CHAPTER VI -- THE FOURFOLD GRACE IN MARY--OF GIFTS, OF SPEECH, OF PRIVILEGES, AND OF REWARDS
Ave Maria, gratia plena. We have still some things to say of the grace of the most sweet Mary. We will now consider the fourfold grace of her gifts, her speech, her privileges, and her rewards.
First, consider in Mary the grace of the Gifts of the Holy Ghost. To this grace Mary, giving thanks, could apply the word of Ecclesiasticus: "In me is all grace of the way and the truth." What wonder if she herself is the grace full of life and truth, who is the Mother of Him who was "full of grace and truth"? And what wonder if in that rod is so great an affluence of the Gifts of the Holy Ghost, in whose flower the Holy Spirit rested with such an abundance of His gifts? Mary is that rod, and the Son of Mary is that flower, of whom it is said in Isaias: "There shall come forth a rod from the root of Jesse, and a flower shall ascend from that root, and there shall rest upon Him the spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the spirit of counsel and of fortitude, the spirit of knowledge and of piety, and he shall be filled with the spirit of the fear of the Lord." On this flower was a great abundance of the Holy Spirit, which has overflowed into the whole Church, so that the Evangelist John says: "Of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace." Now that such an abundance of grace has overflowed from this flower into the whole garden, how much more will it abound in the rod or stem of the flower, in Mary herself? Let Mary, therefore, say in all security, "In me is all grace of the way and the truth." Certainly the grace of the way and the truth consists in the aforesaid seven gifts of the Holy Ghost; it was by the aforesaid seven gifts that the grace of the way and the truth was in Mary. The grace of the truth set Mary in order in the truth above herself, below herself, in herself, and without herself. The grace, I say, of the truth set Mary in order above herself by the gift of Wisdom; below herself, by the gift of counsel; in herself, by the gift of understanding; without herself, by the gift of knowledge. The grace of the truth set in order the soul of Mary in truth above herself, in the most wise contemplation of things to be enjoyed; below herself, in fleeing foresight of things that were to be shunned; in herself, in her sure knowledge of what to believe; without herself, in a most reasonable discretion concerning all she had to do. The grace of her life set Mary in order in a good life with regard to the devil, with regard to her neighbor, and with regard to God. The grace, I say, of life set Mary in order in a good life; towards the devil, by fortitude; towards her neighbor, by the gift of piety; towards God, by the gift of fear. The grace of life set Mary in order in a most strong resistance to the devil; in a most loving kindness to her neighbor; in a most devout reverence towards God. This was signified by the Holy Ghost in a most fitting manner by the house which Wisdom built for Himself, having seven columns, which were the seven Gifts of the Holy Ghost. Whoever, therefore, feels within himself the beginning of a desire for the Gifts of the Holy Ghost, can find the shape of these pillars in this house, and he ought to desire these seven pillars with great ardor and much prayer. Likewise, he who desires the sevenfold grace of the Holy Spirit must look for the flower of the Holy Spirit in the rod. By the rod or stem we attain to the flower, and so to the Spirit that rests upon the flower. By Mary we approach to Christ, and by the grace of Christ we find the Holy Spirit. Therefore St. Bernard well says, addressing Mary: "By thee we have access to thy Son, O
blessed finder of grace, mother of life, mother of salvation, that by thee He may receive us, who by thee was given to us."
