On the Blessed Virgin Mary and Devotion to Her

 

A fitting summary of what the Church teaches about the Blessed Virgin Mary may be found in the eighth chapter of the Second Vatican Council’s Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, Lumen Gentium.  It is recommended that one read this section of Lumen Gentium (nos. 52-67) in conjunction with this reflection.

To understand properly what Divine Revelation has taught us about who our Blessed Mother is, and what role she plays in our lives as followers of Christ, it is important to keep in the mind that the Church has always sought to teach about our Lady in relation to Christ. “In the Virgin Mary, everything is relative to Christ and dependent on him” (St. Pope Paul VI, Apostolic Exhortation Marialis Cultus 25).  As St. Pope John Paul II observed,

Only in the mystery of Christ is [the Blessed Virgin Mary’s] mystery fully made clear. Thus has the Church sought to interpret it from the very beginning: the mystery of the Incarnation has enabled her to penetrate and to make ever clearer the mystery of the Mother of the Incarnate Word. The Council of Ephesus (431) was of decisive importance in clarifying this, for during that Council, to the great joy of Christians, the truth of the divine motherhood of Mary was solemnly confirmed as a truth of the Church's faith. Mary is the Mother of God (= Theotókos), since by the power of the Holy Spirit she conceived in her virginal womb and brought into the world Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who is of one being with the Father...In turn, the dogma of the divine motherhood of Mary was for the Council of Ephesus and is for the Church like a seal upon the dogma of the Incarnation, in which the Word truly assumes human nature into the unity of his person, without cancelling out that nature.  (Encyclical Redemptoris Mater 4)

Our Blessed Mother’s motherhood in relation to Christ’s faithful likewise flows from her divine motherhood of the person of Jesus Christ.  Reflecting on the intercession which our Blessed Mother exercised for the benefit of the married couple at the wedding feast at Cana in Galilee (see John 2:1-11), St. Pope John Paull II observed, “From the text of John it is evident that it is a mediation which is maternal. As the [Second Vatican] Council proclaims: Mary became ‘a mother to us in the order of grace’.  This motherhood in the order of grace flows from her divine motherhood.” (Redemptoris Mater 22, citing Lumen Gentium 61).

Careful analysis of Sacred Scripture likewise confirms Mary’s motherhood “in the order of grace” as stemming from her motherhood of the Incarnate Word.

Prior to ascending into heaven, our Lord told his disciples “Behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you; but stay in the city, until you are clothed with power from on high” (Luke 24:49).  Following our Lord’s ascension into heaven, the Evangelist Luke then relates in the Book of Acts, “they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet...All these in one accord devoted themselves to prayer, together with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brethren” (Acts 1:12, 14).

The Evangelist Luke, who authored both the Gospel of Luke and the Book of Acts, uses identical language to describe the coming of the Holy Spirit upon our Blessed Mother at the Incarnation and upon the Church on Pentecost.  In response to our Blessed Mother’s question as to the nature of her conception of Christ, the Angel Gabriel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you” (Luke 1:35).  Immediately before ascending to heaven, our Lord told his disciples, “You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you” (Acts 1:8).  

Just as when St. Luke used language from the Second Book of Samuel which pertained to the Ark of the Covenant in order to describe Our Lady’s visitation to her cousin Elizabeth, thus depicting Mary as the Ark of the New Covenant (see 2 Samuel 6:2, 5, 9, 11; Luke 1:39, 43, 44, 56), so, too, does his use of the language describing the Holy Spirit’s coming upon Mary at the Incarnation (“power...Holy Spirit...come upon”) draw a parallel with the Holy Spirit’s coming upon the Church at Pentecost.  By drawing a connection between the coming of the Holy Spirit at both the events of the Incarnation and Pentecost, this parallel helps to illustrate the intercessory role which our Blessed Mother played in the Upper Room at Pentecost.  Just as God used her consent to His will for her to be the mother of Jesus as revealed to her at the Annunciation (see Luke 1:31, 38), in a like manner, her intercession among the members of the Church was key as they prayed in fulfillment of our Lord’s direction to “stay in the city, until you are clothed with power from on high” (Luke 24:49).

Since it has pleased God not to manifest solemnly the mystery of the salvation of the human race before He would pour forth the Spirit promised by Christ, we see the apostles before the day of Pentecost "persevering with one mind in prayer with the women and Mary the Mother of Jesus, and with His brethren", and Mary by her prayers imploring the gift of the Spirit, who had already overshadowed her in the Annunciation.  (Lumen Gentium 59, citing Acts 1:14)

Our Lady continues to intercede for us in heaven to assist us on our way of salvation just as she did in the Upper Room.  “Taken up to heaven she did not lay aside this salvific duty, but by her constant intercession continued to bring us the gifts of eternal salvation” (Lumen Gentium 62).

The Second Vatican Council further qualifies the Blessed Virgin Mary’s intercessory role as a participation in Christ’s own unique role as Mediator.

