The Priesthood And Our Lady

Greetings in Jesus and Mary...

I am very busy finally getting down to the final days of moving out of our house of 23 years. I knew it was going to be a job but -- it is a job! I will be thanking God when it is over. Because of my time restraints, I am taking notes from a previous talk that I had posted a few years back  and mingling it with current events.

Tomorrow is the Feast of St. Ignatius of Loyola. For all those priests who may be reading this blog - Happy Feast Day! This is a great saint who did amazing things for God and still does through his Spiritual Exercises. It is so tragic what has happened to the Society of Jesus over the years. It is not good news but they are not alone - many orders are suffering from enemy infiltration! May Our Lady pray for us and watch over us so that we remain faithful until we are through this very tragic storm.  Let us beg Her to intercede for all priests that we may see a transformation in many of them and a greater sanctity in those who seek to truly please God... (Just a thought...how could any Order suffer destruction from the enemy if they had remained faithful to the Hearts of Jesus and Mary...)

We just heard in the news that Cardinal McCarrick was now given a sentence for some of his crimes. No Catholic should feel good about this. This is a tragedy for the entire world. Much reparation is needed for all the damage these men have done to the Bride of Christ and to His Most Sacred Heart. Reparation for the state of Germany and its clergy as well.

Do we really know who a priest is? Do we reverence Christ's priests as we should? Another important question - Do even priests themselves value or esteem their position as it is to be esteemed? Hardly... perhaps; it is scarcely possible in this world. Many saints have been enlightened to understand it such as St. Francis of Assisi who felt himself too unworthy and shrunk in holy dread from its wondrous dignity and extensive and profound obligations before God. We are told in some pre-Vatican II books (that is another post regarding what happened as a result of Vatican II in belittling the priesthood as well as the Mass during these 60 years.) that we should salute a priest before an angel if we were to meet them together. The angel has not the power to do what a priest can do. The angel cannot call God from Heaven, but the priest can and does daily. 

Our Lady was the first who called God from Heaven by Her words, "May Your word to me be fulfilled (Luke 1:38)." The Mother with Her Divine Child, reverently wrapped Jesus in swaddling cloths and laid Him in a manger. She seems to live again in the priest of God with his Lord in the Sacred Host as he places Jesus on the linen corporal or rests Him in the tabernacle. The priest has custody of Jesus as Mary did on earth. Their obligation is very grave. 

May we pray for our lost priests - our unfaithful priests - our tepid priests - our lonely priests - our abandoned priests and of course ... our faithful priests. May we pray that they reach out to Mary their Mother! May we pray for them to be given the grace to love Jesus as She did. May we pray for Her to give them the grace to bend over the Host with the same love as Mary bent over Her Child. May we pray for Her to give them the love that She had as She raised Him to the Eternal Father when they are raising the Host toward Heaven. May we pray for Her to give them tremendous love as they bow low in receiving Our Lord in Holy Communion. May they feel the love She had as She held Her Infant pressed close to Her. She never wanted  to be separated from Him. May the priest never want to be separated from Jesus as well.

For those priests who already seek Her prayers - they understand all of this well. They feel our Lady working in them, animating them with a loving spirit, filling them with Her love, lending them Her Heart. They are indeed privileged beings because they are so dear to Her Heart - those who call Her Son down from Heaven upon earth! I can not imagine the loneliness and fear that a priest has who lives without Mary. How very very sad! Our Mother in Heaven is watching down over all of them but they must pray to Her for guidance and grace. If they do not, then we are called to pray for them. We must realize what a target they are for the devil and his cohorts. Our Lady can crush the head of the enemy with Her prayers! It is critical that we pray to Her for their protection.

We have lost many contemplative nuns over the past 60 years and many of the Third Orders meet to have monthly "get-togethers" but many do not take their prayer life seriously. The light of Christ is pale - very pale today because of the lack of contemplative souls. May we pray for Our Lady to send forth the graces of Her Flame of Love to all of the priests that inhabit the earth so that Jesus may be loved - so that we have priests to nourish us with His Body and Blood in order for the world to be set on fire with Divine Love. Now more than ever do we need true love for Jesus in the Eucharist because the world is so very very cold right now.

The priest alone is our Lord's guardian on earth; he has charge and care of Jesus. Is he not like Our Lady when She walked the earth? Is he not in need of Her prayers and guidance to do this job as She did with perfect love and reverence? Is She not the Mediatrix of all Graces to supply him with this Love and these graces.

May we pray for our dear priests who have to answer to God for so much. May we pray for more priests - good and holy priests - priests who will love Our Lord Jesus Christ with the same love and reverence of Our Queen and Mother. May we ask Her to supply them with the necessary graces to make all of them saints! What a glorious day that could be! God truly wills it and it can be so with our prayers! God wills our men to come forward and live in imitation of Jesus Christ in offering themselves to Him for the sins of the world as His priests.

(Little side note: Women have no place in the priesthood - Jesus was a man and a priest is to live in persona Christi. Women have a duty to the priesthood - to pray for them - to serve them - to comfort them - to sew for them - to cook for them - to encourage them. If women do not do this, the priesthood will crumble - OH - maybe that is why it is crumbling! If we do not do God's Will and insist on doing our own will - we will NEVER be happy. It is truly in giving that we receive - we are to live in imitation of Mary - to be humble and to do the will of God.)

Our Lady of the Clergy, pray for us.
Our Lady of the Blessed Sacrament, pray for us.
St. Ignatius of Loyola, pray for us.

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