On 25 March we usually celebrate the Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Incarnation to Mary. Since we are in Holy Week, the Solemnity is transferred to 8 April, the Monday after the Easter Octave. That change attests to the importance of our seasonal celebrations: this week we enter into the mystery of the Eucharist, Christ’s final suffering and death; the following week we celebrate Christ’s resurrection for eight days. This is the central mystery of our faith.
Maryland Day also falls on 25 March–an historical event celebrated only in that State, but still significant for Catholics in the USA. In 1634 two ships of Catholic colonists from England landed on the shores of what they named St. Mary’s Island in the Chesapeake Bay. Fr. Andrew White, S.J., one of their number, celebrated the first Catholic Mass in that colony when they landed. Maryland, of course, was named for Mary, the Mother of God, and was founded by Royal Charter granted to the Calvert Family, the Lords Baltimore in the old country. The Colony’s founding principle was to welcome all Christians who confessed the Trinity and Jews, the race of Jesus Christ. It was primarily a refuge for English Catholics but the Catholic character of the colony was soon enough submerged beneath leadership adhering to the Established Church of England. However, the Catholic presence remained palpable and Catholic institutions flourished in the State. The local Carroll Family yielded the Jesuit John Carroll as the first Bishop of the United States and Baltimore remains our country’s Primatial See.
james f maloney says
March 24, 2013 at 9:07 pmJames of Berryville,
As Catholics….we have too much Mary…..
and….not enough HOLY SPIRIT….
Peace….Happy Easter…..
James of Pine Beach
Anonymous says
March 25, 2013 at 4:11 pmIsn’t Jesus a product of the Holy Spirit? The Holy Spirit is like the equivalent of God’s hands. God saw favor in Mary. We all should look for God’s grace. Maybe that’s why Mary is so important.
Dan Sebastianelli says
March 26, 2013 at 7:40 amMr. Maloney, I would ask you to look at a few things about the Church, Our Lady, and prayer. The first is that each time we, as Catholics pray, we take a moment to pray “In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit”. When we pray the Angelus at three pivotal points during the day and renew our commitment to the Lord, we recall that Mary “conceived of the Holy Spirit”. We celebrate Pentecost Sunday (and some even pray a novena to the Holy Spirit for nine days leading up to Pentecost) as a joyful time for the descent of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit drives us into service of others and guides us through the numerous choices and temptations we are faced with daily. In love and worship, we greatly devote ourselves to the Holy Spirit.
Devotion to Our Lady dates to the early Church. To name each instance of canonized saints and holy men and women throughout the history of the Church who teach or promote some unique aspect of devotion to her would be a massive, almost impossible undertaking. I’ll cite two. St. Louis de Montfort, one of the foremost teachers and advocates of Marian devotion and consecration to Jesus through Mary, teaches us that if we place Mary at a higher place than we do God, we practice false devotion. St. Aelred tells us, “Would that we could at least return what we are in duty bound to do, for we owe her honor and service, we owe her love and praise. We owe her honor for she is the mother of our Lord. He who fails to honor the mother clearly dishonors the son. Also, Scripture says: Honor your father and your mother”. Perhaps what is needed here is not less devotion, but an increase in more authentic, fervent devotion to Our Lady.
With this being Holy Week, consider Our Lord: He who is Almighty God; He who loves us with an everlasting love; He who suffered taunts, humiliations, and being reviled while hanging on a piece of wood; He who continues to give us gifts, particularly His own mother. God does not arbitrarily put people into our lives, nor does He give us random gifts. The significance of Our Lord giving us His Mother is one that should drive us to our knees and give thought to the fact that Jesus Christ, true God and true man, came to us through a woman and we go to Him through that same woman. There is no devaluing of the Holy Spirit and there is no overemphasis of Mary if we follow the wisdom of the saints, the guidance that the Church has long given us in regards to both issues, and a balanced reading of Holy Scripture.
May you be blessed this Easter.
james f maloney says
March 27, 2013 at 11:26 amDear Dan and Anonymous,
It was not my intention to distrub….the statement was “too much Mary”……for me there is a strong devotlon to the Blessed Virgin…..
However, please note the Church affords her the Annunciation, the Assumption, the Immaculate Conception, the month of October, the month of May……then there is Pentecost……the apostles received the Real Presence at the Last Supper….then all but one abandoned the Master…..however, when they received the
Holy Spirit they were willing to die for the Master!
Certainly it is more comfortable to go to the mother……then to wait in silence for the Holy Spirit….but….if the
Church had emphasized the Holy Spirit….it certainly would not have suffered its recent history…..
All this being said…..even a fool like me can have an opinion…..and I have much respect for the opinions of others…..God bless you both….and…..may the Lord bless Holy Cross Abbey……where my brother is buried….
James of Pine Beach
Dan Sebastianelli says
March 29, 2013 at 11:47 amDear James,
You are no fool, rather you are my brother in Christ. Thank you for sharing your thoughts and being vulnerable and open to discussion.
Blessings,
Dan