N o v e n a t o M a r yN o v e n a t o M a r y I m m a c u l a t e 2 0 1 3I m m a c u l a t e 2 0 1 3

Reflections from Pope Francis' Catechesis at Marian Day Vigil (October 14,

2013) and from the encyclical letter Lumen Fidei

Mary always brings us to Jesus

Introduction

In the fullness of time, God’s word was spoken to Mary and she received that

word into her heart, her entire being, so that in her womb it could take flesh and

be born as light for humanity. Saint Justin Martyr, uses a striking expression; he

tells us that Mary, receiving the message of the angel, conceived “faith and joy”.

In the Mother of Jesus, faith demonstrated its fruitfulness; when our own spiritual

lives bear fruit we become filled with joy, which is the clearest sign of faith’s

grandeur. In her own life Mary completed the pilgrimage of faith, following in the

footsteps of her Son. In her the faith journey of the Old Testament was thus taken

up into the following of Christ, transformed by him and entering into the gaze of

the incarnate Son of God. Luke the evangelist in his Gospel of an honest and good

heart, which hears and keeps the word is an implicit portrayal of the faith of the

Virgin Mary. The evangelist himself speaks of Mary’s memory, how she treasured

in her heart all that she had heard and seen, so that the word could bear fruit in

her life. The Mother of the Lord is the perfect icon of faith. (Lk 8:15). At the

conclusion of the year of Faith. (Lumen Fidei – 58-59)

Let us remain united in prayer as we ask Mary to intercede for us the gift of Faith.

Sr. Chanda Nsofwa. FMA.

Day 1 – Friday 29th November

Mary’s faith unties the knot of sin

The first aspect of Mary’s faith is this: Mary’s faith unties the knot of sin. What does this mean? It means that "the knot of Eve’s disobedience was untied by the obedience of Mary; what the virgin Eve bound by her unbelief, the Virgin Mary loosened by her faith." In her faith, Mary brought Jesus our light to the world. (Catechesis at Marian Day Vigil)

Pause

In John’s Gospel, Christ says of himself: “I have come as light into the world, that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness” (Jn 12:46). Yet in the absence of light, everything becomes confused; it is impossible to tell good from evil, or the road to our destination from other roads, which take us in endless circles, going nowhere. (Lumen Fidei)

Pause for reflection We ask Mary to intercede for us the gift of Discernment in our lives

- Hymn to May…. As I kneel before you- Our father- Ten Hail Mary- Glory Be…..

O Mary, most powerful virgin, great and illustrious defender of the Church, wonderful help of Christians, formidable as an army in battle array, you, who alone have overcome every heresy in the world, in our anguish, in our combats, in our difficulties, defend us from the enemy and in the hour of our death receive our souls into paradise. Amen

Day 2 – 30th November

The "knot" of disobedience, the "knot" of unbelief

When children disobey their parents, (when adults engage in acts of disobedience) we can say that a little "knot" is created. This happens if we acts with an awareness of what we are doing, especially if there is a lie involved. At that moment, we break trust with their parents…. We know how frequently this happens! Then the relationship with our parents… needs to be purified of this fault; we have to ask forgiveness so that harmony and trust can be restored. Something of the same sort happens in our relationship with God. (cf Catechesis at Marian Day Vigil)

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There is an urgent need, then, to see once again that faith is a light, for once, the flame of faith dies out, all other lights begin to dim. The light of faith is unique, since it is capable of illuminating every aspect of our human existence. (Lumen Fidei)

Pause for reflectionWe ask Mary to intercede for us the gift of Obedience

- Hymn to May…. No one can live as an Island….- Our father- Ten Hail Mary- Glory Be…

O Mary, most powerful virgin, great and illustrious defender of the Church, wonderful help of Christians, formidable as an army in battle array, you, who alone have overcome every heresy in the world, in our anguish, in our combats, in our difficulties, defend us from the enemy and in the hour of our death receive our souls into paradise. Amen

Day 3 – 1st December

What is sin?