Secondly, consider in Mary the grace of the lips, or of speech, of which it is said in the Psalm: "Grace is shed abroad on thy lips." Such was the grace of the lips in Mary that she could excellently be prefigured by Judith, of whom it is said: "There is not such another woman upon earth in look, in beauty, and in sense of words" (Judith XI, 19.) Truly there is not, nor ever was, nor ever will be, such another woman upon earth, as Mary was, in her glorious life, in the beauty of a pure conscience, and in the sense of words of a most skilled tongue. We shall clearly see the grace of the lips in Mary if we diligently gather and meditate the words of her lips as recorded in the Gospel. We find in the Gospel seven sentences, sweeter than honey, dropping from the lips of Mary, and indicating excellently the honey-flowing grace of her lips, as it is said in the Canticle: "Thy lips are as a dropping honeycomb" (IV, 11.) The seven words of Mary, spoken to the Angel, to God, and to men, are as seven wells of honey. To the Angel, Mary spoke the word of chastity and the word of humility. Mary had on her lips the word of chastity when she said in answer to the Angel: "How shall this be done, for I know not man?" This is a lesson to the unchaste, who have on their lips not chaste, but base and carnal words. Mary spoke to the Angel the words of humility when she said: "Behold the handmaid of the Lord, be it done unto me according to thy word." This is a lesson to the proud and arrogant, who neither think nor speak humbly of themselves, but have words of boasting and elation on their lips. Again Mary spoke to men the word of charity and the word of truth: the word of charity in greeting, the word of truth in instruction. Mary spoke the word of charity when she so affectionately saluted the mother of the Precursor that even the infant in that mother's womb exulted. This is a lesson to the rancorous, who will not only not speak charitably to their neighbors, but disdain to speak to them at all. Mary spoke the word of truth when, the wine failing, she said to the servants at the marriage feast: "Whatsoever He shall say to you, do ye." This is a lesson to those who will not only not speak good words to their neighbors, but urge them to evil deeds. Again, Mary spoke three times to the Lord. She spoke more to God than to angels or to men, for she spoke twice to the angels and twice to men, but three times to God. To God she spoke a word of praise, of loving complaint, and of compassion. Of praise for the benefits bestowed on herself; of loving complaint for the loss of her Son; of compassion for the failing of the wine. Mary had the word of praise to God on her lips, when in thanksgiving for that God had looked upon her lowliness, she said: "My soul doth magnify the Lord." This is a lesson to the ungrateful, who, alas, give such scant thanks to God for His benefits, and at times grow puffed up against God by these very benefits. Mary had the word of loving complaint to God upon her lips, when she said to her Son, after the three days' loss: "Son, why hast thou done so to us? Behold thy Father and I have sought Thee sorrowing." Here is a lesson for the indevout, who do not seek Jesus sorrowing, when by the withdrawal of devotion they have lost him for many days. Mary spoke the word of compassion to God when at the marriage feast she said to her Son: "They have no wine." Here is a lesson to the unmerciful, who are not moved to compassion by the needs of others, and who neither help their neighbors, nor draw them to God. Behold now, O Mary, our advocate, it is still needful to us that thou shouldst speak to thy Son for us, that many of us have no wine; we lack the wine of the Holy Spirit, the wine of compunction, the wine of devotion and spiritual consolation. Of which St. Bernard
thus speaks: "How often is it necessary for me, O my brethren, after your tearful complaints to beseech the Mother of Mercy to say to her Son that you have no wine! And she, I say, beloved, if she is piously besought by you, will not be lacking to your need, for she is merciful, she is the Mother of Mercy. For if she had compassion for the shame of those whose guest she was, much more will she have compassion on you if you call upon her earnestly." Consider well, from what we have said, what power Mary hath with the King of kings, because of the grace of her lips, for it is written in the Book of Proverbs: "He who loveth cleanness of heart, for the grace of his lips shall have the king for a friend" (Prov. XXII, 11.)
Thirdly, consider in Mary the grace of privileges. Of this grace it is said: "Thou hast found grace with the Lord, behold thou shalt conceive in the womb, and shalt bear a Son, and thou shalt call His name Jesus. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Most High." See how Gabriel, asserting that Mary had found grace, immediately specifies what that grace is, saying: "Behold thou shalt conceive in the womb." Oh, how great and how unheard-of in all the world that a virgin should conceive and bring forth the Son of the Most High. We can perceive in Mary seven privileges, privileges full of immense graces, granted to Mary alone by God.
The first privilege of Mary was that she was, above all men, free from sin and most pure. For she was so abundantly sanctified by grace in her mother's womb that it is believed she was never in the least degree inclined to the slightest venial sin. Therefore St. Bernard saith: "It behooved the Queen of Virgins, by a singular privilege of sanctity, to lead a life free from every sin, so that, while she brought forth the slayer of sin and death, she should obtain for all the gift of life and justice."
The second privilege of Mary is that, above all men, she was full of grace. St. Jerome saith: "On others grace was bestowed in measure; but the whole fullness of grace was poured into Mary." And, therefore, well doth this same Blessed Doctor, comparing the grace of Mary with that of the angels and preferring it, say: "It is to be believed that the glorious Virgin Mary merited greater privileges of virtue, and received grace praised by the angels."
