The Monthly Rosary
(Work in Progress)
(Work in Progress)
Notes
Various Scriptural citations below each meditation may have been slightly modified (though not changed nor twisted) to better illustrate the points being made.
The Scriptural citations have been taken from the Revised Standard Version: Catholic Edition
Given that some saints wrote more than others, you may see several names repeating over the course of the month. This is still but a sample of the vast library of the writings and sayings of the saints on these mysteries, which we hope to keep discovering and adding.
"For as when a tyrant has been defeated by a real king, and bound hand and foot, then all that pass by laugh him to scorn, buffeting and reviling him, no longer fearing his fury and barbarity, because of the king who has conquered him; so also, death having been conquered and exposed by the Saviour on the Cross, and bound hand and foot, all they who are in Christ, as they pass by, trample on him, and witnessing to Christ scoff at death, jesting at him, and saying what has been written against him of old: 'O death , where is your victory? O grave, where is your sting?'"
Let the high praises of God be in their throats and two-edged swords in their hands, to wreak vengeance on the nations and chastisement on the peoples, to bind their kings with chains and their nobles with fetters of iron, to execute on them the judgment written! This is glory for all his faithful ones. Praise the Lord!
Psalm 149:5-9
"When the Lord ascended into heaven, the disciples adored Him from where His feet had previously stood, then immediately they returned to Jerusalem, where they were commanded to wait for the Promise of the Father. Great indeed was their joy, for they rejoice that their God and Lord, after the triumph of His Resurrection, has also passed into the heavens."
While he blessed them, he parted from them and was carried up into heaven. And they worshiped him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy.
Luke 24:51-52
"And the Holy Spirit, coming down upon them with extraordinary power, enabled them to proclaim the teaching of Christ Jesus to the whole world. Their courage was so great, their determination so sure, that they were prepared to do anything, even to give up their life. The gift of the Spirit had released their deepest energies, concentrating them on the mission entrusted to them by the Redeemer. And it will be the Counsellor, the Parakletos, who will guide them in preaching the Gospel to all."
They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.
Acts 2:4
"O wondrous Law-giver, fulfilling the law which He had Himself laid down, not being bound by it, for it was He who enjoined children to show reverence to their parents. ‘Honour thy father and thy mother,' He says. The truth of this is apparent to everyone, calling to mind even dimly the words of holy Scripture. If according to it the souls of the just are in the hands of God, how much more is her soul in the hands of her Son and her God. This is indisputable."
Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land which the Lord your God gives you.
Exodus 20:12
"Mary commands in the heavens the Angels and the Blessed. As a recompense for her profound humility, God has given her the power and permission to fill with Saints the empty thrones from which the apostate angels fell by pride. Such has been the will of the Most High, who exalts the humble, that heaven, earth, and hell bend with good will or bad will to the commandments of the humble Mary, whom He has made sovereign of heaven and earth, general of His armies, treasurer of His treasures, dispenser of His graces, worker of His greatest marvels, restorer of the human race, mediatrix of men, the exterminator of the enemies of God, and the faithful companion of His grandeurs and His triumphs."
Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Philippians 2:9-11
"The knot of Eve's disobedience was loosed by the obedience of Mary. For what the virgin Eve had bound fast through unbelief, this did the virgin Mary set free through faith."
“Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.”
Luke 1:38
"[Jesus speaks:] I had scarcely taken flesh when I asked my Mother to take me to the house where John was to be born, so that I might sanctify him before his birth. In the Incarnation, I gave myself to the world for its salvation. Even before my birth I was working at my task, the sanctification of mankind — and I moved my Mother to work at it with me."
When Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and she exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And why is this granted me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For behold, when the voice of your greeting came to my ears, the babe in my womb leaped for joy."
Luke 1:41-44
"Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Sceptre of the majesty of God, did not come in the pomp of pride or arrogance, although He might have done so, but in a lowly condition, as the Holy Spirit had declared regarding Him."
Though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.
Philippians 2:6-7
"Such was the language of holy Simeon when he had the consolation to hold in his hands the infant Jesus. Among other things which he then foretold, he declared that "this child was set for the fall and for the resurrection of many in Israel." In these words he extols the lot of the saints, who, after this life, shall rise to a life of immortality in the kingdom of bliss, and he deplores the misfortune of sinners, who, for the transitory and miserable pleasures of this world, bring upon themselves eternal ruin and perdition."
