The handbook reading today described the way that we should have Mary living within us at all times, in our sufferings, our joys, our prayers, indeed all the circumstances of our lives. This is the spirit of the well-known prayers by Pere Jacque Olier: "O Jesus, living in Mary, come and live in Your servant, in the spirit of Your holiness, in the fullness of Your power, in the perfection of Your ways, in the truth of Your virtues, in the communion of Your divine mysteries. Reign in us over all adverse powers to the glory of the Father."
One of the things that struck me the most about the reading today was the handbook's insistence that, by means of our meditation, we become, in and through Mary, participants in the Mysteries of her Son. This emphasis immediately reminded me of a story from the life of Saint Louis-Marie Grignion de Monfort. This was his constant desire: to become, with and in Mary, a participant in the Mysteries of the life of Jesus. This can be clearly seen in the episode in which St. Louis-Marie came so close to realizing a long-standing and longed for dream. As an aid to meditation, he had always wanted to erect a Calvary, an artificial hill surmounted by life-size figures depicting the events of the suffering and death of Christ. He finally had the opportunity to create this special place of pilgrimage and prayer in the small Breton village of Pontchateau. Enormous amounts of money had been raised, artisans had worked to create the unique figures, life-size crosses had been raised. The work had been completed. The day that the bishop was to come and bless the new structure had almost arrived. Then, word arrived from the bishop. He would not be coming to bless the Calvary at all. In fact, he ordered that it be immediately demolished. Pere de Monfort, in great alarm, immediately set out for the bishop's residence. He walked all night and arrived just before dawn. Nevertheless, there was nothing he could do. Over the years of his work preaching missions in Brittany, he had ruffled many feathers. He had offended many people as a good missionary must always do. His enemies, high-ranking members of Court, had convinced the bishop that Pere de Monfort was going to use the Calvary to light signal fires to aid a British invasion. Disappointed but at peace, he returned to Pontchateau. There, he spoke to the people before they began demolishing the Calvary, which they had so long labored to build. He said simply: "We had hoped to build a Calvary here, but let us build it instead in our hearts."
It seems to me that this is the true spirit of one who is in union with Mary. The disappointments of life, and especially of ministry, only really have meaning with Mary in the Mysteries of her Son. In order for our service to the Church to be effective, we have to build a Calvary in our hearts. In fact, we have to build monuments to all the Mysteries of Christ in our hearts through meditation. Placing ourselves with the Mother of God at the foot of the cross is most important. But it is also important to place ourselves with her in the cave of the Incarnation, in the Temple at the Presentation, on the Mount of Olivet at the moment of the Ascension, and on every dusty road of Galilee and Judea, where Our Lord goes to preach the Gospel and work the astounding signs that win hearts to His message.
As the handbook insists, meditation is important. It's too important for us to allow it to be destroyed by method. If method helps, we should use it, but if it's nothing by a hindrance, then we should cast it aside. The important thing is not method. It is being with God.
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