The third privilege of Mary was that she alone was a mother and at the same time an inviolate virgin. St. Bernard, praising this privilege, says: "Mary chose for herself the better part. Clearly the better, because conjugal fecundity is good, but virginal chastity is better, but the best is virginal fecundity, or fecund virginity. The privilege of Mary will not be given to another, because it will not be taken away from her."
The fourth privilege of Mary is that she alone is the ineffable Mother of the Son, the Mother of that Son of whom alone God is the Father; wonderful above measure that so great a privilege should be granted to a creature. Of this privilege St. Bernard saith: "This is the singular glory of our Virgin, and the excellent prerogative of Mary, that she merited to have her Son in common with God the Father."
The fifth privilege of Mary is that she alone above all creatures was in the body most familiar with God. For, what was never granted to any other creature, nor will ever be granted again in eternity --she bore God for nine months in her womb, she nourished God from her breasts full of heaven, for many years she sweetly brought up our Lord, she had God subject to her, she handled and embraced her God in pure embraces and kisses with tender familiarity, as St. Augustine says: "No wonder, Mary, that God reigning in Heaven deigns to rejoice with thee, whom, when He was a little child born of thee, thou didst so often kiss on earth." (Serm. de Sanct., XXV, CCVIII, n. II, appendix.)
The sixth privilege of Mary was that she alone, above all creatures, is most powerful with God. St. Augustine says: "She merited to be the mother of the Redeemer." He also says: "Beg for what we ask, excuse what we fear, because we shall never find one more powerful in merit than thee, who hast merited to be the Mother of the Redeemer and of the Judge. It is a great privilege that she is more powerful with God than all the Saints, as St. Augustine declares: "There is no doubt that she who brought forth the price by which all were freed, can above all others pay the suffrage of holy liberty." But what would it avail us for Mary to have such great power if she cared nothing for us ? Therefore, brethren, we must hold it for certain, and incessantly give thanks for this, that, as she has more power with God than all the Saints, so is she also more solicitous for us before God than all the Saints. It is the same Augustine who teaches us this, saying: "We know, O Mary, that thou above all the saints art solicitous for the holy Church--thou who obtainest for sinners time to repent, that they may renounce their errors."
The seventh privilege of Mary is that she, above all the Saints, is most excellent in glory. St. Jerome says: "Everywhere the holy Church of God sings, what it is unlawful to believe of any other of the saints, that the merits (of Mary) transcend those of all angels and archangels. This privilege not, as it were, of nature, but of grace--belongs to the Virgin Mary." Behold how glorious is the privilege of Mary's glory that she, after God, is most exalted in glory. The glorious privilege of the glory of Mary is, that whatever after God is most beautiful, whatever is sweetest, whatever is pleasanter in glory, that is Mary's, that is in Mary, that is by Mary. It is entirely the glorious privilege of Mary, that, after God, our greatest glory and our greatest joy is because of her. St. Bernard says: "After God, it is our greatest glory, O Mary, to behold thee, to adhere to thee, to abide in the defense of thy protection."
These, therefore, are the seven privileges of Mary by which we obtain the life of grace. And therefore, we may implore Mary, as Abraham implored Sara: "Say, I beseech thee, that thou art my sister, that it may be well with me because of thee, and that my soul may live by thy grace" (Gen. XII, 13.) 0 Mary, our Sara, say that thou art our sister, that because of thee it may be well for us with God, and that our souls may live in God because of thy grace. Say, O our most beloved Sara, that thou art our sister, that, for the sake of such a sister, the Egyptians, that is, the evil spirits, may reverence us, that, because of such a sister, the angels may fight for us, and that above all, for the sake of such a sister, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost may have mercy on us.
