Guest posting at The Snoring Scholar

I added my two cents to Sarah Reinhard's "Looking Closer at the Hail Mary" series, and my post is here.

See the whole series of reflections here.

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And have a happy 4th of July!

(You can find me getting cranky over all the neighborhood noise, as usual.)

The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary

"The light could not be divided from the sun. The light was Mary’s soul, rich in grace from the very moment of its creation; and the sun was her immaculate body, in which the Holy Spirit had formed the humanity assumed by the Word."

~~ Blessed Bartolo Longo 

Such a pure and perfect vessel -- Lord, make me whole someday in heaven, as Mary was whole from the moment of her conception. 

"Belief in the Assumption is a source of hope for all Christians because it foreshadows what will one day happen to each faithful Christian. The raising of Mary, body and soul, to the glory of heaven anticipates what will happen at the final judgment to all who are to be saved."

~~ Alan Schreck, Catholic and Christian

Mary, model of our salvation, I long to be where you are. 

(from Through the Year With Mary: 365 Reflections) 

On the radio

Thursday morning, May 5th, at 8 a.m. central time.

I'll be talking with Sean Herriott on Morning Air, at Relevant Radio, about the Blessed Mother and Mother's Day.

(Painting: Song of the Angels, Bouguereau)

Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of Mary

"When one seeks out the place of the Virgin Mary in history as it is conceived by humans, her role seems paltry indeed ... But if history finds its final meaning in the saga of sanctity, if the value of human beings can be measured by their closeness to Christ, the Holy One of God, the source of all supernatural life, then suddenly Mary is at the summit ... She is the masterpiece of God, the one who after Christ has been the object of his thought for all eternity."

~~ Fr. Henri Rondet S.J.

Mary, how could I ever think of you as “just” the mother of Jesus? You are the result of God’s artistry -- perfectly, immaculately conceived in the mind of God.


(Painting: detail of Madonna and Child with St John the Baptist, Bouguereau, 1882)

Quote for a Monday

from Through the Year With Mary: 365 Reflections


"There is little doubt that we are passing through a period marked by a lack of interest in the saints. Much more is involved here than devotion to the saints, even St. Mary. What is at stake is the reality of the humanity of the risen Jesus. There is danger of so spiritualizing the risen Christ that we diminish awareness of His humanity ... Fr. Karl Rahner declared that the special temptation that affects Christians today, Catholics and Protestants alike, is the temptation to turn the central truths into abstractions, and abstractions have no need of mothers." 

-- National Conference of Catholic Bishops (Mary in the Church: A Selection of Teaching Documents)

Recently I had a great interview with Judy Zarick, producer of "Living Faith" on American Catholic Radio. The interview can be found here, at their website, and is the first feature on the current program

Of Interviews and Wall Rosaries

I had a delightful talk with Sean Herriott this morning on Relevant Radio. They are in the midst of a two-day, online Marian retreat, so be sure to take advantage of the opportunity.

While you're at it, take a mini-mini-retreat in the form of this post from Sean, at his blog, Joe Convert.com, about praying the Rosary. Wonderful!

Change in Thursday Morning Radio Schedule

On Thursday morning, October 21st, I'll be joining the folks at Relevant Radio at 8 a.m. central time (rather than at 9, as previously posted) to participate in their online retreat, "In Our Lady's Hands."  I'll be talking about developing a devotion to the Blessed Mother.

On the Radio a Couple of Times This Week

Two things:

Wednesday, October 20th, at 10:20 a.m. (central time) I'll be on The Catholic Channel, talking to Greg and Jennifer Willits on The Catholics Next Door.

On Thursday morning, October 21st, I'll be joining the folks at Relevant Radio at 9 a.m. central time to participate in their online retreat, "In Our Lady's Hands."  I'll be talking a little bit about developing a devotion to the Blessed Mother.

Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary

"The Rosary taught Bernadette everything …
The Rosary was her dictionary, her spelling book,
naming and explaining the mysteries of God’s kingdom;
it was a map guiding her to the heart of  God’s love for humanity."

~~ Fr. John Lochran, The Miracle of Lourdes

Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God

(from January 1, 2009, 2008, 2007, and 2006 ....) :

In reviewing last year's post on this day, I see that I totally ignored my resolution to stop posting the previous year's posts.

Ah, well.

I shall not make that mistake again this year. This year, I resolve not to resolve anything about reposting because, let's face it, an old post is always a new post to someone out there, and therefore, there's no reason to resolve a thing. And so, I now present an old post with the hope that it will be of use to someone, because revisiting this post is so useful to me each year.

Have a blessed feast day!

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New year's resolution: Stop posting last year's posts.

Note to self: Don't start that resolution until after Epiphany.

I dislike comparing myself to Mary, because it's akin to holding my Sculpey creations next to Michelangelo's Pieta and asking what kind of artist I am. The differences are glaring, apparent, painful to see and ultimately laughable. But, I do it anyway, because it's good spiritual exercise.

