By his death on the cross, our Lord and savior Jesus Christ obtained for mankind all that he could ever have done for us. All the merits of the sufferings and death of our Lord Jesus Christ he laid at the feet of Mary. At the foot of the cross St. Jn19:25-27 “Now there stood by the cross of Jesus, his mother and his mother’s sister, Mary of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalen. 26 When Jesus therefore had seen his mother and the disciple standing whom he loved he saith to his mother: Woman, behold thy son. 27 After that he saith to the disciple: Behold thy mother. And from that hour, the disciple took her for his own”.
These merits of Jesus purchased for mankind by his death upon the cross, he placed at the feet of Mary and to distribute to man she gives to men as it pleases her, when it pleases her and in what quantity it pleases her says St. Louis Mariae de Montfort as she gives to man even unto those who do not acknowledge her as mother but are followers of Jesus for Jesus saith “if they are not against us they are for us”
Reading the story of St. Catherine Laboure and the Miraculous medal, we find the need to ask for grace at all times from Mary Immaculate, Mediatrix of All graces. Mary as wrote by another author was born Immaculate, she lived immaculate, died immaculate and was assumed body and soul to heaven immaculate. Jesus said that we should ask and we shall receive and so for us to receive grace we shall ask for it. Nothing good comes from man naturally as a result of the fall of satan and so every good we do in life is as a result of the grace of God which we receive through the maternal hands of Mary Immaculate Mediatrix of All graces.
During Our Lady’s visit to the young novitiate St. Catherine, as the story goes, rays of light emanated from the rings on the fingers of the Blessed Virgin Mary though some of the rings brought forth no light. St. Catherine inspired by the Holy Ghost who is ever present with, in and around the Blessed Virgin his beloveth spouse(that is what we mean when we say Mary is full of grace) asked the Blessed Virgin the meaning of the rays of light that emanated from the rings on her finger and Our Lady replied that it signifies graces of God which she gives to men. Again the young lady asked about the rings that emanated no light and Our Lady replied that they meant graces for which we have failed to ask for.
We need the grace of God to firmly have faith in the God whom we believe in. It takes the grace of God to live a life of prayer as a Christian. It takes the grace of God for a sick man to have faith that the God whom he serves, whom he has called upon in prayer for healing from bondage of illness has healed him. It takes the grace of God to do virtually everything just like it takes the grace of God for the writer to write.
In all these, this woman, a mere creature of God but whom it pleased God to abode in her womb for 9months, this woman who nursed the son of God and whom the Son of God was subject to for the first 30 years of his earthly life only to complete his earthly sojourn at 33. Jesus gave to Mary 30 years and 3 years to the world.
In all, this woman who walked along the way to Golgotha with her son and finally at the foot of the cross, all the graces of God obtained by Jesus on the cross of death he gave to her when he said “Mother behold thy son”(Mother of the Church) even as we see in Rev 12:17 And the dragon was angry against the woman: and went to make war with the rest of her seed who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.
Mary is the Mediatrix of All graces and we must go to Mary for all our spiritual and temporal needs because to Mary it has been given the grace of intercession and protection. Mary is the sweetest, dearest, nearest, most convinced way to Jesus Christ our Lord and Master.
FrancisMary Obidike
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