Fourthly, consider in Mary the grace of rewards, on which we have already touched in speaking of her seventh privilege. To this grace can be applied that word of Ecclesiasticus: "Grace upon grace hath a chaste and holy woman" (XXVI, 19.) The woman chaste above all women is Mary, the woman holy above all women, in whom is grace above grace, the grace of glory above the grace of the way, the grace of rewards in Heaven above the grace of merits in this world. This grace of the beatitude of Mary consists in seven gifts of body and of soul. Every glorified body has four glorious gifts: the gift of wonderful clarity, the gift of wonderful subtlety, the gift of wonderful agility, and the gift of wonderful impassability; and if every glorified body has these gifts, how much more so will the body which brought forth Him who is the Glorifier of all bodies? What wonder if her gift of clarity is the brightest in Heaven, who by the gift of holiness was so resplendent in this world that St. Bernard says of her: "While yet thou didst live among sinners, thou didst shine before God with such sanctity, that thou alone didst merit to approximate to the glory of the eternal King." Again, what wonder if by the gift of subtlety she is most subtle, who by the gift of humility was most subtle in this world? Speaking to her, Blessed Bernard says: "Thou wouldst never have ascended far above all the choirs of angels, if on earth thou hadst not lowered thyself by humility below all men." Again, what wonder if by the gift of agility she is swiftest in Heaven, who by her gift of loving kindness was so swift upon earth? For in the offices of charity she went with haste into the hill country, of the swiftness of whose haste St. Ambrose says: "Whither would she, who was now full of God, hasten, unless into the hill country with haste? For the grace of the Holy Spirit knoweth no tardy delays." Again, what wonder if by the gift of impassability she is impassable in Heaven, who by the gift of patience and equanimity was so impassable in this world that she never felt the slightest impatience or hatred when the sword passed through her own soul? For we neither read nor believe that the least sign of impatience ever appeared in Mary. St. Bernard says: "Diligently revolve in thy mind the whole of the Gospel story, and if thou discoverest in Mary the least sign of rebuke, of hardness, or of indignation, then thou mayest hesitate to believe in her virtue in other things, and fear to approach her."
If such is the glory of the body of Mary, what, thinkest thou, is the glory of her soul? This blessed soul has three beatific gifts--the gift of wonderful love, the gift of wonderful knowledge, and the gift of wonderful fruition, or, to put it in a more modern way, the gifts of vision, fruition, and experience. But in whatever manner the gifts of Mary are expressed, it is certain that these gifts surpass those of all other souls. For if all blessed souls are endowed with these gifts in Heaven, how much more the soul of her who brought forth in this world the soul of the Beatifier of all souls? St. Bernard says: "She penetrated the most profound abyss of divine Wisdom beyond what could be believed, and as far as the condition of a creature is capable, she was united to that inaccessible Light." Again, what wonder if the soul of Mary is immersed in fecund love, what wonder if she is loving above all, who is above all beloved? Truly, before and above all; for St. Augustine thus addresses her: "The King of kings, loving thee above all as His true Mother and Spouse, is joined to thee in the embrace of love." Again, what wonder if in most delightful fruition is immersed the soul of Mary who was fed by the most blessed Fruit of her womb? St. Augustine says: "Mary in brightness of soul enjoys Christ, and His glorious embraces, always present, always beholding Him, always thirsting to see Him, she is ineffably
nourished by Him." Therefore, as the most glorious Mary exceeds all Saints in the grace of the way and in the grace of merits, so she exceeds all Saints in the grace of glory and in the grace of rewards. Therefore, she is well symbolized by Queen Esther, of whom we read that, being led to the nuptial chamber of King Assuerus, she found grace and mercy before him above all women, and he placed the diadem of the kingdom upon her head. This is eminently suited to Mary, of whom St. Jerome says: "She is raised above the choirs of angels, that she may behold the beauty and the countenance of the Savior, whom she had loved and desired with all the desire of her heart." This Queen Esther, the blessed Virgin Mary, at her Assumption was led into the bridal chamber of the King Assuerus, the Eternal King, of which incident St. Augustine, addressing Mary, says: "The Queen Mary, being led into the bridal chamber of everlasting rest, possesses the favor and grace of the King Assuerus, that is, the grace of the True King above all women, that is, above all angelical intelligences, and above all beatified souls, so that in Mary there should be grace above that of all the blessed. And in very truth the King of kings placed on her head the diadem of the kingdom, a truly priceless diadem, so delightful, so wonderful, that no tongue can fitly speak of it and it is incomprehensible to every intellect.
Now, therefore, beloved, you have seen with how great grace of gifts Mary is enriched, with how great grace of the lips, with how great privileges, with how abundant a dower of rewards. Let us, therefore, beseech this finder of graces that she may let us find grace with God, through Our Lord Jesus Christ, Amen.
