Virgo Potens

Novena for the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary August 6th - 14th Prayer Lord Jesus Christ, Thou hast destroyed the power of death and given the hope of eternal life for body and soul. Thou hast granted Thy Mother a special place in Thy glory, and didst not allow decay to touch her body. As we rejoice in the Assumption of Mary, grant us renewed confidence in the victory of life over death. Amen. DAY 5 - August 10th O merciful and loving Mother, may your glorious beauty fill our hearts with a distaste for earthly things and an ardent longing for the joys of Heaven. May your merciful eyes glance down upon our struggles and our weakness in this vale of tears. Hear then loving Mother, our request and plead to Jesus for us. (Here mention your request). Crown us with the pure robe of innocence and grace here, and with immortality and glory in Heaven. O Queen, assumed into heaven, pray for us. Amen.

2 of 2 Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary ~ August 10th It is she who more than all others has placed Christ as a seal upon her heart. As Christ is the perfect image of the Father, so Mary is humanity's best image of the Son, and since internally and externally no created soul has so perfectly resembled the Source of all Grace, we are not surprised to see in the commentaries of the Fathers on the sublime Canticle, the vestiges of the devotion to that Heart which pre-eminently loved Christ, and which in charity resembled His divine Heart most closely. Besides the Canticle of Canticles wherein Mary is understood as "the Bride," we find numerous other texts in the Old Testament which the Church and theologians and Scripture scholars have applied to the Blessed Mother. Many texts in their reference to Mary are controversial; many others are without question applicable to her. She appears as "the Sanctuary" in the Psalms, as the "first-born daughter of God" and “heavenly Queen of the World” in the Book of Wisdom. 15 —— 15 Scheeben, op. cit., p. 461 ~ Fr. John F. Murphy, Mary’s Immaculate Heart. (1951)

1 of 2 Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary ~ August 10th Origen says that the last-mentioned verse of the Canticle (Cant. 8:6) refers to the exhortation of the Bridegroom, that every thought and action of His Beloved be fashioned according to His example.14 This assimilation to Christ is of course attained by no soul to the extent realized in the person of the. Blessed Virgin. It is she who could say my heart watcheth, for most ardently did she strive to imitate the Heart of her divine Son and thereby live in perfect obedience to God's holy will. —— 14 Origen, Series Procopianorum excerptorum ex Origine in Cantlca Canticorum (PG, 13, 215) : "Hortatur earn Sponsus, ut omnem animi cogitatum et actionem sua figura informat." (continued)

Novena for the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary August 6th - 14th Prayer Lord Jesus Christ, Thou hast destroyed the power of death and given the hope of eternal life for body and soul. Thou hast granted Thy Mother a special place in Thy glory, and didst not allow decay to touch her body. As we rejoice in the Assumption of Mary, grant us renewed confidence in the victory of life over death. Amen. DAY 4 - August 9th O Dearest Mary, assumed into Heaven, God placed thee at His right hand, that thou might intercede for His little ones as the Mother of God. In the midst of all the saints, thou standest as their Queen and ours, dearer to the Heart of God than any other creation. Thou prayest for thy children and grant to us every grace won by our loving Savior on the Cross. Please intercede for us now in our needs, and ask Jesus to grant our request, if it be for the good of our souls. (Here mention your request). O Queen, assumed into heaven, pray for us. Amen.

2 of 2 Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary ~ August 9th Commenting on the Canticle (8:6), he says that the Virgin Mary so carried Christ as a seal on her heart that through imitation of Him she came more and more to resemble Him, 10 and on the words . . . he set in order charity in me (Cant. 2:4), "In whom was charity formed, if not in the Virgin Mary; who loved Christ from the depths of her heart. . . .” 11 It is the Blessed Virgin again who above all others most perfectly fills the requirements implied, according to the Fathers, in the words, Put me as a seal upon thy heart (Cant. 8:6), for it is she who bears Christ as a seal that she might forever love Him, that she might excel in the power of contemplation 12 and while devoting herself ardently to meditation might never cease to imitate Him in her external actions. 13 —— 8 St. Isidore of Seville, Append. VI, Expositio in Canticum Canticorum (PL, 83, 1125): "Aperi mihi, id est cor pande mihi, soror mea . . . Immaculata mea, quia sola aspectu rneo digna." 9 Alanus de Insulis, op. cit. (PL, 210, 85): "Inducitur ergo Virgo loquens secundura statum ante Incarnationem, Ego dormio, a saeculari cura, et cor meum vigilat in "contemplatione." 10 Ibid. (PL, 210, 105) : "Sic Virgo Maria Christum [super] cor suum posuit ut signaculum, quia ipsi per imitationem conformata est eiusque gratia consignata." 11 Ibid. (PL, 210, 65) : "In quo fuit charitas ordinata, nisi in Virgine Maria; quae dttexit Christum ex toto corde." 12 Theodoret, Episcopus Cyrensis, In Canticum Cantic. Lib. llI (PG, 81, 139) : "Cor quidem appellat animae vim contemplativam, brachium autem activam." ~ Fr. John F. Murphy, Mary’s Immaculate Heart. (1951)

