<![CDATA[The Catacombs

<![CDATA[The Catacombs - Our Lady]]> https://thecatacombs.org/ Sat, 16 May 2026 01:14:07 +0000 MyBB <![CDATA[The Five Fatima Prayers]]> https://thecatacombs.org/showthread.php?tid=8274 Tue, 12 May 2026 10:47:28 +0000 Stone]]> https://thecatacombs.org/showthread.php?tid=8274 [Image: a8ywhjgv7t8w33hpg6zkaa8eggbmz63yx3m6s41?...1778678128]

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]]> <![CDATA[‘Mirror of the Blessed Virgin Mary’ by St. Bonaventure]]> https://thecatacombs.org/showthread.php?tid=8189 Mon, 20 Apr 2026 13:45:42 +0000 Stone]]> https://thecatacombs.org/showthread.php?tid=8189 ‘Mirror of the Blessed Virgin Mary’ by St. Bonaventure
Chapter III, ‘THE MEANINGS OF THE NAME MARY’ pages 13-15; part 2
[Saint Bonaventure – XIII Century AD: Civita di Bagnoregio, Papal States/Lyon, Kingdom of Burgundy-Arles; (aged 52-53);

Cardinal, Bishop, Doctor of the Church, Seraphic Doctor, Teacher of the Faith, Writer, Philosopher]

Taken from here.

[Image: h02a699mm8cwar7v7mps3fm08rzc5xjo5wrkewc?...1776836619]

Image: Cosimo Rosselli ~ ‘Madonna and Child Enthroned with Angels, St Nicholas and St Anthony the Abbot’

“First consider that Mary is a most pure star by living purely and without sin. Therefore doth Wisdom say of her: "She is more beautiful than light, than the sun, and above all the arrangement of the stars, and being compared to light, she is found more pure." Some read here, "before" instead of "more pure," but either phrase is fitted to our Star. For Mary is indeed prior, or before, that is, she is most worthy, most great; Mary is purer than the sun, and the stars, and the light. For both in dignity and purity she surpasses the sun, the stars, and the light, yea, even every spiritual and angelic creature, of whom it is said: "God divides light from darkness," that is, the angels who stood firm from those who fell. Mary is prior to and purer than this angelic light. Hence Saint Anselm exclaims: "O Blessed among women, who surpassest the angels in purity, and the saints in piety!" Behold how Mary is a most pure Star by the purity of her life.

Secondly, consider that Mary is a most radiant star by emitting eternal light and bringing forth the Son of God. For she is that star of whom it is said in Numbers: "A star shall rise out of Jacob, and a rod shall arise in Israel." The rod is the Son of God, who is the ray of Mary, our star; this is that ray of whom it is sung: "As the ray of a star." St. Bernard says: "A ray from a star does not diminish its brightness, neither does the Son of the Virgin lessen the virginity of His Mother." O most truly blessed, O most truly radiant Star, Mary, whose ray has penetrated not only the world, but also Heaven, and even hell, as St. Bernard says: "She is that glorious and beautiful Star arisen out of Jacob, whose ray illuminateth the whole world, whose splendor shines forth in the highest, and penetrates even into hell." As Mary was a most pure star, by living most purely, so is she a most radiant one, by bringing forth the Son of God.

Thirdly, consider that Mary is a most useful star, by guiding us to our heavenly country, by leading us through the sea of this world to the grave of her Son, as to the gates of Paradise. She is as that radiant star which led the Magi most surely to Christ. Mary is that star which in the waves of the present life is most necessary to us. St. Bernard says: "Turn not away thine eyes from the splendor of this star, if thou wilt not be overwhelmed by storms. If the winds of temptation arise, if thou strikest on the rocks of temptation, tribulation, look upon the star, call on Mary." Therefore, lest thou shouldst be submerged in the sea of this world, follow the star, imitate Mary. It is the safest of paths to follow her, as St. Bernard says: "Following her, thou strayest not, praying to her, thou shalt never despair; thinking of her, thou shalt never err; if she upholdeth thee, thou shalt not fall; under her protection thou shalt not fear; if she is thy guide, thou shalt not grow weary; with her favor thou shalt attain thy end; and so in thyself thou shalt experience how truly it is said: And the name of the virgin was Mary."

Mary is also interpreted illuminatrix or lightgiver. For this virgin was wonderfully illuminated by the presence of the Lord, according to that word of the Apocalypse: "I saw another angel coming down from heaven, having great power, and the earth was enlightened by the glory of him.... The Son of God is the Angel of Great Counsel; the earth illuminated by the glory of Him is Mary, who, as she was illuminated by His grace in the world, is now illuminated by His glory in Heaven, that, being thus illuminated, she may become a lightgiver in the world and in Heaven. Therefore, we must consider that Mary, the illuminated, is a light-giver by her example, her benefits, and her rewards. She giveth light by the example of her life, by the benefits of her mercy, and by the rewards of her glory.

Mary is the light-giver by the example of her most luminous life. For it is she who by her glorious life giveth light to the world. She it is whose glorious life enlightens all the churches. She is the lamp of the Church, enkindled by God for this very purpose that by her the Church might be enlightened against the darkness of the world. Let the Church, therefore, pray, let the faithful soul pray: "For Thou lightest my lamp, O Lord, my God, enlighten my darkness." The Lord hath lit this lamp most radiantly, and by this light he puts to flight the darkness of our souls. St. Bernard felt this when he said: "O Mary, by the magnificent example of thy virtues thou stirrest us up to the imitation of thee, and thus dost enlighten our night. For he who walketh in thy ways, walketh not in darkness, but has the light of life."

Secondly, consider how Mary is light-giver by the benefits of her gracious mercy, by which so many in the night of this world are spiritually illuminated, as the Israelites in olden days were by a pillar of fire, according to the Psalm: "Thou didst lead them forth in a pillar of cloud." Mary is to us a pillar of cloud, for she protects us like a cloud from the fiery heat of the divine indignation. She also protects us from the heat of diabolical temptation, as it is also said in the Psalm, "He spread a cloud."

Mary is a pillar of fire. What would become of us wretched beings, so full of darkness, in the light of this world, if we had not so lucid a lamp, so luminous a pillar ? What would become of the world without the sun ? St. Bernard says: "Take away this lightsome body, the sun, what will give light to the world, and where is day? Take away Mary, this Star of the Sea, and what remains save an enveloping cloud, the shadow of death, and the densest darkness?" Thou hast seen how Mary is a lightgiver by her most transcendently luminous life, thou shalt now see how Mary is an illuminatrix by her most resplendent mercy.

Thirdly, consider that Mary is also illuminatrix by her most resplendent glory, which illuminates the whole of Heaven, as the sun doth the world, according to Ecclesiasticus: "The sun giving light hath looked upon all things, and full of the glory of the Lord is his work" (XLII, 16.) The work of the Lord is full of His glory; the most excellent work of the Lord is Mary. This work, as it was full of the grace of the Lord in this world, is full of the glory of the Lord in Heaven. Thus, therefore, Mary, giving light by her glory, hath looked upon all things, because through all the angels and all the saints she spreadeth the illumination of her glory. What wonder if the presence of Mary illuminates the whole of Heaven, who also doth illuminate the whole earth? For St. Bernard saith . "The presence of Mary lights up the whole world, and the very heavenly country itself glows more brightly from being irradiated by the splendor of that virginal lamp." So thou seest how Mary is illuminatrix by her light-giving life and also by her resplendent glory.”]]> ‘Mirror of the Blessed Virgin Mary’ by St. Bonaventure
Chapter III, ‘THE MEANINGS OF THE NAME MARY’ pages 13-15; part 2
[Saint Bonaventure – XIII Century AD: Civita di Bagnoregio, Papal States/Lyon, Kingdom of Burgundy-Arles; (aged 52-53);

Cardinal, Bishop, Doctor of the Church, Seraphic Doctor, Teacher of the Faith, Writer, Philosopher]

Taken from here.