Mary was a wife and mother, as am I. Mary cooked meals, cleaned house, and did laundry, as do I. There the comparisons end.

I imagine home life with Mary and I envision peacefulness, a serene atmosphere pervading all, because she knew that the mundane tasks of each moment were a necessary part of the whole. The meal of the day, the washing, the tidying and the clean-up of dishes ... everything had import and was approached as such. She simply did it because that is part of what the mother of Jesus needed to do.

This year, I will strive to be more Mary-like in my household tasks, approaching them with greater serenity and acceptance, knowing that all things have import and that my duties as a mother and a keeper of our home are a necessary part of the whole.

I imagine affection, warmth and laughter in the home of Mary, Joseph and Jesus. (I loved the scene in The Passion of the Christ in which Mary and Jesus are joking and laughing about tables and chairs.)

This year, I'll thank God for all the laughter in our home, knowing He is the author of such joy, and I'll strive to find and hold on to the humor in those inevitable homeschooling days that crop up (you know ... the ones that will not, at first glance, seem to hold any humor.)

Mary's faith was bare and heroic. Again and again, she had to endure pain and separation and yet her faith did not, could not, waver.

This year, in my life and walk with God, when I feel distance from Him, though I can't resolve to have such faith (as only God can grant it) I can resolve to pray for it, to ask to be more like Mary in my faith.

I doubt that Mary would have blogged ... she would have pondered my mostly pitiable musings in her heart, rather than blabbing them to the world. She pondered, she prayed, she listened.

This year, though I'm not sure I can resolve not to blog (or blab, as it were) since I'm still in the throes of infatuation with this stuff, I can resolve to continue pondering things in my heart, and ask the Lord to make the answers to my ponderings clearer to me. If God however, asked me to quit blogging, I would. He'd have to be very loud and clear about it, though.

Like Mary, I pray I'll be listening.

(Painting: Polish Madonna)

Today's Spiritual Wisdom Brought to You by Ramona

Last night at Mass, I whispered to Ramona that the reading from Genesis was exactly the one we'd talked about earlier in the day.

She had mentioned that statues of Mary often depict Our Lady "standing on a snake." So, we talked about where we could find that in the Bible, and what it meant.

In summarizing, I said, "So, you see, Mary carried in her womb the One who would conquer the devil and save us."

"So," said Ramona, "that's almost as good as being the One who did it. In a way, she kind of did it, too."

Yes, sweetie, she did.

Mary said yes to God's plan.

Pray for us, today, Blessed Mother, that we'll always say yes.

Quote for a Wednesday

I know I said I have no time for reading, but honestly, that's like saying I don't have time to breathe or drink coffee.

So.

I'm reading Mark Shea's Mary, Mother of the Son, and oh, how I love that man's writing.

Such as:

Thinking about Mary's referred life also started me thinking about how many other people in my life Jesus came through to get to me. He came to me, for instance, through my Evangelical friend, Sandy, who brought me Pepto-Bismol when I was desperately sick with flu in college, thereby making this unbeliever first notice the love of Jesus working through one of his saints.

He goes on to list the many people who had an effect on his conversion, and adds:

In fact, the more I looked at it, the more it seemed to me that God virtually always comes to us through some creature. And when he does that, some glow of his glory is left on the creature, like the radiance on Moses' face (cf. Ex. 34:29-35). But at the same time it remains clear the glory is God's, not something the creature could claim for himself.

Beautiful. I just bought this trilogy last month, and I hope to get a real review/reaction written up when I finish it, but for now I'll just say that I've always thought that reading Shea is a lot like reading C.S. Lewis for me -- he's accessible and funny, and honest and a true lover of God whose conversion was hard won.

Excuse me now while I go breathe and drink coffee.

Bits and Pieces of Our Days

Recent Reading: 
I got half way through Michael Pollan's  The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals before I had to return it to the library, so I'll reserve lengthy comments until I pick it up again and finish it. My impressions so far?  a.) It's fascinating, and b.) I'm completely unqualified to comment on the intricacies of our food systems.

Ultimately, most things in my life keep coming back to a comment I once made at Jennifer's blog: I want Walden Pond and a laptop.  Can you say cognitive dissonance? 

The older girls and I read The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart, and we loved it. Lots of fun, surprises, suspense, silliness, and heart.  Highly recommended.

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins -- I have to say that my first reaction to the premise was very much like Lissa's.  I plucked this book off the shelf at the library, read the jacket flap, shuddered, thought, "No, thank you," and put it back.  Then I read Lissa's post (linked above) and saw that her first reaction was also surprise (that something so dark was classified as YA literature) but that in the end, she loved it. I decided to give it a chance. I raced through the book in a day or two (and, mind you, I have no time to read right now) and loved it. Powerful. Well written and executed. The girls haven't read it yet -- we're still deciding if my sensitive daughters even want to read this one right now. Lots of fodder for great discussion, though -- terrific social and cultural commentary.