There is but one Mediator as we know from the words of the apostle, "for there is one God and one mediator of God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself a redemption for all" (1 Timothy 2:5). The maternal duty of Mary toward men in no wise obscures or diminishes this unique mediation of Christ, but rather shows His power. For all the salvific influence of the Blessed Virgin on men originates, not from some inner necessity, but from the divine pleasure. It flows forth from the superabundance of the merits of Christ, rests on His mediation, depends entirely on it and draws all its power from it. In no way does it impede, but rather does it foster the immediate union of the faithful with Christ.  (Lumen Gentium 60)

This intercessory role for the benefit of the Church further illustrates a fulfillment of her role as mother which our Lord had earlier decreed as he hung upon the cross. The Gospel of John recounts this instance:

Standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdelene.  When Jesus saw his mother, and the disciple whom he loved standing near, he said to his mother, “Woman, behold your son!”  Then he said to his disciple, “Behold, your mother!”  And from that hour the disciple took her to his own home.  (19:25-27)

St. Pope John Paul II confirmed that the “beloved disciple” of this episode, St. John the Evangelist, stands in the place of all of Christ’s faithful:

The words uttered by Jesus from the Cross signify that the motherhood of her who bore Christ finds a "new" continuation in the Church and through the Church, symbolized and represented by John.

...

It can also be said that these same words [“Behold your son.”] show the reason for the Marian dimension of the life of Christ’s disciples.  This is not only true of John, who at that hour stood at the food of the cross together with his Master’s Mother, but is also true of every disciple of Christ, of every Christian.  The Redeemer entrusts his mother to his disciple, and at the same time gives her to him as his mother.  Mary’s motherhood, which becomes man’s inheritance, is a gift: a gift which Christ himself makes personally to every individual.    (Redemptoris Mater 24, 45)

Our Blessed Mother responds to our Lord’s command to behold us as her children by looking out for us just as she did for the married couple at the wedding feast at Cana, and by continually interceding for us as has been illustrated above.  It also follows that our devotion to our Lady as Christ’s disciples follows from our own response to our Lord’s command to behold her as our Mother.

Devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary

In 2018, Pope Francis underscored the Blessed Virgin Mary’s motherhood of the members of the Church by approving the liturgical feast of Mary, Mother of the Church.  In the decree establishing this feast, Cardinal Robert Sarah, then Prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, indicated the regard that we as members of the Church are to have toward our Lady in response to her motherhood:

Indeed, the Mother standing beneath the cross (cf. Jn 19:25), accepted her Son’s testament of love and welcomed all people in the person of the beloved disciple as sons and daughters to be reborn unto life eternal. She thus became the tender Mother of the Church which Christ begot on the cross handing on the Spirit. Christ, in turn, in the beloved disciple, chose all disciples as ministers of his love towards his Mother, entrusting her to them so that they might welcome her with filial affection.  (Decree on the the Celebration of the Blessed Virgin Mary Mother of the Church in the General Roman Calendar)

In response to our Lord’s command to behold Mary as our Mother, our devotion to our Lady springs from this “welcoming” of her in her maternal role.  As Cardinal Sarah notes, we welcome her with filial affection, of the affection of a child for its mother.  Any devotional practice focused on our Lady, such as praying the rosary, should be accompanied by such affection.  Our Lady no doubt delights in this affection as a mother would.  This affection likewise helps us to keep in mind why it is that we regularly carry out such devotional practices: as an expression of love of children for their mother, and so avail ourselves of benefiting from her maternal role in helping us foster greater union with Christ.

This filial affection we have for Our Lady is not mere sentimentality, but the heart’s response to the mind’s assent to the truths of faith that the Blessed Virgin Mary is our Mother “in the order of grace”.

Let the faithful remember moreover that true devotion consists neither in sterile or transitory affection, nor in a certain vain credulity, but proceeds from true faith, by which we are led to know the excellence of the Mother of God, and we are moved to a filial love toward our mother and to the imitation of her virtues.  (Lumen Gentium 67)

The regard we have for our Lady as our Mother should also entail veneration we have for her as she whom God chose to be Mother of the “King of Kings and Lord of Lords” (Revelation 19:16), in such a manner that we allow our regard for her to be influenced by that favor which the Most High God showed her in gracing her with so exalted a role.

The early writers of the Church called Mary "the Mother of the King" and "the Mother of the Lord," basing their stand on the words of St. Gabriel the archangel, who foretold that the Son of Mary would reign forever [see Luke 1:33] and on the words of Elizabeth who greeted her with reverence and called her "the Mother of my Lord." [Luke 1:43] Thereby they clearly signified that she derived a certain eminence and exalted station from the royal dignity of her Son.  (Venerable Pope Pius XII, Encyclical Ad Caeli Reginam 9)

This “certain eminence and exalted station” with which God has blessed our Lady may also be glimpsed in the “great portent” of the twelfth chapter of the Book of Revelation of the “woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars” (12:1).  One may legitimately interpret this Woman as representing the Blessed Virgin Mary.

This Woman represents Mary, the Mother of the Redeemer, but at the same time she also represents the whole Church, the People of God of all times, the Church which in all ages, with great suffering, brings forth Christ ever anew.  (Pope Benedict XVI, General Audience, 23 August 2006)

This passage from the Book of Revelation, while portraying the Woman as she who is “crowned with twelve stars” and gives birth to “a male child, who is to rule all nations with a rod of iron” (see also Psalm 2:9), likewise identifies her “offspring” as “those who keep the commandments of God and bear testimony to Jesus” (12:1, 17).

Identifying the Virgin Mary as both Mother and Queen, the Church prays in the Opening Prayer of the Mass for the feast of the Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary:

O God, who made the Mother of your Son

to be our Mother and our Queen, graciously grant that, sustained by her intercession,

we may attain in the heavenly Kingdom

the glory promised to your children.

