THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY
“Well may we
make the words of one of our English bishops, the pious and affectionate Bishop
Hall, our own, "But how gladly do we second the angel in the praise of
her, which was more ours than his! How justly do we bless her, whom the angel
pronounced blessed. How worthily is she honoured of men, whom the angel
proclaimed beloved of God! O blessed Mary, he cannot bless thee, he cannot
honour thee too much, that deifies thee not. That which the angel said of thee,
thou hast prophesied of thyself: we believe the angel and thee; 'All generations
shall call thee blessed’ by the fruit of whose womb all generations are
blessed."
The Catholic Religion, The Rev. Vernon
Staley, 20th Edition, A.D. 1917
The Blessed Virgin Mary, the bearer of God, is for us the
great example of how one who is only human can live as the example and model of
a loving believer. This loving and
brilliant young woman, so clean to be the only vessel to be chosen by God the
Father, bore the Son-divine giving of her own human nature. The care, nurturing, and supporting of
Jesus would be her life’s work and joy, and sorrow. Mary, the daughter of Joachim and Anna, did not invent or innovate. What she could not comprehend she
pondered in her heart. Praise God
there are many saints, and praise God for the Queen of Heaven, the Blessed
Virgin Mary.
HAIL MARY (from Matins)
Luke 1:28 & 1:42
Hail Mary, full of grace,
the Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou among
women,
and blessed is the fruit of
thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God,
pray for us sinners,
now and at the hour of our
death. Amen.
MAGNIFICAT (from Vespers)
(The Song of Mary,
The Canticle
of Mary, or The Ode of the Theotokos)
Luke 1:46-55
My soul doth magnify the Lord:
and my spirit hath
rejoiced in God my Saviour.
For he hath regarded:
the lowliness of his
handmaiden.
For behold, from henceforth:
all generations shall call
me blessed.
For he that is mighty hath magnified me:
and holy is his Name.
And his mercy is on them that fear him:
throughout all
generations.
He hath shewed strength with his arm:
he hath scattered the
proud in the imagination of their hearts.
He hath put down the mighty from their seat:
and hath exalted the
humble and meek.
He hath filled the hungry with good things:
and the rich he hath sent
empty away.
He remembering his mercy hath holpen his servant
Israel:
as he promised
to our forefathers,
Abraham and his
seed for ever.*
*One of four
hymns from the Holy Gospel of St. Luke.
The others are:
BENEDICTUS
The Hymn of
Zechariah, Luke 1:67-79
GLORIA IN EXCELSIS
The Hymn of the Angels,
Luke 2:13-14
NUNC
DIMITTIS
The Hymn of
Simeon, Luke 2:28-32
FESTIVALS OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY
Conception, December 8
Visitation, July 2
Saint Anne, July 26
Assumption or Dormition, August 15
Nativity of Mary, September 8
VIGILS, FASTS, AND DAYS OF ABSTINENCE
The Purification of the
Blessed Virgin Mary
The Annunciation of the
Blessed Virgin Mary
HONORING
THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY
Reciting
The Angelus or Regina Coeli (9:00 am, 12:00 noon, 3:00 pm)
The
Discipline of Reciting the Holy Rosary, with various Mysteries
NOTE: None of
these actions can be considered as “worshipping” the Blessed Virgin Mary. Anglicans do not pray to Mary, though
we ask her for her prayers and study her example as a great saint of the
Church. She is not co-equal to the
Trinity or a unique species of creature.
And knowing this, I still wonder how blessed and purified she must be to
have bore the Christ child in her womb and held Him through His life and at His
death.
THE ANGELUS
Note:
Make the sign of the cross where the text is marked with a (+),
recited 9:00 am, 12:00 noon, and 3:00 pm.
The Angel of the Lord announced unto
Mary,
and
she conceived by the Holy Ghost.
Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is
with thee.
Blessed art thou among women, and blessed
is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners,
now and at the hour of our death. Amen.
Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it
unto me according to thy word.
Hail, Mary,...
And the Word was made flesh and dwelt
among us.
Hail, Mary,...
[V] Pray for us, O holy Mother of God.
[R] That we may be made worthy of the promises
of Christ.
Let us pray.
We beseech thee, O Lord, pour thy grace
into our hearts:
that,
as we have known the incarnation of thy Son Jesus Christ
by
the message of an angel, so by his cross and passion
we
may be brought unto the glory of his resurrection.
(+) Through the same Christ our Lord.
Amen.
REGINA COELI
Note: The Regina Coeli should be used in place
of the Angelus from Easter day until the Saturday after Pentecost.
O Queen of heaven, be
joyful, alleluia;
Because he whom so meetly thou
bearest, alleluia,
Hath arisen, as he promised,
alleluia:
Pray for us to the Father, alleluia.
[V.] Rejoice and be glad, O
Virgin Mary, alleluia.
[R.] For the Lord is risen
indeed, alleluia.
Let us pray.
O
God, who, by the resurrection of thy Son Jesus Christ,
didst vouchsafe
to give gladness unto the world:
grant, we
beseech thee, that we, being holpen by the Virgin Mary,
his Mother, may
attain unto the joys of everlasting life.
(+)
Through the same Christ our Lord. Amen.
In Christ's love, Fr. Robert Pax
