thy Will be done. Every moment of your 
 life, dear Mother Mary, was an act of submission 
 to God's Holy Will. Obtain for me the grace to 
 fulfill God's will in my regard as it is made 
 manifest to me by my parents, teachers, or other 
 lawful superiors. 
 
 When sorrow fills my cup to overflowing send 
 the angel of consolation to bring me strength, 
 courage, and confidence. 
 
 2. He was Scourged. .... 
 
 Dearest Mother, let me contemplate with you 
 the awful beginnings of your Son's Passion. . . 
 His capture. , .His trial before the High Priest 
 . . .His appearance before Pilate and Herod. . . 
 His being mocked by the servants. . . 
 
 Pilate recognized the innocence of Jesus and 
 strove to free Him but he was weak and incapable 
 of resisting the pressure of the enemies of your 
 Divine Son. In the most inconsistent fashion 
 after declaring that he found no cause in Jesus, 
 he went on to say: '*! will punish Him and let 
 Him go", and ordered Jesus to be scourged. 
 
 Mother Mary, if you witnessed in spirit the 
 
 19 
 
scourging of Jesus, what must have been the 
 terrible reactions to that form of punishment? I 
 can scarcely picture this scene to myself with- 
 out feeling a chill go through my entire body. 
 What must it have been for Jesus? He was stripped 
 of His garments and fastened to a pillar. Brutal 
 men were employed to administer this shameful 
 punishment which was inflicted upon non-Romans 
 by Roman overlords. Whips of leather thongs, 
 others with bone or metal attached to the ends 
 were used. Here there was no limit as there was 
 in floggings imposed upon Jews where the Law 
 forbade more than forty stripes. 
 
 There are inhuman men, worse than beasts, 
 who take a delight in torturing their fellow-men. 
 Such were these who began to shower blows 
 upon the bare shoulders of your Son. Hard, 
 vicious blows struck Jesus' body. . .soon welts 
 were raised. . .then the flesh was opened. . . 
 blood began to flow. . .the flesh was torn into 
 ribbons. . .yet the blows continued. The Divine 
 Nature of Jesus alone sustained His humanity, 
 otherwise He would have died under this terrible 
 torture. 
 
 Every blow upon Jesus was reproduced spirit- 
 ually upon you. Blessed Mary. Each time Jesus 
 was struck, a new sword pierced your own heart. 
 You suffered in union with Jesus for such was 
 the will of the Father that souls might be redeemed 
 
 20 
 
and brought to live the life of Jesus. Never will 
 I have to suffer as much as you did; give me the 
 grace to realize that only through suffering can 
 I hope to achieve eternal happiness. ''It was 
 necessary that Jesus should suffer and that 
 thus He could enter His glory". Let me see in 
 my daily little sufferings the shadow of God's 
 Hand lovingly outstretched over me. Let each 
 suffering cleanse and purify me from my sins, 
 help me to expiate my faults, and increase my 
 glory in heaven. 
 
 3. Jesus is Crowned with Thorns 
 
 Mother most sorrowful, let me share with you 
 your anguish of spirit as Jesus is crowned with 
 thorns. . . 
 
 Your Divine Son had stood before the Roman 
 governor, Pilate, who questioned him about His 
 claims to kingship. Jesus had told him: ''I am 
 indeed a king but my Kingdom is not of this 
 world''. The Kingdom of your Son is one of 
 hearts and souls. . .one of peace and of love. . . 
 
 The soldiers who are now in charge of your 
 Jesus take up this idea to conceive a new mode 
 of torture for Him. . . If King He is, let us treat 
 Him as such. . .They find an old purple mantle 
 and drape it over Christ's shoulders. . .purple 
 
 21 
 
is the color of royalty. . .A reed is placed in His 
 hands to do service for a scepter. . .the symbol 
 of royal authority. . .A king must have a crown 
 . . .So a soldier cuts off branches from a thorn 
 bush and plaits these into a crown, which is 
 forced down upon His head until the thorns 
 pierce the brow of Jesus. . .From every puncture 
 spurts the Precious Blood. . . 
 
 And now, the cruel, beastly soldiers pay mock 
 homage to Him who is, in all truth, their King, 
 their Lord, their God, their Master. . .But they 
 don't know it. . .They kneel before Him as though 
 to give Him royal recognition but at the same 
 time they curse and blaspheme Him. . .Jesus, 
 their Creator, submits in silence to this humili- 
 ation. . .He could have reduced them to utter 
 helplessness and even nothingness but He 
 endures all this because He willed it so. . . 
 
 In union with you, Blessed Mother, I kneel in 
 humble adoration before the thorn-crowned Jesus, 
 my King, the King of all the universe. I acknowl- 
 edge that in His hands are placed all power and 
 dominion. . .To Him, all creatures, whether they 
 recognize it or not, owe obedience. . .service. . . 
 love. . . 
 
 Heavenly Mother, have pity on those especially 
 who have fallen victims to the false attractions 
 of Communism. . .They necessarily hate you and 
 your Divine Son if they are true Communists 
 
 22 
 
. . .All religion is anathema to them. . .Blessed 
 Mother, it is not in godlessness. . .nor in nature 
 . . .nor in hate. . .that they will find peace. . . 
 Bring them to their knees. . .bring them to the 
 feet of Jesus. . .bend their wills to His Law. . . 
 teach ihem His love. . . 
 
 Give heed to the cries of the millions who are 
 under the tyranny of Communism. . .to those who 
 live behind the Iron or Bamboo Curtain. . .Let 
 them not despair. . .hold out hope of deliverance 
 to them. . .keep the faith alive and strong in 
 them. . . 
 
 Pity the children and grownups in our own 
 dear country, who have been brought up on the 
 teachings of secularism and, in consequence, 
 fail to recognize your Son as their true King. . . 
 They ignore God. . .the moral law. . .spiritual 
 and eternal values. . . 
 
 Mother of Sorrows, whose heart bleeds for 
 mankind, through the merits of your Son's 
 crowning with thorns, bring all men back to the 
 recognition of His reign over their hearts, for 
 His is a Kingdom of truth and of life. . .a King- 
 dom of holiness and of grace. . .a Kingdom of 
 justice, of love, and of peace. 
 
 23 
 
4. Jesus Carries His Cross 
 
 Word has reached you at last, Holy Mother 
 Mary, that Pontius Pilate, the governor, is too 
 weak to resist the pressure coming from the 
 leaders of the Jews and has finally given the 
 order for the crucifixion of Jesus. . .He had 
 tried to bargain. . .to compromise. . .Surely they 
 would take Jesus instead of the criminal 
 Barabbas. . .no, they are guilty of the great 
 apostasy. . .If they saw Jesus after the horrible 
 scourging and crowning, the people would be 
 moved to pity — but no, there is only hardness 
 in their hearts. . .They will be satisfied only 
 with the death of the Just One, who had done 
 nothing but good in His whole lifetime. . . 
 Pilate, in sheer despair and hopelessness, makes 
 a vain gesture of washing his hands of the death 
 of Him, whom he, at least, vaguely recognizes 
 as more than human. . .Pilate is afraid. . . 
 PERHAPS the Man whom he is condemning is a 
 King. . .the Son of God. . .He must have been 
 haunted by the thought for the rest of his life. . . 
 But he acts now. . .Jesus is sentenced to die 
 and that by the agonizing death on a cross. . . 
 Such is God's will. . .So man's Redemption is 
 accomplished. . . 
 
 Jesus accepts the huge, heavy cross which 
 has been placed upon His shoulders. . .for this 
 
 24 
 
moment He had been waiting. . .for this He had 
 come into the world. . .Courageously, heroically, 
 He starts on His way to the Place of the Skull, 
 although He has already lost so much blood. . . 
 It is now high noon, and He has not had a bite 
 to eat or a drop to drink since the Great Supper 
 of the night before. . . 
 
 You are waiting for Him, Mother of Sorrows. . . 
 He comes in sight. . .You go out to meet Him — 
 Mother and Son. . .the most perfect of Sons, very 
 God Himself. . .and the greatest, the holiest of 
 Mothers. . .Do the soldiers give you a moment 
 to embrace each other: ''Mother''. . ."My Son*' 
 . . .? There is an exchange of love in the mere 
 glance. . . Co-Redemptrix, you must share in 
 your soul, what the Redeemer bears both in body 
 and soul. . . 
 
 As you gaze at Jesus, you can scarcely 
 recognize your Boy, who sat at your knee, 
 assisted you and Joseph about the house and 
 in the shop, played in the streets, and, as a 
 mature young man, took over the trade of His 
 Foster-father. . . What have they done to Him? 
 . . . His Body is a mass of wounds from head to 
 foot. . .the crown of thorns is still on His head. . . 
 the blood is flowing freely here and there. . .in 
 other parts it has hardened and blackened. . .His 
 divine lips are parched with thirst. . .You 
 cannot help Him. . . 
 
 25 
 
You join the small, oh, so small, band of 
 faithful souls and follow Him on to Calvary. . . 
 You are grateful to Simon for taking up the cross 
 with Jesus. . .You breathe a fervent ''Thank 
 you'' to Veronica for wiping the face of your 
 Son. . . You weep silently with the holy women 
 who mourn over their Master. . . 
 
 During the years following, while you stayed 
 in Jerusalem, you must have gone often over this 
 Sorrowful Way, many a time alone, many a time 
 with John or other disciples. . . Each stone is 
 sacred to you. . . Each spot marked a place of 
 suffering. . . 
 
 Mother, I need your help to carry the cross 
 which Jesus gives me to carry, . . Tm a coward. . . 
 I whimper and complain when I have a little to 
 suffer even though my health and strength are 
 good. . . I know of souls who are heroic, happy, 
 and cheerful even though they have much to 
 suffer. . . Let me bear my cross with joy. . . it 
 can never be too heavy. . . and I don't want it 
 to be too light. . . I can't be a follower of Jesus 
 unless I am willing to take up my cross every 
 day and follow Him. . . I accept the challenge. . . 
 I accept the condition of discipleship. . . 
 