“Behold, this child is set for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is spoken against, that thoughts out of many hearts may be revealed.”
Luke 2:34-35
"It was at the end of three days that the Child was found in the Temple - this Child who could forget His parents according to the flesh, since though incarnate He was filled with the wisdom and grace of God. This was a sign that three days after his triumphant Passion He would be raised to life, so that He might present Himself - to the eyes of our faith - on His heavenly throne surrounded by divine honours. And this is He whom men believed to be dead."
“How is it that you sought me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?”
Luke 2:49
"In the Garden, the Master went apart from His disciples, taking only three witnesses to His Agony—Peter, James, and John. Having seen Him transfigured on Mount Tabor, would they have the strength to recognize the Man-God in this Being—broken by the agony of death?"
He said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here, and watch.”
Mark 14:34
"Behold these barbarians, like so many ravening dogs, are already with the scourges attacking this innocent lamb. See how one beats him on the breast, another strikes his shoulders, another smites his loins and his legs; even his sacred head and his beautiful face cannot escape the blows. Already flows that divine blood from every part; already with that blood are saturated the scourges, the hands of the executioners, the column, and the ground."
He was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities upon him was the chastisement that made us whole, and with his stripes we are healed.
Isaiah 53:5
"How could I bear a crown of gold when the Lord bears a crown of thorns? And bears it for me!"
They stripped him and put a scarlet robe upon him, and plaiting a crown of thorns they put it on his head, and put a reed in his right hand.
Matthew 27:28-29
"I weep over the sorrows and ignominies of my Lord. And what makes me weep still more is, that the men for whom he has suffered so much live in forgetfulness of him."
“Shall I crucify your King?” The chief priests answered, “We have no king but Caesar.” Then he handed him over to them to be crucified.
John 19:15-16
"How, then, did he die? That agonized, tormented heart, which at the beginning so awfully relieved itself in the rush of blood and the bursting of his pores, at length broke. It broke, and he died. It would have broken at once, had he not kept it from breaking. At length the moment came. He gave the word, and his heart broke. That strong heart; that all-noble, all-generous, all-tender, all-pure heart was slain by sin."
Jesus uttered a loud cry, and breathed his last.
Mark 15:37
"But if a man is gone down even to Hades, and stands in awe of the heroes who have descended there, regarding them as gods, yet he may see the fact of Christ's Resurrection and victory over death, and infer that among them also Christ alone is true God and Lord."
For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead.
1 Corinthians 15:21
"For He tarried not, but ran crying out by words, deeds, death, life, descent, ascension, crying aloud to us to return to Him. And He departed from our sight, that we might return to our heart, and there find Him. For He departed, and behold, He is here. He would not be long with us, yet left us not; for He departed there, whence He never departed, because 'the world was made by Him.'"
He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world knew him not.
John 1:10
"Today the church presents to us the Spirit that Christ breathed into the church with his resurrection and his eternal life. 'The gates of the nether world shall not prevail against it,' said the eternal risen One, the one who Luke tells us overcame death and sin and 'breathed on his disciples.' What a precious gesture! The Bible speaks of a similar action when 'God formed man out of the clay of the ground and blew into his nostrils the breath of life.' God breathed the breath of life that created the human nature that we all share here today; we all have intelligence, freedom, incredible abilities because of the breath of God. That creation is renewed and redeemed from sin through the redemption of Christ. And the newly risen Christ, like a new Creator, breathes upon the fishermen: 'Receive the Holy Spirit.'"
He breathed on them, and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit."
John 20:22
"Oh, how far from this dissolution was the body of Mary, as we universally believe. For this body was the most holy Ark of God, to which corruption was unbecoming, but which, according to the likeness of her Son, should rise again, before any taint of corruption could infect it. Whence it is both of the Son and the Mother that the Prophet saith: 'Arise, O Lord, into Thy rest, Thou and the Ark of Thy sanctification.' This Ark was made of incorruptible wood, because the flesh of Mary never became corrupted. Therefore St. Augustine well says: 'The heavens were more worthy to preserve so glorious a treasure than the earth, and rightly incorruptibility followed on integrity, and not any dissolution or corruption.' As Mary was entirely free from the misery of them that are born, so also was she from the woe of the dying, and rightly is she saluted by Ave."
“Let us go to his dwelling place; let us worship at his footstool!” Arise, O Lord, and go to thy resting place, thou and the ark of thy sanctification.