CHAPTER VII -- THE NINE PLENITUDES IN MARY, WHICH REPRESENT THE NINE CHOIRS OF THE ANGELS IN GLORY
Ave, gratia plena. It was not enough for the Arch angel simply to commend the grace of Mary; he wished also to insist emphatically on its fullness, when he said: "Gratia plena." O truly full, and fully full! Gabriel had not yet said: "Behold, thou shalt conceive in the womb." He had not yet said: "The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee." If, therefore, before the coming upon her of the Holy Ghost, before the conception of the Son of God, Mary was full (of grace), how much more so afterwards? Therefore Anselm aptly says of her fullness and of the fullness of her gratitude: "She, being already a thousand times full (of grace), was saluted by the Angel, filled with the Holy Ghost, breathed upon by the divine plenitude." Well, therefore, is Mary said to be full of the illumination of wisdom, of the outpouring of grace, of the riches of a good life, of the unction of mercy, of the fecundity of a pious offspring, of the perfection of the Church, of the redolence of fair fame, of the resplendence of divine glory, of the joy of eternal gladness. Let us consider these nine plenitudes in Mary, which represent the nine plenitudes of the angelic orders in glory.
First let us consider that Mary is full of the illumination of wisdom and understanding. She may aptly be symbolized by that which is said in the Book of Proverbs: "My husband is not at home, he is gone on a very long journey. He took with him a bag of money: he will return home the day of the full moon" (VII, 19 f.) This is that Man of whom Jeremias saith: "The Lord hath created a new thing upon the earth, a woman shall encompass a man" (XXXI, 32.) The woman is Mary--a woman indeed in sex, not in corruption; a mother of virtue, who encompassed Our Lord in her womb, clothed Him with our nature. This Man--if indeed, as Josephus saith, it be lawful to call Him a man-- has three houses. It belongs to imperial majesty to have three mansions in the palace, namely, a reception-room, a supper-room, and a bedchamber. The reception-room is the place for conversation and discussions; the supper-room, for food; the bedchamber, for rest. So our Emperor, who rules the winds and the sea, has His reception-room, which is the world; He has His refreshment-room, which now is the Church, and was of old, the Synagogue; He has His place of rest, namely, the rational soul of man. But alas! this Man, the Lord of hosts, had been very far distant from His house of the world, His house of the synagogue, His house of the soul, for "far from sinners is salvation" (Ps. CXVIII, 155.) This Man was not in His house when Jeremias complained: "I have forsaken my house, I have left my inheritance" (Jer. XII, 7.) He took the bag of money with him when He hid the treasure of His mercies and His grace from the world. But lo! this Man came back on the day of the full moon--of that moon, I say, of which it is said in the Canticle of Canticles: "Fair as the moon." This moon, therefore, is Mary. The full moon is Mary full of grace. Well is Mary compared to the moon, because by the Eternal Sun she is fully illuminated with the light of wisdom and truth. Therefore, the name Mary is well interpreted illuminatrix or illuminated. For she, who is our moon and our lamp, was illuminated by the Lord, and she was the illuminatrix of the world, according to that prophetic word: "For thou lightest my lamp" (Ps. XVII.) In the fullness of this moon, the Man came back to his house, when Christ came into this world in the flesh. O truly wonderful fullness of this moon! Behold, if Mary was full of the light of wisdom, which she received from the Eternal Sun, before she conceived Him; how much more full was she, when she so wonderfully conceived this Sun, and so entirely received
Him within herself ! Well, therefore, saith St. Bernard, when commending the fullness of the wisdom of Mary: "Heavenly wisdom built for Himself a house in Mary: for He so filled her mind that from the very fullness of her mind her flesh became fecund, and the Virgin by a singular grace brought forth that same Wisdom, covered with a garb of flesh, whom she had first conceived in her pure mind."
