SPIRITUAL VESSEL

(1) MARY, I greet you as a Spiritual Vessel, not only because the Son of God assumed flesh of you and dwelt in you, but also because the Holy Spirit infused into your soul, as into a precious vessel, the fullness of His grace. The Holy Spirit gave you a rich measure of faith. St. Elizabeth called you blessed on account of your faith: "Blessed is she who has believed, because the things promised her by the Lord shall be accomplished" (Luke 1,45). Eve, believing the serpent rather than God, brought death; you, believing the words of the angel, brought salvation to the world.

The wonderful extent of your faith, its unwavering firmness and extraordinary activity shone forth in every action of your life. Christ is born in the greatest poverty; He lies a weak babe in a crib; He is subject to all the wants of infancy like any other child; but you do not for a moment doubt His Divinity. You worship in Him the omnipotence of God and recognize Him as the Lord of heaven and earth. You needed no miracle to make you believe; the simple words which the Lord had spoken to you through the angel, were enough to strengthen you so firmly in your belief that you never faltered in it during life.

How great is your faith in the time of the Passion and death of Jesus! The Jews rise up against Him and revile Him as a false prophet and a criminal. Even His disciples begin to doubt Him. Though He seems to be forsaken by God and dies on the cross, you adore Him with the same strong conviction of faith as you now adore Him in heaven.

Spiritual Vessel, help me to be firm in the holy Catholic faith. Let nothing make me waver in my faith. Give me three supports for my faith: humility, the fear of God, and fervor in prayer.

2) MARY you were strongly grounded in hope. God enlightens us by faith that we may understand His goodness and promises, and arouses us by hope that we may cherish an ardent desire to possess Him. You had faith in an extraordinary degree, hence you had firm hope and could say with David: "In God I have put my trust; I will not fear what flesh can do against me" (Ps. 55,5). Your trials were great beyond comparison, but you never lost courage or became weak in faith, because you were sustained by hope.

You did not complain when you had to seek refuge in a stable where you gave birth to Jesus. Later you gave the most beautiful proof of your confidence in God when you set out on your journey into Egypt with your little Child.

At the marriage feast at Cana, in spite of the answer of Jesus, "What wouldst thou have me do, woman? My hour has not yet come," your confidence was not shaken. You told the waiters to do whatever your Son should tell them, for you hoped with confidence that He would grant your request. Jesus rewarded your confidence by working His first miracle.

At the sight of Jesus dying in utmost abandonment on the cross, a sword pierced your heart; but you stood immovable as a rock because hope sustained you. You knew you would have your Son again and nothing would separate you from Him.

I hope to obtain heaven and all things necessary for salvation—the forgiveness of my sins and the grace to do good; for God has promised me all this through the merits of your Son.

Spiritual Vessel, help me to fear and hope: fear. because I am very weak and liable to fall into grievous sin; hope, because God will never abandon those who sincerely desire their salvation.

(3) MARY, you were filled with the love of God and your neighbor. Your heart was not divided between God and creatures; it belonged entirely to God. Knowing that the surest proof of love is to suffer for the beloved, you gladly made use of every occasion which presented itself to sacrifice for the love of God. And as love always tends to a union with the person one loves, your soul was always united with God by prayer.

You were also filled with the most tender love for your neighbor. Like your divine Son, you loved everybody and fervently desired the salvation of all mankind. Because true love never passes away, you show yourself at all times our most amiable Mother and obtain for us all the graces we need.

Spiritual Vessel, help me to love God above all things and to make every sacrifice for the love of Him, even the sacrifice of my life, if I can no longer preserve it without sin. Aid me in loving my neighbor for the love of God. May my good example shine before men by always conducting myself as a good Catholic.

We beg of You, O Lord, our God, by the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, to make the Most Holy Mysteries, which You have given us for the preservation of our spiritual life, a remedy for us both for the present and for the future. Through Christ our Lord. Amen. (Feast of Our Lady of the Most Blessed Sacrament, May 13)