[Image: h02a699mm8cwar7v7mps3fm08rzc5xjo5wrkewc?...1776836619]

Image: Cosimo Rosselli ~ ‘Madonna and Child Enthroned with Angels, St Nicholas and St Anthony the Abbot’

“First consider that Mary is a most pure star by living purely and without sin. Therefore doth Wisdom say of her: "She is more beautiful than light, than the sun, and above all the arrangement of the stars, and being compared to light, she is found more pure." Some read here, "before" instead of "more pure," but either phrase is fitted to our Star. For Mary is indeed prior, or before, that is, she is most worthy, most great; Mary is purer than the sun, and the stars, and the light. For both in dignity and purity she surpasses the sun, the stars, and the light, yea, even every spiritual and angelic creature, of whom it is said: "God divides light from darkness," that is, the angels who stood firm from those who fell. Mary is prior to and purer than this angelic light. Hence Saint Anselm exclaims: "O Blessed among women, who surpassest the angels in purity, and the saints in piety!" Behold how Mary is a most pure Star by the purity of her life.

Secondly, consider that Mary is a most radiant star by emitting eternal light and bringing forth the Son of God. For she is that star of whom it is said in Numbers: "A star shall rise out of Jacob, and a rod shall arise in Israel." The rod is the Son of God, who is the ray of Mary, our star; this is that ray of whom it is sung: "As the ray of a star." St. Bernard says: "A ray from a star does not diminish its brightness, neither does the Son of the Virgin lessen the virginity of His Mother." O most truly blessed, O most truly radiant Star, Mary, whose ray has penetrated not only the world, but also Heaven, and even hell, as St. Bernard says: "She is that glorious and beautiful Star arisen out of Jacob, whose ray illuminateth the whole world, whose splendor shines forth in the highest, and penetrates even into hell." As Mary was a most pure star, by living most purely, so is she a most radiant one, by bringing forth the Son of God.

Thirdly, consider that Mary is a most useful star, by guiding us to our heavenly country, by leading us through the sea of this world to the grave of her Son, as to the gates of Paradise. She is as that radiant star which led the Magi most surely to Christ. Mary is that star which in the waves of the present life is most necessary to us. St. Bernard says: "Turn not away thine eyes from the splendor of this star, if thou wilt not be overwhelmed by storms. If the winds of temptation arise, if thou strikest on the rocks of temptation, tribulation, look upon the star, call on Mary." Therefore, lest thou shouldst be submerged in the sea of this world, follow the star, imitate Mary. It is the safest of paths to follow her, as St. Bernard says: "Following her, thou strayest not, praying to her, thou shalt never despair; thinking of her, thou shalt never err; if she upholdeth thee, thou shalt not fall; under her protection thou shalt not fear; if she is thy guide, thou shalt not grow weary; with her favor thou shalt attain thy end; and so in thyself thou shalt experience how truly it is said: And the name of the virgin was Mary."

Mary is also interpreted illuminatrix or lightgiver. For this virgin was wonderfully illuminated by the presence of the Lord, according to that word of the Apocalypse: "I saw another angel coming down from heaven, having great power, and the earth was enlightened by the glory of him.... The Son of God is the Angel of Great Counsel; the earth illuminated by the glory of Him is Mary, who, as she was illuminated by His grace in the world, is now illuminated by His glory in Heaven, that, being thus illuminated, she may become a lightgiver in the world and in Heaven. Therefore, we must consider that Mary, the illuminated, is a light-giver by her example, her benefits, and her rewards. She giveth light by the example of her life, by the benefits of her mercy, and by the rewards of her glory.

Mary is the light-giver by the example of her most luminous life. For it is she who by her glorious life giveth light to the world. She it is whose glorious life enlightens all the churches. She is the lamp of the Church, enkindled by God for this very purpose that by her the Church might be enlightened against the darkness of the world. Let the Church, therefore, pray, let the faithful soul pray: "For Thou lightest my lamp, O Lord, my God, enlighten my darkness." The Lord hath lit this lamp most radiantly, and by this light he puts to flight the darkness of our souls. St. Bernard felt this when he said: "O Mary, by the magnificent example of thy virtues thou stirrest us up to the imitation of thee, and thus dost enlighten our night. For he who walketh in thy ways, walketh not in darkness, but has the light of life."

Secondly, consider how Mary is light-giver by the benefits of her gracious mercy, by which so many in the night of this world are spiritually illuminated, as the Israelites in olden days were by a pillar of fire, according to the Psalm: "Thou didst lead them forth in a pillar of cloud." Mary is to us a pillar of cloud, for she protects us like a cloud from the fiery heat of the divine indignation. She also protects us from the heat of diabolical temptation, as it is also said in the Psalm, "He spread a cloud."

Mary is a pillar of fire. What would become of us wretched beings, so full of darkness, in the light of this world, if we had not so lucid a lamp, so luminous a pillar ? What would become of the world without the sun ? St. Bernard says: "Take away this lightsome body, the sun, what will give light to the world, and where is day? Take away Mary, this Star of the Sea, and what remains save an enveloping cloud, the shadow of death, and the densest darkness?" Thou hast seen how Mary is a lightgiver by her most transcendently luminous life, thou shalt now see how Mary is an illuminatrix by her most resplendent mercy.

Thirdly, consider that Mary is also illuminatrix by her most resplendent glory, which illuminates the whole of Heaven, as the sun doth the world, according to Ecclesiasticus: "The sun giving light hath looked upon all things, and full of the glory of the Lord is his work" (XLII, 16.) The work of the Lord is full of His glory; the most excellent work of the Lord is Mary. This work, as it was full of the grace of the Lord in this world, is full of the glory of the Lord in Heaven. Thus, therefore, Mary, giving light by her glory, hath looked upon all things, because through all the angels and all the saints she spreadeth the illumination of her glory. What wonder if the presence of Mary illuminates the whole of Heaven, who also doth illuminate the whole earth? For St. Bernard saith . "The presence of Mary lights up the whole world, and the very heavenly country itself glows more brightly from being irradiated by the splendor of that virginal lamp." So thou seest how Mary is illuminatrix by her light-giving life and also by her resplendent glory.”]]> <![CDATA[Fr. Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange: Sovereign Redemption and Its Fruits in Mary]]> https://thecatacombs.org/showthread.php?tid=8116 Wed, 25 Mar 2026 10:35:11 +0000 Stone]]> https://thecatacombs.org/showthread.php?tid=8116 SOVEREIGN REDEMPTION AND ITS FRUITS IN MARY

Taken from OUR SAVIOUR AND HIS LOVE FOR US
Fr. Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange, O.P.
Imprimatur and Nihil Obstat, 1951

[Image: ?u=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn2.oceansbridge.com%2...c2a186c24c]

[Image: ?u=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn2.oceansbridge.com%2...c2a186c24c]

"He that is mighty hath done great things to me." Luke 1:49

THE special manner in which the mystery of the Redemption was accomplished with relation to Mary, the Mother of God, contains such profound harmonies that they long remained hidden even from great theologians and great Saints like St. Bernard, St. Bonaventure, and perhaps St. Thomas Aquinas. 1 Now that the Church has made an infallible pronouncement by defining the dogma of the Immaculate Conception, all the faithful can see in this privilege the most eminent form of the mystery of the Redemption. Let us first consider it in the light of the privilege itself, and secondly in the light of its consequences.

The Preservative Redemption

The harmony of a mystery is all the more beautiful when it intimately reconciles things that are apparently most contradictory and that God alone can bring together. Thus the mystery of the Redemption, considered in terms of the Savior Himself, reconciles in the sufferings endured through love the most rigorous justice and the tenderest mercy. Therein lies the sublimity of the Cross.

The Immaculate Conception presents a reconciliation of the same order. On the one hand the Virgin Mary, by reason of her birth as a daughter of Adam, was destined to contract Original Sin. The first man, through his sin, lost original justice for himself and for us. That is to say, he lost sanctifying grace and the privileges that accompanied it. Had he remained innocent, he would have transmitted this original justice to us, together with his human nature. 2 The law that weighs on our fallen nature is universal: human nature is transmitted to all of us by way of generation, but it is transmitted deprived of grace and of the privileges of the state of innocence. Every child is born not merely deprived of sanctifying grace but moreover inclined to covetousness, to disorders of the passions, to error, and subject to suffering and death. "By one man sin entered into this world," 3 St. Paul tells us. Mary, therefore, by reason of her birth as a daughter of Adam, was destined to contract Original Sin. How could she, caught in the current of generation, escape the current of sin? And, as St. Peter declares, "there is no other name under Heaven given to men, whereby we must be saved" [except that of Jesus Christ]. 4 St. Paul also says: "There is ... one mediator of God and men, the man Christ Jesus Who gave Himself a redemption for all." 5 There is no salvation for anyone except through the blood of the Savior, Who is the Redeemer of all men without any exception. In this sense Mary needs redemption, just like the other children of men.