As we maintain this reverential regard for our Lady as our Mother, as the Mother of the Lord, and as Queen, we do not hesitate to heed that maternal direction she gave to the servants at the wedding feast at Cana: “Do whatever he tells you” (John 2:5).  Just as our Lord directed us to behold our Lady as our Mother, so we benefit from regarding her as such by heeding her direction in pointing us back to our Lord.  By participating in this interplay, we move more deeply in that family relationship as children of God “in the order of grace” which surpasses biological bonds; as our Lord declared, “Whoever does the will of God is my brother, and sister, and mother” (Mark 3:35).  Our Lady herself exemplifies this obedience to God’s will, most especially in her consent to God’s will in response to the Angel’s message: “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word” (Luke 1: 38).  In her consent to God’s will, so too does she model that trust we should have as the Lord’s disciples in following his will.  As our Lady’s cousin, Elizabeth, proclaimed under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, “Blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord” (Luke 1:45, cf. 1:41).

Devotional Practices to the Blessed Virgin Mary

As we “behold” our Lady as our Mother, we express our filial regard for her with internal and external practices. At times, the internal and external aspects of such practices coincide by design, as with the rosary, by which one outwardly prays vocally while simultaneously contemplating the “mysteries” of the rosary, or the events in the lives of Jesus and Mary on this the rosary’s meditations are based.

In addition to the rosary, the Church’s history has witnessed manifold expressions of devotion to our Lady in both the East and the West.

The Holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary

As he considered how renewal of the faithful’s devotional practices to the Blessed Virgin Mary fell within the overall liturgical renewal following the Second Vatican Council, St. Pope Paul VI affirmed the following criterion:

It seems to us particularly in conformity with the spiritual orientation of our time, which is dominated and absorbed by the "question of Christ," that in the expressions of devotion to the Virgin the Christological aspect should have particular prominence...This will without doubt contribute to making piety towards the Mother of Jesus more solid, and to making it an effective instrument for attaining to full "knowledge of the Son of God, until we become the perfect man, fully mature with the fullness of Christ himself" (Eph. 4:13).  (Marialis Cultus 25)

In reaffirming the rosary’s value as maintaining this Chrisological character, St. Pope Paul VI deemed the rosary a “compendium of the entire Gospel” (Marialis Cultus 42, citing Venerable Pope Pius XII, Letter to the Archbishop of Manila "Philippinas Insulas").  Expounding on this point, he continued:

The Rosary draws from the Gospel the presentation of the mysteries and its main formulas. As it moves from the angel's joyful greeting and the Virgin's pious assent, the Rosary takes its inspiration from the Gospel to suggest the attitude with which the faithful should recite it. In the harmonious succession of Hail Mary's the Rosary puts before us once more a fundamental mystery of the Gospel - the Incarnation of the Word, contemplated at the decisive moment of the Annunciation to Mary. The Rosary is thus a Gospel prayer.  (Marialis Cultus 44)

St. Pope John Paul II also reaffirmed this Christological character of the rosary when he stated simply that “to recite the Rosary is nothing other than to contemplate with Mary the face of Christ” (Rosarium Virginis Mariae 3, emphasis in the original).

Pope Leo XIII explained how this quality of the rosary to bring Christ and his gospel to light would have lent itself to St. Dominic’s combat against the Albigensian heresy:

St. Dominic, after journeying from Spain into France, was the invincible opponent of the Albigensian heresy which at that time was spreading like an evil pestilence through almost the whole of southern France to the foot of the Pyrenees.  By his explaining and preaching on the wonderful and sacred mysteries of God’s gifts, the light of truth burned brightly in the very places that had been overshadowed by the darkness of error.  For this is what each series of the rosary mysteries, which we so highly esteem, does for us.  (Encyclical Parta Humano Generi ___)

Though the historicity of the traditions of Our Lady’s bestowal of the rosary to St. Dominic and of St. Dominic’s use of the actual rosary in his preaching against the Albigensians is debated, it is worth noting that these traditions have been attested to by several popes throughout history, including Popes Leo X, Pius V, Gregory XIII, Sixtus V, Clement VIII, Alexander VII, Innocent XIII, Benedict XIII, Pius IX, and Leo XIII (see  Augusta Theodosa Drane, The History of St. Dominic: Founder of the Friars Preachers, p. 136).

History nevertheless attests to a substantial relationship between the Dominican Order and the rosary’s place in the prayer life of the Church.  After the rosary had developed over centuries, its popularity spread among the faithful as a result of the establishment of the Confraternity of the Rosary, an association of clergy and the faithful devoted to promotion of the rosary (see Donald Calloway, MIC, Champions of the Rosary: The History and Heroes of a Spiritual Weapon, pp. 67-71).   In 1475, a Rosary Confraternity based in Cologne, Germany was the first to be officially recognized by a pope.  Following this recognition, many more local confraternities were to be recognized as they were established under the direction of Dominican friars.  The rosary flourished throughout the 16th century and in 1520, Pope Leo X traced the confraternity’s beginnings to St. Dominic himself (see Pastoris aeterni, as cited in ibid., p. 75).  This attribution to St. Dominic was later repeated in 1897 by Pope Leo XIII (see Encyclical Augustissimae Virginis Mariae, 7).