Psalm 132:6-7
"The daughters of Jerusalem, I mean, of the Church, saw thee. Queens have blessed thee, that is, the spirits of the just, and they shall praise thee for ever. Thou art the royal throne which angels surround, seeing upon it their very King and Lord."
"He has regarded the low estate of his handmaiden. For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed."
Luke 1:48
"In Jesus Christ there was complete manhood, and so, having assumed a body as a servant of the Spirit, he accomplished in himself the entire mystery of our salvation. In this way he came to John: born of a woman, fashioned under the Law, made flesh through the Word. There was no need for him to be [baptized] since it was said concerning him: He committed no sin, and where there is no sin, remission of it is thereby superfluous. Nevertheless, he had assumed both the body and the name of our created condition, and although it was not necessary for him to be cleansed, the purifying water that cleanses us had to be sanctified by him."
For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.
Galatians 3:27
"The place too is appropriate. For 'Cana' means 'zeal' and 'Galilee' means 'passage.' So this marriage was celebrated in the zeal of a passage, to suggest that those persons are most worthy of union with Christ who, burning with the zeal of a conscientious devotion, pass over from the state of guilt to the grace of the Church. 'Pass over to me, all who desire me.' And they pass from death to life, i.e., from the state of mortality and misery to the state of immortality and glory."
"Behold, I make all things new."
Revelation 21:5
"Jesus spent forty days before beginning his public life in silence. He often retired alone, spent the night on the mountain in silence and prayer. He who spoke with authority spent his early life in silence."
He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them; and his mother kept all these things in her heart. And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature, and in favor with God and man.
Luke 2:51-52
"As the sun is of one likeness all over, without any part behind or inferior, but is all glorified with light throughout, and is, indeed, all light, with no difference between the parts, or as fire, the very light of the fire, is alike all over, having in it no first or last, or greater or less, so also the soul that is perfectly irradiated by the unspeakable beauty of the glory of the light of the face of Christ… is all eye, all light, all countenance."
As he was praying, the appearance of his countenance was altered, and his raiment became dazzling white.
Luke 9:29
"I have no taste for corruptible food nor for the pleasures of this life. I desire the bread of God, which is the flesh of Jesus Christ, who was of the seed of David; and for drink I desire his blood, which is love incorruptible."
"For my flesh is food indeed, and my blood is drink indeed."
John 6:55
"The first anguish that came upon his body was not from without — it was not from the scourges, the thorns, or the nails, but from his soul. His soul was in such agony that he called it death: 'My soul is sorrowful even unto death.' The anguish was such that it burst open his whole body, as it were. It was a pang affecting his heart, as, in the deluge, the floods of the great deep were broken up and the windows of heaven were opened. The blood, rushing from his tormented heart, forced its way on every side, formed for itself a thousand new channels, filled all the pores, and at length stood forth upon his skin in thick drops, which fell heavily on the ground."
Being in an agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down upon the ground.
Luke 22:44
"[The existence of pain] is a very beautiful opportunity for us to share in the Passion of Christ."
We are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.
Romans 8:16-17
"According to Matthew, they place a reed in His hand, so that human weakness might cease to shake like a reed in the wind; instead, we were to be firmly founded on the works of Christ. So, too, the decree that was written against us was to be nailed to the Cross and thus blotted out. Mark tells us that with the reed they struck Him on the Head. This was to signify that by contact with the divinity, the reed of our weak human nature would waver no more."
And they struck his head with a reed, and spat upon him, and they knelt down in homage to him.
Mark 15:19
"But the mention of the Lord's cross offends you. It always offended the Jews as well. You shudder at hearing that God suffered."
For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.
1 Corinthians 1:18
"That flaming, flashing sword was keeping Paradise safe; no one could open the gates which Christ had closed. The thief was the first to enter with Christ; his great faith merited the greatest of rewards. His faith in the kingdom was not attendant on seeing Christ; he did not see him in his radiant glory nor behold him looking down from heaven. He did not see the angels administering to him. Certainly, to put it plainly, he did not see Christ walking about in freedom, but on a gibbet, drinking vinegar, crowned with thorns. He saw him fixed to the cross and heard him beseeching help, ‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?’ The cross of Christ is the key to paradise."
He drove out the man; and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life.