St. Thomas lays great stress on this point, for this is a capital dogma of our faith. There is no salvation except through Christ Who died for us.

Mary, on the other hand, has been called from all eternity to be the Mother of the Savior. The heavenly Father chose her through a love of predilection from among all women, so that in time she should give a body to the Son, only begotten from all eternity. No one but the heavenly Father and Mary can call Jesus, "My Son." The Holy Ghost was to overshadow her and, without sullying her virginity in any way, was to make it possible for her to conceive the Savior. The Word of God, Who exists eternally and therefore existed before creation, was to be truly Mary's son, and He was to love her among all creatures as His true Mother.

Could it be that Mary, called to this glorious maternity, should have come into the world bearing the stain of Original Sin? Was it possible that she who was to be the Mother of the Author of grace should be born deprived of grace? Could she who was to be the Mother of the Word made flesh have been born inclined toward covetousness, disorders of the emotions, and error?

These reasons are so compelling that even the theologians who once doubted the privilege of the Immaculate Conception declared unequivocally that Mary was sanctified before her birth in the womb of her mother, St. Anne. But the Church goes still further and has solemnly affirmed the privilege of the Immaculate Conception, accorded at the very instant when Mary's soul was created and united to her body.

How then can we reconcile these two things that are apparently so irreconcilable: Mary, being the daughter of Adam, must contract Original Sin; but, being called to be the Mother of God, she must be exempt from any stain whatever, she must escape the universal contagion?

How can these things be reconciled? We can understand an exception to the law of man's fall, in view of a mission that is unique in the world, a mission that is superior to that of the prophets and Apostles. But how was this exception to be accomplished? Was Mary preserved from the common stain independently of the future merits of her Son? Is it possible that Christ, the sole Mediator and Savior of all souls, is not Mary's Savior? Can it be that she does not owe her holiness to Him? St. Thomas rightly placed great emphasis on this point, for he was deeply concerned with safeguarding the dogma of universal redemption.

The Church, in defining the Immaculate Conception, answers: Mary was the beneficiary of a unique mode of redemption, a preservative redemption, and not merely a liberating and reparative redemption. Mary was preserved from Original Sin because of the future merits of her Son, and this truth reveals to us the deep harmony of the mystery, which long remained hidden even from great Saints. [Emphasis in bold added.]

What kept St. Thomas from stoutly affirming the privilege of the Immaculate Conception, not yet defined by the Church at that time, was his fear of contradicting the dogma of the universal redemption of souls by Jesus Christ. He feared he might detract from the Redeemer's glory. And Divine Providence seems to have permitted the great doctor to remain in darkness on this point, and with him St. Bonaventure and St. Bernard, because the proclamation of this privilege was reserved for much later, for our era of unbelief and naturalism which denies Original Sin and the necessity of redemption. 6

Preservative redemption is one of the marvels of Catholic dogma. To truly understand it we must realize that not only is Jesus Christ Mary's Savior, but that she benefited more than anyone else from His redemptive mission. Herein lies all the grandeur of the mystery. Let us consider it in some detail. Indeed it is fitting that the absolutely perfect Savior should exercise sovereign redemption for at least one soul, the soul called to be most intimately united to Him in His work of salvation. But perfect redemption consists not only in rescuing a soul from sin, but also in preserving it from this sin even before sin has had a chance to sully it. He who preserves us from a mortal blow saves our life even better than if he healed the wound caused by this blow. It is therefore highly fitting that Christ Jesus, the perfect Redeemer, should bestow upon His Mother redemption in all its plenitude: a redemption that is not merely reparative and liberating, but a preservative redemption. It is highly fitting that Mary should not be liberated, purified, cured of Original Sin, but that she should be totally preserved from it by the future merits of her Son.

Christ's love for His immaculate Mother is immense. At the thought of it our souls should rejoice and soar upward. Only the Mother of the Son of God could have this unique prerogative. How fitting that she should have it!
Inasmuch as she had been called to become the Mother of God and the Coredemptrix, the Mother of all men, it was necessary that she be redeemed as perfectly as possible. Being closer than anyone to the stream of grace that pours from the Word made flesh, she received His blessings in their plenitude.

At a time when all truths were being depreciated, when many refused to believe either in Original Sin or in the necessity of Baptismal regeneration, it was fitting that the Church should solemnly define this dogma and that Mary should remind us of all these truths by telling us at Lourdes: "I am the Immaculate Conception." This privilege, far from detracting from the dogma of the universal redemption of souls by Jesus Christ, discloses to us in the person of Mary sovereign redemption in its most perfect form conceivable. 7

In preserving His Mother from Original Sin, the Savior gave her an initial plenitude of grace greater than that of all the Saints and Angels taken together, just as a single diamond may have greater value than a great pile of lesser stones. From this initial plenitude of sanctifying grace sprang forth in the same eminent degree faith, hope, charity, the infused moral virtues, and the seven gifts of the Holy Ghost. Moreover, this initial plenitude did not cease growing until Mary's death, for no venial sin or imperfection impeded its progress. Because of Mary's unceasing fidelity, the initial treasure increased in a marvelous progression. Just as bodies fall with increasing speed as they approach the earth by virtue of the law of acceleration which is a corollary of universal gravitation, so do souls progress more quickly toward God as they come closer to Him and are increasingly attracted by Him. 8

This law of acceleration of the progress of souls toward God, which is approximately verified in the lives of the Saints especially by frequent Holy Communion, 9 was fully verified in Mary. Whereas Jesus never increased in goodness, 10 since He had been conceived in the absolute plenitude of grace, Mary continued to increase in perfection until her death, until the moment of the final plenitude of grace when her soul entered glory. 11

It is a consolation to think that there has been one soul that received in its plenitude everything that God desired to give her and that never impeded the pouring of grace upon other souls. There is one absolutely perfect soul which allowed the Divine life-giving torrent to flow through her without obstacle. There is at least one soul that never for a single instant failed to measure up to what God desired of her. This is the soul of the Mother of God, the Mother of all men, who watches over them to lead them to eternal life.

This is what we mean by sovereign Redemption, a redemption that is not merely liberating and reparative but also preservative. This is what motivated the words of the Archangel Gabriel when he said to Mary: "Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women."12

The Consequences of the Preservative Redemption

Did the privilege we have just discussed remove from Mary even here on earth all the consequences of Original Sin? What happens to us even after Baptism which remits Original Sin and restores us to sanctifying grace with all its accompanying infused virtues and gifts of the Holy Ghost? Even after Baptism, there remain in us as a consequence of Original Sin concupiscence or the roots of covetousness that enkindle our evil passions, inclination toward error or weak judgment that easily goes astray, as well as suffering and death.

None of these evils existed in the state of original justice in which human nature was ennobled by grace and endowed with privileges. The body was perfectly submissive to the soul, the passions to right reason and to the will, and the will was submissive to God. Baptism, while it cleanses us of Original Sin, leaves the consequences of Original Sin in us as so many occasions for struggle and merit.

What is so striking about Mary is that the privilege of the Immaculate Conception exempts her from two of the consequences of Original Sin that are blighting and incompatible with her mission as Mother of God, but her privilege does not exempt her from suffering and death. This is most illuminating.

From the first moment of her life Mary was exempt from every form of concupiscence. The embers of covetousness never existed in her. No movement of her emotions could be disorderly or circumvent her judgment and her consent. Hers was perfect subordination of the emotions to the intellect and the will, and of the will to God as was the case of man in the state of innocence. Thus Mary is the most pure Virgin of virgins, "inviolata, intemerata," the tower of ivory, the most perfect mirror of God.