Starting in 1571, the general chapters of the Dominican Order (meetings at which decisions are collectively made regarding the life and governance of the whole Order) “began to urge or require friars to preach about and promote the rosary” (Augustine Thompson, OP, Dominican Brothers: Conversi, Lay, and Cooperator Friars, p. 95).  This Dominican connection to the rosary and the Rosary Confraternity was reinforced by the fact that prior to 1964, the blessing of rosaries was a “reserved blessing”, meaning that only priests of the Dominican Order could bless them (see Augustine Thompson, O.P., Dominican Blessing of the Holy Rosary, http://www.newliturgicalmovement.org/2008/10/dominican-blessing-of-holy-rosary.html#.XvDYBYjYqyI ).  

One may list other examples from history illustrating the relationship of the Dominican Order to the rosary, including those lives of numerous Dominican Saints and Blesseds who while being devoted to the rosary proved outstanding models of holiness and conformity to God’s will for one’s state in life.

In addition to Rosary, a devotional practice which has stood the test of time throughout the Church's history is the Angelus. Of the Angelus, St. Pope Paul VI wrote: 

Its simple structure, its biblical character, its historical origin which links it to the prayer for peace and safety, and its quasi-liturgical rhythm...sanctifies different moments during the day, and because it reminds us of the Paschal Mystery, in which recalling the Incarnation of the Son of God we pray that we may be led "through his passion and cross to the glory of his resurrection."  (Marialis Cultus 41, citing the Angelus’ Closing Prayer)

Numerous other devotions to our Lady have arisen throughout the Church's history. Among regular participation in Mass, one may complement one's prayer life through the adoption of such devotional practices as those which have proven beneficial to many. May knowledge of our Blessed Mother and sincere devotion to her lead you into an ever closer relationship with Jesus our Lord.

On Contemplative Prayer

 

The Catechism of the Catholic Church presents a section on contemplative prayer in paragraphs 2709-2724.  St. Pope John Paul II also wrote an Apostolic Letter entitled Novo Millenio Ineunte which focused in large part on Christian contemplation.  It is recommended that this section in the Catechism, along with Section II of Novo Millenio Ineunte (“A Face to Contemplate”), be read in conjunction with this reflection.

Christian meditation often focuses on an idea - “or point” - about God as its object.  This is a helpful practice which often lends itself to providing a sort of springboard in one’s mind by which God may speak more deeply to the soul about that or a related point, thus revealing His word to the soul through such practice.  Prayerful reflection on Sacred Scripture - or what is called lectio divina - involves provision of the points of meditation to oneself as the very content of Sacred Scripture itself.  One does well to constantly seek and heed the guidance of the Holy Spirit with such practice, and so grow in the Spirit’s gift of understanding with regards to Sacred Scripture.  Through frequent practice of such meditation on Sacred Scripture, along with other study of scriptural exegesis in light of the teachings of the Church, one prepares one’s heart and mind as “good soil” by which one “hears the word and understands it” so as to bear much “fruit” in one’s life (Matthew 13:23).

In contemplative prayer, one does not so much focus on an idea about God as one does on God Himself.  St. Theresa of Jesus described contemplative prayer as “a close sharing between friends; it means taking time frequently to be alone with him who we know loves us” (as cited in CCC 2709).  Thus David sings in the 63rd Psalm,

O God, thou art my God, I seek thee,

my soul thirsts for thee;

my flesh faints for thee,

as in a dry weary land where no water is.

So I have looked upon thee in the sanctuary,

beholding thy power and glory.  (v. 1-2)

One directs one’s mind, heart, and whole being to behold God Himself, thus entering into a mutual exchange of life and love which sustains our souls and actualizes greater communion with God.  So the 63rd Psalm continues,

Because thy steadfast love is better than life,

my lips will praise thee.

So I will bless thee as long as I live;

I will lift up my hands and call on thy name.

My soul is feasted as with marrow and fat,

and my mouth praises thee with joyful lips.  (v. 3-5)

Upon entering into this communion between God and oneself, one gives oneself over to God’s power in Christ by which God sustains all creation in Himself.  “All things were created through him and for him.  He is before all things, and in him all things hold together” (Colossians 1:16-17).  So the 63rd Psalm continues,

My soul clings to thee;

thy right hand upholds thee.  (v. 8)

The essence of contemplative prayer thus shifts from what one is doing during contemplative prayer, to one’s being with and in God.  St. Pope John Paul II made this distinction immediately before the outset of the section on Christian contemplation in Novo Millenio Ineunte:

It is important however that what we propose, with the help of God, should be profoundly rooted in contemplation and prayer. Ours is a time of continual movement which often leads to restlessness, with the risk of "doing for the sake of doing". We must resist this temptation by trying "to be" before trying "to do".  (15)

As we learn about and practice contemplative prayer, let us seek and heed the guidance of the Holy Spirit while allowing our prayer to be informed by Divine Revelation, as revealed in Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition.

As Christian prayer has been influenced by other forms of meditation, the magisterium of the Church has sought to remind us that our starting point for Christian contemplation is Christ, especially in his humanity.  Christ himself reminded us, “I am the way, the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but by me”, and “He who has seen me has seen the Father” (John 14:6, 9).  St. John Paul II described Christian contemplation as a matter of contemplating the face of Christ, for “he is the image of the invisible God” (Colossians 1:15, cf. Novo Millenio Ineunte, Section II).  It is through our union with Christ in his humanity that we experience God in contemplative prayer through Christ’s divinity, since in Christ “the fullness of divinity dwells” (Colossians 2:9).