 26 
 
5. Jesus is crucified. 
 
 O Blessed Mother of God, you have come to 
 Calvary wijth Jesus. . . You watch Him being 
 prepared for crucifixion. . .He is stripped of His 
 clothes. . . He is offered a drug to dull the pain 
 but refuses it. . . He is bidden to lie down upon 
 the Cross and He does so. . . His arms and legs 
 are stretched. . . the nails go crashing through the 
 tender flesh of His hands and feet. . . blood 
 gushes out from these new wounds. . . the Cross 
 is put into the hole, dug to receive it, and is 
 raised aloft and fixed in place. . . There is your 
 Son, . .my Brother. . .hanging between heaven 
 and earth. . . a sight for all mankind. . . 
 
 And YOU, Mother of the Redeemer,. . .YOU 
 STAND BY THE CROSS OP JESUS. , . With you 
 there is no fainting, no hysteria, no demonstration 
 . . . YOU STAND. . . And your grief and suffering 
 are all the more profound. . .You alone at this 
 moment understand the full import of Jesus' death 
 . . . for at this moment mankind is being born to 
 the life of grace. . . 
 
 Years before, at the Incarnation, you had con- 
 ceived to the supernatural life, the Head and the 
 members of the Mystical Body. . . Now, in sorrow, 
 you are to bring forth all your children to the life 
 of grace. . . Freely you had consented to the 
 fulfillment of the Redemption. . . The sacrifice 
 
 27 
 
now taking place on Calvary is the consummation 
 of the sacrifice begun at the Incarnation. . . 
 
 Prom the Cross, Christ publicly proclaims 
 your Motherhood of the Mystical Body. . .It is 
 not in virtue of the words of Jesus that we are 
 adopted by you to the life of grace. . . This is 
 rather the confirmation of a fact that had already 
 taken place when the Word was made flesh in 
 your womb. . . 
 
 Jesus turns to you with a glance of deepest 
 affection and says: '*Woman, behold thy Son!'' 
 And, turning to John, he says: ''Son, behold thy 
 Mother!'' Jesus seems to be giving away the 
 last object of His love on earth. . . But there is 
 something more. . . John understands the spiritual 
 significance of these words. . . He represents 
 the whole human race at that moment. . .All of 
 us are to be your children in the fullest sense of 
 that term. , . 
 
 We may ask: Is Jesus then no longer to be 
 your Son, replacing Himself by St. John?. . .No, 
 Jesus here wishes to reveal a great mystery to 
 us. . . It is this. . . As Jesus is in us and we are 
 in Jesus, with Him we are but one Son. . . one 
 Christ. . . one Body. . . of which He is the Head 
 and we are the members. . . With Him we are but 
 one Son of Mary. . . one Son of God. . . We are 
 sons. . . Here is established that unity by which 
 your Jesus and all His desciples become one 
 Son of Mary. . . 
 
 28 
 
Teach me, Mother of men, to penetrate more 
 deeply into this great mystery of my incorporation 
 with Christ. . , Give me an understanding of the 
 great truth that you are, in reality, my Mother, 
 and that I am your child. . . 
 
 Although grief floods your soul, yet you are 
 one with Jesus Who proclaims to the world His 
 thirst for souls. . . Yours is comparable to His. . . 
 "My children,*' you say, "how I am in labor until 
 Christ be formed in you'\ . .The work of Jesus 
 , . . the work of the Redemption of mankind. . . is 
 now finished. . . Yet, dearest Mother, the great 
 work is just beginning for you to transmit to 
 each soul the redeeming action of Christ. . . 
 
 Mother Mary, be a true Mother to me, . . May 
 I become another Jesus toward you. . . 
 
 29 
 
1. Jesus Rises from the Grave 
 
 Blessed Mother, you endured to the fullest 
 measure the sufferings associated with the 
 Passion of your Son although you knew that 
 within three days He would rise again. . . When- 
 ever Jesus mentioned the details of His Passion 
 during His public ministry — that He would be 
 mocked, scourged, put to death — He would 
 alw^ays add: and rise again. . . No one who 
 listened could have any doubt on the subject: 
 Good Friday and Easter must be inevitably 
 connected. . . 
 
 Scripture is silent about the first appearance 
 of the Risen Jesus. . . He is the perfect Son. . . 
 It w^ould be most natural for Him. to show Himself 
 to you, His beloved Mother. . . V/hat sort of 
 meeting is this? . . . Jesus appears to you in 
 glory. . . Now^ there is no one to interfere with 
 the outpourings of the Hearts of the Great Son 
 and of the Incomparable Mother. . . 
 
 There is no longer anything that can stop 
 Jesus. . .In the hour of darkness, His enemies 
 could fasten Him to a cross, because He wills 
 it. . . He submits to death, because He wills 
 it. . . But now. . . death cannot hold Him down. . . 
 He casts aside its shackles. . . the darkness of 
 the tom.b cannot contain Him. . . All is light. . . 
 All is glory. . . All is happiness. . . There is no 
 
 30 
 
longer a single trace of the wounds of the 
 scourging and crowning with thorns. . . Only the 
 marks of the nails in hands and feet and the 
 wound in His sacred side remain for a testimonial 
 of His love. . . Each of these wounds is like a 
 huge ruby, reflecting the brilliance of a thousand 
 lights. . . His face is bright as the sun. . . His 
 garments are white as the fallen snow. . . Who 
 can look upon Him and live?. . . No wonder the 
 guards are struck with terror and lie as if dead 
 . . . They cannot again hold You captive. . . they 
 must give unquestioning testimony to Your 
 Resurrection. . . 
 
 But Jesus is yours again, radiant, glorious, 
 and exultant. . . You had waited for this return 
 in quiet resignation and expectation. . . Mother 
 Mary, may we be permitted to look upon this 
 return of Jesus to you. . . How He embraced you 
 as you murmured over and over again: ''My Son 
 . . . My Son. . .My God. . .My Lord.'' Words are 
 not needed when the two most perfect human 
 beings meet. . . heart speaks to heart. . . 
 
 Your mission of bringing Christ to souls has 
 begun. . . it will continue to the end of time. . . 
 You are to be the Mother of us all, bringing us 
 forth to the life of grace, forming us to resemble 
 Christ. . . 
 
 Let me share with you, O Mary, in the joy - 
 you experience as Jesus comes back to life by 
 
 31 
 
His own power. . . Help me to rise to a more 
 energetic spiritual life. . . Keep me from growing 
 cold. . . negligent. . . drifting from grace and 
 fervor. . . Make the life of Jesus witxhin me a 
 true principle of action and of love. . . 
 
 Let the Resurrection of Jesus confirm my faith 
 in Him. . . let it strengthen my hope in my own 
 glorious resurrection in the last day. . .let it 
 inflame my love so that my final awakening will 
 be the beginning of an eternal surprise at all the 
 things that God has prepared for those who love 
 Him. . . 
 
 2. Jesus Ascends to Heaven 
 
 Those must have been heavenly days, which 
 follow upon the Resurrection of your Son, dearest 
 Mother Mary. . . Again and again He comes to 
 you as He does to the Apostles and disciples. 
 The thrill of seeing Him gloriously risen from 
 the dead is beyond any human description. . . 
 Yet you do not need to see Him to know that 
 your faith has been rewarded. . . 
 
 These forty days after the Resurrection are 
 important ones. . . There are many things to be 
 done in the establishment of the Church. . .One 
 of these is the institution of the Sacrament of 
 Penance. . .Jesus communicates the power of 
 
 32 
 
forgiving sins to His Apostles and their successors 
 . . .Perhaps Confirmation and Extreme Unction 
 are also instituted at this time. . .Christ gives 
 some further instructions to His Apostles but 
 leaves the completion of this work to the Holy 
 Spirit. . . 
 
 But to you, Mother Mary, Christ is giving a 
 special mission for the days to come. . . As you 
 are the Mother of His natural body, so you are 
 also the Mother of His Mystical Body. . . the 
 Church. . . You are to m.other the infant Church 
 in the days that lie ahead. . . days that will be 
 full of trials, troubles, storms, persecutions, 
 death. . .You accept this responsibility with the 
 same willingness and submission as you accepted 
 the mission of being the Mother of God. . . 
 
 Christ's sojourn on earth comes to an end. . . 
 He must return to His heavenly Father. . . He 
 must bring with Him the legions of souls, detained 
 in Limbo, because the gates of heaven have 
 been closed to them. . . For so long, they had 
 desired the accomplishment of the Redemption 
 . . . Now, at last, heaven will be open to them. . . 
 Now they may see God face to face. . . 
 
 Jesus takes you and many of His disciples to 
 the scene of His Agony. . . the Mount of Olives 
 . . . But today, it is a different scene: not the 
 full moon casting a weird light through the 
 twisted branches of the olive trees. . .not the 
 
 33 
 
sorrow which weighed Him down to earth, , . not 
 the sleepy apostles, . , not the blood which 
 dripped from the pores of His body. , , not His 
 agonizing cry to His Father, , , No, this is 
 something different. . . 
 
 You are with Him. , . hundreds of disciples 
 are with Him.. . , it is bright sunlight. , , the 
 Mount is bathed in glory. . , all is happiness and 
 joy. . . He has words of consolation for you and 
 for all the rest. . . He is going to prepare places 
 for all of you in heaven. . ."Fear not, I have 
 conquered the world'*. . . 
 
 While Jesus is speaking to all. He slowly 
 rises from the ground, moves higher and higher, 
 until He finally disappears in a cloud. . , Angels 
 come to reassure all of you that your Jesus will 
 come again in power, glory, and majesty. . . 
 
