Mary, Image and Mother of the Church, II
Father, all-powerful and ever-living God,
we do well always and everywhere to give you thanks
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
In your infinite goodness
you have given to the virgin Church
the model of true worship in the Virgin Mary.
She is the Virgin who listens,
who embraces your words with joy,
treasuring them in the silence of her heart.
She is the Virgin of prayer,
who sings of your mercy in her canticle of praise,
who shows concern for the bridegroom and bride of Cana
and intercedes for them with her Son
by the power of the Holy Spirit
and at the foot of the Cross
is proclaimed as mother
of the people of the New Covenant.
She is the Virgin who offers,
presenting the Firstborn in your temple
and sharing in his self-offering
beside the tree of everlasting life.
She is the Virgin who keeps vigil,
awaiting the resurrection of her Son with unwavering hope
and looking forward to the coming of the Holy Spirit,
with steadfast faith.
In our joy we sing to our glory
with all the choirs of angels:
Holy, Holy, Holy ………………………….
For another beautiful prayer praising God for the gift and example of the Blessed Virgin Mary please press HERE
[On the first of of the year the Roman Catholic Church celebrates the Solemniry of Mary, the Mother of God. Most Protestants and many Catholics don’t know that the origins of this title first came into use to express an infallible teaching of the Church: namely that Jesus Christ was truly God and truly human from the moment of his conception in Mary’s womb. The Church honors Mary because God first honored her.]
[Most Catholics and many priests are unaware of the existence of the two volume Collection of Masses of the Blessed Virgin Mary consisting of a sacramentary — a book of antiphons, prayers and the Mass– and a lectionary — the readings used during Mass. There are 46 different Masses with their own prayers and a preface for the eucharistic prayer that can be used on a weekday or Saturday mornings under certain conditions. The Marian sacramentary is a must for anyone with a deep love for Mary and the liturgy of the Church. The above is the preface for the Mass: Mary, Image and Mother of the Church, II]
[Japanese mosaic of Madonna and Child, in the upper level chapel of the Church of the Annunciation, Nazareth, Israel. The icon is a gift from Japanese Catholics to the church, alongside other Madonnas from different nations. Photo by
adriatikus. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.]
HEARTS ON FIRE 
My husband and I saw this live and in person on our pilgrimage to the Holy Land last February. It is not only gorgeous, but inspiring. The blessed mother is mother to us all through her son, Our Lord, Jesus.
She has always been my inspiration…I was so surprised to learn that Mary is the protector of Paris and all of France. We were amazed at the towns and villages to find Her image or statues everywhere. Ancient buildings imbedded with Her in many of the entrances.
She was usually holding Her Son. What a blessing…Have a blessed New Year!
The opening prayer for yesterday really caught my attention (as it always SHOULD) with the words, “…her fruitful virginity…” I have been thinking of that phrase and how many ways her virginity was fruitful. Perhaps a former English teacher parses things too much, but this certainly is food for thought. All of the prayers yesterday seems extraordinarily beautiful.