We sin when we do not listen to God, when we do not follow his will, we do concrete things that demonstrate our lack of trust in him – this sin – and a kind of knot is created deep within us. These knots take away our peace and serenity. They are dangerous, since many knots can form a tangle which gets more and more painful and difficult to undo. (Catechesis at Marian Day Vigil)

Pause

The light of faith cannot come from ourselves, but from a primordial source: in a word, it must come from God. Faith is born of an encounter with the living God who calls us and reveals his love, a love which precedes us and upon which we can lean for security and for building our lives. (Lumen Fidei)

Pause for reflection

We ask Mary to intercede for us the gift of avoiding occasions of Sin- Hymn to May…. Immaculate Mary….- Our father- Ten Hail Mary- Glory Be…

O Mary, most powerful virgin, great and illustrious defender of the Church, wonderful help of Christians, formidable as an army in battle array, you, who alone have overcome every heresy in the world, in our anguish, in our combats, in our difficulties, defend us from the enemy and in the hour of our death receive our souls into paradise. Amen

Day 4 – 2nd December

Nothing is impossible for God’s mercy

Nothing is impossible for God’s mercy! Even the most tangled knots are loosened by his grace. And Mary, whose "yes" opened the door for God to undo the knot of the ancient disobedience, is the Mother who patiently and lovingly brings us to God, so that he can untangle the knots of our soul by his fatherly mercy. We all have some of these knots and we can ask in our heart of hearts: What are the knots in my life? "Father, my knots cannot be undone!" It is a mistake to say anything of the sort! All the knots of our heart, every knot of our conscience, can be undone. Do I ask Mary to help me trust in God’s mercy, to undo those knots, to change? She, as a woman of faith, will surely tell you: "Get up, go to the Lord: he understands you". And she leads us by the hand as a Mother, our Mother, to the embrace of our Father, the Father of mercies. (Cf Catechesis at Marian Day Vigil)

Pause

Faith does not merely gaze at Jesus, but sees things as Jesus himself sees them, with his own eyes: it is a participation in his way of seeing. In many areas in our lives we trust others who know more than we do. We trust the architect who builds our home, the pharmacist who gives us medicine for healing, the lawyer who defends us in court. We also need someone trustworthy and knowledgeable where God is concerned. Jesus, the Son of God, is the one who makes God known to us (cf. Jn 1:18). Christ’s life, his way of knowing the Father and living in complete and constant relationship with him, opens up new and inviting vistas for human experience. (Lumen Fidei)

Pause for reflection

We ask Mary to intercede for us the gift of living in complete and constant relationship with JesusHymn to May…. Mary Most Holy, From Your Hands falling are Heaven’s blessing…

- Our father- Ten Hail Mary- Glory Be…

O Mary, most powerful virgin, great and illustrious defender of the Church, wonderful help of Christians,

formidable as an army in battle array, you, who alone have overcome every heresy in the world, in our

anguish, in our combats, in our difficulties, defend us from the enemy and in the hour of our death

receive our souls into paradise. Amen

Day 5 – 3rd December

Mary’s faith gave human flesh to Jesus

"Through her faith and obedience, Mary gave birth on earth to the very Son of the Father, without knowing man but by the overshadowing of the Holy Spirit". Mary first conceived Jesus in faith and then in the flesh, when she said "yes" to the message God gave her through the angel. What does this mean? It means that God did not want to become man by bypassing our freedom; he wanted to pass through Mary’s free “Yes”, through her "yes". He asked her: "Are you prepared to do this?" And she replied: "Yes". (Catechesis at Marian Day Vigil)

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Faith’s new way of seeing things is centred on Christ. Faith in Christ brings salvation because in him our lives become radically open to a love that precedes us, a love that transforms us from within, acting in us and through us. (Lumen Fidei)

Pause for reflection

We ask Mary to intercede for us the gift of knowing the true meaning of freedomHymn to May…. Holy Virgin by God’s decree…Our father

- Ten Hail Mary- Glory Be…..