Pope John Paul II has pointed out to the whole Church the example and the doctrine of St. Teresa of Avila who in her life had to reject the temptation of certain methods which proposed a leaving aside of the humanity of Christ in favor of a vague self-immersion in the abyss of the divinity. In a homily given on November 1st, 1982, he said that the call of Teresa of Jesus advocating a prayer completely centered on Christ "is valid, even in our day, against some methods of prayer which are not inspired by the Gospel and which in practice tend to set Christ aside in preference for a mental void which makes no sense in Christianity. Any method of prayer is valid insofar as it is inspired by Christ and leads to Christ who is the Way, the Truth and the Life (cf. Jn 14:6)." See: Homilia Abulae habita in honorem Sanctae Teresiae: AAS 75 (1983), 256-257.  (Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Orationis Formas: Letter to the Bishops of the Catholic Church on Some Aspects of Christian Meditation, 12)

Contemplative prayer is also not to be confused with such practices as “Centering Prayer” or yoga.  For more information on this point, please see the document by the Pontifical Councils for Culture and Interreligious Dialogue entitled Jesus Christ Bearer of the Water of Life, sections 2.3.4 and 3.4.

Finally, it is important to remember that contemplative prayer is above all a grace: a gift from God.  Such gifts from God “are inspired by the one and same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills” (1 Corinthians 12:11).  Just as Jesus resisted Satan’s temptation to throw himself from the parapet of the temple so that God may save him (see Matthew 4:5-7, Luke 4:9-12), so we must avoid “putting God in a box”, so to speak, by attempting to “make contemplative prayer happen” as if it were a matter of mastering some sort of technique.

The essential element in Christian faith, however, is God's descent towards his creatures, particularly towards the humblest, those who are weakest and least gifted according to the values of the “world”. There are spiritual techniques which it is useful to learn, but God is able to by-pass them or do without them. A Christian's “method of getting closer to God is not based on any technique in the strict sense of the word. That would contradict the spirit of childhood called for by the Gospel. The heart of genuine Christian mysticism is not technique: it is always a gift of God; and the one who benefits from it knows himself to be unworthy”.  (Jesus Christ Bearer of the Water of Life 3.4, citing Orationis Formas 23, cf. St. Teresa of Jesus, Castillo Interior IV, 1, 2)

Keeping in mind our Lord’s words “How much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” (Luke 11:13), let us ask the Holy Spirit for the gift of contemplative prayer and hope for the reception of this gift with humble openness.  “For God alone my soul waits in silence” (Psalm 62:1).

Happy Lent!

I thought I might repost this post as it contains the Prayer Before the Crucifix at the bottom, by which one may obtain a plenary indulgence on Fridays during Lent:

In response to the iconoclast heresy, the Second Council of Nicea decreed in 787 that "like the honored and life giving cross, revered and holy images...are to be exposed in holy churches of God" and, among other places, "in houses and by public ways" (Definitio de sacris imaginbus).  "The Fathers of Nicea see the basis for the use of sacred images in the mystery of the Incarnation of Christ, 'the image of the invisible God' (Col 1, 15): 'the Incarnation of the Son of God initiated a new "economy" of images"' (Directory on Popular Piety and the Liturgy 238).  In directing that "a cross, with an image of Christ crucified upon it" be kept in churches "either on the altar or near it, where it is clearly visible to the assembled congregation", the Congregation for Divine Worship proposed that "such a cross...calls to the mind for the faithful the saving Passion of the Lord" (General Instruction of the Roman Missal, Third Edition, 308).  The function of the crucifix as aiding the individual in calling the mind the Passion of the Lord recalls the very reason which the Second Council of Nicea gave for the faithful's use of sacred images representing Jesus, Mary, the angels and saints: "The more frequently they are seen in representational art, the more are those who see them drawn to remember and long for those who serve as models, and to pay these images the tribute of salutation and respectful veneration."  (Definitio de sacris imaginbus) 

St. Paul hints at the existence of what may have been an image like a crucifix in the early Church when he writes to the Galatians: "O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified?" (Gal. 3:1).  It is important to remember that Christ was crucified in Jerusalem, which lies about 900 miles (or about 1,450 km) from what was then Galatia.  Jesus Christ would only have been "publicly portrayed as crucified" to the Galatians by some sort of image like a crucifix.

Traces throughout Scripture further reveal what spiritual benefits may be had by the individual's use of a crucifix to aid in evoking Christ's passion and death.  Upon recording the episode of the soldiers' piercing of the crucified Christ's side with a lance, which released the life-giving stream of blood and water (cf. John 19:34), St. John recalled the prophetic words of Zechariah concerning the episode: "They shall look on him whom they have pierced" (Jn. 19:37, cf. Zech. 12:10).

We, too, may participate in looking upon the Pierced One when we look upon a crucifix.  That there may be some benefit by looking at an image of Christ crucified can be surmised from our Lord's own comparison of his being "lifted up" to the bronze serpent's being erected by Moses: "And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life" (Jn. 3:14-15, cf. ).  That being "lifted up" refers to Jesus' being "lifted up" on the cross is indicated by another passage in John's gospel: "'And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself.'  He said this to show by what death he was to die"  (Jn. 12:32-33, see also Jn. 8:28).