1 of 2 Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary ~ August 9th The Fathers and early ecclesiastical writers in their commentaries on the above verses sometimes give us an insight into the qualities of the heart of the Beloved Bride. Commenting on the words of the Canticle (5:2), St. Isidore of Seville says, "Open to me, that is, reveal to me thy heart, my sister, my undefiled, because you alone are worthy of my sight." 8 Alanus de Insulis uses the verse (Cant. 5:2) as referring to the words of the Blessed Virgin before the Incarnation. I sleep refers to the Holy Virgin's freedom from worldly anxieties ; and my heart watcheth has reference to her contemplation of divine things. 9 (continued)

DEVOUT EXERCISES The faithful who devoutly recite prayers in honor of the most pure Heart of Mary, at any season of the year, with the intention of persevering in the same for nine consecutive days may gain: An indulgence of 5 years, once on any day of the novena; A plenary indulgence on the usual conditions at the end of the novena (Pius IX, Audience Jan. 3, 1849; S. C. of Bishops and Religious, Jan. 28, 1850; S.C. Ind., Nov. 26, 1876; S.P. Ap., April 29, 1933). (The Raccolta, 1957)

Novena for the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary August 6th - 14th Prayer Lord Jesus Christ, Thou hast destroyed the power of death and given the hope of eternal life for body and soul. Thou hast granted Thy Mother a special place in Thy glory, and didst not allow decay to touch her body. As we rejoice in the Assumption of Mary, grant us renewed confidence in the victory of life over death. Amen. DAY 3 - August 8th O Mother, assumed into Heaven, because thou hast shared in all the mysteries of our Redemption here below, Jesus has crowned thee with glory. With thy most glorious and powerful intercession, help us O loving Mother, and present to Jesus our request. (Here mention your request). O Queen, assumed into heaven, pray for us. Amen.

2 of 2 Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary ~ August 8th There are innumerable passages in the Canticle of Canticles which the Fathers apply to the Singula Anima Fidelis or adoring soul. 7 It would hardly be rash to assume that this application by the Fathers of certain texts to the Singula Anima Fidelis in any way excludes their being applied also in many cases to our Blessed Lady who, in fact, is the most perfect of all souls and the most worthy to be called the spouse of the Bridegroom. The Holy Father implies, however, that the Fathers in commenting on the Canticle of Canticles have found in the inspired book cause for observations which have served as the remote foundation for the devotion to the Immaculate Heart itself, and upon investigation we find in the Canticle two special texts which are particularly associated with the Heart of the Beloved: I sleep, and my heart watcheth: the voice of my beloved knocking: Open to me my sister, my love, my undefiled (5:2); and Put me as a seal upon thy heart, as a seal upon the arm . . . (8:6). —— 7 St. Ambrose, Commentarius in Cantica Cantic. E.g., (PL, 15, 1919); St. Gregory the Great, Super Cantica Canticorum Expositio (PL, 79, 517 and 541). ~ Fr. John F. Murphy, Mary’s Immaculate Heart. (1951)

1 of 2 Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary ~ August 8th St. Epiphanius, in one of his homilies, refers to the Blessed Mother in connection with the phrase a garden enclosed, a fountain sealed up (Cant. 4:12). And St. Theodotus of Ancyra associates the Blessed Virgin with the preceding verse (Cant. 4:11). 6 —— 5 St. Epiphanius, Homilia V in Laudes Sanctae Mariae Deiparae (PG, 43, 491). 6 St. Theodotus of Ancyra, Hom. VI In 5. Deip. (PG, 77, 1427). (continued)

1 of 2 Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary ~ August 8th St. Epiphanius, in one of his homilies, refers to the Blessed Mother in connection with the phrase a garden enclosed, a fountain sealed up (Cant. 4:12). And St. Theodotus of Ancyra associates the Blessed Virgin with the preceding verse (Cant. 4:11). 6 —— 5 St. Epiphanius, Homilia V in Laudes Sanctae Mariae Deiparae (PG, 43, 491). 6 St. Theodotus of Ancyra, Hom. VI In 5. Deip. (PG, 77, 1427). (continued)k