 Mother Mary, Mother of mercy, ... our life. . . 
 our sweetness, . . our hope, , , fill me with the 
 assurance of attaining to the glories of heaven 
 in union with you and your Divine Son. . . 
 
 34 
 
3. The Holy Spirit Comes Upon Mary 
 and the Apostles 
 
 There must have been a slight tinge of sadness 
 in your heart, Blessed Mother, as you cease 
 gazing at the sopt where Jesus had entered the 
 cloud and you turn about to go back to the 
 Cenacle. There the Apostles and disciples 
 gather about to prepare for the coming of the 
 Holy Spirit according to the instructions of your 
 Son. . .Fear of the Jews still fills their hearts 
 but their courage is bolstered by what they have 
 just witnessed. . .Furthermore they know you 
 are with them. . . How long are they to wait for 
 the descent of the Holy Spirit Who will teach 
 them all truth?. . . They don't know. . . It is 
 possible, as some suggest, that your prayers 
 hasten His coming. . . 
 
 They settle down to what may be called the 
 first official retreat in the Church. . . This is no 
 new experience for the Apostles because during 
 Christ's public ministry they would retire to 
 desert places for prayer and meditation. . . 
 
 Here in the Cenacle they are gathered about 
 you. Blessed Mother. . .They unite with you in 
 fervent prayer. . . From time to time you speak 
 to them of all the things which you had pondered 
 over in your heart during the lifetime of Jesus, , . 
 You exhort them. . .you encourage them. . .you 
 repeat Christ's words to them. , . 
 
 35 
 
The first novena and retreat of the Church is 
 completed. . . The tenth day has arrived. . . At 
 about nine o'clock in the morning a wind is 
 heart surging about the house in which you and 
 the Apostles and others are gathered. . , Here 
 is a strange phenomenon. . . a great wind is 
 heard but it is concentrated only in this small 
 area. . . nowhere else is it noticed. . . it must 
 have made a strange sound. . . People begin 
 flocking from all over Jerusalem, to the center of 
 all this commotion. . . We can speculate on the 
 wild rumors that were floating about. . . The 
 Holy Spirit had His way of broadcasting the birth 
 of the Catholic Church. . .the beginning of the 
 New Covenant and the end of the Old. . . 
 
 Within the house, something more remarkable 
 is taking place. . .The Holy Spirit appears over 
 each one in the form of a fiery tongue. . . This 
 is His third manifestation to men: Dove. . . 
 Wind. . . Fire. . . 
 
 In the twinkling of an eye, the Holy Spirit 
 completes the work of instruction of the First 
 Pope and Bishops of the Church. . . He stirs 
 them to action. . . The Church begins its work 
 at once, for here are souls ready to receive the 
 message of Redemption. . .The Christ Whom 
 they had rejected and put to death is their God 
 and Redeemer. . . They must now accept Him. . . 
 believe in Him. . . be sorry for their sins, . . 
 
 36 
 
receive His grace through Baptism. . . live His 
 life. . . Many believe and are baptized and the 
 Holy Spirit works marvels in their souls. . . 
 
 Spouse of the Holy Spirit, pray the Holy Spirit 
 to fill me with the fiery zeal of the Apostles 
 that I, too, may do my share to preach Christ to 
 the world by word and example. . .Pray that I 
 may be filled with His seven-fold gifts. . . 
 
 4. Mary is Taken into Heaven 
 
 Although sinless, dear Mother, you follow the 
 example of your Divine Son and subject yourself 
 to some of the consequences of sin. . . Like 
 Him, you suffer pain of soul and body. . .Like 
 Him, you are to submit to death. . . 
 
 You spend the last years of your life with the 
 beloved disciple to whom Jesus dying committed 
 you. . . You watch over the infant Church. . . You 
 see it put to the test of persecution. . . You see 
 it produce its first martyrs. . . 
 
 During these years remaining of your sojourn 
 on earth, your desire for direct union with your 
 Son in Heaven increases. . .Your love grows 
 more and more until you can no longer contain 
 yourself for love of Jesus. . . 
 
 The Apostles are summoned to your bedside 
 by the mysterious direction of the Holy Spirit. . • 
 
 37 
 
You are not sick but you are about to die and 
 somehow they know it. , .With you, they praise 
 God for all His mercies and goodness. . .With 
 you, they thank God for all the great things He 
 has wrought in you. . . You bless His Name. . . 
 Your martyrdom has been in living, suffering 
 from the prolonged separation from your Son. . . 
 Your waiting to see Christ's Pace is like a 
 purgatory. . . You die, that you might live. . . 
 You die. . .to fulfill the debt of nature. . .to 
 glorify God. . . to do as your Son did. . . to finish 
 your course. . .to receive your crown. . . 
 
 You die of love. . . It is fitting that love 
 should strike the blow that breaks the bonds 
 uniting soul and body. . . Your soul, inundated 
 by love, longs to be with Christ. . . The ardor of 
 your love has increased from day to day until att 
 length the soul gains the victory and takes its 
 flight to heaven. . . Your death is not something 
 painful or sad but rather a triumph. . . a gentle 
 falling to sleep. . . 
 
 Your Son does not wish that your body undergo 
 corruption. . . Your soul had been immaculate. . . 
 totally free from sin. . .wholly spotless. . . It is 
 fitting that your body be spared the decay and 
 dissolution of the grave. . .It becomes your Son 
 to do this for you. . . 
 
 Nothing is too high for you to whom God owes 
 His human life: no fullness of grace. . . no 
 
 38 
 
excess of glory. . .Your life was of such purity 
 and sanctity. . . You shared in such great 
 mysteries and miracles that we should be dis- 
 appointed were your death and what followed, 
 similar to that of other men. . . Could Jesus, Who 
 owed the elements of His human body to you, 
 allow the flesh and blood from which it was 
 taken to see the corruption of the tomb?. . . 
 
 In your case, glorious Mother, your Jesus 
 anticipated the final resurrection. , . This is, 
 in substance, what your Assumption means. . . 
 All other men must wait until the last day for 
 their resurrection. . . This is the day of judgment 
 when body and soul will be reunited for all 
 eternity. . . for a happy or an unhappy eternity 
 . . .Jesus, by His divine power, brought your 
 soul and body together and raised you at once 
 to the glory and happiness of heaven. . . 
 
 At long last Holy Church has raised this 
 traditional belief in your glorious Assumption to 
 a dogma of faith. . . Christian sentiment accepted 
 it long ago. . .Stir up in me, dearest Mother, a 
 lively hope in my own glorious resurrection in 
 the last day. . . May I hear from the lips of your 
 Son, the Eternal Judge, the sweet invitation: 
 "Com.e, blessed of My Father. . 
 
 39 
 
5. Mary is Crowned Queen of Angels 
 and Saints 
 
 What a triumphant entry that must have been 
 for you, sweetest Mother, as the angels bear you 
 into heaven. . . My imagination staggers as I try 
 to reconstruct certain magnificent receptions 
 that have taken place in the course of history. . . 
 These are mere images compared to the reality 
 of your glorious entrance into heaven. . .All the 
 millions and millions in the heavenly court come 
 to greet you. . . and pay you their loving hom.age 
 . , .you, the Mother of the Second Person of the 
 Trinity. . . you, the Mother of Mankind. . . the 
 Co-Redemptrix. . .the Mediatrix of all graces. , . 
 
 If I can conceive of such a thing, heaven is 
 adorned with a special splendor, as you are to 
 be crowned Queen of the Angels and Saints. . . 
 Queen of the heavens and of the earth. . . Your 
 Divine Son, to Whom all things are subject, 
 wishes to share His dominion with you. . . to 
 enthrone you at His right hand. . . to bring you 
 as close to divinity as is possible for any mere 
 creature. . . 
 
 The Father crowns you as His beloved 
 daughter. . . The Son crowns you as His sweet 
 Mother. . . The Holy Spirit crowns you as His 
 chaste spouse. . . 
 
 40 
 
Heaven bursts into song. . . the song of triumph 
 . . . glory. . . praise. . . Alleluias without end. . . 
 
 O Queen of Angels, bid your angels come. . . 
 to protect me. . . to escort me safely to my 
 heavenly home. . . 
 
 O Queen of the Patriarchs, who foreshadowed 
 the coming of your Son and kept alive the know- 
 ledge of the true God and the hope of the 
 Redeemer to come, pray for me. . , 
 
 Queen of the Prophets who spoke of you and 
 of Jesus long before you came on earth and who 
 prepared the world for your coming, guide me in 
 my way through this life. . . 
 
 Queen of the Apostles, whom you mothered 
 and directed in the early days of the Church, 
 teach me the way of Christ. . . 
 
 Queen of Martyrs, whom you surpassed by 
 your own martyrdom, help me to bear the sufferings 
 of life. . .Give me courage to die a m.artyr's 
 death if Jesus so wills it. . . 
 
 Queen of Virgins, exemplar of all virgins, 
 surpassing all by the brilliance of your purity, 
 . . . keep my soul pure and my body chaste. . . 
 
 Queen of All Saints, lead me in the way of 
 sanctity. . .form me day by day to the likeness 
 of Christ. . . 
 
 Queen of Peace, make the world to understand 
 that there can be no true peace unless Jesus 
 enters into men's thinking and willing and 
 living and loving. . . 
 
 41 
 
JOYFUL MYSTERIES 
 
 L The Annunciation Chastity 
 
 Holy iMother of God and Blessed Mother of men, 
 by the mystery of the Incarnation, obtain for me 
 a love of chastity. . . 
 