Likewise Mary was never subject to error or illusion. Her judgment was always enlightened, always clearsighted. In the words of the Litany, she is the Seat of Wisdom, the Virgin most prudent, the Mother of good counsel. All theologians agree that even here on earth she possessed an eminently superior and simple understanding of the Scriptures on the subject of the Messiah, the Incarnation, and the Redemption. She was more intimately initiated into the secrets of the kingdom of Heaven than were the Apostles. Then too, everything in nature spoke to her of the Creator more poignantly than to the greatest poets. In its simplicity her contemplation was superior to that of the greatest Saints, to that of even St. John, St. Paul, or St. Augustine. Mary was above ecstasy. She had no need to lose the use of her senses to become very intimately united to God. Her union with Him was continual. She was thus perfectly exempt from covetousness and error.

Why then did not the privilege of the Immaculate Conception exempt Mary from suffering and death, which are also consequences of Original Sin? The truth of the matter is that suffering and death, as Mary and Jesus experienced them, were not consequences of Original Sin, as they are for us. For Original Sin had not touched them. Suffering and death were for them the consequences of human nature which by its very nature is subject to suffering and to corporeal death just as is the nature of the animal. It was only through a supernatural privilege that Adam in his innocence was exempt from all suffering and from the necessity of dying.

That He might become our Redeemer by His death on the Cross, Jesus was virginally conceived in mortal flesh, and He willingly accepted suffering and dying for our salvation. Following His example, Mary willingly accepted suffering and death also, so that she might be united to her Son's sacrifice, make expiation with Him in our stead, and thus redeem us.

And, astonishingly enough, the privilege of the Immaculate Conception and the plenitude of grace she enjoyed, instead of exempting Mary from pain, considerably increased her capacity for suffering. This truth never ceases to arouse the admiration and wonder of the contemplatives. Mary suffered extraordinarily from the gravest evils precisely because she was absolutely pure, because her heart was aflame with Divine charity. Yet we in our flightiness are not much troubled by these evils. We suffer because of things that wound our susceptibility, our self-love, our pride. Mary suffered because of sin in the measure of her love for God Whom sin offends, in the measure of her love for her Son whom sin crucified, in the measure of her love for our souls that sin ravages and kills. Just as the Blessed Virgin's love for God was superior even here on earth to that of all the Saints taken together, the same is true of her suffering. Here on earth, the closer a soul is to God - that is, the more it loves - the more it is destined to suffer. Mary loved the Savior, not only as her beloved Son but also as her Son the legitimate object of adoration, with her most tender virginal heart. The depth of her love made of her the queen of Martyrs. As the aged Simeon had prophesied, a sword pierced her soul. The privilege of the Immaculate Conception, far from exempting Mary from sufferings, thus increased them and disposed her so well to endure them that she wasted none of them.

Finally, although this privilege did not save Mary from being subject to death, the Assumption was one of its consequences. Mary, conceived without sin, preserved from all sin, was not to know the corruption of the grave. The Savior was thus to associate her to the glories of the Ascension and to hasten for her the moment of the resurrection of the body.

Such were the consequences of the sovereign redemption which was accomplished in her. Not only was Mary redeemed by the most perfect redemption conceivable, but she has been intimately associated with the work of the salvation of mankind through her love and suffering.

This preservative redemption reminds us of the value of a less exalted grace, but one that is so necessary to us: Baptism. Although we are born sinners, we are cleansed of Original Sin by baptismal grace, which is the seed of eternal life. There is an immense difference between an unbaptized child and one who has received the Sacrament of regeneration. And as Mary's initial plenitude of grace never stopped growing within her during her lifetime, so the seed of eternal life should never cease growing in us until the moment of our death. God loves us much more than we realize. In order to grasp the full value of the sanctifying grace received in Baptism, we should have to see God. For grace is nothing but a true and formal participation in God's intimate life.

Lastly, the sovereign redemption that we have just contemplated in Mary reminds us of the value of sanctity, and inspires us to pray earnestly, especially at the thought of the spiritual wretchedness of present-day Russia and other vast areas of the world. As the contemplatives tell us, the actual state of the world is at once much sadder and more beautiful than we know. The world desires no more Saints, and expels them from persecuted lands. But God for His part wishes to give the world Saints of every age and station in life. God wishes to give the world Saints, but we must ask Him for them and secure them from His mercy. For a number of years now, Rome has been multiplying its beatifications and canonizations. In moments of great confusion like that of the Albigensian heresy and that of Protestantism, God sent galaxies of Saints to carry on His Son's work and to lift up afflicted and tempted souls.

Although the world's plight is grave, let us not view it with discouragement and thereby depress those around us. Let us look at the other pan of the scales with a holy realism, and see in it the infinite merits of the Savior, those of Mary Coredemptrix and Mediatrix, and those of all the Saints. This is the supernatural contemplation superior to all science, the contemplation that awakens in us not merely momentary enthusiasm but "the hunger and thirst for God's justice." It tells us that the only genuinely and profoundly interesting thing for us is sanctity and whatever leads us toward it. When this sanctity is incontestable, as in Mary, it becomes manifest to all as the profound reign of God in souls, and it permits us to glimpse even here on earth the grandeur of the mystery of Redemption, that is, the mystery of eternal life given back to souls that are willing to receive it.

1. It is often said that St. Thomas denied the privilege of the Immaculate Conception. Such a categorical assertion does not seem justified on the basis of a work recently written on this subject by Father N. del Prado, O.P., of the University of Fribourg, Divus Thomas et bulla dogmatica "lneffabilis Deus" (1919). In this work the author shows that St. Thomas made more of a distinction than is generally believed between the body of the Blessed Virgin before the animation, and her person which presupposes the presence of a rational soul within the body. According to the saintly Doctor, the body of the Blessed Virgin before the animation was not preserved from Original Sin. But with regard to the person of Mary, several reliable authors maintain that St. Thomas neither affirmed nor denied the privilege. Since the Church had not yet made any pronouncement on the matter, neither did he see fit to make. Cf. P. Frietoff, O.P., Angelicum, July, 1933: "Quomodo caro B.V.M. in originale concepta fuerit."
2. The Council of Trent says clearly: "Si quis Adae praevaricationem sibi soli et non ejus propagini asserit nocuisse, acceptam a Deo sanctitatem et justitiam, quam perdidit, sibi soli et non nobis etiam eum perdidisse: an. sit" (Denzinger, no. 789).
3. Rom. 5:12.
4. Acts 4:12.
5. 1 Tim. 2:5
6. If these great doctors had made definite pronouncements in favor of the Immaculate Conception, this dogma would probably have been defined before the nineteenth century.
7. Let us note that, since Mary was fully redeemed by Christ, she was not able, properly speaking, to merit the Incarnation even de congruo. Why? Because the principle of merit cannot be merited, just as the first cause cannot be an effect produced. It cannot produce itself. Thus the merits of the Blessed Virgin Mary derive from the future merits of her Son as their primary source. [IBID.] Her merits depend on those of her Son not only as on a final cause, but as on an efficient moral cause, foreseen and willed by God. Mary therefore could not have merited the Incarnation. But having received the initial plenitude of grace through the future merits of her Son, she merited the superior degree of grace which made her the worthy Mother of the Savior. St. Thomas (IIIa, q. 2, a. 11 ad 3) says with admirable precision: "The Blessed Virgin is said to have merited to bear the Lord of all; not that she merited His incarnation, but because by the grace bestowed upon her she merited that grace of purity and holiness which fitted her to be the Mother of God."
Several modern theologians seem to forget this distinction and therefore to misunderstand the great principle that the principle of merit cannot be merited. Some wish to apply in this connection the axiom "causae ad invicem sunt causae," but one must not forget to add "in diverso genere." There is certainly a mutual priority of final and efficient causes, but on condition of keeping in mind that they are of diverse orders. The principal root of Mary's merits lies in the merits of Christ, and these latter presuppose the Incarnation. Thus Mary could not merit the Incarnation. It is clear that here we are dealing with the same order of causality. Cf. the commentators of St. Thomas on IIIa, q. 2., a. 11, for example Billuart: "Nullum meritum est aut concipi potest pro praesenti hominum statu, quod non accipiat valorem suum et vim merendi ex Christi meritis."
8. Cf. St. Thomas, In Epistolam ad Hebraeos, 10 :25: "Motus naturalis (v.g., motus lapidis cadentis ad centrum terrae) quanto plus accedit ad terminum, magis intenditur. Contrarium est de motu violento. Gratia autem inclinat in modum naturae. Ergo qui sunt in gratia, quanto plus accedunt ad finem, plus debent crescere." Cf. St. Thomas, Ia IIae, q. 35, a. 6 ad 2: "Omnis motus naturalis intensior est in fine."
9. In principle, if we fought generously against negligence and every attachment to venial sin, each of our Communions should be substantially more fervent than the preceding one since each of them must not only preserve but increase charity in us and therefore dispose us to receive our Lord with a more fervent will the following day.
10. Cf. Concilium Constantinop. II (Denzinger, no. ZZ4).
11. As the theologians say in describing this instant which is preceded by a period of time that can be divided ad infinitum: "primum non esse viae, seu primum esse separationil animae a corpore, fuit primum esse vitae ejus gloriosae."
12. Luke 1:28.]]> SOVEREIGN REDEMPTION AND ITS FRUITS IN MARY

