Most acceptable to God by worthiness and by merit, Mary is more powerful than all the Angels and Saints in heaven.
—Pope Leo XIII
PRAYER. O Mary, inspire me to come to you in all my difficulties. Help me to be ever devoted to you and to receive the graces I need to be with you and your Divine Son in heaven.
MAY 9
THE mother of the sons of Zebedee came to [Jesus] … and worshiping him, asked for a favor. He said to her, “What is your wish?”
—Mt 20:20-21
REFLECTION. When Mary asks for graces from God, she does not ask but, so to speak, commands.
For her Son honors her by refusing her nothing.
—St. Peter Damian
PRAYER. O most powerful Advocate, “help the helpless, strengthen the fearful, comfort the sorrowful, pray for the people, plead for the clergy, intercede for all women consecrated to God, and assist all those devoted to you.”
MAY 10
ALL my words are just; in them is no evil or wickedness. They are right to those who understand.
—Prov 8:8-9
REFLECTION. What a wondrous book is the Heart of Mary!
Blessed are those who read with intelligence what is written therein, for they will learn the science of salvation.
—St. John Eudes
PRAYER. O Mary most wise, help me to contemplate the science of salvation found in your Immaculate Heart. Grant that I may imitate you in all things, for you were the perfect follower of Jesus.
MAY 11
BELOVED, we are the children of God now; what we shall be has not yet appeared. We do know that when he appears, we shall be like him.
—1 Jn 3:2
REFLECTION. Mary is the living “mold of God.” It was in her that God was made a true man.
It is also in her that human beings can be truly fashioned into God, insofar as that is possible for human nature, by the grace of Christ.
—St. Louis Grignion de Montfort
PRAYER. O Mary, you are the mold of Christ. Form us into the image of your Divine Son. Help me to be like Jesus, so that I may be forever a true child of God.
MAY 12
MARY … shall bring forth a son and you shall call his name Jesus, because he shall save his people from their sins.
—Mt 1:20-21
REFLECTION. By becoming the Mother of God, Mary was the means of the salvation of sinners.
In the same way, sinners are saved by proclaiming her praises.
—St. Anselm
PRAYER. O Mary, you are the Refuge of Sinners. Help me to receive the Sacrament of Penance worthily, so that my sins will be forgiven and I will sing your praises forever.
MAY 13
I CRY to you from the ends of the earth when my heart becomes weary. You will set me high on a rock giving me rest, for you are my refuge.
—Ps 61:3-4
REFLECTION. If you wish to live supernaturally and holily, pray to the Mother of God.
When you see yourself becoming lost in activity, make contact with our Immaculate Mother by frequent interior appeals.
—St. Maximilian Kolbe
PRAYER. O Mary, you always listen to our prayers. Help me to remain united with you in prayer despite the many activities that cry for my attention at every moment of the day.
MAY 14
AND Mary said: “My soul magnifies the Lord; and my spirit rejoices in God my savior.”
—Lk 1:46-47
REFLECTION. May each one of us possess the soul of Mary to proclaim the greatness of the Lord.
And may each one of us possess the spirit of Mary to rejoice in God.
—St. Ambrose
PRAYER. O Mary, you magnified the Lord by your life as well as your words. Obtain for me the grace to glorify the Lord and rejoice in Him by the purity of my life.
MAY 15
CAN a woman forget her infant, be without mercy for the child of her womb? And if she should forget, I shall never forget you.
—Isa 49:15
REFLECTION. The Blessed Virgin Mary is like a mother who has many children. She is always busy going from one to the other!
—St. John Vianney
PRAYER. O Mary, you are more devoted to the salvation of your children than any earthly mother can be. I thank you for your loving concern for me, which will only rest when I am in heaven with you.
MAY 16
MARY kept in mind all these things, pondering them in her heart. Then the shepherds returned, glorifying and lauding God for all they had heard and seen.
—Lk 2:19-20
REFLECTION. O faithful soul, imitate the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Enter into the temple of your heart in order to be spiritually renewed and obtain forgiveness of your sins. Remember that God looks at the intentions behind our works rather than the works themselves.
—St. Lawrence Justinian
PRAYER. O Mary, you meditated continually on the things God sent into your life. Help me to meditate daily on the events that touch my life and to discern God’s hand and will in them.
MAY 17
AT that time, Mary arose and went into the hill country in haste to a town of Judah. She entered the home of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth.
—Lk 1:39-40
REFLECTION. In the interior life and in the apostolate, let us always work with Mary.
For then everything becomes easier and more certain, quicker and more delightful.
—St. Louis Grignion de Montfort
PRAYER. O Mary, you were forever working for the Christian apostolate. Teach me to work with you so that I may obtain the best fruits from this activity, which Jesus commanded us to do.
MAY 18
ANYTHING defiled shall not enter into it nor anyone who practices abomination and deceit, but only those who appear in the book of life of the Lamb.
—Rev 21:27
REFLECTION. Those who enjoy the favor of Mary are recognized by the citizens of heaven.
And those who bear her stamp, that is, those who have the grace to be her servants, are inscribed in the Book of Life.
