Domine, non sum dignus

The Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary and True Devotion to Mary . . This glorious Feast, normally celebrated on March 25th (although sometimes transferred because of the liturgical precedence of the observances of Lent and Holy Week), is called by some theologians and spiritual writers the "greatest day in the history of mankind." It was on this day that the Word became Incarnate in the spotless womb of Mary (the House of Gold, the Living Tabernacle, the Living Ark of the Convenant). At the humble Fiat of the chosen Virgin, the long-awaited Savior was conceived of the Holy Ghost. The "history" of man's redemption began in earnest as the Immaculate Lily of the Most Holy Trinity humbly rejoiced in the Will of the Eternal Father. And thus it has also been a Feast most dear to the hearts of all true devotees of Our Blessed Mother. From the earliest Christian eras there were held, by faithful Christians, beautiful solemn liturgies, processions, and other celebrations of this glorious Feast. . These celebrations were satanically diminished by the Nestorian heretics of the early centuries and by the Protestant heretics of later times. But the most recent assault on this Feast comes from the vile beliefs and insidious influence of the freethinkers and the Modernists. As it has always been the prerogative of the Bishops to designate which Feasts were to be observed as solemn Feasts and Holy Days of Obligation within their ecclesiastical provinces (and in more modern times, more often by national conferences of Bishops), the areas in which freethinkers and Modernist clergy wielded great influence saw the tragic reduction by some Bishops so influenced, of a great number of solemn Feasts and Holydays. The bishops of the United States were among the worst in this regard. And thus, many solemn Feasts and Holy Days of Obligation were eliminated by the freethinking American prelates, including one of the most important and significant-the Feast of the Annunciation. . While all faithful Catholics celebrate the Feast of the Annunciation in a special manner, those who are totally consecrated to Mary as De Montfort True Devotees-"Slaves of Our Lady"--celebrate this solemn Holy Day as their principal Feast of the year (not liturgically, of course, but devotionally). Holy Mother Church grants a plenary indulgence on this Feast to those so consecrated, under the usual conditions, as they renew their Total Consecration. Only those who have prayerfully read St. Louis Marie De Montfort's book, "True Devotion to Mary" can truly begin to understand its crucial importance to perseverance in this age of universal apostasy. Sister Mary Lucia of Fatima said that the De Montfort Consecration is the form of devotion and consecration requested by Our Divine Lord through the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

Lessons 7 - 9 from the Divine Office of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary: Luke 1: 26-38 ; Book 2 on the Gospel of Luke by St. Ambrose the Bishop. . At that time: the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth, to a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary. And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art full of grace: the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women. And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be. And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name Jesus. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto Him the throne of His father David: And He shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of His kingdom there shall be no end. Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that Holy Thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren. For with God nothing shall be impossible. And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. -------------------------------------------------- The mysteries of God are unsearchable, as is especially declared in the prophetical words: What man is he that can know the counsel of God? or who can think what the will of the Lord is? Nevertheless, some things have been revealed to us. And hence we may gather, from the words and works of our Lord and Saviour, that there was a special purpose of God in the fact that she who was chosen to bring forth the Lord was espoused to a man. Why did not the power of the Highest overshadow her before she was so espoused? Perhaps it was lest any might blasphemously say that the Holy One was conceived in fornication. And the Angel came in unto her. Let us learn from His Virgin how to bear ourselves: let us learn by her devout utterance; above all let us learn by the holy mystery to be timid, to avoid the advances of men, and to shrink from men's addresses. Would that our women would learn from the example of modesty here set before us. She upon whom the stare of men had never been fixed was alone in her chamber, and was found only by an Angel. There was neither companion nor witness there, that what passed might not be debased in gossip; and the Angel saluted her. The message of God to the Virgin was a mystery so great that it must needs not be uttered by the mouth of man, but only by an Angel. For the first time on earth the words are spoken: The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee. The holy maiden heareth, and believeth. At length, she said: Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it done unto me according to thy word. Here is an example of lowliness, here is a pattern of true devotion. At the very moment she is told that she is chosen to be the Mother of the Lord she declareth herself to be his handmaid. The knowledge that she was chosen to this high vocation wrought in Mary only an act of humility.