 When you are told that you are to become the 
 Mother of the Messias, you are troubled for you 
 had vowed your virginity to God. . . You are 
 different from all other Jewish maidens of your 
 day, for they rather seek marriage in the hope 
 that they might give birth to the Messias. . . In 
 your humility. Virgin Mother, you consider your- 
 self unworthy of such an honor. . . Furthermore, 
 you prize virginity so highly that you are willing 
 to forego the privilege of motherhood, even the 
 divine motherhood. . . The Angel explains to you 
 that it is possible for you to be both Virgin and 
 Mother through the intervention of the Holy 
 Spirit, and that He Who will be born of you is 
 the Holy One of God, the Son of God Himself. . . 
 
 Since that day of the Incarnation, millions of 
 young men and women, have pledged their chastity 
 to God in imitation of your holy example. . . 
 They renounce the right of marriage in order that 
 they might share in the privileges of spiritual 
 fatherhood and motherhood as priests. Brothers, 
 
 42 
 
and Sisters. . . For these, indeed, bring spiritual 
 life to souls. . .Blessed Mother, if I am to be 
 one of these, give me the grace to follow the 
 call of your Divine Son. . .Help me to g'^ve to 
 the world the example of perfect virginal 
 chastity. . .' 
 
 If, on the other hand, I am called to the 
 marriage state, help me to preserve chastity of 
 soul and body before marriage and, in the marriage 
 state, to be truly faithful to my spouse until 
 death. . . 
 
 Help me, sweet Mother, to develop the true 
 concept of chastity: that it is watching over a 
 sacred trust. . .that it is sharing with God the 
 power of creating life. . . 
 
 Bring back to the world, dearest Mother, the 
 proper understanding of the beauty, dignity, 
 sacredness, tremendousness of sex. . . a power 
 to be used according to God's law. . . a power to 
 be used legitimately only in marriage. . . How 
 many in the world today use sex to base pur- 
 poses and thereby betray the trust God has 
 placed in them. . . Even your own children who 
 possess the true faith fall victims to the false 
 maxims of the world. . . they become traitors to 
 you and your Son. . .they begin to view things 
 of sex lightly. . . they easily condone such 
 things as petting, necking, pre-marital ex- 
 periences, birth control, and other sins against 
 
 43 
 
chastity. . . They even make nothing of divorce 
 and re-marriage. . . 
 
 Give me a strong conviction that God has 
 implanted an inherent dignity in my body. . . He 
 has given me a tremendous assignment in life. . . 
 The world knows I am a Catholic. . . The world 
 expects more from me than from others and thus 
 pays an unconscious tribute to my faith. . . It 
 may actually encourage sins of lust or at least 
 pretend to do so, but it is shocked when Catholics 
 tell suggestive stories. . . read indecent literature 
 . . . are guilty of indecent actions. . . Am I one 
 of those who scandalize my fellow-men by their 
 conduct?. . . 
 
 Enkindle in me, Virgin Mother, a strong love 
 for chastity. . . Temptation surrounds me on 
 every side. . .books, . .papers. . .magazines 
 . . . posters. . . movies. . . I know Tm weak and I 
 need your help. . . Let prayerful thought build up 
 in me strong convictions. . . Virgin of Virgins, I 
 want chastity. . . make me truly chaste in body 
 and mind. . . keep my thoughts, words, and deeds 
 clean. . . Of myself I can do nothing, but your 
 Son Jesus makes men and women pure. . . He 
 made Magdalen a saint. . . He changed Augustine 
 to a holy man. . . Jesus is in the Mass. . . in 
 Holy Communion. . . there I can find Him in the 
 Bread of the strong and in the Wine that makes 
 virgins. . . Keep me close to Him and to you 
 and I shall always be safe. . . 
 
 44 
 
2. The Visitation Love of Neighbor. . . . . 
 
 By the mystery of your visit to Elizabeth, 
 Zachary, and the unborn John the Baptist, obtain 
 for me true charity for my neighbor. . . 
 
 Blessed Virgin Mary, my Mother, you had a 
 special mission to perform when you went into 
 the hill country. . . It was not simply to help 
 your cousin Elizabeth who was about to give 
 birth to a child. . . It was to bring the sanctifying 
 influence of Jesus within you into contact v/ith 
 the unborn Precursor. . . Elizabeth's child 
 "leaped** within her womb in recognition of His 
 Master and Redeemer. . . The unborn Jesus 
 cleansed John from original sin before his 
 birth. . . 
 
 Thus you show your love for your neighbor 
 throughout your life, blessed Mother. . . In 
 Nazareth, at Bethlehem, in Egypt, wherever you 
 are, you are ready to give a willing hand to 
 anyone in need of help. , .you give of your 
 poverty. . . you console those who are in grief 
 . . .you are kind in every way. . . 
 
 You make no exception. . .you love all men 
 . . . you love even those who show such monstrous 
 hatred toward your divine Son. . . Your love for 
 men is but the overflowing of your love for 
 God. . . 
 
 Help me, dear Mother, to realize that all men 
 
 45 
 
are my neighbors: not only the family next door 
 or my special friends and relatives. . . but the 
 family down the block. . . the family across the 
 tracks. . . the Negroes who don't get a break. . . 
 the Jews. . . the hill-billies and the share- 
 croppers. . . the Russians and their Godless 
 leaders. . .the persecutors of Christ's Church 
 . . .and even the remotest individuals on the 
 earth. . . all these are my neighbors. . . There 
 are times, Mother when I shut certain individuals 
 and groups from my thinking and love. . .they 
 are God's children and yours. . .they are my 
 brothers and sisters according to the spirit. . . 
 Your Son made, no distinction. . . He died for all 
 . . . We are all one blood. . . 
 
 Teach me, Blessed Mother, to think kindly of 
 my neighbor. . . ahvays to judge his intentions 
 to be good. . . not to indulge in false suspicions 
 . . . to excuse him when he is obviously wrong 
 . . . to consider his good qualities and abilities 
 . . . to minimize his bad qualities. . . to give 
 him credit for the good that he does. . . to forgive 
 injuries. . . to bear no resentment. . . 
 
 Show me how to speak kindly of my neighbor: 
 not to indulge in idle gossip about him. . . not to 
 spread rumors. . . not to make known his faults 
 . . . to praise him for the good he has done. . . 
 to give him encouragement. . . to defend his 
 reputation. . . to speak well of him at all times. . , 
 
 46 
 
Teach me, dear Mother, to act kindly toward 
 my neighbor: to be thoughtful and considerate in 
 my dealings with him. . . to help him out in his 
 needs. . .to be willing to lend assistance. . .to 
 be generous in pardoning any slights, real or 
 imaginary. . . to help out the poor and the un- 
 fortunate. . . to develop a true community spirit 
 and to interest myself in what is going on in the 
 community. . . to bring the faith to those who 
 don't have it. . . to strengthen it in my fellow- 
 Catholics. . . to help the foreign and home 
 missions. . .to give good example. . . 
 
 Let me pray for my neighbor. . . for all friends 
 and enemies. . . for the living. . . for the souls 
 in Purgatory. . . for the dying. . . for the con- 
 version of sinners. . . for the unity of Christendom 
 . . . for peace in the world. . .for the Holy 
 Father. . . the bishops and priests. . . all 
 Catholics. . . 
 
 I will perform at least one special act of 
 kindness today. . . 
 
 47 
 
3. The Birth of Our Lord 
 
 The Spirit of Poverty 
 
 Blessed Mother Mary, your Son, Who is Creator 
 of the universe, the Lord of all things, to Whom 
 all belongs and is subject, is not born into the 
 world in the midst of grandeur, magnificence, 
 and wealth. . . He barely has a place to be born 
 in. . .He has been rejected by His own. . .His 
 own receive Him not. . . He is born in a cave, 
 surrounded by animals. . . He dies, deprived of 
 everything. . . He is stripped of His clothes. . . 
 His deathbed is the Cross. . . He has no grave 
 to call His own. . . He borrows one for the few 
 days He is to remain dead. . . 
 
 Your heart grieves, dear Mother, that you have 
 so little to provide Him with when He comes 
 into the world. . . You pay the price of the poor 
 when you redeem Him in the Temple. . . You 
 have only a poor home in' Nazareth to give Him 
 . . . He is the F"'oster-Son of a poor carpenter. . . 
 All is neat but all is poor. . . 
 
 All through your life, Mother Mary, you are to 
 us a model of poverty in imitation of your Divine 
 Son, Who is Himself poor. . . Often He has no 
 where to lay His head. . . He loves the poor 
 because of His compassion for them. . . He loves 
 them because they are nearer to His Soul,. . . 
 more prepared to understand Him than othermen. , . 
 
 48 
 
Obtain for me, Blessed Mother, the spirit of 
 poverty, for this is the condition of my entrance 
 into the Kingdom of Heaven. . . Your Son said so 
 and He is Truth. . . "Blessed are the poor in 
 spirit for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.'* 
 Permeated as I am with the world's thinking 
 this may sound difficult to me. . .It is so con- 
 trary to what I hear around me: "get ahead*', 
 "be independent", "make your fortune quickly", 
 "try to retire at fifty". . .The v/orld doesn't 
 even seem to care how a person comes by his 
 wealth. . .it winks at a little "chiselling" here 
 and there. . .crooked methods. . ."deals". . . 
 shady procedures. . . and all the other tricks of 
 the trade. . . The great sin is to get caught, . . 
 The world sets such store by riches as though 
 these were the only things of value in life. . . 
 
 Your Son castigated the rich and declared 
 how hard it is for them to get to heaven. . . Does 
 the acquiring of wealth imply eternal damnation? 
 ... If I am not to make profession of religious 
 poverty, how can I practice Christian poverty? 
 ... Is there any inconsistency between mjy 
 desire for reasonable security and Christ's 
 precept of poverty in spirit?. . . 
 
 As I examine into the question, I realize that 
 earthly goods. . .property. . .are attached to my 
 right to life. . .that material things must be put 
 to good use. . .that I must not be inordinately 
 
 49 
 
attached to them. . . I must see that, to the 
 Christian, earthly goods are good in themselves 
 . . .that they are a means of sustaining life. . . 
 that they are to be used for God's purposes. . ,1 
 see, on the other hand, how easily I can become 
 attached to them, so that riches become an end 
 in themselves so that I misuse them for wrong 
 ends and thus commit sin and lose God. . . 
 