Genesis 3:24
"Gabriel means ‘Power of God.’ This message therefore was fittingly brought by the ‘Power of God,’ because the Lord of hosts and mighty in battle was coming to overcome the powers of the air."
"He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there will be no end."
Luke 1:32-33
"That faith upon which [Mary’s] confidence rested finds reinforcement through the testimony of a miracle that had come as a precursor. Elizabeth has been endowed with an unhoped for fruitfulness. For the one who had given conception to a sterile woman could undoubtedly give it to a virgin as well."
"Behold, your kinswoman Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. For with God nothing will be impossible."
Luke 1:36-37
"Look for Him who is above all time, eternal and invisible, yet who became visible for our sakes."
He is the image of the invisible God, the first-born of all creation.
Colossians 1:15
"These birds have a figurative sense. For the turtle dove, being a loquacious bird, represents the preaching and confession of faith; and because it is a chaste animal, it signifies chastity; and being a solitary animal, it signifies contemplation. The pigeon is a gentle and simple animal, and therefore signifies gentleness and simplicity. It is also a gregarious animal; wherefore it signifies the active life. Consequently this sacrifice signified the perfection of Christ and His members."
"The time came for their purification according to the law of Moses, they brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord, and to offer a sacrifice according to what is said in the law of the Lord, 'a pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons.'"
Luke 2:22,24
"Have you not read in the Gospel the example of obedience set by the boy Jesus for the imitation of all other youths who aspire after holiness? For although He had remained behind in Jerusalem, and declared that it was necessary for Him to be about His Father’s business, when His parents found Him, and would not consent to Him staying any longer, He did not disdain to follow them to Nazareth. The Master obeyed His disciples, God obeyed man, the Word, the Wisdom of the Father obeyed a poor artisan and his consort! And that is not all, the inspired narrative goes on to say, 'and He was subject to them.'"
"He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them."
Luke 2:51
"The Apostle Thomas proclaims to you: Jesus whom I touched is God. It is God whose limbs I handled. I did not feel what was incorporeal, not handle what was intangible: I touched not a Spirit with my hand, so that it might be believed that I said of it alone 'It is God.' For 'a spirit,' as my Lord Himself said, 'has not flesh and bones.' I touched the body of my Lord. I handled flesh and bones. I put my fingers into the prints of the wounds: and I declared of Christ my Lord, whom I had handled: 'My Lord and my God.'"
Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side; do not be faithless, but believing.” Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!”
John 20:27-28
"And so, when they were led up to the Mount of Olives, they formed a circle around the Benefactor. The Lord, raising His hands like wings, just as the eagle covers the nest of young birds which she warms, spoke to the nestlings, saying, 'I have sheltered you from all evil, since I loved you and you loved Me. I will not be separated from you; I am with you.'"
As they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight.
Acts 1:9
"My God, I adore you, as the third person of the ever-blessed Trinity, under the name and designation of Love. You are that living love, wherewith the Father and the Son love each other. And you are the author of supernatural love in our hearts—Fons vivus, ignis, caritas. As a fire you came down from heaven on the day of Pentecost, and as a fire you burn away the dross of sin and vanity in the heart and light up the pure flame of devotion and affection."
"For the Lord your God is a consuming fire."
Deuteronomy 4:24
"She was absolutely immune from all the evils of the decree, not by nature, by an extraordinary and singular grace. For she always was a most pure virgin, a virgin in mind, a virgin by vow, a virgin in flesh, a most holy virgin in mind and body. The sorrows that other virgins experience, however, were not multiplied because her virginity was preserved. Never did an obscene or impure thought come creeping into her mind, nor did anyone in any way whatsoever think of violating her virginal purity, and at no time did she ever feel even the smallest movement of lustful concupiscence. Her flesh was the purest and the holiest, formed by the hand of God much more purely and excellently than the first woman in that pristine state of the brightest innocence, where Eve experienced none of these things."
"I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed."
Genesis 3:15
"From her birth to her glorious Assumption, her life unfolded on a journey of faith, hope and charity. These virtues, which blossomed in a humble heart abandoned to God’s will, are those adorning her precious, incorruptible crown as Queen. These are virtues which the Lord asks of all believers, if they are to share in his Mother’s glory."
A great portent appeared in heaven, a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars.