Lessons 4-6 from the Divine Office of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary: Sermon 2 on the Nativity of the Lord of Pope St. Leo. . God is He Whose nature is goodness, Whose will is power, and Whose work is mercy. Wherefore, at the very beginning of the world, as soon as the devil's hatred had mortally poisoned mankind with the venom of his envy, this almighty and merciful God even then foretold those remedies which His mercy had foreordained for our healing. At that time He bade the serpent know that there was to be a Seed of the woman Who yet should crush the prideful swelling of his pestilential head. This Seed was none other than the Christ to come in the Flesh, even God and Man in one Person, Who should be born of the Virgin, and by His virgin-birth should condemn the seducer of man. The devil rejoiced that he had, by his artful cunning, so deceived man as to make him lose the gifts of God, and forfeit the privilege of eternal life. Yea, when the devil had thus brought man under the hard sentence of death, he found a certain solace for his own misery in the fact that he now had a comrade in his guilt. He thought also that God, in His just anger, would change His original design towards man, whom He had made in such honour. But, dearly beloved, that unchangeable God, Whose will cannot be baulked of its loving-kindness, in the dispensation of his own secret counsel, had already provided a mysterious way for carrying out His original purpose of goodness. So it was that mankind, which had been led into sin by the wicked craft of the devil, was not suffered to perish, and frustrate that gracious purpose of God. When, therefore, dearly beloved, the fulness of that time was come, which God had appointed for our redemption, our Lord Jesus Christ entered this lower world. Christ came down from His heavenly throne. And, while He left not that glory which He hath with the Father before the world was, He was incarnate by a new order and a new birth, in that He Who is invisible among His own, was made visible among us. He Who is before the ages, began to be in time. He Who is the Lord of all placed the glory of His majesty under a shadow, for He took upon Him the form of a servant. Thus God the Impassible vouchsafed to become a man subject to suffering, and the Immortal laid Himself under the laws of death.

Lessons 1-3 from the Divine Office of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary: Isaias 7: 10-15; 11:1-5; 35: 1-7 . Moreover the Lord spake again unto Ahaz, saying, Ask thee a sign of the Lord thy God; ask it either in the depth, or in the height above. But Ahaz said, I will not ask, neither will I tempt the Lord. And he said, Hear ye now, O house of David; Is it a small thing for you to weary men, but will ye weary my God also? Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Emmanuel. Butter and honey shall he eat, that he may know to refuse the evil, and choose the good. And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots: and the spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord; and shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the Lord: and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears: but with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: and he shall smite the earth: with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked. And righteousness shall be the girdle of his loins, and faithfulness the girdle of his reins. The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose. It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing: the glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon, they shall see the glory of the Lord, and the excellency of our God. Strengthen ye the weak hands, and confirm the feeble knees. Say to them that are of a fearful heart, Be strong, fear not: behold, your God will come with vengeance, even God with a recompence; he will come and save you. Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing: for in the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in the desert. And the parched ground shall become a pool, and the thirsty land springs of water.

Novena to Saint Gemma Galgani 2 Day 9 April 10 . Oh Most Divine Lord, we humbly prostrate ourselves before Thy Infinite Majesty, and we adore Thee and dedicate to Thy glory the devout prayers which we now present to Thee, as an act of devotion to Thy servant, St Gemma Galgani, whose intercession we are now imploring. . Oh most lovable St Gemma, we ask you to be our patroness and special friend today and always. Assist us in our daily spiritual and material needs and teach us to know, love and serve the Lord our God with all our hearts. Accompany us, along with our guardian Angel, in all our ways, and guide us lovingly to Heaven. Assist us at the time of our death along with Jesus, Mary and Joseph, and plead our cause before God, and trusting in His great mercy and the Passion of Jesus thy Spouse, obtain for us the salvation of our souls, and also the favor that we now humbly request . (mention request) . Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be. . Pray for us, Saint Gemma, that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ. . Let us pray . O God, Who didst fashion thy servant Saint Gemma into a likeness of Thy Crucified Son, grant us through her intercession the favor that we humbly request, and through the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Thy Son, may we be united with Thee for all eternity. We ask this through Jesus Christ our Lord Who liveth and reigneth with Thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, One God, now and forever. Amen.