Secondly, let us consider that Mary is full of the outpouring of grace in her affections. For such was the inundation of grace, so great was its depth and magnitude in Mary, that she could well be called a full sea according to that word: "Let the sea roar, and the fullness thereof" (I Par. XVI, 32.) As in the sea there is a gathering together of waters, so in Mary is a gathering together of graces. Therefore it is written: "The gathering together of the waters was called (Vulg. "he called") seas" (Gen. I, 10.) It is also said in Ecclesiastes: "All the rivers run into the sea" (I, 7.) All the rivers are the gifts of the graces, which entered into Mary, according to that word of Wisdom: "In me is all grace of the way and of the truth" (Ecclus. XXIV, 25.) How full is this sea, how full of grace is Mary, St. Jerome declares, saying: "Truly full, because on others it is only bestowed in part, but on Mary the whole plenitude of grace was outpoured at once." This sea, therefore, being full, let us hear it roar against vices. Let the sea roar, therefore, and the fullness thereof, let the full sea, let the full Mary, roar. Let it roar against luxury, preach chastity, and say: "How shall this be done, for I know not man?" Let it also roar against pride, by humility, saying: "Behold the handmaid of the Lord." Let it roar against ingratitude, giving thanks and saying: "Behold the handmaid of the Lord.... My soul doth magnify the Lord." Of the fullness of this sea it is likewise said in the Psalm: "Let the sea be moved, and the fullness thereof." Let the sea be moved, let Mary be moved, let her be moved by our sighs and mortifications, let her be moved by our tears and prayers, let her be moved by our alms and our other acts of veneration. Let her be moved fully, I say, that she may pour out on us of her fullness. Let us note what St. Bernard says in speaking of her: "If a vessel full of liquid is moved, it is easily spilt, and lets drop its contents. So the Blessed Virgin Mary, if she is moved by our prayers, pours forth graces upon us."
Thirdly, let us consider that Mary is in very truth full of the riches of a good life. Of this plenitude we can truly say: "The earth is the Lord's." By the earth is signified Mary, of whom we read in Isaias: "Let the earth be opened, and bud forth a savior!" What more lowly than the earth? What more useful? We all tread the earth under our feet, and draw from it the nourishment of our life. Whence have we food and clothing, bread and wine, wool and thread, flax, and all the necessaries of life except from the earth, and from the fullness of the earth? What, therefore, is more lowly, what more useful than the earth? In like manner, what is more humble, what more useful than Mary? She by her humility is the very least of all; by her fullness of grace, the most useful of all. For we have all that is needful for our spiritual life through Mary. Well therefore doth St. Bernard say: "Let us look more deeply and see with how great a depth of devotion He wishes Mary to be honored by us who hath placed the fullness of all good in Mary, so that if we have any ground for hope, or for salvation, we should know that it is from her it springs." ("Serm. de Aquaeductu.") Hear now the Psalmist: "The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof." The fullness of the earth consists in fruits and divers riches, according to the Psalmist: "The earth is filled with Thy riches." The fruits and the riches of this most full earth, Mary,
are the works, the examples, and the divers merits of the most holy life of Mary. The Lord filled her with such riches and with so great gifts that it is said: "The Lord looked upon the earth, and filled it with his goods" (Ecclus. XVI, 30. ) St. Jerome, speaking of this fullness, says: "It was fitting that the Virgin should be pledged with such gifts, that she should be full of grace, she who gave glory to the heavens, God to the earth, who restored peace, who gave faith to the nations, put an end to vices, brought back order to life, and discipline to manners."
Fourthly, let us consider that Mary is full of the unction of mercy and of the oil of piety. Therefore she may be signified by that woman who, having closed the door of her house and gathered together within all her vessels, they were miraculously filled with oil, according to what Eliseus had prophesied to her, saying: "Thou shalt take them away, when they are full" (Kings IV, 4. ) This woman is Mary, who was called "woman" by her Son in the Gospel of St. John, where we read: "Woman, behold thy Son." The vessels of this woman are her affections and her deeds, her desires and her benefits, which in Mary are all full of the oil of mercy. Well, therefore, doth St. Bernard say of this oil: "No wonder, Lady, if the sanctuary is so copiously anointed with the oil of the mercy of thy heart, when that inestimable work of mercy, which God had predestined from all eternity in our redemption, was first of all effected in thee by the Maker of the world. Let us, therefore, say to Mary: 'Give us of your oil.' Let us beg for the oil of her mercy in this world, lest we should ask in vain at the judgment." That the house in which the vessels were filled should also have been closed, is admirably suited to Mary, of whose spiritual enclosure Ezechiel says: "This gate shall be closed, and it shall not be opened, and no man shall pass through it; for the Lord God of Israel has entered through it" (XLIV, 2.) The gate of Mary was closed by the lock of virginity; no man had passed through it by way of conjugal embrace; the Lord God came forth through her by a singular manner of birth. But certainly, because for the multiplication of the oil, vessels not a few were collected from the neighbors; therefore by these vessels may be signified all those who have been partakers of the mercies of Mary. Who these are, St. Bernard declares when he says: "Mary has opened the bosom of her mercy to all, that all may receive of her fullness: the captive, redemption; the sick, healing; the sad, consolation; the sinner, pardon; the just, grace; the angel, joy; in fine, the whole Trinity, glory; the person of the Son, the substance of human flesh."