Taken from OUR SAVIOUR AND HIS LOVE FOR US
Fr. Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange, O.P.
Imprimatur and Nihil Obstat, 1951

[Image: ?u=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn2.oceansbridge.com%2...c2a186c24c]

"He that is mighty hath done great things to me." Luke 1:49

THE special manner in which the mystery of the Redemption was accomplished with relation to Mary, the Mother of God, contains such profound harmonies that they long remained hidden even from great theologians and great Saints like St. Bernard, St. Bonaventure, and perhaps St. Thomas Aquinas. 1 Now that the Church has made an infallible pronouncement by defining the dogma of the Immaculate Conception, all the faithful can see in this privilege the most eminent form of the mystery of the Redemption. Let us first consider it in the light of the privilege itself, and secondly in the light of its consequences.

The Preservative Redemption

The harmony of a mystery is all the more beautiful when it intimately reconciles things that are apparently most contradictory and that God alone can bring together. Thus the mystery of the Redemption, considered in terms of the Savior Himself, reconciles in the sufferings endured through love the most rigorous justice and the tenderest mercy. Therein lies the sublimity of the Cross.

The Immaculate Conception presents a reconciliation of the same order. On the one hand the Virgin Mary, by reason of her birth as a daughter of Adam, was destined to contract Original Sin. The first man, through his sin, lost original justice for himself and for us. That is to say, he lost sanctifying grace and the privileges that accompanied it. Had he remained innocent, he would have transmitted this original justice to us, together with his human nature. 2 The law that weighs on our fallen nature is universal: human nature is transmitted to all of us by way of generation, but it is transmitted deprived of grace and of the privileges of the state of innocence. Every child is born not merely deprived of sanctifying grace but moreover inclined to covetousness, to disorders of the passions, to error, and subject to suffering and death. "By one man sin entered into this world," 3 St. Paul tells us. Mary, therefore, by reason of her birth as a daughter of Adam, was destined to contract Original Sin. How could she, caught in the current of generation, escape the current of sin? And, as St. Peter declares, "there is no other name under Heaven given to men, whereby we must be saved" [except that of Jesus Christ]. 4 St. Paul also says: "There is ... one mediator of God and men, the man Christ Jesus Who gave Himself a redemption for all." 5 There is no salvation for anyone except through the blood of the Savior, Who is the Redeemer of all men without any exception. In this sense Mary needs redemption, just like the other children of men.

St. Thomas lays great stress on this point, for this is a capital dogma of our faith. There is no salvation except through Christ Who died for us.

Mary, on the other hand, has been called from all eternity to be the Mother of the Savior. The heavenly Father chose her through a love of predilection from among all women, so that in time she should give a body to the Son, only begotten from all eternity. No one but the heavenly Father and Mary can call Jesus, "My Son." The Holy Ghost was to overshadow her and, without sullying her virginity in any way, was to make it possible for her to conceive the Savior. The Word of God, Who exists eternally and therefore existed before creation, was to be truly Mary's son, and He was to love her among all creatures as His true Mother.

Could it be that Mary, called to this glorious maternity, should have come into the world bearing the stain of Original Sin? Was it possible that she who was to be the Mother of the Author of grace should be born deprived of grace? Could she who was to be the Mother of the Word made flesh have been born inclined toward covetousness, disorders of the emotions, and error?

These reasons are so compelling that even the theologians who once doubted the privilege of the Immaculate Conception declared unequivocally that Mary was sanctified before her birth in the womb of her mother, St. Anne. But the Church goes still further and has solemnly affirmed the privilege of the Immaculate Conception, accorded at the very instant when Mary's soul was created and united to her body.

How then can we reconcile these two things that are apparently so irreconcilable: Mary, being the daughter of Adam, must contract Original Sin; but, being called to be the Mother of God, she must be exempt from any stain whatever, she must escape the universal contagion?

How can these things be reconciled? We can understand an exception to the law of man's fall, in view of a mission that is unique in the world, a mission that is superior to that of the prophets and Apostles. But how was this exception to be accomplished? Was Mary preserved from the common stain independently of the future merits of her Son? Is it possible that Christ, the sole Mediator and Savior of all souls, is not Mary's Savior? Can it be that she does not owe her holiness to Him? St. Thomas rightly placed great emphasis on this point, for he was deeply concerned with safeguarding the dogma of universal redemption.

The Church, in defining the Immaculate Conception, answers: Mary was the beneficiary of a unique mode of redemption, a preservative redemption, and not merely a liberating and reparative redemption. Mary was preserved from Original Sin because of the future merits of her Son, and this truth reveals to us the deep harmony of the mystery, which long remained hidden even from great Saints. [Emphasis in bold added.]

What kept St. Thomas from stoutly affirming the privilege of the Immaculate Conception, not yet defined by the Church at that time, was his fear of contradicting the dogma of the universal redemption of souls by Jesus Christ. He feared he might detract from the Redeemer's glory. And Divine Providence seems to have permitted the great doctor to remain in darkness on this point, and with him St. Bonaventure and St. Bernard, because the proclamation of this privilege was reserved for much later, for our era of unbelief and naturalism which denies Original Sin and the necessity of redemption. 6

Preservative redemption is one of the marvels of Catholic dogma. To truly understand it we must realize that not only is Jesus Christ Mary's Savior, but that she benefited more than anyone else from His redemptive mission. Herein lies all the grandeur of the mystery. Let us consider it in some detail. Indeed it is fitting that the absolutely perfect Savior should exercise sovereign redemption for at least one soul, the soul called to be most intimately united to Him in His work of salvation. But perfect redemption consists not only in rescuing a soul from sin, but also in preserving it from this sin even before sin has had a chance to sully it. He who preserves us from a mortal blow saves our life even better than if he healed the wound caused by this blow. It is therefore highly fitting that Christ Jesus, the perfect Redeemer, should bestow upon His Mother redemption in all its plenitude: a redemption that is not merely reparative and liberating, but a preservative redemption. It is highly fitting that Mary should not be liberated, purified, cured of Original Sin, but that she should be totally preserved from it by the future merits of her Son.

Christ's love for His immaculate Mother is immense. At the thought of it our souls should rejoice and soar upward. Only the Mother of the Son of God could have this unique prerogative. How fitting that she should have it!
Inasmuch as she had been called to become the Mother of God and the Coredemptrix, the Mother of all men, it was necessary that she be redeemed as perfectly as possible. Being closer than anyone to the stream of grace that pours from the Word made flesh, she received His blessings in their plenitude.

At a time when all truths were being depreciated, when many refused to believe either in Original Sin or in the necessity of Baptismal regeneration, it was fitting that the Church should solemnly define this dogma and that Mary should remind us of all these truths by telling us at Lourdes: "I am the Immaculate Conception." This privilege, far from detracting from the dogma of the universal redemption of souls by Jesus Christ, discloses to us in the person of Mary sovereign redemption in its most perfect form conceivable. 7

In preserving His Mother from Original Sin, the Savior gave her an initial plenitude of grace greater than that of all the Saints and Angels taken together, just as a single diamond may have greater value than a great pile of lesser stones. From this initial plenitude of sanctifying grace sprang forth in the same eminent degree faith, hope, charity, the infused moral virtues, and the seven gifts of the Holy Ghost. Moreover, this initial plenitude did not cease growing until Mary's death, for no venial sin or imperfection impeded its progress. Because of Mary's unceasing fidelity, the initial treasure increased in a marvelous progression. Just as bodies fall with increasing speed as they approach the earth by virtue of the law of acceleration which is a corollary of universal gravitation, so do souls progress more quickly toward God as they come closer to Him and are increasingly attracted by Him. 8

This law of acceleration of the progress of souls toward God, which is approximately verified in the lives of the Saints especially by frequent Holy Communion, 9 was fully verified in Mary. Whereas Jesus never increased in goodness, 10 since He had been conceived in the absolute plenitude of grace, Mary continued to increase in perfection until her death, until the moment of the final plenitude of grace when her soul entered glory. 11

It is a consolation to think that there has been one soul that received in its plenitude everything that God desired to give her and that never impeded the pouring of grace upon other souls. There is one absolutely perfect soul which allowed the Divine life-giving torrent to flow through her without obstacle. There is at least one soul that never for a single instant failed to measure up to what God desired of her. This is the soul of the Mother of God, the Mother of all men, who watches over them to lead them to eternal life.