Hail full of grace ! The Lord is with thee ! DEVOUT EXERCISES The faithful who offer prayers or other acts of piety in honor of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, on any day in the month of August, may gain: An indulgence of 5 years, once. Those who persevere in such a devout exercise daily throughout the month of August, may gain: A plenary indulgence on the usual conditions. (S.C. Holy Off., March 13, 1913; S.P. Ap., June 2, 1935). (The Raccolta, 1957)

Novena for the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary August 6th - 14th Prayer Lord Jesus Christ, Thou hast destroyed the power of death and given the hope of eternal life for body and soul. Thou hast granted Thy Mother a special place in Thy glory, and didst not allow decay to touch her body. As we rejoice in the Assumption of Mary, grant us renewed confidence in the victory of life over death. Amen. DAY 2 - August 7th O Mary, assumed into Heaven, we venerate thee as the Queen of Heaven and earth. As thou tasted the bitterness of pain and sorrow with thy Son on earth, thou now enjoyest eternal bliss with Him in Heaven. Loving Queen, intercede for us in our needs. (Here mention your request). We praise Jesus for giving us such a loving mother. O Queen, assumed into heaven, pray for us. Amen.

2 of 2 Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary ~ August 7th Indeed, on the Feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary as well as on the other feasts in honor of our Blessed Mother we find the Church in the liturgy employing the words of the Canticle in her prayers of praise, for the bride of the Canticle, adorned with the beauty of spotless purity and deep affection for her spouse, is a figure most appropriate to the Mother of God. Among the typical interpretations to which the Canticle of Canticles lends itself, this interpretation of the most beloved spouse as the Blessed Virgin Mary is one which has been employed from antiquity, and which, according to the Doctors of the Church and students of Sacred Scripture, is most fitting. 3 Prior to the twelfth century, however, we find no systematic or complete treatment of the Canticle from a purely Mariological point of view, though many Fathers, among whom we find SS. Hippolytus, Ephraem, Gregory of Nyssa, Peter Chrysologus, John Damascene, and especially Ambrose, associate certain phrases of the Canticle with the Blessed Virgin. 4 —— 3 Cf. Lepicier, In Canticum Canticorum Commentarius, Rome, 1936, p. 20; Cornely-Merk, Introductions in S. Scripturae Libros Compendium, Paris, 1940, p. 503; M. Scheeben, Dogmatik, III, Freiburg, 1933, p. 462; Alarms de Insulis, Elucidatio in Cantica Cantic. (PL, 210, S3): "Unde, cum canticum amoris . . . specialiter et spiritualiter ad Ecclesiam referatur, tamen specialissime et spiritualissime ad gloriosam Virginem reducitur. quod divino nutu (prout poterimus) explicabimus." 4 Cf. G. Roschini, Mariologia, II-1, Rome, 1948, p. 127. ~ Fr. John F. Murphy, Mary’s Immaculate Heart. (1951)

1 of 2 Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary ~ August 7th THE HEART OF MARY IN SACRED SCRIPTURE THE FATHERS ON THE OLD TESTAMENT Our Holy Father, Pope Pius XII, has pointed out that the remote vestiges of the devotion to the Immaculate Heart of our Blessed Mother are to be found in the commentaries of Fathers on the Sponsa of the Canticle of Canticles. 2 —— 2 Pius XII, "Urbis et Orbis," AAS, XXXVII, 1945, p. 50. Although it must be admitted that there is no unequivocal reference to the Immaculate Heart of Mary in the Old Testament literally interpreted, still, as the Holy Father indicates, the commentaries of the Fathers on certain passages constitute the beginnings of the devotion. And it is with this understanding that this chapter proceeds. (continued)

Novena for the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Prayer Lord Jesus Christ, Thou hast destroyed the power of death and given the hope of eternal life for body and soul. Thou hast granted Thy Mother a special place in Thy glory, and didst not allow decay to touch her body. As we rejoice in the Assumption of Mary, grant us renewed confidence in the victory of life over death. Amen. DAY 1 - August 6th Immaculate Virgin, Mother of Jesus and our Mother, we believe in thy triumphant assumption into heaven where the angels and saints acclaim thee as Queen of Heaven and earth. We join them in praising thee and bless the Lord Who raised thee above all creatures. With them we honor thee. We are confident that thou watchest over our daily lives and we ask thee to intercede for us now. (Here mention your request). We are comforted by our faith in the coming Resurrection and we look to thee for prayers and comfort. After this earthly life, show us Jesus, the blessed fruit of thy womb, O kind, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary. O Queen, assumed into heaven, pray for us. Amen.