Revelation 12:1
"The Father of mercies willed that the incarnation should be preceded by the acceptance of her who was predestined to be the mother of His Son, so that just as a woman contributed to death, so also a woman should contribute to life. Adorned from the first instant of her conception with the radiance of an entirely unique holiness, the Virgin of Nazareth is greeted, on God's command, by an angel messenger as 'full of grace', and to the heavenly messenger she replies: 'Behold the handmaid of the Lord, be it done unto me according to thy word'. Thus Mary, a daughter of Adam, consenting to the divine Word, became the mother of Jesus, the one and only Mediator."
"Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you!"
Luke 1:28
"The Rosary, though clearly Marian in character, is at heart a Christocentric prayer. In the sobriety of its elements, it has all the depth of the Gospel message in its entirety, of which it can be said to be a compendium. It is an echo of the prayer of Mary, her perennial Magnificat for the work of the redemptive Incarnation which began in her virginal womb. With the Rosary, the Christian people sits at the school of Mary and is led to contemplate the beauty on the face of Christ and to experience the depths of his love."
"My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior; for he who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name."
Luke 1:46-47, 49
"One only Begotten God grew in the womb of the holy Virgin into the form of a human body; He who contains all things, and in whose power all things are, is brought forth according to the law of human birth."
When the time had fully come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.
Galatians 4:4-5
"Neither Scripture nor History mentions that Mary departed this life by way of martyrdom. But a material sword goes through the body, not through the soul. By this we are shown the wisdom of Mary and her understanding of the heavenly mystery. For 'the word of God is living and active; more piercing than any two-edged sword and reaching even to the division of soul and spirit, of joints and marrow. It sounds the secret thoughts of mind and heart'. To the Son, everything in our mind is naked and open, and there is no secret that our conscience can hold back from Him."
"A sword will pierce your heart."
Luke 2:35
"Jesus Christ gave more glory to God the Father by submission to His Mother during those thirty years than He would have given Him in converting the whole world by the working of the most stupendous miracles. Oh, how highly we glorify God, when, to please Him, we submit ourselves to Mary, after the example of Jesus Christ, our Sole Exemplar!"
He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them; and Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature, and in favor with God and man.
Luke 2:51-52
"My Jesus! Art Thou not God? Master of Heaven and earth? Equal to the Father? Why dost Thou abase Thyself until Thou losest all human aspect? Oh, yes. I understand. Thou wouldst teach me in my pride that to scale the heavens I must plumb the very depths. It is to expiate my arrogance that Thou has bent Thy head. It is to reconcile Heaven and earth that Thou liest prostrate on the ground as if Thou wished to give it the kiss of peace."
He knelt down and prayed, "Father, if thou art willing, remove this cup from me; nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done."
Luke 22:41-42
"I know that every fresh sin, every fresh ingratitude I now commit, was among the blows and stripes that once fell on you in your Passion. Oh, let me have as little share in those your past sufferings as possible. Let others wound you — let not me. Let me not have to think that you would have had this or that pang of soul or body the less, except for me."
He was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that made us whole.
Isaiah 53:5
"Jesus having one day appeared to St. Teresa crowned with thorns, the saint began to compassionate him; but the Lord made answer to her: 'Teresa, compassionate me not on account of the wounds which the thorns of the Jews produced; but commiserate me on account of the wounds which the sins of Christians occasion me.' Thou, too, therefore, O my soul, didst then inflict torture upon the venerable head of thy Redeemer by thy many consentings to evil: Know thou and behold how grievous and bitter it is for thee to have left the Lord thy God. Open now thine eyes, and see, and bitterly bewail all thy life long the evil that thou hast done in so ungratefully turning thy back upon thy Lord and God."
Kneeling before him they mocked him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” And they spat upon him, and struck him on the head.
Matthew 27:29-30
"How could one contemplate Christ carrying the Cross and Christ Crucified, without feeling the need to act as a 'Simon of Cyrene' for our brothers and sisters weighed down by grief or crushed by despair?"
As they were marching out, they came upon a man of Cyre′ne, Simon by name; this man they compelled to carry his cross.
Matthew 27:32
"'Shall a man pierce his God, for you are piercing me?' Does not our Lord God, I ask, seem to have said this when He was led to the Cross? Why indeed do you not acknowledge Me as your Redeemer? Why are you ignorant of God clothed in flesh for you? Are you preparing death for your Saviour? Are you leading forth to death the Author of life? I am your God whom you are lifting up: your God whom you are crucifying."
When they look on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a first-born.
