Virgo Potens

Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary ~ August 31st [152. continued] Thirdly, in respect of the form of the command, by which the superior expresses his intention that he wishes to be obeyed in such and such a matter, but it is principally pride that aggravates the disobedience, as the will refuses to submit as it should to Divine law. [St. Thomas, 2a 2æ, qu. lxix, art. 1; et qu. cv per tot.]” ~ Fr. Cajetan Mary da Bergamo (1660-1753), Humility of Heart. Tr. Herbert Cardinal Vaughan (1903).

Sayings of the Saints “We must do everything through a motive of love, and nothing through compulsion. Our love for obedience must be greater than our fear of disobedience.” ~ St. Francis de Sales St. Francis de Sales, pray for us.

2 of 2 Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary ~ August 31st And thus, the feast of the Holy Heart of the Mother of God, which is celebrated on February 8th, encompasses all the other feasts of our holy Mother, for it is the feast of her Heart strictly speaking — the feast of this Heart which is the principle of all her holiness, all her holy virtues, all her holy mysteries, and all the glories and grandeurs that she will possess everlastingly in heaven: "All the glory of the King's daughter is within." After that, judge for yourself how many great and marvellous things are honored by this holy solemnity of the Admirable Heart of the Queen of the Angels, and with what devotion it ought to be celebrated. To all the above recommendations add meditation on the virtues, excellences and wonders contained in the admirable Heart of the Mother of the Saviour, which is an excellent way to motivate yourself to love and honor it. ~ Saint John Eudes, The Admirable Heart of the Most Holy Mother of God (1680)

Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary ~ August 31st TWELVE METHODS OF PRACTISING THIS DEVOTION (continued) Finally, all these solemnities are the feasts of the most holy Heart of the Queen of every heart, because, as we said before, her Heart is the source and origin of whatever is great, holy and admirable in each of these feasts. (continued)

Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary ~ August 30th [152. continued] Secondly, in respect of the nature of the things commanded, because when these are of greater importance, especially in the laws of God, the disobedience is greater, therefore it is a graver sin to disobey those precepts which enjoin the love of God than those which command us to love our neighbour. (continued) ~ Fr. Cajetan Mary da Bergamo (1660-1753), Humility of Heart. Tr. Herbert Cardinal Vaughan (1903).

2 of 2 Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary ~ August 30th Christmas is the feast of her Divine and Virginal Childbirth, the feast of the delights of her Heart, which is utterly suffused and exalted with joy and love for her lovable Infant upon beholding Him born before her eyes. The feast of the Purification is the feast of the first public and solemn sacrifice which her Heart made to Almighty God of His Son, her dearest Child. It is also the feast of the humility of her Heart, when she took her place in the temple among the ordinary mothers, and joined the ranks of the poor in offering what the poor were accustomed to offer. The feast of the Assumption commemorates the triumphs of her Heart, the feast of its most perfect and intimate union with the Heart of the Most Blessed Trinity; the feast of the glorification and crowning of her Heart as Sovereign ruler of all hearts. ~ Saint John Eudes, The Admirable Heart of the Most Holy Mother of God (1680)

Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary ~ August 30th TWELVE METHODS OF PRACTISING THIS DEVOTION (continued) The feast of the Annunciation commemorates the greatest miracle of the marvellous Heart of this admirable Mother, which on that day becomes an unfathomable depth of wonders, where greater and more prodigious things take place than have ever happened or ever will happen, no matter how great or worthy of admiration, in all centuries past, present and yet to come. The feast of the Visitation is the feast of the Magnificat and of the inspired words that came forth on that day from her blessed Heart so filled with the Holy Spirit. (continued)

Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary ~ August 29th [152. continued] First, the rank of the superior, because the higher the one who commands, the more grave is the disobedience. It is a greater sin to disobey God than to disobey man, a greater sin to disobey the pope than a bishop, or a father and mother than other relations; and it is also a greater sin to disobey with contempt of the person who commands, than with contempt only of the commandment. (continued) ~ Fr. Cajetan Mary da Bergamo (1660-1753), Humility of Heart. Tr. Herbert Cardinal Vaughan (1903).

Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary ~ August 29th TWELVE METHODS OF PRACTISING THIS DEVOTION (continued) The feast of the Nativity of Mary is the feast of the birth of her Heart, which on that day began to live a life more holy than any other life. The feast of the Presentation of Mary in the Temple commemorates the solemn and public dedication of her Heart to eternal Love, which is God Himself. The feast of her angelic Marriage with St. Joseph is the feast of the divine betrothal of the two purest of Hearts, two virgin Hearts so closely united that they form but a single heart which loves God more thin do all the hearts of the Seraphim. ~ Saint John Eudes, The Admirable Heart of the Most Holy Mother of God (1680)

Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary ~ August 28th 152. Disobedience is a sin by which we violate the command of our superiors, treating them with contempt, and it can be a mortal sin even in small matters; because, as St. Bernard says, we must not consider the nature of the thing commanded nor the simple transgression of the precept, but the pride of the will which will not submit when it ought. [Lib. de Præcept et Dispens., cap xi] “It is not the simple transgression of the wish but the proud contention of the will that creates criminal disobedience,” and the grievousness of the sin can be judged under three different heads. (continued) ~ Fr. Cajetan Mary da Bergamo (1660-1753), Humility of Heart. Tr. Herbert Cardinal Vaughan (1903).

Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary ~ August 28th TWELVE METHODS OF PRACTISING THIS DEVOTION (continued) The fifth is the feast of the Joys of the Heart of Mary on July 8th. There are in addition many others, for all feasts of the Blessed Virgin are really feasts of her Admirable Heart. The feast of the Immaculate Conception, celebrated on December 8th, is the feast of the Creation or formation of her most holy Heart, which was fashioned by the almighty hand of God and filled with grace and love from the very first of its creation. ~ Saint John Eudes, The Admirable Heart of the Most Holy Mother of God (1680)

Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary ~ August 27th [151. continued] The fathers generally call hypocrisy perversity, iniquity, impiety; and it is easy not only to fall into this sin, but to become so accustomed to it that it leads us into atheism. We often begin by serving God with a certain degree of holy fervour, but when this diminishes, we no longer serve God but only pretend to serve Him in order to keep up outward appearances. “Woe unto you hypocrites!” [See St. Thomas, 2a 2æ, qu. xi, per tot.] ~ Fr. Cajetan Mary da Bergamo (1660-1753), Humility of Heart. Tr. Herbert Cardinal Vaughan (1903).

Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary ~ August 27th TWELVE METHODS OF PRACTISING THIS DEVOTION (continued) The third is the feast of the Sorrows of the Pure Heart of the Mother of Jesus, which is celebrated on the Friday following Passion Sunday. The fourth is the feast of the Resurrection of the Heart of Mary which was restored to life by the Resurrection of her Divine Son: "(Her) spirit (was) revived," and overwhelmed with the greatest joy imaginable when this beloved Son visited her after His Resurrection. For that reason this feast is observed under the name of the Apparition of the Risen Jesus to His Most Holy Mother, on the first free day after the octave of Easter. ~ Saint John Eudes, The Admirable Heart of the Most Holy Mother of God (1680)

Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary ~ August 26th [151. continued] Also when in all the functions connected with the service of God we pretend to have a pure intention when we have it not: “And seek to please not God but men, not the conversion but the favour of the people.” [D. Th. 2a 2æ, qu. lxi, art. 2] (continued) ~ Fr. Cajetan Mary da Bergamo (1660-1753), Humility of Heart. Tr. Herbert Cardinal Vaughan (1903).

2 of 2 Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary ~ August 26th The first is celebrated in the Congregation of Jesus and Mary and in several other places on February 8th, and in a number of other communities and churches on the first day of June.* The second is the feast of the most ardent longing of the virginal Heart for the birth of our Saviour, which is called the feast of the Expectation, and is observed on December 18th. ~ Saint John Eudes, The Admirable Heart of the Most Holy Mother of God (1680) *The Feast of the Holy Heart of Mary was celebrated by The Congregation of Jesus and Mary and the Order of Our Lady of Charity, both founded by St. John Eudes, on February 8th. In the Universal Church, the Feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary was celebrated on August 22nd from 1944 until 1969. It is celebrated the day after the Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus on the current calendar, but still observed on the Traditional calendar on August 22nd, the last day of the Octave of the Assumption of Our Lady. ~ Saint John Eudes, The Admirable Heart of the Most Holy Mother of God (1680)

Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary ~ August 26th TWELVE METHODS OF PRACTISING THIS DEVOTION (continued) 12. The twelfth means of honoring the admirable Heart of the Mother of Our Saviour is to celebrate its feast, or rather its feasts, with particularly marked devotion. I say "feasts" for there are several feasts of the most august Heart of our Heavenly Queen. (continued)

Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary ~ August 25th [151. continued] In this way also we sin gravely by hypocrisy when we show ourselves scrupulous about works of supererogation or in certain minute observances, not fearing at the same time to transgress against the essential duties of religion and our own state of life, “having left the weightier things of the law,” like those Scribes and Pharisees whom Christ reproved, saying that they “strain a gnat and swallow a camel.” [Matt. xxiii, 24] (continued) ~ Fr. Cajetan Mary da Bergamo (1660-1753), Humility of Heart. Tr. Herbert Cardinal Vaughan (1903).

✯¸.•´*¨`*•✿ ✿•*`¨*`•.¸✯ August 26th, 2026 Dear Telly-gram Friends, I am going to be running behind with posting for the next few days. I will do my best to post something each day, and hope to be caught up sometime next week. Thank you for your patience! ✯¸.•´*¨`*•✿ ✿•*`¨*`•.¸✯

Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary ~ August 25th TWELVE METHODS OF PRACTISING THIS DEVOTION (continued) 11. (continued) Finally, it is the Heart of our great Queen, our most bountiful Sister and our most amiable Mother, to whom all power is given in heaven and on earth and who holds in her hands for distribution to men all the treasures of her beloved Son, cui vult, quando vult, et quomodo vult, says St. Bernard; "to whomever she wills, whenever she wills, and however she wills." ~ Saint John Eudes, The Admirable Heart of the Most Holy Mother of God (1680)

Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary ~ August 24th [151]. continued] Hypocrisy is always a mortal sin when we pretend to be spiritual and holy, and try to appear as such, when we are not so at heart, caring more for the opinion of men than for the opinion of God; and it is worse still when we affect sanctity in order to further our own advancement and to acquire credit in order to reach and to work evil; or else to obtain some honour, or other temporal good. (continued) ~ Fr. Cajetan Mary da Bergamo (1660-1753), Humility of Heart. Tr. Herbert Cardinal Vaughan (1903).