 Sweet Mother, by your blessed poverty and 
 that of your Son Jesus, obtain for me a spirit of 
 detachment from the goods of this world, so 
 that I may use them as God wills me to use them 
 but that I must be willing to lose everything 
 rather than the friendship of God. . . 
 
 4. The Presentation of Jesus 
 
 Obedience 
 
 In this mystery of the Presentation of Jesus 
 and of your Purification, Mother Mary, I have 
 before me a marvellous example of obedience. . . 
 
 The Mosaic Law prescribed that a mother 
 come to the Temple for the ceremony of puri- 
 fication after the birth of her child. . . But you 
 are a Virgin in the birth of Jesus, . .therefore, 
 you need no cleansing. . .Yet you submit to the 
 Law. . . 
 
 Furthermore, your Son is God, the Lawgiver, 
 
 50 
 
and as such, is above the Law. . . Yet He is 
 obedient to the Law. . . It is His wish that you 
 follow the requirements of the Law by presenting 
 Him and redeeming Him as your first-born. . . 
 
 I m.ust be frank with you, dear Mother, and 
 admit that I find it difficult to obey in a great 
 many situations. . .1 seem to think that Tm old 
 enough to have a mind of my own and to be able 
 to judge what is the right thing to be done. . . 
 I seem to resent almost any kind of authority 
 that is exercised over me. . .1 don't like any 
 kind of regulation but want to do whatever I 
 please. . . Tm afraid I have the wrong idea of 
 freedom. . . 
 
 Help me, sweet Mother, to take the view of 
 faith, . . this is most important in the matter of 
 obedience. , .1 recognize, without any difficulty, 
 that I must obey God. . . this is evident. . . He 
 has created me and therefore I am completely 
 dependent upon Him. . . I must submit my will 
 to His. . . 
 
 By this very token, I must obey God's lawful 
 representatives. . .God does not speak to me 
 directly but delegates His authority to His 
 creatures. . . I am born to live in society. . . 
 this cannot exist without some authority to unite 
 the members in their efforts toward the common 
 good. . . To obey lawful authority is to obey 
 God, . . 
 
 51 
 
Your Son delegated His authority to the 
 Apostles and their successors in the Church. . . 
 The Church exists to teach. . . to govern. . . to 
 sanctify. . . It is through the means placed at 
 my disposal by the Church that I work out my 
 salvation and sanctification. . . Help me, Blessed 
 Mother, to become very closely attached to my 
 parish. . .the gateway of grace. . .Let me give 
 heed to the teachings of the priests who are 
 charged with my soul's salvation. . . Make me 
 an exemplary parishioner. . . through frequent 
 reception of the sacraments. . . participation in 
 the apostolic activities of the parish. . . co- 
 operation with my priests. . . Guide our Bishop 
 and every Bishop in the world. . . Bless and 
 protect our Holy Father especially in these 
 difficult times. . .Let me see in him the living 
 Christ on earth. . . 
 
 Let me be truly subject to those who have 
 temporal authority over me. . . Make me realize 
 that I must be interested in civil government and 
 seek to use my influence to secure the best 
 possible persons in office. . .1 will be interested 
 in local community affairs. . .government. . . 
 police and fire protection. . .the schools. . . 
 recreation. . . and so on in every aspect of 
 community life. . .Guide those that have re- 
 sponsibility on every level of government. . . 
 Let them not use their offices to serve their own 
 
 52 
 
selfish ends but teach them to seek only the 
 common good. . . 
 
 Bless and direct my teachers. . . my employers 
 . . . and any others that have rights over me. . . 
 
 Especially I beg you, sweetest Mother, to 
 bless mother and dad. . .For me, they are the 
 best in the world. . . You had the most wonderful 
 Son on earth, . . Make me to be toward them what 
 Jesus was toward you. . .They have fed me. . . 
 clothed me. . .sheltered me. . .educated me. . . 
 guided me. . .safeguarded and protected me. . . 
 sacrificed for m_e. . . Help me to repay them in 
 som.e slight measure for all they have done for 
 me. . . Help me tjD show my love for them by 
 every manifestation of kindness and consideration 
 . . .Teach me to obey them faithfully in all that 
 they command me to do. . . Let me show reverence 
 for them by acknowledging their dignity in every 
 way. . . 
 
 Today I will check over carefully to see 
 whether my obedience is all that it should be 
 with regard to all that have any authority over 
 me. . . 
 
 53 
 
5. Jesus is Found in the Temple 
 
 Fervor 
 
 O Blessed Mother, your sorrow at the loss of 
 Jesus reminds me of the grief and emptiness of 
 my soul if I should lose Jesus by sin. . .Your 
 joy on finding Him is that of the soul to whom 
 grace is restored. . . 
 
 While Jesus is away from you and Joseph 
 during those three days He remains in the 
 Temple, how is He occupied?. . .He tells you 
 that Himself: "Did you not know that I must be 
 about my Father's business?''. . . 
 
 This, dear Mother, must also be my great pre- 
 occupation in life. . . to be about the heavenly 
 Father's business. . .this is to seek His glory 
 . . .to work out my salvation. . . I am made by 
 God and for God. . . In Him is my beginning and 
 my end. . . In Him, I live. . . and move. . . and 
 have my being. . . 
 
 Your whole life, like that of Jesus, was 
 completely God-centered. . . Show me, Mother, 
 how to forget myself and my own interests that 
 my life may be wholly lived for God. . . Let me 
 come to grips with the conviction that I am a 
 real Christ-bearer, that I am to make Christ's 
 business, not only my business but that of all 
 the world. . . I must be interested not only in my 
 own salvation and sanctification but in that of 
 
 54 
 
all with whom I come into contact. . . Mother 
 Mary, your heart burned with zeal for the cause 
 of your Son. . . make mine also burn with fervor 
 and intensity in this same cause. . . Let no 
 obstacles or difficulties discourage m.e. . . 
 
 Dear Mother, don't let me be just an ordinary 
 so-so Catholic. . . one who follows the routine 
 of Mass and the sacraments with the rest of the 
 crowd. . . one who is afraid he might get too 
 holy if he is in Church too often. . . Am I one of 
 these mediocre Catholics. . . who tries to get 
 through Mass on Sunday in a hurry and is im- 
 patient if the priest preaches too long. . . who 
 slips out during Communion. . . who rarely or 
 never goes to week-day Mass even though it is 
 possible. . . who is very weak about confession 
 and Communion?. . .For these there is no sense 
 of the beautiful liturgy of the Church. . . religion 
 is nothing to get excited about. . . grace is no 
 supernatural reality to them. . . Am I one of 
 these? It's easy to be just average. . .to get 
 into a groove. . . to drift along. . . to take my 
 faith for granted. . . to follow the crowd. . . 
 
 Let me rather have the unrest. . . the energy 
 . . . the fervor. . . the zeal of yourself and of all 
 the saints in growing in holiness and in being 
 interested in the growth in holiness of others. 
 
 55 
 
SORROWFUL MYSTERIES 
 
 L The Agony in the Garden 
 
 Contrition for Sin 
 
 Sorrowful Mother, it is my sins and the sins of 
 all mankind that crushed Jesus to the ground in 
 His Agony in the Garden of Olives, pressed the 
 Precious Blood from His Body, and caused it to 
 trickle to the ground. . . How overwhelming and 
 oppressing must be the weight of these sins. . . 
 Day by day, we pile sin upon sin, iniquity upon 
 iniquity, and give no heed to the warnings of 
 your Divine Son. . . 
 
 I believe the world has pretty well lost the 
 sense of sin. . .It laughs at what it calls 
 prudishness. . .All morality is something merely 
 relative depending upon the viewpoint of society 
 . . .So-called teachers and leaders bid men get 
 rid of the "old superstitions" with regard to 
 morals. . .cast all restraint aside. . .Some 
 deliberately and diabolically set out to corrupt 
 youth by every device that will break down the 
 barriers, weaken their wills, and appeal to the 
 lowest elements of their nature. . . Even religious 
 non-Catholics hardly ever think of making an act 
 of contrition for their sins. . .many things are 
 not even any longer regarded as sins because 
 
 56 
 
as is said, "everybody is doing it". . .Do some 
 of us Catholics tend to lose the sense of sin 
 because we, too, fall victims to the secularism 
 around us that has rejected God and His Law, . . 
 
 Let me see sin in its true light as the great 
 mystery of evil, as the only true evil in the 
 world, , , the evil that would seek to destroy 
 God if it could, , .Wars, disease, poverty, 
 disaster. . .these are not evil compared with 
 sin. . . Sometimes they are the result of sin. . . 
 Sin is the great evil of separation from God. . . 
 it is hell begun on earth, , , 
 
 Sin is the great rebellion, , , Each time I sin, 
 I repeat the words of the angels who revolted 
 against God: '*! will not serve'', . .1 take to 
 myself creatures and use them as though they 
 were mine. . ,1 form my mind, my will, my 
 powers, to my own ends. . ,1 seek myself in- 
 stead of God, . . my own satisfaction before all 
 else. . , my own pleasure before God's will, , . 
 
 Sin is the terrible choice. . .the abuse of my 
 will which is given me to seek and choose the 
 great Good, God Himself. . .and in place of the 
 only Good, I seek trifles. . .toys. . .my own 
 pleasure. . . 
 
 O Blessed Mother of Sorrows, you share with 
 Jesus the great Agony over my sins and the sins 
 of the world. . . Plead with Jesus for the for- 
 giveness of my sins. . .1 recognize that I am a 
 
 57 
 
sinner. . .1 have sinned exceedingly in thought, 
 word, and deed. . . Each evil thought has pressed 
 a thorn more deeply into the brow of Christ. . . 
 each evil word has added another bruising blow 
 to His parched lips. . .each evil deed fashions 
 a nail to be driven into the sacred hands and 
 feet of my Savior. . . 
 