Zechariah 12:10
"He who had come having in His power when to go, when to return, how far to advance, and for whom the regions of the grave were open, not only when dying but when rising again; He, I say, in order to show us His Church's hope of immortality, showed in the head what it behooved the members to expect. For He who has risen again in the head will also rise again in all His members."
In fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep. For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.
1 Corinthians 15:20-22
"You, O my dear Lord, did know better than they! They hoped and desired, perhaps fancied, that that resting time never would end until it was superseded by something better; but you knew, in your eternal wisdom, that, in order to arrive at what was higher than any blessing that they were then enjoying, it was fitting, it was necessary, that they should sustain conflict and suffering. You knew well that unless you had departed, the Paraclete could not have come to them; and therefore you did go, that they might gain more by your sorrowful absence than by your sensible visitations."
"You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samar′ia and to the end of the earth."
Acts 1:8
"Thereafter Mary's gaze, ever filled with adoration and wonder, would never leave him…on the day of Pentecost, [hers would be] a gaze afire with the outpouring of the Spirit."
There appeared to them tongues as of fire, distributed and resting on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit.
Acts 2:3-4
"This maternity of Mary in the order of grace began with the consent which she gave in faith at the Annunciation and which she sustained without wavering beneath the cross, and lasts until the eternal fulfillment of all the elect. Taken up to heaven she did not lay aside this salvific duty, but by her constant intercession continued to bring us the gifts of eternal salvation."
"Behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed; for he who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name."
Luke 1:48-49
"Mary is the Queen of heaven and earth by grace, as Jesus is the King of them by nature and by conquest. Now, as the kingdom of Jesus Christ consists principally in the heart and interior of a man,—according to that word, 'The kingdom of God is within you,'—in like manner the kingdom of our Blessed Lady is principally in the interior of a man, that is to say, his soul; and it is principally in souls that she is more glorified with her Son than in all visible creatures, and that we can call her, as the Saints do, the Queen of hearts."
"Come, O blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world."
Matthew 25:34
"It was no longer the wise men, nor the star, but the Father from above that proclaimed Him at the streams of Jordan; and the Spirit likewise came upon Him, guiding that voice to the head of Him just baptized; and John, with all plainness of speech, cried out everywhere in Judæa, till inhabited and waste country alike were filled with that kind of doctrine; and the witness too of the miracles, and earth, and sea, and the whole creation, uttered in His behalf a distinct voice."
"This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased."
Matthew 3:17
"Who, seeing the substance of water changed and transformed into wine, fails to perceive that He Who did this is Lord and Creator of the substance of all waters?"
Jesus said to them, "Fill the jars with water." And they filled them up to the brim. He said to them, "Now draw some out, and take it to the steward of the feast." When the steward of the feast tasted the water now become wine, and did not know where it came from, the steward of the feast called the bridegroom and said to him, "Every man serves the good wine first; and when men have drunk freely, then the poor wine; but you have kept the good wine until now."
John 2:7-10
"Another mystery of light is the preaching by which Jesus proclaims the coming of the Kingdom of God, calls to conversion and forgives the sins of all who draw near to him in humble trust: the inauguration of that ministry of mercy which he continues to exercise until the end of the world, particularly through the Sacrament of Reconciliation which he has entrusted to his Church."
"The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent, and believe in the gospel."
Mark 1:15
"In order to animate them to labour for the divine honour, the Redeemer was transfigured, and allowed them to behold the splendour of his countenance. Ravished with joy and delight, St. Peter exclaimed: 'Lord, it is good for us to be here.' Lord, let us remain here; let us never more depart from this place; for, the sight of thy beauty consoles us more than all the delights of the earth."
He was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his garments became white as light. And Peter said to Jesus, "Lord, it is well that we are here."
Matthew 17:2,4
"Not as common bread nor common drink do we receive these; but since Jesus Christ our Savior was made incarnate by the word of God and had both flesh and blood for our salvation, so likewise have we been taught that the food which is blessed by the prayer of His word, and from which our blood and flesh by transmutation are nourished, is the flesh and blood of that Jesus who was made flesh."
He took bread, and when he had given thanks he broke it and gave it to them, saying, "This is my body which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me." And likewise the cup after supper, saying, "This cup which is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood."