In the Old Testament, God sent the seraph serpents upon those whom traveled with Moses as punishment for their complaints against God and Moses: "Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we loathe this worthless food" (Num. 21:5).  Commentating on such rebellion of the people, the author of the letter to the Hebrews indicates that it was lack of faith that led them to rebellious disobedience: "Who were they that heard and yet were rebellious? Was it not all those who left Egypt under the leadership of Moses?...And to whom did he swear that they should never enter his rest, but to those who were disobedient?...So we see that they were unable to enter because of unbelief" (Heb. 3:16, 18-19).  With regard to the episode of Moses' erecting of the bronze serpent, the remedy for such lack of faith can be seen as the act of obedience to God's command for Moses to make and erect the serpent and, consequently, the people's "obedience of faith" (cf. Rom. 1:5, 16:26) in then looking at the bronze serpent, by which act God brought about their healing from the serpent's bite (cf. Num. 21:8-9).

In a like manner, looking devoutly upon an image of Christ crucified may correspond to that faith in Jesus to which he refers when saying, "So must the Son of man be lifted up, so that whoever believes in him may have eternal life" (Jn. 3:15).  We, too, suffered from sin and its consequences until Jesus freed us from such by the opportunity to reign in his own divine life (cf. Jn 1:13, 1:Rom. 5:12-17, 6:23, 2 Pet. 1:4).  Our sharing in the abundant life of God corresponds to the "much fruit" which Jesus said his death would bring about (Jn. 12:24).  That we are now freed from the death of sin and have been brought to life in Christ through baptism (Rom. 6:3-4) signifies that triumph over Satan that Jesus brought about by his death on the cross:

"And you, who were dead in trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, having canceled the bond which stood against us with its legal demands; this he set aside, nailing it to the cross. He disarmed the principalities and powers and made a public example of them, triumphing over them in him." (Col. 2:13-15)

Devoutly gazing upon a crucifix affords us of the opportunity to actualize our having been "made alive" in Christ into our daily life, such that in recalling Christ's saving passion and death as the source of our new life in him, we renew our resolve to strive to live out this new life with him.  This new life comes about by our birth of water and the Spirit in baptism (cf. Jn. 3:5), by believing in Christ's word (cf. Jn. 5:24), and is animated by Christ's own life and infinite grace conferred upon us by reception of the Holy Eucharist, by the reception of which Jesus promised: "He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him" (Jn. 6:56).  The Eucharist further reminds us of Christ's total self-emptying and self-giving that he underwent for our salvation (cf. Phil. 2:6), even to the point that he unites us to himself body and soul in the gift of his very self in the Eucharist.

The total self-giving of Christ lends stark meaning to his commandment of love: "Love one another as I have loved you" (Jn. 15:12).  When we take this commandment to heart and imitate this self-giving love of Christ, our lives become those of "faith working through love" (Gal. 5:6).  We know that our own love - this theological virtue of charity - is itself a gift from God, "God's love [having] been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit which has been given to us" (Romans 5:5).  And, it is this very love of God which serves as our own initiative to love.

God's love for us is especially made manifest in Christ's death on the cross, where the crucifix makes visible his own words: "Greater love has no man than to lay down his life for his friends" (Jn. 15:13).  Realization of our dignity as God's children whom he loves with a "love which endures forever" (Ps. 136) further stimulates our resolve to live out our own "obedience of faith".  As Jesus said, "If a man loves me, he will keep my word" (Jn. 14:23), and it is this reciprocal love for God which motivates our desire to keep his word and to love one another as he has loved us (cf. Jn. 15:12).  "We love because he first loved us" (1 Jn. 4:19).  Our obedience to God then, in imitation of him who was "obedient unto death, even death on a cross" (Phil. 2:8), does not arise out of compulsion, but is compelled by love.

As the crucifix shows us, such fidelity to God is not always easy.  Resisting temptation (cf. 1 Cor. 10:13), bearing others' contempt (cf. Jn. 15:18-21), and other trials which God allows are all necessary conditions to following Christ (cf. Lk. 14:27).  Yet we will share in Christ's inheritance of eternal life as God's children "provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him" (Rom. 8:17). The crucifix's representation of Christ's suffering serves as a constant reminder for us to unite our own sufferings to Christ's for our own sanctification and for the sanctification of others.  As St. Paul declared, "I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I complete what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church" (Col 1:24).

The Holy Spirit who on the one hand communicates God's life and love to us, on the other draws us back to God through Christ's own offering of himself to the Father "through the eternal Spirit" (Heb. 9:14), and in so doing heals us of our brokenness and separation from God on account of sin (cf. Benedict XVI, The Spirit of the Liturgy, p. 33).  Offering our suffering and struggles to Christ crucified serves in a special way to ensure we are offering our whole selves to him, and so get caught up in that same movement of the Spirit to reunify ourselves and all of creation with God by Christ who, when "lifted up, draws all men to" himself (Jn. 12:32) so as "to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross" (Col 1:20).  We thus look forward to becoming part of this new creation toward which the Spirit draws us, already made real in Christ's resurrection, as we ourselves live out our lives in self-giving love.

*          *           *           *          *

Here are some Scripture verses which serve as helpful points of meditation while contemplating the crucifix.  Such contemplation may be accomplished by devoutly looking upon a crucifix while prayerfully pondering one of these verses.  Don't forget to begin your prayer by asking the Holy Spirit to guide your contemplation and so help you know and experience more fully the benefits of Christ's saving passion, death, and resurrection.