 Sweetest Mother, pray for me that Jesus will 
 forgive me the sins of omission and commission 
 of which I am guilty. . .Develop in me a great 
 horror and fearand sorrow for sin. . .Remind me 
 each night to make a perfect act of contrition. . . 
 Obtain for me the grace of dying in the peace of 
 the Lord. . . 
 
 Mother of mercy, look with com.passion upon 
 upon all sinners. . .the weak ones. . .the 
 obstinate and hardened ones. . . Bring them to 
 seek the forgiveness of your Son and to live 
 again His life in themselves. . . 
 
 2c The Scourging Penance 
 
 O Blessed Mother, how could Jesus endure the 
 sufferings of His scourging?. . . He suffered for 
 us in His flesh in order to bring home to us the 
 necessity of doing penance and of accepting the 
 sufferings that come to us in our lives. . . 
 
 The primary function of your Son is that of 
 
 58 
 
Redeemer. . .for this He came into the world, 
 to atone for the sins of mankind and to reconcile 
 it to the heavenly Father. . . He continues this 
 function down through the ages. . .His act of 
 atonement finds its constant repetition in every 
 Mass and in the sacraments through which His 
 Precious Blood is applied to each soul. . . 
 
 Your Son, dear Mary, is driven out of His own 
 world. . .which He made. . .and upon which He 
 has showered His blessings. . . He is even being 
 driven out of our own nation. . . supposedly a 
 Christian people. . . but, day by day, it is allow- 
 ing itself to fall under the control of secularists 
 . , . who wish to rule religion out of every phase 
 of man's private or public life. . . Jesus is being 
 driven out of the family, which should be the 
 stronghold of love and unity, . . Jesus is being 
 driven out of the individual soul, who no longer 
 sees himself as His brother and destined to live 
 forever with Him in heaven. . . 
 
 Blessed Mother, pity mankind. . . Men, even 
 Catholics, forget the mieaning and the necessity 
 of penance for sin, . . yet Jesus has told us that, 
 without it, we shall perish. . .Men flout it. . . 
 ridicule it. . . think of nothing but their comfort 
 and ease. . .try to escape even the slightest 
 suffering or inconvenience. . . 
 
 How will the hands of your Son's justice be 
 stayed, O Mother, unless there are souls. . , 
 
 59 
 
generous souls. . .who will offer themselves as 
 victims of reparation for the sins of mankind?. . . 
 
 I offer myself in union with your own sufferings 
 as such a victim to sacrifice myself for the 
 love of Jesus and of souls, . . I know that there 
 is endless need of prayer for the conversion of 
 sinners. . . the triumph of your Son's interests 
 on earth. . . and the exaltation of the Church. . . 
 I offer through your hands, sweet Mother, the 
 Precious Blood of Jesus to the Most Blessed 
 Trinity. . . 
 
 I will do penance for my own sins by which I 
 revolted against God and His infinite perfections 
 . . .turned against Him all His blessings. . .and 
 was guilty of the basest ingratitude. . . 
 
 I wish also to do penance for the sins of 
 others. . . in union with your reparation and that 
 of many holy souls in the world. . . May I console 
 Jesus as you did, as Veronica and the holy 
 women did. . .Take the wounds, the blood, the 
 love, the merits of Jesus to touch the Heavenly 
 Father and obtain pardon for sinners. . . 
 
 I wish to offer expiation, dear Mother, by the 
 tears of my heart. , . by my fidelity. . . by patience 
 . . . by a true spirit of religion. . . and by love. . . 
 I wish to offer expiation, blessed Mary, by you 
 . . . by the rosary. . . by suffering. . . by all your 
 merits, virtues, and love. . . Help me to transform 
 myself into Jesus in such a manner that He will 
 
 60 
 
come to suffer in me, in reality, that which He 
 can no longer suffer except mystically on the 
 altar. . . 
 
 3. The Crowning with Thorns 
 
 Humility 
 
 This particular phase of your Son's Passion, 
 Blessed Mother of Sorrows, as does every aspect 
 of His life, stresses the lowly virtue of humility 
 . . .Jesus, King of the universe, Lord of Men's 
 souls, is humbled to the very dust by His own 
 creatures, whom He could have crushed and 
 reduced to nothingness by a mere act of His 
 will, . .But He submitted to their ridicule. . . 
 their insults. . .their blasphemy. . .All through 
 His life. He is willing to occupy an inferior 
 position, to be hidden, unknown, despised, 
 disregarded. . .at His birth in Bethlehem. . . 
 His hidden life in Nazareth, . . even in His 
 public life when He loves to associate with the 
 poor, the unfortunate, the sinner, , .He loves the 
 poor because they are humble, , ,He loves 
 children because they are simple, straight- 
 forward, , , 
 
 Dear Mother, you are the perfect pattern 
 modeled after Christ's own humility, , ,You are 
 chosen Mother of the Messias because of your 
 
 61 
 
humility as well as your virginity. . . You call 
 yourself the handmaid of the Lord. . . God looked 
 upon the lowliness of His handmaiden in order 
 to work great things in you. . » You recognize 
 that all that is in you is from God. . . You refer 
 all the good in you back to God. . . 
 
 I need to learn this great lesson of humility 
 which you and Jesus teach me, holy Mother Mary 
 ... I shall never in my life have to undergo the 
 great humiliations which you and Jesus en- 
 dured. . . 
 
 Help me to start with the basic concept of 
 faith that I am fromi God. . .that I depend on 
 God for my existence, . .and for all that I am 
 and have. . .There is no good in me except that 
 it comes from God. . . How can I think of myself 
 as being something or having something of 
 myself?. . , How can I be proud or conceited in 
 my dealings with others?. . .Too often I cloak 
 pride under the guise of legitimate self-esteem, 
 when, in reality, it is an exaggerated self-love 
 . . . self-interest. . . self-centeredness. . . 
 selfishness. . . 
 
 Mother Mary, like your Jesus, you are meek 
 and humble of heart. . . make me like unto you 
 , . , turn on me your eyes of pity and compassion 
 . . . Make me truly humble in that I recognize 
 that what I am and have is from God. . . 
 
 I will seek God in all things. . .1 will never 
 
 62 
 
seek self. . . I will try to hide my good qualities 
 . . .to avoid human praise. . .to turn attention 
 from myself. . .to think little of the good that I 
 have done. . .to think rather of the good still to 
 be done. . .to choose less desired positions. . . 
 to love the poor and the lowly. . . to give glory 
 and credit only to God. . . 
 
 4. The Carrying of the Cross 
 
 Patience 
 
 Blessed Mother of Sorrows, you would have 
 been most willing to take the place of your 
 Divine Son as He carried His Cross to Calvary 
 . . . Among the crowds along the Way of Sorrows 
 there are so few to console Him. . . But Jesus 
 wishes to show me that the disciple cannot be 
 above the Master. . . In order to be a true disciple 
 of His, I must take up my cross daily and follow 
 Him. . . 
 
 You and your Son give me the most marvellous 
 example of patience. . .Jesus, in carrying His 
 Cross. . . you, in suffering along with Him. . . 
 
 Dear Mother, give me a true understanding of 
 suffering. . . Let me take my cross to follow 
 Christ, my Leader, who became man and shed 
 His own Blood in order to undo that horrible 
 thing which is sin. . . If I do not understand the 
 
 63 
 
meaning of moral evil or sin, I shall be a whim- 
 pering coward who balks at sickness or any 
 bodily pain. . . If I make no account of sin I 
 shall try to escape any inconvenience and 
 trouble. . .1 may grow bitter, hate God, call Him 
 cruel, or even deny His existence. . . Such is 
 the case of those who don't want to understand 
 suffering in relation to moral evil. , . 
 
 Don't let me lose the sense of sin, sweet 
 sinless Mother. . . Let me see it clearly as pride 
 . . .rebellion. . .ingratitude. . .the loss of God's 
 friendship. . . the great evil. . . Let me take up 
 my cross with Jesus. . . the cross of daily 
 suffering. . . Thus I shall become like to Christ 
 , . . I know that the cross Jesus gives me to 
 bear will never be too heavy for me. . . Jesus 
 will give me the help to carry it. . . in fact, He 
 will carry the heavy portion of the burden. . . 
 
 Let me see in suffering a purifying agent. . . 
 Through it, I can get rid of self-love which is 
 the great obstacle to my love to Christ. . . through 
 it, I become more like my Master and my Mother 
 . . . through it, I can offer expiation for my sins 
 and the sins of others. . . 
 
 Obtain for me, blessed Mother, the grace to 
 be patient in all the trying situations of my life 
 . . . let me keep the suffering Christ before my 
 eyes. . . let me not complain or murmur against 
 God but let me endure sickness and physical 
 
 64 
 
sufferings, . .inconveniences, trials, and diffi- 
 culties. . .reverses of fortune and poverty. . . 
 the loss of relatives and friends. . . misunder- 
 standings, injustice, ingratitude, insults, anger, 
 rudeness, bad manners on the part of others. . . 
 my own faults and defects of character. . . my 
 lack of intelligence, my temperament, irritability, 
 bad habits, failings, lack of spiritual progress. . . 
 
 Help me, dear Mother, to walk along side your 
 Son, carrying my cross with Him. . .taking 
 courage from His example and love. . . This day, 
 I will particularly carry a special cross which 
 Christ may send me. . . 
 
 By the merits of the falls of Jesus on the way 
 to Calvary, help me to rise quickly if I should 
 fall into sin. . . never let me grow discouraged 
 or lose confidence. . .Let me give to others the 
 example of what a Christian should be in the 
 midst of suffering and adversity. . . 
 