*****

Recent Talking: 

I gave a little witness talk about Mary at an RCIA session yesterday. I rambled too much, but hopefully something somewhere was what someone needed. You never really know, and just have to trust God to help you hit the mark.

*****

Recent Writing: 

I started a writing group for the girls and a couple of their friends, and we're really enjoying it. We get together here and they share their latest pieces. They read them aloud and then we take time for comments and discussion. We're planning a coffeehouse outing soon, combining writing group with a birthday celebration. I love homeschooling.

I'm at work on a project and am under a deadline, so my next Bits and Pieces post may be only Bits.

About Mary

"When we see her, we see our own human nature at its purest. She is not the sun, dazzling our weak sight by the brightness of its rays. Rather, she is fair and gentle as the moon, which receives its light from the sun and softens it and adapts it to our limited perception."

~~ St. Louis de Montfort

Two Thoughts on Our Lady of Sorrows

Follow the links from Fr. S. here ... sublimely beautiful music for our Lord and His mother on this day. 

Mary Ellen on living at the foot of the Cross.

St. Bernard of Clairvaux

It's his day, and these are his words:

Love is sufficient of itself, it gives pleasure by itself and because of itself. It is its own merit, its own reward. Love looks for no cause outside itself, no effect beyond itself. Its profit lies in its practice. I love because I love, I love that I may love. Love is a great thing so long as it continually returns to its fountainhead, flows back to its source, always drawing from there the water which constantly replenishes it. Of all the movements, sensations and feelings of the soul, love is the only one in which the creature can respond to the Creator and make some sort of similar return however unequal though it be. For when God loves, all he desires is to be loved in return; the sole purpose of his love is to be loved, in the knowledge that those who love him are made happy by their love of him.

*****
In dangers, in doubts, in difficulties, think of Mary, call upon Mary. Let not her name depart from your lips, never suffer it to leave your heart. And that you may more surely obtain the assistance of her prayer, neglect not to walk in her footsteps. With her for guide, you shall never go astray; while invoking her, you shall never lose heart; so long as she is in your mind, you are safe from deception; while she holds your hand, you cannot fall; under her protection you have nothing to fear; if she walks before you, you shall not grow weary; if she shows you favor, you shall reach the goal.

Mary Moments

Behold Your Mother will be hosting "Mary Moments" on May 25th. Sarah says:

Mary Moments are where we share our Mary-inspired thoughts, reflections, tips, and everything related to our Blessed Mother. We'll focus on parenthood this time around, which doesn't mean you have to be a parent to participate. :) We all have an experience with parenthood, with someone who inspired us and helped us forward.

Details are here.

Sarah also points out that Barbara, at Praying for Grace, is offering a Marian post for every day of May. Go here to take a look at beautiful posts, prayers and quotes paired with gorgeous Marian art.

Soul, Soldiers, T-shirts and Totus Tuus

This made me smile and laugh. In the best possible way.

I can't get the video to fit here, so you can see it on YouTube, here. It's called May Feelings II.

H/T to Burning the Candle at Both Ends and to Amy, from the Omaha Catholic HS group.

The Solemnity of the Annunciation

Another Solemnity to celebrate!

We interrupt this Lent to bring you glad tidings of great joy.

I love this sane and balanced attitude of Mother Church. Although we are exhorted to sacrifice during Lent, "Mom" never lets us forget that our Lord is risen indeed, and even during a season of penance and self-examination, there are days on which we are fairly commanded to celebrate. Being an obedient Catholic, that is exactly what I will do.

A couple of other ideas to consider:

Read these beautiful words from St. Bernard, "Arise, hasten, open."

Consider doing a spiritual adoption of a child conceived at this time of year, and in danger of abortion. No, you don't know the child's name, but that child is out there. (It was my friend Andrea who first introduced this idea to me when I was a new Catholic.) Then, pray for that child through the nine months from today until Christmas day (don't forget to point out to your children that the Annunciation is celebrated exactly nine months before Christmas.) At Christmas time, donate baby items to a crisis pregnancy center (some parishes do spiritual adoptions as parish-wide prayer project, holding a "baby shower" during Advent to collect needed items for donation.)

Or, consider "adopting" a child through a child-sponsorship program, such as this excellent Catholic organization: The Christian Foundation for Children and Aging, through which individuals and families can sponsor children, the elderly or a religious vocation candidate.

However we observe and celebrate this feast, I pray to remember the lesson that is at its core: Mary's fiat ... her "yes" to the Lord.

Where am I withholding my fiat? Is there something I need to say "yes" to that I'm resisting? If so, I pray that the Lord will grant me to grace to say, with Mary, "Let it be done to me according to Thy Word."

(The painting is "The Annunciation" by Henry Ossawa Tanner, 1859-1937. There are so many incredible, beautiful pieces of art from which to choose for the Annunciation -- just Google "Annunciation" under "images" -- but I love the portrayal of the angel in this one, as something that is beyond our vision and comprehension.)