"For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life."  (John 3:16)

"Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit."  (John 12:24)

"And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself."  (John 12:32)

"This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you."  (John 15:12)

"Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends."  (John 15:13)

"The life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me."  (Galatians 2:20)

Such contemplation of the crucifix may additionally be an act of allowing our hearts to be moved to compassion for Jesus in his suffering, and to simply loving him in return, in keeping with the words of Zechariah: "And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of compassion and supplication, so that, when they look on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a first-born."  (12:10)

*          *          *          *          *

Here is a prayer called the Prayer Before the Crucifix.  A partial indulgence is normally granted by the prayerful recitation of this prayer, while a plenary indulgence is possible when praying this prayer before a crucifix on Fridays during Lent (Enchridion Indulgentiarum, Other Grants of Indulgences, 22).

Look down upon me, good and gentle Jesus,
while before your face I humbly kneel,
and with burning soul pray and beseech you to fix deep in my heart lively sentiments of faith, hope and charity,
true contrition for my sins, and a firm purpose of amendment,
while I contemplate with great love and tender pity your five wounds,
pondering over them within me,
calling to mind the words which David, your prophet, said of you, my good Jesus:
"They have pierced my hands and my feet; they have numbered all my bones."   (Psalm 22:16-17)

Happy Lent!

I thought I might repost this post as it contains the Prayer Before the Crucifix at the bottom, by which one may obtain a plenary indulgence on Fridays during Lent:

In response to the iconoclast heresy, the Second Council of Nicea decreed in 787 that "like the honored and life giving cross, revered and holy images...are to be exposed in holy churches of God" and, among other places, "in houses and by public ways" (Definitio de sacris imaginbus).  "The Fathers of Nicea see the basis for the use of sacred images in the mystery of the Incarnation of Christ, 'the image of the invisible God' (Col 1, 15): 'the Incarnation of the Son of God initiated a new "economy" of images"' (Directory on Popular Piety and the Liturgy 238).  In directing that "a cross, with an image of Christ crucified upon it" be kept in churches "either on the altar or near it, where it is clearly visible to the assembled congregation", the Congregation for Divine Worship proposed that "such a cross...calls to the mind for the faithful the saving Passion of the Lord" (General Instruction of the Roman Missal, Third Edition, 308).  The function of the crucifix as aiding the individual in calling the mind the Passion of the Lord recalls the very reason which the Second Council of Nicea gave for the faithful's use of sacred images representing Jesus, Mary, the angels and saints: "The more frequently they are seen in representational art, the more are those who see them drawn to remember and long for those who serve as models, and to pay these images the tribute of salutation and respectful veneration."  (Definitio de sacris imaginbus) 

St. Paul hints at the existence of what may have been an image like a crucifix in the early Church when he writes to the Galatians: "O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified?" (Gal. 3:1).  It is important to remember that Christ was crucified in Jerusalem, which lies about 900 miles (or about 1,450 km) from what was then Galatia.  Jesus Christ would only have been "publicly portrayed as crucified" to the Galatians by some sort of image like a crucifix.

Traces throughout Scripture further reveal what spiritual benefits may be had by the individual's use of a crucifix to aid in evoking Christ's passion and death.  Upon recording the episode of the soldiers' piercing of the crucified Christ's side with a lance, which released the life-giving stream of blood and water (cf. John 19:34), St. John recalled the prophetic words of Zechariah concerning the episode: "They shall look on him whom they have pierced" (Jn. 19:37, cf. Zech. 12:10).

We, too, may participate in looking upon the Pierced One when we look upon a crucifix.  That there may be some benefit by looking at an image of Christ crucified can be surmised from our Lord's own comparison of his being "lifted up" to the bronze serpent's being erected by Moses: "And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life" (Jn. 3:14-15, cf. ).  That being "lifted up" refers to Jesus' being "lifted up" on the cross is indicated by another passage in John's gospel: "'And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself.'  He said this to show by what death he was to die"  (Jn. 12:32-33, see also Jn. 8:28).

In the Old Testament, God sent the seraph serpents upon those whom traveled with Moses as punishment for their complaints against God and Moses: "Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we loathe this worthless food" (Num. 21:5).  Commentating on such rebellion of the people, the author of the letter to the Hebrews indicates that it was lack of faith that led them to rebellious disobedience: "Who were they that heard and yet were rebellious? Was it not all those who left Egypt under the leadership of Moses?...And to whom did he swear that they should never enter his rest, but to those who were disobedient?...So we see that they were unable to enter because of unbelief" (Heb. 3:16, 18-19).  With regard to the episode of Moses' erecting of the bronze serpent, the remedy for such lack of faith can be seen as the act of obedience to God's command for Moses to make and erect the serpent and, consequently, the people's "obedience of faith" (cf. Rom. 1:5, 16:26) in then looking at the bronze serpent, by which act God brought about their healing from the serpent's bite (cf. Num. 21:8-9).