Luke 22:19-20
"Christ experiences a moment of great anguish before the will of the Father, against which the weakness of the flesh would be tempted to rebel. There Jesus encounters all the temptations and confronts all the sins of humanity, in order to say to the Father: 'Not my will but yours be done.' This 'Yes' of Christ reverses the 'No' of our first parents in the Garden of Eden."
As by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by one man’s obedience many will be made righteous.
Romans 5:19
"Let us enter into the praetorium of Pilate, one day made the horrible scene of the ignominies and pains of Jesus: let us see how unjust, how shameful, how cruel, was the punishment there inflicted on the Saviour of the world. Pilate, seeing that the Jews continued to make a tumult against Jesus, as a most unjust judge condemned him to be scourged: ‘Then Pilate took Jesus and scourged Him.’ The iniquitous judge thought by means of this barbarity to win for him the compassion of his enemies, and thus to deliver him from death: I will chastise Him (he said) and let Him go. Scourging was the chastisement inflicted on slaves only. Therefore, says St. Bernard, our loving Redeemer willed to take the form, not only of a slave, in order to subject himself to the will of others, but even of a bad slave in order to be chastised with scourges and so to pay the penalty due from man, who had made himself the slave of sin: 'Taking not only the form of a slave, that he might submit, but even of a bad slave, that he might be beaten and suffer the punishment of the slave of sin.'"
But I am a worm, and no man; scorned by men, and despised by the people.
Psalm 22:6
"And so the Jews, no matter how detestable the spirit in which they did these things, foretell a glorious outcome. For in wounding Him, they crown Him; and in mocking Him, they adore Him. Their heart believes not, and yet they render homage to Him whom they immolate. It was never their intention to do Him good, I know that well, but nonetheless God is honoured. Christ is hailed as a King, crowned as a Victor, adored as God and Lord."
But you, O Bethlehem, who are little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose origin is from of old, from ancient days; with a rod they strike upon the cheek the ruler of Israel.
Micah 5:2,1
"Meet their animosity with mildness, their high words with humility, and their abuse with your prayers."
"Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do."
Luke 23:34
"[The Lord] did not show weakness on the Word's part, but, on the contrary, showed Him to be Saviour and Life; in that He both awaited death to destroy it, and hastened to accomplish the death offered Him for the salvation of all."
He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is dumb, so he opened not his mouth.
Isaiah 53:7
"Not only was she a virgin most pure, but she was a very fertile woman with the brightness of her virginity—fertile not in the number of offspring but in the excellence of her offspring. Her conceptions were not multiple. She had only one child, in whom, as Paul says, dwells...the fullness of the Godhead bodily and in whom shall all the nations be blessed. She did not conceive in passion, but she was filled with the grace of the Holy Ghost, and she conceived by the power of the Holy Ghost, Who sanctified her in mind and body and was the recipient of her purest virgin blood. From her virginal womb and then from the work the Holy Ghost and from the power of God Most High the Eternal Father, the Word there ineffably attached was made flesh."
"Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus."
Luke 1:31
"John jumped for joy to make an announcement concerning his future preaching. The infant of the barren woman exulted before the infant of the virgin. He sought out his mother’s tongue and desired to pronounce a prophecy concerning the Lord. Therefore Elizabeth’s conception was kept hidden from Mary for six months, until the infant would have limbs sufficiently formed to exult before the Lord with his jumping and become a witness to Mary through his exultation. Moreover, that he exulted in the womb of his mother was not of himself, nor because of his five months, but so that the divine gifts might show themselves in the barren womb that was now carrying him. It was also so that the other womb, that of the Virgin, would know the great gifts given to Elizabeth, and that the two soils might believe in the seeds they had received through the word of Gabriel, cultivator of both grounds. Since John could not cry out in his exultation and render witness to his Lord, his mother began to say, 'You are blessed among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb.' Our Lord prepared his herald in a dead womb, to show that he came after a dead Adam. He vivified Elizabeth’s womb first, and then vivified the soil of Adam through his body."
"Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!"
Luke 1:42
"When, therefore, the identity of each substance is preserved and they join in a single Person, majesty takes up humility, strength takes up weakness, eternity takes up mortality. To pay the debt of our condition, his inviolable nature pours forth into a vulnerable one."
The Word became flesh and dwelt amongst us.