O Mary, most powerful virgin, great and illustrious defender of the Church, wonderful help of Christians, formidable as an army in battle array, you, who alone have overcome every heresy in the world, in our anguish, in our combats, in our difficulties, defend us from the enemy and in the hour of our death receive our souls into paradise. Amen

Day 6 – 4th December

Receiving the word of God with a good and sincere heart and putting it into practice

What took place most singularly in the Virgin Mary also takes place within us, spiritually, when we receive the word of God with a good and sincere heart and put it into practice. It is as if God takes flesh within us; he comes to dwell in us, for he dwells in all who love him and keep his word. It is not easy to understand this, but really, it is easy to feel it in our heart. (Catechesis at Marian Day Vigil)

Pause

Unless you believe, you will not understand (cf. Is 7:9).We need knowledge, we need truth, because without these we cannot stand firm, we cannot move forward. Faith without truth does not save; it does not provide a sure footing. It remains a beautiful story, the projection of our deep yearning for happiness, something capable of satisfying us to the extent that we are willing to deceive ourselves. Either that or it is reduced to a lofty sentiment which brings consolation and cheer, yet remains prey to the vagaries of our spirit and the changing seasons, incapable of sustaining a steady journey through life. (Lumen Fidei)

Pause for reflection

We ask Mary to intercede for us the gift of knowing the true meaning of freedom

- Hymn to May…. Mother of God’s living Word….- Our father- Ten Hail Mary- Glory Be…

O Mary, most powerful virgin, great and illustrious defender of the Church, wonderful help of Christians, formidable as an army in battle array, you, who alone have overcome every heresy in the world, in our anguish, in our combats, in our difficulties, defend us from the enemy and in the hour of our death receive our souls into paradise. Amen

Day 7 – 5th December

Faith is truly a good for everyone

Do we think that Jesus’ incarnation is simply a past event which has nothing to do with us personally? Believing in Jesus means giving him our flesh with the humility and courage of Mary, so that he can continue to dwell in our midst. It means giving him our hands, to caress the little ones and the poor; our feet, to go forth and meet our brothers and sisters; our arms, to hold up the weak and to work in the Lord’s vineyard, our minds, to think and act in the light of the Gospel; and especially to offer our hearts to love and to make choices in accordance with God’s will. All this happens thanks to the working of the Holy Spirit. And in this way, we become instruments in God’s hands, so that Jesus can act in the world through us. (Catechesis at Marian Day Vigil)

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Faith is truly a good for everyone; it is a common good. Its light does not simply brighten the interior of the Church, nor does it serve solely to build an eternal city in the hereafter; it helps us build our societies in such a way that they can journey towards a future of hope. The Letter to the Hebrews offers an example in this regard when it names, among the men and women of faith, Samuel and David, whose faith enabled them to "administer justice" (Heb 11:33). This expression refers to their justice in governance, to that wisdom which brings peace to the people (cf. 1 Sam 12:3-5; 2 Sam8:15). The hands of faith are raised up to heaven, even as they go about building in charity a city based on relationships in which the love of God is laid as a foundation. (Lumen Fidei)

Pause for reflection

We ask Mary to intercede for us the gift of working for the common goodHymn to May…. Daily, daily sing to Mary….

- Our father- Ten Hail Mary- Glory Be…

O Mary, most powerful virgin, great and illustrious defender of the Church, wonderful help of Christians, formidable as an army in battle array, you, who alone have overcome every heresy in the world, in our anguish, in our combats, in our difficulties, defend us from the enemy and in the hour of our death receive our souls into paradise. Amen

Day 8 – 6th December

Mary’s faith as a journey

Mary "advanced in her pilgrimage of faith" In this way she precedes us on this pilgrimage, she accompanies and sustains us.