Fifthly, let us consider that Mary is full of the fecundity of the divine offspring. Of this plenitude we may understand that word of Isaias: "I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and elevated, and the earth was full of His majesty" (Is. VI, 1.) That house on the throne of which God sits is the Blessed Virgin, on the throne of whose mind the Lord rested. O truly blessed and stable throne, as it is said in the third Book of Kings: "Thy most firm throne for ever" (VIII, 13.) This most high throne is in the intellect, raised up on the affections. It is also most high above men, raised up over men. On this throne, therefore, of Mary, on the throne, I say, of her mind, the Lord was seated, and the house of her body was full of the majesty of the Incarnate Word. Of this ineffable fullness St. Ambrose says: "Well is she alone said to be full of grace, who alone obtained the grace which none other ever had, of being filled with the author of grace." O truly happy house, full of so happy a fecundity! For St. Bernard saith: "Well was she full of grace, who both kept the grace of
virginity and acquired the glory of fecundity." The Lord, therefore, sat on the throne of the mind of Mary by grace, and filled the house of her body with His majesty by His assumed nature. Therefore, it is said in the third Book of Kings: "The glory of the Lord had filled the house of the Lord" (VIII, II.) Then saith Solomon: "The Lord hath said that He would dwell in the cloud" (ibid., 12.) Mary, therefore, the house of the Lord, was filled with the glory of the Divine Majesty by the cloud of the humanity assumed by God--that cloud, I say, of which we read in Ecclesiasticus: "The healing of all is in the hastening of the cloud" (XLIII, 24.) And again: "Like the morning star in the midst of a cloud." For like the star in a cloud is the Word in the flesh assumed by Him.
Sixthly, let us consider in what way Mary was full of the perfection of the universal Church. The Church had and has diverse and marvelous perfections and graces in her various saints, in whose fullness it would seem that Mary abode, that she might truly utter that word of Ecclesiasticus: "My abode is in the full assembly of saints." Truly was the abode of Mary in the plenitude of the saints, while in her own wonderful perfection the fullness of the perfection of the saints was not wanting to her. As St. Bernard declares, when he says: "Rightly in the fullness of the saints was her abode, to whom was not wanting the faith of the patriarchs, the spirit of the prophets, the zeal of the Apostles, the constancy of the martyrs, the sobriety of the confessors, the chastity of the virgins, the fecundity of the married, yea, nor the purity of the angels." For it is written in the book of Ecclesiasticus: "And shall be admired in the holy assembly" (XXIV, 3.) On account of this, the abode of Mary is in the fullness of the Saints, not in the fullness of the impious; because Mary remains willingly with those who are full of sanctity, not with those who are full of iniquity. She not only abides in the fullness of the Saints, but abides in fullness with the Saints, lest their fullness should grow less. She takes hold of virtues, lest they fly; she takes hold of merits, lest they perish; she takes hold of demons and keeps them in check, lest they do harm; she takes hold of her Son, lest He strike sinners. Before Mary there never was one who could dare thus to take hold of the Lord, as Isaias bears witness, saying: "There is none that calleth upon thy name, that riseth up and taketh hold of thee" (Is. LXIV, 7.)