In a like manner, looking devoutly upon an image of Christ crucified may correspond to that faith in Jesus to which he refers when saying, "So must the Son of man be lifted up, so that whoever believes in him may have eternal life" (Jn. 3:15).  We, too, suffered from sin and its consequences until Jesus freed us from such by the opportunity to reign in his own divine life (cf. Jn 1:13, 1:Rom. 5:12-17, 6:23, 2 Pet. 1:4).  Our sharing in the abundant life of God corresponds to the "much fruit" which Jesus said his death would bring about (Jn. 12:24).  That we are now freed from the death of sin and have been brought to life in Christ through baptism (Rom. 6:3-4) signifies that triumph over Satan that Jesus brought about by his death on the cross:

"And you, who were dead in trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, having canceled the bond which stood against us with its legal demands; this he set aside, nailing it to the cross. He disarmed the principalities and powers and made a public example of them, triumphing over them in him." (Col. 2:13-15)

Devoutly gazing upon a crucifix affords us of the opportunity to actualize our having been "made alive" in Christ into our daily life, such that in recalling Christ's saving passion and death as the source of our new life in him, we renew our resolve to strive to live out this new life with him.  This new life comes about by our birth of water and the Spirit in baptism (cf. Jn. 3:5), by believing in Christ's word (cf. Jn. 5:24), and is animated by Christ's own life and infinite grace conferred upon us by reception of the Holy Eucharist, by the reception of which Jesus promised: "He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him" (Jn. 6:56).  The Eucharist further reminds us of Christ's total self-emptying and self-giving that he underwent for our salvation (cf. Phil. 2:6), even to the point that he unites us to himself body and soul in the gift of his very self in the Eucharist.

The total self-giving of Christ lends stark meaning to his commandment of love: "Love one another as I have loved you" (Jn. 15:12).  When we take this commandment to heart and imitate this self-giving love of Christ, our lives become those of "faith working through love" (Gal. 5:6).  We know that our own love - this theological virtue of charity - is itself a gift from God, "God's love [having] been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit which has been given to us" (Romans 5:5).  And, it is this very love of God which serves as our own initiative to love.

God's love for us is especially made manifest in Christ's death on the cross, where the crucifix makes visible his own words: "Greater love has no man than to lay down his life for his friends" (Jn. 15:13).  Realization of our dignity as God's children whom he loves with a "love which endures forever" (Ps. 136) further stimulates our resolve to live out our own "obedience of faith".  As Jesus said, "If a man loves me, he will keep my word" (Jn. 14:23), and it is this reciprocal love for God which motivates our desire to keep his word and to love one another as he has loved us (cf. Jn. 15:12).  "We love because he first loved us" (1 Jn. 4:19).  Our obedience to God then, in imitation of him who was "obedient unto death, even death on a cross" (Phil. 2:8), does not arise out of compulsion, but is compelled by love.

As the crucifix shows us, such fidelity to God is not always easy.  Resisting temptation (cf. 1 Cor. 10:13), bearing others' contempt (cf. Jn. 15:18-21), and other trials which God allows are all necessary conditions to following Christ (cf. Lk. 14:27).  Yet we will share in Christ's inheritance of eternal life as God's children "provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him" (Rom. 8:17). The crucifix's representation of Christ's suffering serves as a constant reminder for us to unite our own sufferings to Christ's for our own sanctification and for the sanctification of others.  As St. Paul declared, "I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I complete what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church" (Col 1:24).

The Holy Spirit who on the one hand communicates God's life and love to us, on the other draws us back to God through Christ's own offering of himself to the Father "through the eternal Spirit" (Heb. 9:14), and in so doing heals us of our brokenness and separation from God on account of sin (cf. Benedict XVI, The Spirit of the Liturgy, p. 33).  Offering our suffering and struggles to Christ crucified serves in a special way to ensure we are offering our whole selves to him, and so get caught up in that same movement of the Spirit to reunify ourselves and all of creation with God by Christ who, when "lifted up, draws all men to" himself (Jn. 12:32) so as "to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross" (Col 1:20).  We thus look forward to becoming part of this new creation toward which the Spirit draws us, already made real in Christ's resurrection, as we ourselves live out our lives in self-giving love.

*          *           *           *          *

Here are some Scripture verses which serve as helpful points of meditation while contemplating the crucifix.  Such contemplation may be accomplished by devoutly looking upon a crucifix while prayerfully pondering one of these verses.  Don't forget to begin your prayer by asking the Holy Spirit to guide your contemplation and so help you know and experience more fully the benefits of Christ's saving passion, death, and resurrection.

"For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life."  (John 3:16)

"Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit."  (John 12:24)

"And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself."  (John 12:32)

"This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you."  (John 15:12)

"Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends."  (John 15:13)

"The life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me."  (Galatians 2:20)

Such contemplation of the crucifix may additionally be an act of allowing our hearts to be moved to compassion for Jesus in his suffering, and to simply loving him in return, in keeping with the words of Zechariah: "And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of compassion and supplication, so that, when they look on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a first-born."  (12:10)

*          *          *          *          *

Here is a prayer called the Prayer Before the Crucifix.  A partial indulgence is normally granted by the prayerful recitation of this prayer, while a plenary indulgence is possible when praying this prayer before a crucifix on Fridays during Lent (Enchridion Indulgentiarum, Other Grants of Indulgences, 22).

Look down upon me, good and gentle Jesus,
while before your face I humbly kneel,
and with burning soul pray and beseech you to fix deep in my heart lively sentiments of faith, hope and charity,
true contrition for my sins, and a firm purpose of amendment,
while I contemplate with great love and tender pity your five wounds,
pondering over them within me,
calling to mind the words which David, your prophet, said of you, my good Jesus:
"They have pierced my hands and my feet; they have numbered all my bones."   (Psalm 22:16-17)