Mary’s faith was a journey, In the sense that her entire life was to follow her Son: Jesus – who is the way, the path. To press forward in faith, to advance in the spiritual pilgrimage which is faith, is nothing other than to follow Jesus; to listen to him and be guided by his words; to see how he acts and to follow in his footsteps; to have his same sentiments. And what are these sentiments of Jesus? Humility, mercy, closeness to others, but also a firm rejection of hypocrisy, duplicity and idolatry. (Catechesis at Marian Day Vigil)

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The light of love proper to faith can illumine the questions of our own time about truth. Truth nowadays is often reduced to the subjective authenticity of the individual, valid only for the life of the individual. A common truth intimidates us, for we identify it with the intransigent demands of totalitarian systems. But if truth is a truth of love, if it is a truth disclosed in personal encounter with the other and with others, then it can be set free from its enclosure in individuals and become part of the common good. (Lumen Fidei)

Pause for reflection

We ask Mary to intercede for us the gift of having firm rejection of hypocrisy, duplicity and idolatry

- Hymn to May…. Gentle Woman…- Our father- Ten Hail Mary- Glory Be….

O Mary, most powerful virgin, great and illustrious defender of the Church, wonderful help of Christians, formidable as an army in battle array, you, who alone have overcome every heresy in the world, in our anguish, in our combats, in our difficulties, defend us from the enemy and in the hour of our death receive our souls into paradise. Amen

Day 9 – 7th December

The way of Jesus is the way of a love, which is faithful to the end

The way of Jesus is the way of a love which is faithful to the end, even unto sacrificing one’s life; it is the way of the cross. The journey of faith thus passes through the cross. Mary understood this from the beginning, when Herod sought to kill the newborn Jesus. But then this experience of the cross became deeper when Jesus was rejected. Mary was always with Jesus, she followed Jesus in the midst of the crowds and she heard all the gossip and the nastiness of those who opposed the Lord. And she carried this cross! Mary’s faith encountered misunderstanding and contempt. When Jesus’ "hour" came, the hour of his passion, when Mary’s faith was a little flame burning in the night, a little light flickering in the darkness. Through the night of Holy Saturday, Mary kept watch. Her flame, small but bright, remained burning until the dawn of the resurrection. And when she received word that the tomb was empty, her heart was filled with the joy of faith: Christian faith in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. (Catechesis at Marian Day Vigil)

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Those who believe are transformed by the love to which they have opened their hearts in faith. By their openness to this offer of primordial love, their lives are enlarged and expanded. "It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me" (Gal 2:20). "May Christ dwell in your hearts through faith" (Eph 3:17). The self-awareness of the believer now expands because of the presence of another; it now lives in this other and thus, in love, life takes on a whole new breadth. Here we see the Holy Spirit at work. The Christian can see with the eyes of Jesus and share in his mind, his filial disposition, because he or she shares in his love, which is the Spirit. In the love of Jesus, we receive in a certain way his vision. Without being conformed to him in love, without the presence of the Spirit, it is impossible to confess him as Lord (cf. 1 Cor 12:3). (Lumen Fidei)

Pause for reflection

We ask Mary to intercede for us the gift of perseverance

-Hymn to May…. Long before the earth, your name was Mary….

-Our father

-Ten Hail Mary

-Glory Be…

Happy Feast of MaryHappy Feast of Mary Immaculate!!Immaculate!!

O Mary, most powerful virgin, great and illustrious defender of the Church, wonderful help of Christians, formidable as an army in battle array, you, who alone have overcome every heresy in the world, in our anguish, in our combats, in our difficulties, defend us from the enemy and in the hour of our death receive our souls into paradise. Amen.

Faith always brings us to joy, and Mary is the Mother of joy! May she teach us to take the path of joy, to experience this joy! That was the high point – this joy, this meeting of Jesus and Mary, and we can imagine what it was like. Their meeting was the high point of Mary’s journey of faith, and that of the whole Church. What is our faith like? Like Mary, do we keep it burning even at times of difficulty, in moments of darkness? Do I feel the joy of faith?

Mary, our Mother, we thank you for your faith, the faith of a strong and humble woman; we renew our entrustment to you, Mother of our faith. Amen.