—St. Bonaventure
PRAYER. O Mary, you are the Book of Life for your servants. Help me to be so devoted to you that I will remain free from serious sin and deserve to have my name written in that Book.
MAY 19
WOMAN from the crowd cried out … , “Blessed is the womb that bore you….” He replied, “Rather, blessed are those who hear the word of God and obey it.”
—Lk 11:27-28
REFLECTION. Mary is blessed most of all because she heard the word of God and carried it out.
She preserved the Truth in her mind even more than she preserved the Flesh in her womb.
—St. Augustine
PRAYER. O Mary, you are the first among the believers in Christ. Increase my faith in your Divine Son. Make it so alive that it will shine out even in the littlest thing I do.
MAY 20
LET us confidently draw near the throne of grace to receive mercy and to find grace to help in time of need.
—Heb 4:16
REFLECTION. The life-giving graces flow from Christ the Head, through the Blessed Virgin, into His Mystical Body.
Mary received the great honor from God that no one should obtain any grace except through her hands.
—St. Bernardine
PRAYER. O Mary, you are the Mediatrix of all graces. Let me ask you each day for the graces I need to lead a truly Christian life, and obtain them for me from your Divine Son.
MAY 21
SHE is found by those who search for her. She hastens to make herself known to those who desire her; those who rise early to seek her will not have to toil.
—Wis 6:12-14
REFLECTION. The Blessed Virgin is invoked in the Church under the titles of Advocate, Auxiliatrix, Adjutrix, and Mediatrix.
These however are to be so understood that they take nothing away from nor add anything to the dignity and efficacy of Christ the one Mediator.
—V
atican II, The Church, 62
PRAYER. O Mary, you are our Advocate with God. Grant that I may call upon your intercessory power and so be able to bring forth the fruits that your Divine Son expects from me.
MAY 22
O LORD, … you have been pleased to bless the house of your servant, so that it will always remain. It is you, O Lord, who blessed it, and it will be blessed forever.
— 1 Chr 17:26-27
REFLECTION. Without the consent of Mary, God would not become Man.
The reasons for this were first that we might feel under great obligation to her and second that we might realize that the salvation of all is left to her care.
—St. Peter Damian
PRAYER. O Mary, you are entrusted with our salvation. Keep me safe from the snares of the devil. Help me to say often: “Immaculate Heart of Mary, be my salvation.”
MAY 23
SHE has set her table. She has sent out her maids to invite to the tower … : “Let whoever is a little one come to me.”
—Prov 9:2-4
REFLECTION. Nowhere do we find Jesus nearer to us and more adapted to our weakness than in Mary, since it was for that reason that He came and dwelt in her.
Everywhere else He is the Bread of the strong, the Bread of the Angels, but in Mary He is the Bread of children.
—St. Louis Grignion de Montfort
PRAYER. O Mary, you bring Jesus to us in a way we can understand. Let me come to know Jesus more deeply, love Him more dearly, and follow Him more closely.
MAY 24
HOPE does not disappoint, because the charity of God is poured forth in our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.
—Rom 5:5
REFLECTION. The Holy Spirit is all the love of the Blessed Trinity, and Mary is all the love of Creation.
In their union, heaven is united with earth, the whole of eternal Love with the whole of created love. It constitutes the zenith of love!
—St. Maximilian Kolbe
PRAYER. O Mary, you bring us the love of God through the Holy Spirit. Make me acutely aware of the Holy Spirit and grant me the grace to follow His promptings and grow in His love.
MAY 25
BUT if anyone sins, we have an advocate with God the Father, Jesus Christ the just one. He is propitiation for our sins … and those of all the world.
—1 Jn 2:1-2
REFLECTION. In heaven Mary remains always in the presence of her Divine Son. There she is continually praying on behalf of sinners.
—St. Bede the Venerable
PRAYER. O Mary, in accord with the will of your Divine Son, you are the Refuge of Sinners. Beg Him to forgive my past sins and help me to avoid sin in the future.
MAY 26
THE just shall hold to his way, and whoever has clean hands shall grow ever stronger.
—Job 17:9
REFLECTION. My children, do you want to obtain perseverance? Then be devoted to our Blessed Lady!
—St. Philip Neri
PRAYER. O Mary, you obtain the grace of final perseverance for your children. Help me to be a devoted child of yours, so that I may remain in the state of grace until death and join you with your Son in heaven.
MAY 27
FOR you were slain and have redeemed us for God with your blood, those from every tribe and language, people and nation.
—Rev 5:9
REFLECTION. God is the Father of the world’s construction, and Mary is the Mother of its reconstruction.
For God generated the One through Whom everything has been made. And Mary gave birth to the One through Whose work all things have been saved.
—St. Anselm
PRAYER. O Mary, you are the Co-Redemptrix with your Divine Son. Help me to unite all my words and actions with your Heart and the Sacred Heart of Jesus for the salvation of the world.
MAY 28
ABIDE in me, and I in you…. Whoever abides in me and I in him will bear much fruit, for without me you can do nothing.
—Jn 15:4-5
REFLECTION. It was the prerogative of Mary to conceive Christ in her womb.