 Merciful Mother, have pity on those who are 
 undergoing persecutions for your Son's sake. . , 
 
 65 
 
5. The Crucifixion — - Perseverance 
 
 Mother of the Crucified, through the mystery 
 of your Son's death upon the Cross, obtain for 
 me the grace of perseverance, that is, the grace 
 of dying a holy and happy death. . . 
 
 Your Son, born in the obscurity of a cave, has 
 to die in the most public manner possible. . . 
 in the sight of all mankind, so to say. . .His 
 death is the completion of the Redemption of 
 men. , .His is not an easy death. . .He refuses 
 anything that would in the least diminish His 
 physical sufferings. . . There is no human aid 
 possible that can alleviate His mental agonies. . 
 
 Jesus has come to the end of His life. . .He 
 is to die after suffering the worst tortures 
 hanging on the Cross for three hours. . .Mother 
 Mary, filled with bitterest sorrow, you stand 
 there with heroic courage. . .you die morally 
 with Him. . , Jesus can look back upon His life 
 and His v/ork and say: ''It is finished*'. . .His 
 life seems to have been a failure. . .The very 
 ones whom He comes to save try to destroy 
 Him and His work and yet it is in this very 
 failure that He successfully finishes His work 
 ... He could then resignedly commend His 
 spirit into the hands of His Heavenly Father. . . 
 
 Your Son, Blessed Mary, declares that he 
 who perseveres to the end shall be saved. , . 
 
 66 
 
I need your help urgently to keep going on to 
 the end. . . It seems such a struggle to keep 
 going day by day. . .yet I must hold on at all 
 costs. . . It is that last moment of my life that 
 is most significant. . .My whole eternity will 
 depend upon the state of my soul at the moment 
 when I am called into the next life. . .Shall I 
 be in the state of grace or in the state of mortal 
 sin at that instant?. . . Shall I have an opportunity 
 to make my peace with God?. . .This is the 
 important question. . . 
 
 I don't know how long I have yet to live. . . 
 I try to fool myself that Tm still young and have 
 a long life ahead of me. . .Perhaps in my case 
 it may be true. . .But if I pick up today's paper 
 or any day's, for that matter, Til find so many of 
 my age killed in auto accidents, in war, by 
 drowning, heart attacks, and so on. . .Death is 
 no respecter of age. . .When my time comes, 
 God will send the Angel of Death to take me. . . 
 The second that I pass out of this world, I am 
 judged and my position is determined forever. . . 
 there can be no change of sentence. . .It will 
 be heaven or hell. . . eternal happiness and 
 union with God or eternal misery and separation 
 from God. . . 
 
 Perseverance, dearest Mother Mary, is some- 
 thing that I must earn day by day. 
 
 67 
 
GLORIOUS MYSTERIES 
 
 i. The Resurrection 
 
 Supernatural Life 
 
 Glorious Mother, through the merits of Christ's 
 resurrection from the dead, confirm my faith, 
 strengthen my hope, inflame my love. . .Each 
 time I meditate on this mystery assist me to a 
 rebirth in the supernatural life. , . 
 
 Help me, sweet Mother Mary, full of grace, to 
 a realization of what the state of grace, the life 
 of Christ is in me, for it is this that Jesus 
 earned for us by His Death and Resurrection, . . 
 Too many of us have a negative idea of sanctifying 
 grace. . .the freedom from serious sin. . .No, 
 dear Mother, it is something excitingly positive 
 . . . it is Jesus dwelling in me. . . it is the life 
 of Christ in me. . .1 can say, "Jesus keeps me 
 company*'. . . "It is Jesus who lives in me'\ . . 
 I have the assurance from your Divine Son: "If 
 anyone loves Me, he will keep My word, and My 
 Father will love him and We will come to him 
 and make Our abode with him.". . .These words 
 were said by the same Lord Who said "This is 
 My Body'*. . .This is the Divine Indwelling, in 
 which God remains with me and every creature 
 every moment of the day and night, from the 
 
 68 
 
moment of baptism to the moment of death, if 
 He is not driven out through mortal sin. . . Your 
 Son, O Mary, Who had His most perfect indwelling 
 in you. . . for there was no obstacle to His 
 presence. . .seeks to be with me and in me. . . 
 
 O Mary, full of grace, make me to discover 
 the marvellous reality that I carry within my- 
 self without realizing it. . . In eternity I shall 
 be astounded and cry out in amazement at this 
 overwhelming fact of the Divine Indwelling. . . 
 I am a ciborium of the Holy Trinity. . . I am a 
 Christopher, a Christ-bearer, in the full sense 
 of the word. . .1 have found heaven on earth, 
 since heaven is God and I have God in mj soul. . . 
 
 Here is the great truth: JESUS LIVES IN ME 
 . . . This is the truth of faith indeed but I haven't 
 as yet formed solid convictions on the subject 
 . . . How different my life would be if I were 
 firml;>^ rooted in faith and fully believed that 
 your Son is truly within me. . .My life would 
 become divine, , . My thoughts. . . my feelings. . . 
 my affections. . . my will. . . my actions would 
 all have the divine stamp. . , Men, looking at 
 me, would sense the difference. . .They would 
 recognize that your Son really lives in me. . . 
 I should, in a sense, become divine. . . 
 
 Holy Mary, you are my Mother in all truth. . . 
 You have brought me forth to this supernatural 
 life as a member of Christ's Mystical Body. . . 
 
 69 
 
You have only one desire and that is to form me 
 and all other men to the image of Christ and to 
 a true participation in the life of Jesus. . . Make 
 me another Christ. . . 
 
 2. The Ascension 
 
 Otherworldliness 
 
 Blessed Mother, there must have been a 
 mingling of joy and sadness as Jesus left you 
 to return to His Father in heaven. . . The years 
 you spent together were years of intense hap- 
 piness. there were periods too of intense 
 grief and sorrow. , . Now there can be no more 
 sorrow for heaven excludes it. . . It is to be 
 only a matter of time when Jesus will bring you 
 body and soul to be with Him in heaven. . . By 
 the grace of Christ's Ascension help me to keep 
 my sights fixed on heaven and to develop in 
 myself a spirit of otherworldliness. . . 
 
 Your Son frequently speaks about the world 
 and the attitude I should have toward it. . .He 
 would convict the world of sin, of judgment, and 
 of justice. . . I must not be of the world, though 
 of it. . .1 must be crucified to the world. . .1 
 must hate the world. . .What does Jesus here 
 mean by the world? 
 
 It is not, sweet Mother, the people in the 
 
 70 
 
world. . .these I must love as my neighbors. . , 
 It is rather those things for which the world 
 stands and those people who are infested by 
 and give expression to the vicious principles 
 of the world. . .that part of the trio of world, 
 flesh, and devil. . . This is to what your Son 
 refers. . .the evil principles that go counter to 
 His spirit. . . what we today call secularism. . . 
 a materialistic, temporal outlook on life that 
 involves the rejection of God and of His Christ 
 ... the world of sin. . . the world that hates 
 the Church. . .that speaks against you, dear 
 Mother. . .that maligns the Holy Father, the 
 vicar of Christ on earth, . .There are men today 
 in this country, Blessed Mary, who make a good 
 living trying to keep souls of good will away 
 from the Church by claiming that no good Catholic 
 can be a good American. . .There are also the 
 many others who carry on the work of Satan by 
 leading young persons away from the path of 
 goodness by breaking down their moral fiber. . . 
 
 Keep me. Mother, from all spiritual harm. . . 
 Instead of being affected by the principles of 
 the world, let me exert a positive influence for 
 good on those with whom I come into contact. . . 
 Let me set up my standards according to my 
 holy faith, . . I know how easy it is to turn from 
 Christ or to try to water down His teachings in 
 the face of the many whom the world has in its 
 
 71 
 
grip. . .1 may be influenced by the narrowminded 
 thinking of grownups and young people about me, 
 who reflect the general religious indifference of 
 our American society. . .They take a stand 
 consistently against that of the Church. . .they 
 have no supernatural outlook. . .religion must 
 have no place in men's affairs and least of all, 
 in such strategic areas as government, business, 
 education, communication, recreation. . .1 can 
 see that often people act as if there were no 
 God, no Christ, no Church which Christ 
 established. . . 
 
 Help me. Mother Mary, to judge all things in 
 the light of God, of faith, and of eternity. . . 
 Teach me the true purpose of life. . .the meaning 
 of death. . .the value of suffering. . .the place 
 of charity, humility, and justice in my life. , . 
 Let me see in events the plan of God and, in 
 the voice of conscience, the answer to the 
 important question: what does God think of this?. . . 
 
 72 
 
3. The Descent of the Holy Spirit 
 
 The Marian Apostolate 
 
 Blessed Mother, on Pentecost Day, the Holy 
 Spirit comes upon you and the Apostles in the 
 upper room where you had awaited His coming 
 . . .Once before, He had descended upon you 
 to bring about the Incarnation of the Word of 
 God in your blessed womb. . .This time, His 
 coming initiates the great work of the Church to 
 bring Christ and His grace to souls. . .to con- 
 tinue the redemptive action of the Savior in the 
 soul of each individual. . . Is it not for this that 
 you have become the Mother of God as well as 
 the Mother of Men?. . . 
 
 What a transformation takes place in the 
 Apostles as soon as the Holy Spirit takes 
 possession of them! No longer timid, fearful, 
 ignorant men but courageous, enlightened, 
 enthusiastic for the spread of Christ's Kingdom 
 . . . Nothing can stop them now. . . They have a 
 message. . .they have grace and holiness to 
 bring to men. . .they are willing to brave death 
 for the Great Cause. . . 
 