Seventhly, let us consider how Mary is full of the redolence of fair fame. As a field is full of the scents of various flowers, so is Mary full of the fair fame of fragrant sprinkling. Of her fullness we may understand what we read in Genesis: "Behold the smell of my son is as the smell of a full field, which God hath blessed" (Gen. XXVII, 27.) This field is Mary, in whom the treasure of the angels, yea verily, the whole treasure of God the Father is hidden. Happy is he "who sells all that he has, and buys that field." The full odor of this full field is the full fair fame of Mary, her full honor. Of this St. Jerome saith: "Because she was filled with the many odors of the virtues, there came forth from her a most sweet odor, rejoicing the angelic spirits." Of this odor she herself, glorying, could use the words of Ecclesiasticus (XXIV, 20): "I gave a sweet smell like cinnamon and aromatical balm." The good odor of Mary was like cinnamon externally, in the rind of her conversation; like aromatical balm interiorly, by the unction of her devotion; like myrrh, in the bitterness of her suffering. The good odor of Mary was also like cinnamon in her deeds; like balm in her contemplation; like myrrh in her sufferings. O truly rich, and exceedingly rich she who, besides other aromas, was so full of the odoriferous balm of the Holy Spirit that St. Bernard, speaking of that word, "The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee," says: "That
precious balm flowed in on thee with such copiousness and plenitude that it overflows most abundantly on all around thee." Well, therefore, could God the Father say: "Behold the odor of my Son is as the smell of a full field," as though He said: "Behold the smell of my Son, the honor of my Son, is from the honor and the good fame of His mother." St. Jerome saith: "The maternal honor is His, who was born from her."
Eighthly, let us consider how Mary was full of the reflection or resplendence, as it were, the expression of the divine glory, according to Ecclesiasticus: "The work of the Lord is full of His glory" (XXIV, 20.) Above all, the most wonderful work of the Lord is Mary, of whom it is said in Ecclesiasticus: "An admirable instrument the work of the Most High" (XLIII, 2.) Truly a wonderful work, for a similar one can never be found. Whence it is said of it: "There was no such work made in any kingdom" (3 Kings X, 20.) None indeed in the kingdom of Heaven, none in the kingdom of earth, nor in that of hell; for there never was such a work in Heaven, on earth, or in the nether regions. For this work is full of the glory of the Lord, because this glory shines most fully in Mary, above all pure creatures. For after the humanity assumed by the Word, there is no work, no creature, in whom there is such scope for the divine glory as in Mary. For the Lord has through Mary glory because of the restoration brought about in Heaven, glory in the Redemption accomplished in the world, glory for the deliverance wrought in hell --this glory He has in the fullness of grace in Mary. Therefore, well does St. Anselm say: "I speak to thee alone, Lady; the world is full of thy benefits; they have penetrated hell, and surpassed the Heavens. For by the fullness of thy grace those who were in limbo rejoice in their deliverance, and those who were above the world have joy in their restoration." Therefore, full of the glory of the Lord is His work, Mary, because, as it is said in Isaias, "The earth is full of His glory" (Is. VI, 3.) Full indeed is the whole earth, full is Mary of the divine glory, which shines in her most fully. Rightly above all the aforesaid is she said to be full of grace, who is most pleasing to all who are not ungrateful, as St. Bernard shows when, speaking of the words, Ave gratia plena, he says: "Well is she fully pleasing because she is pleasing to God, to the angels, and to men; to men by her fecundity, to the angels by her virginity, to God by her humility."
Ninthly, consider how Mary is full of the joy of eternal happiness. Who is ignorant that she is of those of whom her Son said: "Ask, and you shall receive, that your joy may be full"? If, therefore, the joy of the Apostles, of all those who are reigning with God, is full, how much more is the joy of the Mother of God full and complete? Of this plenitude St. Jerome says: "Full indeed of grace, full of God, full of virtues, she could not but possess most fully the glory of eternal splendor." What wonder, then, that plenitude that it overflows most abundantly on all around thee." Well, therefore, could God the Father say: "Behold the odor of my Son is as the smell of a full field," as though He said: "Behold the smell of my Son, the honor of my Son, is from the honor and the good fame of His mother." St. Jerome saith: "The maternal honor is His, who was born from her."
Thus you see in Mary the fullness of illuminative wisdom, the fullness of overflowing grace, the fullness of a fruitful life, the fullness of helping mercy, of the perfection of the Church, of good fame, of divine glory, of eternal joy. Now, therefore, O Virgin full of grace, deign to make us, who are so empty, partakers of thy fullness, that we may at last attain to eternal fullness. By Our Lord Jesus Christ, etc.
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