But it is the heritage of all the elect to bear Jesus in their hearts.
—St. Peter Damian
PRAYER. O Mary, you bore Christ in your heart as well as your body. Help me to bear Him always within my heart by doing the things that are pleasing to Him.
MAY 29
HEAR me, daughter, do not glean in any other field…. Keep close to my maids and follow where they glean.
—Ru 2:8-9
REFLECTION. Like Ruth, Mary is allowed to gather the ears of corn (glean) after harvesters.
The harvesters she follows are all evangelical laborers constantly harvesting souls for God. To Mary alone is granted to save the most hardened sinners, abandoned even by the harvesters.
—St. Bonaventure
PRAYER. O Mary, you intercede even for the most hardened souls. Convert the most rebellious and bring them back to Jesus.
MAY 30
HEAR now, all you who fear God, and I will tell you the great things he has done for me. I cried to him for help, and praised him with my tongue.
—Ps 66:16-17
REFLECTION. Every day at Evening Prayer, the Church sings the “Magnificat,” Mary’s hymn of praise.
This habitual remembrance of the Lord’s Incarnation enkindles the hearts of the faithful, and the frequent meditation of Mary’s examples confirms them in virtue.
—St. Bede
PRAYER. O Mary, teach me to unite myself with the Church in the Liturgy of the Hours each day. Let me recite your magnificent hymn of praise often.
MAY 31
MARY stayed with Elizabeth about three months and then returned to her own home.
—Lk 1:56
REFLECTION. The heart of our good Mother Mary is all love and mercy. She desires nothing else but our happiness.
We need only have recourse to her and we will be heard.
—St. John Vianney
PRAYER. O Mary, you visited Elizabeth on a mission of mercy even while bearing Jesus. Teach me to be concerned for others and bring Jesus to them by my visits.
June
JUNE 1
STORE up treasures for yourselves in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes, nor robbers break in and steal! For where your treasure is, there also will your heart be.
—Mt 6:20-21
REFLECTION. Mary is my great treasure. She is my All after Jesus.
She is my honor, my tenderness, and the storehouse of my virtues! I do everything in and through her.
—St. Louis Grignion de Montfort
PRAYER. O Mary, you are our greatest treasure after Jesus. Help me to prize you above everything, remain united with you, and reach your Son Jesus through you.
JUNE 2
YOU shall search for me, and you shall find me, when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you, and I will bring you back.
—Jer 29:13-14
REFLECTION. We must pray to Mary and call upon her. She is admirable for herself and lovable for us.
As in the Gospel, Mary now intervenes with her Son and obtains from Him miracles that the ordinary course of things would not allow.
—Pope Paul VI
PRAYER. O Mary, you know our human needs and sorrows. Grant that I may have recourse to you in all my anxieties and always obtain God’s gracious help.
JUNE 3
I BECAME established in Zion. Thus, in the beloved city he gave me a resting place; in Jerusalem I wield my power.
—Sir 24:10-11
REFLECTION. The word “Jerusalem” in this text signifies the Church Triumphant in heaven as well as the Church Militant on earth.
Indeed, the Mother of the Creator has power both in heaven and on earth.
—St. Bonaventure
PRAYER. O Mary, you are the “Virgin Most Powerful.” Make me a better person and make the world a safer place to live in from both a natural and a supernatural point of view.
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sp; JUNE 4
MERCY and truth shall meet; justice and peace shall kiss. Truth shall sprout from the earth, and justice shall look down from heaven.
—Ps 85:11-12
REFLECTION. Mary is the Virgin most truthful, the soil from which, in the words of the Psalmist, Truth shall spring.
May she grant us the grace to be truthful in heart, word, and deed in all things.
—St. Joan of Valois
PRAYER. O Mary, you are the Mother of Truth Himself. Make me know the Truth, so that I may always love the truth, speak the truth, and live the truth.
JUNE 5
DO not be anxious and say, “What shall we eat?” or “What shall we drink?” or “What shall we wear?” … All these things shall be given you besides.
—Mt 6:31-33
REFLECTION. Place yourself in Mary’s hands; she will think of everything and provide for the needs of soul and body.
Therefore, be at peace, be at complete peace, with unlimited confidence in her!
—St. Maximilian Kolbe
PRAYER. O Mary, Mother of Hope, I entrust my life into your hands. Fill me with Christian optimism, so that I will be able to confront any situation with equanimity.
JUNE 6
ASSOCIATE with a devout person whom you know to be a keeper of the commandments…. In addition, trust your own judgment.
—Sir 37:12-13
REFLECTION. Jesus has given us the Heart of His Blessed Mother. Therefore, you can and you must make use of that Heart to love God.
For Mary’s Heart is truly yours, and you must love God with all your heart!
—St. John Eudes
PRAYER. O Immaculate Heart of Mary, I entrust myself to you. Help me to follow your inspirations and make my heart like yours, which is in turn like the Heart of Jesus.
JUNE 7
FOR those who observe the holy precepts with holiness will be accounted holy…. Therefore, be zealous in heeding my words; long for them and you will receive instruction.
Mary Day by Day Page 6