TODAY 12TH SEPTEMBER IS THE FEAST OF THE MOST HOLY NAME OF MARY Happy feast day to all those who are called Mary This feast day began in Spain in 1513. In 1683 Pope Innocent XI extended the existing Feast of the Most Holy Name of Mary to the universal Church to thank Our Lady for the victory of John Sobieski, king of Poland, over the forces of militant Islam. On September 11th, 1683, Muslim Turks attacked Vienna, threatening the Christian West. The next day, Sobieski, invoking the Blessed Virgin Mary and placing his forces under her protection, emerged victorious. Pope John Paul II restored the feast of the Holy Name of Mary with the publication of the Third Typical Edition of the Roman Missal in 2002, one year after the attacks of September 11th, 2001. In Hebrew, the name Mary is Miryam. In Our Ladys time, Aramaic was the spoken language, and the form of the name then was Mariam. Throughout the centuries, Saints and scholars have put forth different interpretations for the name Mary - a mixture of etymology and devotion. However Star of the Sea certainly seems most accepted. St Thomas Aquinas wrote; Mary means star of the sea, for as mariners are guided to port by the ocean star, so Christians attaint to glory through Marys maternal intercession. The Invocation of the Name of Mary: The Holy Mother of God is no stranger to the struggles of her children in this valley of tears. She is attentive to every situation that threatens this world of ours, to every assault against the Church and, when we invoke her Holy Name, she is quick to intervene. When it comes to calling upon the Name of Mary, there is no struggle too global and too enormous, and no struggle too personal or too little. In the Bible, the name wields a mysterious power. Names are not to be pronounced casually or lightly. Names are not to be taken in vain. The invocation of the name renders present the one who is named. So often as you pronounce the sweet Name of Mary with devotion and confidence, Mary is present to you, ready to help. So often as you pronounce the sweet Name of Mary, you have her full and undivided attention. As Oil Poured Out: The saints, drawing on a verse from the Song of Songs, compare the Name of Mary to a healing oil. Thy Name is as oil poured out (Ct 1:2). Oil heals the sick, gives off a sweet fragrance, and nourishes fire. In the same way the Name of Mary is like a balm on the wounds of the soul; there is no disease of the soul, however malignant, that does not yield to the power of the Name of Mary. The sound of Marys Name causes joy to spring up; the repetition of Marys Name warms the heart. If you would touch the Heart of the Father, pronounce the Name of Jesus; if you would touch the Heart of Jesus, pronounce the Name of Mary. Monastic Devotion: Cistercians, Carthusians, Olivetan, Silvestrine Benedictines, and some others give to each and every monk and nun the sweet Name of Mary, as a sign of mystical identification with her, a pledge of entrustment to her, and a seal and safeguard of the monastic consecration. How precious this custom is! Every time a brother is named, the protection of Mary is claimed over him, and the presence of Mary envelops him. Hail Mary.... Mother of Jesus pray for us!
Posted on: Fri, 12 Sep 2014 02:01:03 +0000
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