This is what we mean by sovereign Redemption, a redemption that is not merely liberating and reparative but also preservative. This is what motivated the words of the Archangel Gabriel when he said to Mary: "Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women."12

The Consequences of the Preservative Redemption

Did the privilege we have just discussed remove from Mary even here on earth all the consequences of Original Sin? What happens to us even after Baptism which remits Original Sin and restores us to sanctifying grace with all its accompanying infused virtues and gifts of the Holy Ghost? Even after Baptism, there remain in us as a consequence of Original Sin concupiscence or the roots of covetousness that enkindle our evil passions, inclination toward error or weak judgment that easily goes astray, as well as suffering and death.

None of these evils existed in the state of original justice in which human nature was ennobled by grace and endowed with privileges. The body was perfectly submissive to the soul, the passions to right reason and to the will, and the will was submissive to God. Baptism, while it cleanses us of Original Sin, leaves the consequences of Original Sin in us as so many occasions for struggle and merit.

What is so striking about Mary is that the privilege of the Immaculate Conception exempts her from two of the consequences of Original Sin that are blighting and incompatible with her mission as Mother of God, but her privilege does not exempt her from suffering and death. This is most illuminating.

From the first moment of her life Mary was exempt from every form of concupiscence. The embers of covetousness never existed in her. No movement of her emotions could be disorderly or circumvent her judgment and her consent. Hers was perfect subordination of the emotions to the intellect and the will, and of the will to God as was the case of man in the state of innocence. Thus Mary is the most pure Virgin of virgins, "inviolata, intemerata," the tower of ivory, the most perfect mirror of God.

Likewise Mary was never subject to error or illusion. Her judgment was always enlightened, always clearsighted. In the words of the Litany, she is the Seat of Wisdom, the Virgin most prudent, the Mother of good counsel. All theologians agree that even here on earth she possessed an eminently superior and simple understanding of the Scriptures on the subject of the Messiah, the Incarnation, and the Redemption. She was more intimately initiated into the secrets of the kingdom of Heaven than were the Apostles. Then too, everything in nature spoke to her of the Creator more poignantly than to the greatest poets. In its simplicity her contemplation was superior to that of the greatest Saints, to that of even St. John, St. Paul, or St. Augustine. Mary was above ecstasy. She had no need to lose the use of her senses to become very intimately united to God. Her union with Him was continual. She was thus perfectly exempt from covetousness and error.

Why then did not the privilege of the Immaculate Conception exempt Mary from suffering and death, which are also consequences of Original Sin? The truth of the matter is that suffering and death, as Mary and Jesus experienced them, were not consequences of Original Sin, as they are for us. For Original Sin had not touched them. Suffering and death were for them the consequences of human nature which by its very nature is subject to suffering and to corporeal death just as is the nature of the animal. It was only through a supernatural privilege that Adam in his innocence was exempt from all suffering and from the necessity of dying.

That He might become our Redeemer by His death on the Cross, Jesus was virginally conceived in mortal flesh, and He willingly accepted suffering and dying for our salvation. Following His example, Mary willingly accepted suffering and death also, so that she might be united to her Son's sacrifice, make expiation with Him in our stead, and thus redeem us.

And, astonishingly enough, the privilege of the Immaculate Conception and the plenitude of grace she enjoyed, instead of exempting Mary from pain, considerably increased her capacity for suffering. This truth never ceases to arouse the admiration and wonder of the contemplatives. Mary suffered extraordinarily from the gravest evils precisely because she was absolutely pure, because her heart was aflame with Divine charity. Yet we in our flightiness are not much troubled by these evils. We suffer because of things that wound our susceptibility, our self-love, our pride. Mary suffered because of sin in the measure of her love for God Whom sin offends, in the measure of her love for her Son whom sin crucified, in the measure of her love for our souls that sin ravages and kills. Just as the Blessed Virgin's love for God was superior even here on earth to that of all the Saints taken together, the same is true of her suffering. Here on earth, the closer a soul is to God - that is, the more it loves - the more it is destined to suffer. Mary loved the Savior, not only as her beloved Son but also as her Son the legitimate object of adoration, with her most tender virginal heart. The depth of her love made of her the queen of Martyrs. As the aged Simeon had prophesied, a sword pierced her soul. The privilege of the Immaculate Conception, far from exempting Mary from sufferings, thus increased them and disposed her so well to endure them that she wasted none of them.

Finally, although this privilege did not save Mary from being subject to death, the Assumption was one of its consequences. Mary, conceived without sin, preserved from all sin, was not to know the corruption of the grave. The Savior was thus to associate her to the glories of the Ascension and to hasten for her the moment of the resurrection of the body.

Such were the consequences of the sovereign redemption which was accomplished in her. Not only was Mary redeemed by the most perfect redemption conceivable, but she has been intimately associated with the work of the salvation of mankind through her love and suffering.

This preservative redemption reminds us of the value of a less exalted grace, but one that is so necessary to us: Baptism. Although we are born sinners, we are cleansed of Original Sin by baptismal grace, which is the seed of eternal life. There is an immense difference between an unbaptized child and one who has received the Sacrament of regeneration. And as Mary's initial plenitude of grace never stopped growing within her during her lifetime, so the seed of eternal life should never cease growing in us until the moment of our death. God loves us much more than we realize. In order to grasp the full value of the sanctifying grace received in Baptism, we should have to see God. For grace is nothing but a true and formal participation in God's intimate life.

Lastly, the sovereign redemption that we have just contemplated in Mary reminds us of the value of sanctity, and inspires us to pray earnestly, especially at the thought of the spiritual wretchedness of present-day Russia and other vast areas of the world. As the contemplatives tell us, the actual state of the world is at once much sadder and more beautiful than we know. The world desires no more Saints, and expels them from persecuted lands. But God for His part wishes to give the world Saints of every age and station in life. God wishes to give the world Saints, but we must ask Him for them and secure them from His mercy. For a number of years now, Rome has been multiplying its beatifications and canonizations. In moments of great confusion like that of the Albigensian heresy and that of Protestantism, God sent galaxies of Saints to carry on His Son's work and to lift up afflicted and tempted souls.

Although the world's plight is grave, let us not view it with discouragement and thereby depress those around us. Let us look at the other pan of the scales with a holy realism, and see in it the infinite merits of the Savior, those of Mary Coredemptrix and Mediatrix, and those of all the Saints. This is the supernatural contemplation superior to all science, the contemplation that awakens in us not merely momentary enthusiasm but "the hunger and thirst for God's justice." It tells us that the only genuinely and profoundly interesting thing for us is sanctity and whatever leads us toward it. When this sanctity is incontestable, as in Mary, it becomes manifest to all as the profound reign of God in souls, and it permits us to glimpse even here on earth the grandeur of the mystery of Redemption, that is, the mystery of eternal life given back to souls that are willing to receive it.