John 1:14
"Not only angels and prophets; shepherds and kinsfolk, but old men and just bear their witness to the birth of the Lord. Every age in life and both sexes, marvels and miracles, affirm our faith. A Virgin conceives, a barren woman gives birth; Elizabeth prophesies, the Magi adore; the child in the womb leaps for joy, a widow gives thanks; and a just man waits. Truly he was just, for he was not waiting in expectation of his own profit, but rather that of the people. For his own part, all he wanted was to be delivered from the bonds of this wretched body - but first to see the promised Messiah. For he knew that 'blessed are the eyes that see.'"
"I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I hope; my soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen for the morning, more than watchmen for the morning."
Psalm 130:5-6
"Joy mixed with drama marks the fifth mystery, the finding of the twelve-year-old Jesus in the Temple. Here he appears in his divine wisdom as he listens and raises questions, already in effect one who 'teaches.' The revelation of his mystery as the Son wholly dedicated to his Father's affairs proclaims the radical nature of the Gospel, in which even the closest of human relationships are challenged by the absolute demands of the Kingdom. Mary and Joseph, fearful and anxious, 'did not understand' his words."
For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, says the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.
Isaiah 55:8-9
"The Church pauses in contemplation of this bleeding face, which conceals the life of God and offers salvation to the world. But her contemplation of Christ's face cannot stop at the image of the Crucified One. He is the Risen One! Were this not so, our preaching would be in vain and our faith empty. The Resurrection was the Father's response to Christ's obedience… It is the Risen Christ to whom the Church now looks. The Rosary has always… invited the believer to pass beyond the darkness of the Passion in order to gaze upon Christ's glory in the Resurrection and Ascension."
If there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised; if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain.
1 Corinthians 15:13-14
"When the Lord ascended into heaven, the disciples adored Him from where His feet had previously stood, then immediately they returned to Jerusalem, where they were commanded to wait for the Promise of the Father. Great indeed was their joy, for they rejoice that their God and Lord, after the triumph of His Resurrection, has also passed into the heavens."
Let us lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.
Hebrews 12:1-2
"The glory of God is man fully alive; the life of man is the vision of God."
"And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions. Even upon the menservants and maidservants in those days, I will pour out my spirit."
Joel 2:28-29
"God the Son has communicated to His Mother all that He has acquired by His Life and by His Death, His infinite merits and His admirable virtues; and He has made her the treasuress of all that His Father has given Him for His inheritance."
"You are the exaltation of Jerusalem, you are the great glory of Israel, you are the great pride of our nation!"
Judith 15:9
"Great as the mercy of Mary was while she was still an exile in this world, much greater is her mercy now that she reigns in Heaven. Now by her innumerable benefits she shows men a greater mercy, for she now sees more clearly the untold miseries of mankind."
I am the mother of fair love, and of fear, and of knowledge, and of holy hope.
Sirach 24:24
"When God had come forth from the Virgin, in that human nature which He had taken, as He existed in one out of two which are the opposite of each other; flesh and spirit, the one is taken into God, the other exalts into the grace of Deity. O new and unheard of intermingling! O marvellous and exquisite union! He who was, came to be, and the Creator is created: and He who is infinite is embraced by the soul which is the medium between God and the flesh: and He who makes all rich, is made poor."
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L
"Mary set off at once for the hill country. This was not from any lack of faith in the prophecy, not from any doubt regarding the precedent that he had spoken of. No, she went out of sheer joy, out of pure desire to fulfill a duty of love. Filled from now on with God, where should she hasten if not to the heights?"
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L
"The first true poverty was when 'Christ emptied himself.' For nine months he was lost in the little space of Mary's bosom: not even St. Joseph knew who he was. Having all things, yet possessing nothing. His birth was also like one of the poorest of the poor. Even our poor have someone to assist them... Mary did not. At Nazareth even his people despised him. It was not necessary for Jesus to practice this absolute poverty. There is only one reason: because he desired it. He wanted to be to the fullest 'one' of us."
W
G
"Both these animals, by the plaintiveness of their song, represented the mourning of the saints in this life: but the turtle dove, being solitary, signifies the tears of prayer; whereas the pigeon, being gregarious, signifies the public prayers of the Church."
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L
"Most holy Mary lost her Son for three days: during that time she wept continually for having lost sight of Jesus, and did not cease to seek after him till she found him. How then does it happen that so many sinners not only lose sight of Jesus, but even lose his divine grace; and instead of weeping for so great a loss, sleep in peace, and make no effort to recover so great a blessing?"
H
Luke 2:51-52