As we give thanks to God today for the special grace of the Immaculate Conception which God gave to Mary, we are led to reflect on her greatness and her role in helping us on our journey to God. One of the saints who wrote about Mary helping us on our journey to God is St. Louis Marie de Montfort. Pope John Paul II was very much influenced by his writings and took his motto “Totus Tuus, O Maria,” “I am all yours, O Mary”, from St. Louis Marie de Montfort. These are some of the beautiful statements St. Louis Marie de Montfort made about Mary in his writings,
God the Father made a gathering of all the waters and called it the sea; he made a gathering of all graces and called it Mary. God possesses a treasure of vast richness, containing all there is of beauty, of splendor, of magnificence, even to the inclusion of his own Son; and this immense treasure is none other than Mary whom the saints call the treasure of the Lord…
God the Son has communicated to his mother all that he has gained by his life and his death, his infinite merits and his admirable virtues, and he has made her the disburser of all that his Father has given him as his inheritance. It is through her that he applies his merits to his members, communicates to them his virtues and distributes to them his graces: she is his mysterious channel, his splendid aqueduct by which he pours forth his mercies, sweetly and abundantly upon us.
The Holy Spirit has communicated his unsurpassable
gifts to Mary his faithful Spouse, and he has chosen her to be the dispenser of
all that he possesses so that she distributes to whom she wishes, as she wishes
and when she wishes, all his gifts and graces, he himself making no gift to men
except by her virginal hands. This is in accordance with the will of God who has
designed that we should have all things in Mary…
(True Devotion to Mary Part 1, chapter 1, article 2)
Mary was full of grace from the first moment of her existence when she was immaculately conceived. “God the Father made a gathering of all the waters and called it the sea; he made a gathering of all graces and called it Mary.” Jesus came to us through Mary, and Mary, full of grace, can help us on our way to Jesus. Pray to Mary every day, especially the rosary. Take Mary’s hand and allow her to lead us to Jesus.
Copyright © Fr. Tommy Lane 2003
This homily was delivered in a parish in Ireland.