1. It is often said that St. Thomas denied the privilege of the Immaculate Conception. Such a categorical assertion does not seem justified on the basis of a work recently written on this subject by Father N. del Prado, O.P., of the University of Fribourg, Divus Thomas et bulla dogmatica "lneffabilis Deus" (1919). In this work the author shows that St. Thomas made more of a distinction than is generally believed between the body of the Blessed Virgin before the animation, and her person which presupposes the presence of a rational soul within the body. According to the saintly Doctor, the body of the Blessed Virgin before the animation was not preserved from Original Sin. But with regard to the person of Mary, several reliable authors maintain that St. Thomas neither affirmed nor denied the privilege. Since the Church had not yet made any pronouncement on the matter, neither did he see fit to make. Cf. P. Frietoff, O.P., Angelicum, July, 1933: "Quomodo caro B.V.M. in originale concepta fuerit."
2. The Council of Trent says clearly: "Si quis Adae praevaricationem sibi soli et non ejus propagini asserit nocuisse, acceptam a Deo sanctitatem et justitiam, quam perdidit, sibi soli et non nobis etiam eum perdidisse: an. sit" (Denzinger, no. 789).
3. Rom. 5:12.
4. Acts 4:12.
5. 1 Tim. 2:5
6. If these great doctors had made definite pronouncements in favor of the Immaculate Conception, this dogma would probably have been defined before the nineteenth century.
7. Let us note that, since Mary was fully redeemed by Christ, she was not able, properly speaking, to merit the Incarnation even de congruo. Why? Because the principle of merit cannot be merited, just as the first cause cannot be an effect produced. It cannot produce itself. Thus the merits of the Blessed Virgin Mary derive from the future merits of her Son as their primary source. [IBID.] Her merits depend on those of her Son not only as on a final cause, but as on an efficient moral cause, foreseen and willed by God. Mary therefore could not have merited the Incarnation. But having received the initial plenitude of grace through the future merits of her Son, she merited the superior degree of grace which made her the worthy Mother of the Savior. St. Thomas (IIIa, q. 2, a. 11 ad 3) says with admirable precision: "The Blessed Virgin is said to have merited to bear the Lord of all; not that she merited His incarnation, but because by the grace bestowed upon her she merited that grace of purity and holiness which fitted her to be the Mother of God."
Several modern theologians seem to forget this distinction and therefore to misunderstand the great principle that the principle of merit cannot be merited. Some wish to apply in this connection the axiom "causae ad invicem sunt causae," but one must not forget to add "in diverso genere." There is certainly a mutual priority of final and efficient causes, but on condition of keeping in mind that they are of diverse orders. The principal root of Mary's merits lies in the merits of Christ, and these latter presuppose the Incarnation. Thus Mary could not merit the Incarnation. It is clear that here we are dealing with the same order of causality. Cf. the commentators of St. Thomas on IIIa, q. 2., a. 11, for example Billuart: "Nullum meritum est aut concipi potest pro praesenti hominum statu, quod non accipiat valorem suum et vim merendi ex Christi meritis."
8. Cf. St. Thomas, In Epistolam ad Hebraeos, 10 :25: "Motus naturalis (v.g., motus lapidis cadentis ad centrum terrae) quanto plus accedit ad terminum, magis intenditur. Contrarium est de motu violento. Gratia autem inclinat in modum naturae. Ergo qui sunt in gratia, quanto plus accedunt ad finem, plus debent crescere." Cf. St. Thomas, Ia IIae, q. 35, a. 6 ad 2: "Omnis motus naturalis intensior est in fine."
9. In principle, if we fought generously against negligence and every attachment to venial sin, each of our Communions should be substantially more fervent than the preceding one since each of them must not only preserve but increase charity in us and therefore dispose us to receive our Lord with a more fervent will the following day.
10. Cf. Concilium Constantinop. II (Denzinger, no. ZZ4).
11. As the theologians say in describing this instant which is preceded by a period of time that can be divided ad infinitum: "primum non esse viae, seu primum esse separationil animae a corpore, fuit primum esse vitae ejus gloriosae."
12. Luke 1:28.]]> <![CDATA[How Our Lady Gave ‘Good Success’ to the Obregon Brothers]]> https://thecatacombs.org/showthread.php?tid=7955 Wed, 04 Feb 2026 12:46:34 +0000 Stone]]> https://thecatacombs.org/showthread.php?tid=7955 How Our Lady Gave ‘Good Success’ to the Obregon Brothers
José Muñoz Maldonado, Count of Fabraquer

Adapted from José Muñoz Maldonado, Historia, tradiciones y leyendas de las imágenes de la Virgen aparecidas en España, 1, Madrid,
Impr. y Litografía de D. Juan José Martínez, 1861, pp. 511-522

TIA | January 30, 2026

Note: A reader sent us a link to this Book of Histories of various statues of Spain. It tells of the conversion of the founder of the Minim Order, Ven. Bernadino de Obregón, and describes how the statue was found and how Pope Paul V gave it the name Our Lady of Good Success.

This account was written by the Count of Fabraquer in 1861. We offer it here to our readers and point out the use of the term ”good success” in the context not of the "event" of the Purification, as some are wrongly claiming today, but of a good outcome, or success, for the Obregon Order.

On a winter morning in the year 1567, a gallant young man of age 27, whose chest already bore the red emblem of the Apostle Saint James, was walking down Postas Street in the town of Madrid, where King Philip II's Court was then located. A poor young man was cleaning the mud from the street and unfortunately splashed some on the elegant cabellero. In the first flash of anger that overcame him, the knight struck a hard blow to the face of the street cleaner.

A knight who did great feats in Spain’s wars with Flanders under King Philip II

Without showing any emotion, the young man who had received the insult knelt before his aggressor and said: "I thank you, Sir Knight, for the favor and honor you have bestowed upon me, and never in my life have I felt more honored than now."

The knight, a moment before so proud and haughty, was astonished to witness such humility. He was no longer the same man and, hiding his face in his hands, yielded to the sudden change he felt within himself. He fell to his knees and begged forgiveness from that poor man whose revenge had been humility.

Upon rising to his feet, that brilliant proud knight showed by his pale face and uncertain gait that happiness had fled from him, that the butterfly had lost its wings.

That young man was Don Bernardino de Obregón, who was born in Las Huelgas de Burgos in 1540 into a noble family. He had distinguished himself by his brilliant exploits in the wars of Flanders, and had been decorated by the Order of Santiago. Now, he had come to Court where his merit and comely appearance had won him great favor.

The past, present and future smiled on this youth. The son of rich parents, brave and of noble bearing, there was no whim that crossed his mind that he could not satisfy. In the glittering salons of the Court and among the grandes, where egoism has its throne, everyone rushed to celebrate him and greet him with flattering smiles.

Obregón became the founder of an Order that nursed the sick & poor he had once despised

He was praised for his courage and talent; mothers coveted him for their daughters. Thus, vanity had crept into his heart, and in his pride he considered himself almost a demigod to whom antiquity would have erected altars. Suddenly, his arrogance found itself face to face with the deepest humility. God touched his heart at that moment, and he saw how vain was his grandeur and how unjust his refusal to endure even the slightest offense.

Returning home, he bemoaned his vanity and contemplated the humility of the Redeemer of mankind stretched out on the vile instrument of his torture. He compared the small offense he had suffered and aroused his anger to those that Jesus Christ had suffered for him before reaching the summit of Calvary. It was a grain of sand next to an immense mountain, a drop of water compared to the unfathomable sea!

Obregón had received a religious education from his parents: The divine faith and the celestial hope that they had instilled in his heart had vanished after succumbing in the battle of the most shameful passions, but the pious memories of childhood remained. The example of the humility of the poor man he had offended was enough for those memories to suddenly rise up powerfully, tearing away the dark veil that concealed from his sight the radiant truth and the new mission to which God destined him on this earth.

That man who had rejected the poor and wretched now resolved to dedicate his life to their service, detesting and cursing pride and vanity as the prophets of old cursed the sinful cities. He left his position in the military and gave away his riches, becoming poor to join the ranks of the poor. Humbling his pride, he dedicated himself to serving the sick in the Royal Hospital, submitting his will to that of its administrator, exchanging his finery in which he had once taken such pride for a coarse black sackcloth.

An old biography: The Life & Virtues of the Servant of God Bernadino de Obregón

The sudden change in young Obregón astonished the Court. His zeal found imitators, and the following year, with the permission of the Papal Nuncio, the Archbishop of Toledo and King Philip II, he founded a Congregation, calling his brothers the Franciscan Minims, because of the humility they were to practice in the service of the poor. But the people themselves gave the Order the name of their founder, calling them the Obregones, or Obregon Brothers, a name they have conserved for three centuries. They vowed to God chastity, poverty, obedience and hospitality.

