Reverence in Church
The apostolate of Mary consisted also in the silent but very convincing sermon of outward reverence. This type of preaching suits everybody. A soul desirous of making the Eucharist known and loved will apply herself to it with great care in union with Mary.
How modest and reverent in the Divine Presence of Jesus was the attitude of Mary, the perfect adorer! All penetrated with faith and absorbed in the presence of Jesus, she acted like the angels before the Divine Majesty.
Reverence in church, especially in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament, must be also our chief exterior virtue. This respect is the solemn profession of our faith and, at the same time, a grace of piety and fervor; for God punishes irreverences committed in His sanctuary with a weakening of faith and a withdrawal of graces of devotion.
Let us, therefore, be very severe on the matter of reverence and worship. Let our bearing be dignified, our attitude religious; let us observe a strict silence, and absolute recollection of the senses.
In church our attention must be for Jesus Christ only; friends must be as if they were not. Jesus is everything: the attention of the court centers on the king; he is the only one honored.
At the sight of this profound and religious reverence, the worldly minded will at least be forced to say: “There is something great here!”
The weak, the lukewarm will be ashamed of their tepidity and will pay due homage to Jesus Christ; good example is the royal lesson of wisdom and the most fruitful apostolate.
Conformity to the Will of God
The holy will of God must then be the supreme rule of my life. In fact, there is nothing more reasonable and just than that the will of a servant, of a child should be subject to the will of a good master, of a good father.
Moreover, nothing but what God wills is good, holy, and perfect. The holy will of God is easy; It is always accompanied by grace which makes everything light, sweet, and pleasant. The only useful and right thing for me is what God wants of me. God sees my needs; He knows my weakness; He always selects that which is best for me.
What, then, is there left for me to do but to know the holy will of God concerning me and fulfill it with love? This is the simplest law of life and the best suited to my needs. What does God want of me this very moment? I can always know His holy will from the law of duty, of common sense, and of charity.
Confidence in the Providence of God
God loves me and in His goodness lays out the entire course of my life. He arranges my whole life for my greater good. I am therefore certain that everything which happens to me comes from God and His goodness; health and sickness, joys and sorrows in His service, consolations and desolations, success and failure.
Divine Providence guides the bark of my soul, swells its sails and quiets or sends the storms. My duty is to entrust myself to my Divine Pilot; He will not fail to bring me safely into port in my heavenly country.
Lean on Mary
Mary will perfect Jesus in us. The perfecting of Jesus in us is the special mission of the Holy Ghost. But just as this spirit of love willed to fashion His masterpiece, the Sacred Humanity of Jesus, with the assistance of Mary, so again He requires her cooperation to fix in us the perfect image of the Savior, to transform us into other Christs.
The more He finds Mary in a soul, the more powerfully He acts therein. Question saintly souls on the source of their great love for Jesus; they will tell you it comes from Mary. Has she not the key to the spirit of Jesus? She has the fullness of it. She is, to a certain degree, the perfect image of the Savior, just as the Word is the perfect image of the Father.
She it is that must give us the Spirit of Jesus. To that purpose she will take all the qualities and virtues of Jesus and, making them pass through her motherly heart, she will render them sweeter and easier and will encourage us to imitate them.
Through our love for Mary, therefore, let us go to the holiness of Jesus; to be holy like Mary is to be holy like Jesus.
What Mary did in the first years of the church she will continue to do for us. The apostles had the Eucharist just as we have. But early education is not the work of the Father. An education that has missed a tender mother’s care will always feel it.
May Mary lead us to Jesus and teach us to know and love him as she herself knew and loved him; Therein is holiness and happiness!
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Very beautiful! Thank you!