 You have an apostolic role, blessed Mother, 
 in which you need my assistance. . .You call 
 me to be an apostle with the same functions and 
 with all the zeal and enthusiasm of the Apostles 
 who surrounded you on Pentecost. . .You wish 
 
 73 
 
me to place myself under your leadership in 
 your combat against evil. . . You are shown to 
 our first parents in the Garden as the Immaculate 
 Virgin. . .the Woman who would crush the head 
 of the serpent. . .This you do not only in giving 
 birth to the Redeemer but in the battle against 
 evil that goes on until the end of time. . .In 
 each age, you show yourself the Conquering 
 Woman, . . At first, this idea of battle and 
 conflict seems so out of kilter with our thought 
 of you as so incomparably sweet, mild, and 
 compassionate. . . 
 
 Today the great heresy is secularism, religious 
 indifference, progressive apostasy. . .Already 
 through your manifestations at Fatima you show 
 yourseK the living symbol of the victory of 
 truth over error, of faith over unbelief. . . 
 
 Mother, you want me to be one of your apostles 
 . . .Accept me for what I'm worth. . .1 give you 
 my feeble talents and my poor but generous 
 efforts. . .In whatever capacity you wish me to 
 serve, I can do a great deal to carry on your 
 cause, provided Tm willing. . .Let me see my 
 vocation and follow it through. . ,Give me the 
 fervor and fire of youth kindled by the Holy 
 Spirit. . , 
 
 Make me a man of faith. . . one who knows 
 his faith. . .who loves his faith. . .who lives 
 his faith. . .Make mine an apostolate of good 
 
 74 
 
example so that men will be drawn through me 
 to you and your Divine Son. . .In all things, 
 Immaculate Queen, I am at your disposal. . . 
 Do with me what you want. . . 
 
 Raise up a great supply of apostles to carry 
 on the tremendous work that still needs to be 
 done. , • 
 
 4. The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin 
 
 Union with M.ary 
 
 Blessed Mother Mary, your Jesus lives closely 
 united with you during His life with you on 
 earth. . . His is a corporal union with you during 
 the nine months in which His hum.anity is being 
 formed of your virginal substance. . .a close 
 union during the first thirty years of His life in 
 Bethlehem, Egypt, Nazareth. . .Come to save 
 men from sin, He gives you ten times more time 
 than He gives the rest of humanity. . . He sees 
 you as often as possible during His public 
 mission, . . a solemn union as He redeems men 
 on Calvary. . . daily union from Pentecost on 
 in the breaking of the bread. . . eternal union 
 from the moment of your Assumption. . . 
 
 More intimate than this is the spiritual union 
 of your Son with you, . . From all eternity the 
 Word of God thinks of you. . .From the fall of 
 
 75 
 
man, He thinks of you to share with Him in the 
 redemption of mankind. . . As a child and young 
 man, Jesus thinks of you, beyond anything any- 
 one of us could dream of. . . You are the great 
 object of your Son's love. . . upon you He 
 bestows His graces. . . loving you, how could 
 He help thinking of you in His private life and 
 all through His public life?. . .You, His Mother, 
 are also the Mother most faithful. . . the most 
 loyal and devoted follower. . . 
 
 At no time can two hearts be found that are 
 so completely one as yours and His. . . Love of 
 the Father. . . love of men. . . same loves. . . 
 same desires. . . same joys. . . same sorrows 
 . . . and now, eternal happiness in each other's 
 company. . . 
 
 If Jesus and you are so united in thought and 
 feeling, you are especially united in wilL . . 
 Jesus' will is always to do the will of the 
 Father. . . Your will all through your life is ever 
 in conformity with your Son's. . . Union of wills 
 implies union of action. . . He becomes your 
 Son, the God-Man, because He loves us and 
 wishes to die that we may live the life of grace 
 and be made fit inhabitants of heaven. . . You 
 are to be the Co-Redemptrix. . . After His death, 
 you continue to watch over His Church. . . And 
 now, in heaven, in union with Jesus, you are 
 concerned with your great mission as universal 
 
 76 
 
Mediatrix. . . 
 
 Mother Mary, obtain for me the precious grace 
 of imitating Christ's union with you. . . By this 
 union, I can come most easily to the fulfillment 
 of my duties and to true holiness. . . I consecrate 
 myself wholly and lovingly to you. . .In this 
 holy union with you, Blessed Mother, I will 
 strive. . . 
 
 to know you better by constant study and 
 
 meditation. . . 
 to grow day by day in love for you. . . 
 to place my full trust in you. . . 
 to honor you. . . 
 to imitate you. . . 
 
 to burn with an ever increasing ardor and to 
 spend myself in your service. . . 
 
 to keep you constantly in my thoughts. . . 
 
 to unite myself to you in joy and sorrow, 
 success and failure, and in every cir- 
 cumstance of my life. . . 
 
 to conform my will with yours, in the knowl- 
 edge that my will will thus always be 
 aligned with the will of your Son. . . 
 
 77 
 
5. The Coronation of the Blessed Virgin 
 
 Filial Piety Toward Mary 
 
 Glorious Queen of heaven and earth, while I 
 am dazzled by the splendor of your greatness, 
 I know that I can approach you with love and 
 confidence. . .1 have nothing to fear, because no 
 one fears his mother, and you are my Mother and 
 the Mother of all men. . . Throughout eternity 
 you are being honored by your dear Son as well 
 as by all the angels and saints in heaven. . . 
 
 Devotion to you, glorious Mother, is one of 
 the signs of eternal salvation. . . My life is 
 devoted to you and is to be distinguished by a 
 special devotion to you. . . In fact, I desire that 
 my special devotion to you will be more than a 
 devotion. . , I want it to be a way of life, a 
 Marian way of life* . .Such it can become, for it 
 is your own Son Who communicates it to me. . . 
 
 By becoming the Mother of Jesus, the Mother 
 of the Head of the Mystical Body, you conceive 
 us also at the Incarnation as members of this 
 Mystical Body. . .On Calvary you give birth to 
 the Mystical Body. . . 
 
 With Christ, I must be another Christ. . .an- 
 other son of yours. . .1 must be formed by you 
 to resemble your Son. . . For me and for every 
 Christian, child of Mary must mean the same as 
 saint. . . It is your ambition that all the children 
 
 78 
 
which your charity brings forth after your Son, 
 Jesus, must be so united with Him, that with 
 Him, they may be but one son. . . one and the 
 same Christ. . . 
 
 I am another Christ, another child of yours. . . 
 You seek to form me to the likeness of Christ 
 . . .Therefore, as another Christ, I must take on 
 the sentiments, the attitudes of Jesus toward 
 you. . . 
 
 I must share in Christ's filial piety toward 
 you. . . This embraces all the traits of Jesus in 
 His relations to you. . . What kind of a Son is 
 your Jesus?. . . He is the perfect Son, the per- 
 fect Model. . . If I share in His devotion lo you 
 then I must have the perfect devotion. . . 
 
 Like Jesus, I will strive to fulfill toward you 
 all the obligations of a truly devoted and loving 
 son. . . 
 
 I will place myself in your hands to be formed 
 . . . nourished. . . reared by you. . . Thus I can 
 become a saint. . . 
 
 I will seek to know you better. . . to love you 
 . . . obey you. . . honor you. . . imitate you. . . to 
 confide in you. . .to live in union with you. . . 
 
 I will try, to the utmost of my power, to co- 
 operate with you in your mission of bringing 
 souls to Christ. . . 
 
 To this end, I consecrate myself entirely to 
 you. . .1 want to be yours. 
 
 79 
 
Indulgences Attached to the Saying of the Rosary 
 
 For five decades of the Rosary: 
 
 1. An indulgence of five years when recited 
 privately; an indulgence of ten years once a day, 
 when recited with others in common. (S. Paen. Ap., 
 March 18, 1932) 
 
 2. A plenary indulgence whenever recited before 
 the Blessed Sacrament, on condition of Confession 
 and Communion. (Breve, Sept. 4, 1927) 
 
 3. To these indulgences are to be added such as 
 can be gained by using beads blessed by the 
 Dominican Fathers, or other priests having the same 
 powers. 
 
 Indulgences Attached to Blessed Rosaries 
 
 Have your rosary blessed so that you may gain as 
 many indulgences as possible. Apply to a priest who 
 has the faculties to attach the various indulgences 
 to your rosary. 
 
 CROSIER BLESSING: Five hundred days are 
 granted for each Our Father and Hail Mary, even if 
 only a few are said. 
 
 DOMINICAN BLESSING: Those who, while think- 
 ing over the mysteries, recite five decades in the 
 course of the day, may gain an indulgence of 100 
 days for each Our Father and Hail Mary, and five 
 years for each group of five decades. 
 
 80 
 
Those who have been registered as members of the 
 Rosary Confraternity may gain many other indul- 
 gences. To become a member it is necessary to send 
 your name to a place where the Confraternity is 
 erected. Your beads must be blessed by a priest 
 having the power to impart the Dominican blessing. 
 As a member, you must say fifteen decades a week. 
 These need not be said all at one time, nor even all 
 in one day. Failure to carry out the latter duty does 
 not cancel the membership, nor does it bar one from 
 sharing in the prayers of the other members, but one 
 loses the indulgences attached to the recitation of 
 his rosary. 
 
 NOTE: These indulgences are only the principal 
 ones at your disposal for yourself and the departed. 
 Members of the Confraternity can gain many more. 
 For example, members who carry the rosary with 
 them and say five decades a day can gain as much 
 as 366 years' indulgence each day. Pius XI granted 
 a plenary indulgence on the usual conditions (given 
 below) for saying five decades of the rosary before 
 the Blessed Sacrament. As the indulgences are too 
 numerous to calculate their total, make the general 
 intention of gaining all that you can. Say the prayers 
 with some movement of the lips. Have the spirit ol 
 repentance while saying them, for indulgences remit 
 punishment only for those sins that you regret sin- 
 cerely. 
 
 81 
 
I