The number of those who came to enlist in the new army of charity grew day by day. Bernardino de Obregón's zeal knew no bounds: He founded convalescent homes, schools for foundlings, several hospitals, including one in Lisbon, the capital of Portugal, whose Kingdom King Philip II had added to the Crown of Spain. It was Bernardino de Obregón who the Monarch called to his deathbed to assist him in his last moments in El Escorial, where the King died in 1598.

Bernardino de Obregón, so haughty and proud in his youth, suffered with the greatest patience and humility many hard persecutions, from all of which the hand of the Lord delivered him. To the great sorrow of the Court, so edified by his virtues, he died at age 59 on August 6, 1599, and his body was buried in the General Hospital in Spain, which he had founded.

His Order approved by the Pope

Brother Gabriel de Fontanet, who had succeeded him in the governance of the Congregation, accompanied by Brother Guillermo Rigosa, decided to go to Rome to obtain for their Institute the sanction of the Apostolic See, then occupied by Pope Paul V.

They traveled on foot to Valencia, where their Congregation had a hospital and was highly regarded by the holy Patriarch of that Diocese, Archbishop Don Juan de Rivera. They continued on their journey and, after leaving Traiguera, a town in the jurisdiction of Tortosa along the borders of Catalonia, they lost their way, and a terrible storm surprised them during the night.

The mountains in the distance seen from the medieval town of Traiguera

The rain fell in torrents, the winds raged, terrifying thunder resounded in the hills, and the two pious pilgrims, thinking themselves soon to be victims of the fury of the elements, fervently commended themselves to God. Suddenly, from the light of the flashes, they discovered in that engulfing darkness some overhanging rocks and ran to take refuge there.

From that weak shelter, they then saw a glowing site on a distant hill that at first they thought was but a reflection from the continuous lightning. However, this light remained even after the storm had abated. The climb to the top of that mountain was difficult and arduous, but by taking off their shoes and helping each other, they managed to reach the summit.

In a hollow place inside the rock, they found an exquisitely carved small shrine or chapel, and, as if embedded in the rock face, an image of the Virgin Mary, about half a yard tall. The two Obregón Brothers were astonished, and the words of the Prophet Isaiah came to their minds: Invenerunt qui non quaesierunt me. “I was found by those who did not seek me." (Chap. 65)

Miracles recorded of cures by the miraculous Image of Our Lady of Good Success discovered by the Obregon Brothers

They humbly venerated the image, then contemplated it carefully and saw that it was made of cypress wood. The Virgin held her Divine Son in her left arm and a scepter in her right hand; a beautiful and unusually shaped crown was on her head, she wore and ancient dress of fine fabric and design, with another reserved beside it. On the rock was a lit lamp whose light illuminated the darkest shadows of the cave.

They decided to take the holy image and the extra gown beside it, which is still piously preserved today, and to make her the intercessor for the petition they were bringing to Rome. Thinking that perhaps the holy statue might belong to one of the nearby towns that placed it in that shrine for veneration and not wanting to steal what belonged to another, they remained in the area for several days, cautiously inquiring amongst the oldest inhabitants of the surrounding towns whether anyone knew of the existence of an image of the Virgin, but always keeping their fortunate discovery a secret.

Finally, they surmised that the image found so miraculously was one of those hidden by Spanish Catholics during the sad days of the Arab domination. This belief was confirmed by the ancient dress they had found next to the image, for the Catholics would also hide the ornaments with the statues, as noted by that genius of poets, the great Lope de Vega:

They enclose the images,
and hide them in the countryside,
With their sacred ornaments,
While from their faces,
They are banished with tears.

(Las imágenes encierran,Y en las campañas las cierran Con los ornamentos sacros, Mientras de sus simulacros Con lágrimas se destierran)

The Statue receives Her name

The two Brothers made a wicker basket and lined it with buckram. In it they placed the holy image and took turns carrying on their backs, never leaving it for even a moment until they arrived in Rome.

They presented themselves to kiss the foot of Pope Paul V, who, seeing the so carefully tended basket, curiously asked them what was in it. They told the Pope about their miraculous discovery of the Holy Virgin, to whom they had entrusted the good success of their intentions, which they humbly exposed to him.

Pope Paul V puts the purple cross on the statue & names her Our Lady of Good Success

They took the holy image out of the basket, and Paul V, admiring her beauty, venerated her and, taking a gold cross with purple enamel from around his neck, placed it on the statue. Then he told them that they should take her as the special patroness of their Institute and Congregation, and gave to her the name of Our Lady of Good Success because of the fortunate outcome of their endeavors.

He granted many indulgences to this Virgin, and in memory of the gilded enamel cross he had placed upon her, he authorized the Brothers of the Congregation he had just approved to wear a purple cloth cross on their black habits.

Joyful and content, Brothers Fontanet and Rigosa returned to Spain, heading once again to Valencia, because the Pope had entrusted to Archbishop and Patriarch Don Juan de Rivera the organization of the Congregation, which was now established as a Religious Order. Along the way they revisited the place where, on a night of a terrible storm, they had found the miraculous image that had brought such success to their mission.

The plague was then ravaging the city of Valencia, and the Brothers found a vast field in which to exercise their zeal and ardent charity. Of the thirteen Minim or Obregon Brothers who were there, nine had succumbed to the contagion while caring for the poor and infirm.

Indulgence given in 1760 for reciting a Hail Mary before the statue & making Acts of Faith, Hope & Charity

Archbishop Don Juan Rivera delayed as long as he could the implementation of the Pope's bull and the presentation of the purple cross to Brothers Fontanet and Rigosa, because he wanted to keep them near him as long as possible. He tried to persuade them to settle in Valencia so that the center and head of the new Hospital Order would reside there.

But Brother Gabriel de Fontanet did not consider this advisable and left with his companion for Madrid. There they placed their image of Our Lady of Good Success on an altar in one of the rooms of the General Hospital, and they wore their habits and purple crosses for the first time on Corpus Christi Day in the year 1610.

Our Lady of Good Success remained in the General Hospital of Madrid until the Obregon Brothers in charge of the Royal Hospital of the Court transferred her to its infirmary. This is the hospital which was located in Puerta del Sol and sadly was demolished to make way for the expansion of the Plaza.

The body of Ven. Bernadino de Obregón was first interred in a vault of the General Hospital when it was located at San Jerónimo Street, which was originally a shrine founded by the Catholic Monarchs Ferdinand and Isabella for the relief and treatment of sick soldiers. Emperor Charles V expanded it in 1529 and established it as the Royal Hospital of Corle for the treatment of soldiers and employees of his royal household.

King Philip II, so knowledgeable and skilled in architecture, rebuilt the Hospital on the Puerta del Sol in Madrid in 1587. He personally designed the plan of the small church, which was cruciform and of regular shape, will pillars and a dome in the center proportionate to the building. Philip III dedicated this church on July 6, 1611, with the attendance of Queen Margaret and the entire Court.

At that time, the statue of Our Lady of Good Success, which had previously been in the infirmary, was placed in the a chapel of the church.

The first statue in Madrid; below each year in October to commemorate the finding she is processed through the streets of Madrid

[Image: A027_Proc.jpg]

]]> How Our Lady Gave ‘Good Success’ to the Obregon Brothers
José Muñoz Maldonado, Count of Fabraquer

Adapted from José Muñoz Maldonado, Historia, tradiciones y leyendas de las imágenes de la Virgen aparecidas en España, 1, Madrid,
Impr. y Litografía de D. Juan José Martínez, 1861, pp. 511-522

TIA | January 30, 2026

Note: A reader sent us a link to this Book of Histories of various statues of Spain. It tells of the conversion of the founder of the Minim Order, Ven. Bernadino de Obregón, and describes how the statue was found and how Pope Paul V gave it the name Our Lady of Good Success.

This account was written by the Count of Fabraquer in 1861. We offer it here to our readers and point out the use of the term ”good success” in the context not of the "event" of the Purification, as some are wrongly claiming today, but of a good outcome, or success, for the Obregon Order.

On a winter morning in the year 1567, a gallant young man of age 27, whose chest already bore the red emblem of the Apostle Saint James, was walking down Postas Street in the town of Madrid, where King Philip II's Court was then located. A poor young man was cleaning the mud from the street and unfortunately splashed some on the elegant cabellero. In the first flash of anger that overcame him, the knight struck a hard blow to the face of the street cleaner.