MARY, OUR MOTHER

Happy Birthday Mother Mary!

<--(Mary is Born by Mirillo)

Mary was born to be the Mother of the Savior of the world, the spiritual Mother of all mankind, and the holiest of God's creatures. Because of her Son's infinite merits, she was conceived and born immaculate and full of grace. Through her, Queen of heaven and of earth, all grace is given to men. Through her, by the will of the Trinity, the unbelieving receive the gift of faith; the afflicted are tendered the works of mercy, and the members of Christ grow in likeness of their Head. In Mother Mary all human nature is exalted. We rejoice in her birthday, as the Church has done from the earliest times.

PRAYER

Grant us the gift of your heavenly peace, O Lord.

Let the solemn feast of the blessed Virgin's nativity

establish us more securely in that peace,

just as the birth of her Child heralded

the beginning of our salvation.

Through Christ Our Lord. Amen.

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THE BIRTH OF MARY

The day destined for the parturition of Saint Anne and for the birth of Her, who was consecrated and sanctified to be the Mother of God, had arrived: a day most fortunate for the world. This birth happened on the eight day of September, fully nine months having elapsed since the Conception of the soul of our most holy Queen and Lady. Saint Anne was prepared by an interior voice of the Lord, informing her, that the hour of her parturition had come. Full of the joy of the Holy Spirit at this information, she prostrated herself before the Lord and besought the assistance of His grace and His protection for a happy deliverance. Presently she felt a movement in her womb similar to that which is proper to creatures being born to the light. . .

She was born pure and stainless, beautiful and full of grace, thereby demonstrating, that She was free from the law and the tribute of sin. Although She was born substantially like other daughters of Adam, yet her birth was accompanied by such circumstances and conditions of grace, that it was the most wonderful and miraculous birth in all creation and will eternally redound to the praise of her Maker. At twelve o'clock in the night this divine Luminary issued forth, dividing the night of the ancient Law and its pristine darknesses from the new day of grace, which was now about to break into dawn. She was clothed, handled and dressed like the other infants, though her soul dwelt in the Divinity; and She was treated as an infant, though She excelled all mortals and even all the angels in wisdom. Her mother did not allow Her to be touched by other hands than her own, and she herself wrapped Her in swaddling clothes: and in this Saint Anne was not hindered by her present state of childbirth; for she was free from the toils and labors, which other mothers usually endure in such circumstances.

So then Saint Anne received in her arms Her, who was her Daughter, but at the same time the most exquisite Treasure of all the universe, inferior only to God and superior to all other creatures. . .

(Excerpted from 'City of God' by Ven. Mary of Agreda, Book one, Chapter XXI)