19 May, Antonio, Cardinal Bacci: Meditations For Each Day

Prayer and Our Lady

1. “He told them a parable—that they must always pray and not lose heart.” (Luke 18:1) Nobody else on earth ever carried out this command of Our Lord as perfectly as Our Lady. St. Albert the Great says that, after Jesus Christ, the spirit of prayer is to be found at its most perfect in Our Lady. (Sup. Miss., 80) It was because of her immense love for her divine Son that Mary was able to put into practice throughout her life the Gospel precept of unceasing prayer. Prayer in its fullest sense is in fact an act of love rather than of supplication. It is defined as an elevation of the soul to God, to adore and praise Him, to thank Him, and to ask Him for His favours. It leads to lasting and intimate union with God, who should be regarded as our only good and as the final end of our lives. Since Mary was full of grace, she was always close to God. Even before she became His Mother, she constantly enjoyed His intimacy. Despite the many sorrows of her life, this intimacy became still greater and more beautiful when she became the Mother of Jesus. From that time she was able to hold Him to her immaculate bosom and to live in close familiarity with Him. She was able, too, to follow Him on His apostolic journeys until He reached Calvary and the Cross, and finally to see Him gloriously risen from the dead. After Jesus had ascended into Heaven, her soul expanded with a nostalgic love for her divine Son until her earthly journey was over and she was taken up into Heaven. There she reigns supreme among the Saints and Angels and never ceases to pray for us, her exiled children, who need her help so much. Let us learn from Mary how to pray with love and perseverance. Then we shall be able to follow her along the difficult way of perfection which leads towards Heaven.

2. Mary's was a life of constant prayer. It is a thousand times more necessary that ours should be the same. We are so weak and so prone to temptation that we are always in danger of falling into sin. “Without me you can do nothing,” (John 15:5) Jesus tells us. “I am the vine, you are the branches... If anyone does not abide in me, he shall be cast outside as the branch and wither.” (Ibid.) “Ask and it shall be given you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened to you.” (Mt. 7:7 In short, Jesus asks us to pray. He wants us to pray because He wants to give us His graces. We cannot object that it is impossible for us to pray all the time because we have to work and fulfill other obligations. The work which has first claim on us is the service of God, which is prayer. Secondly, we can pray in the course of our daily work and of our different occupations by offering to God everything which we do. No matter what we are doing, we can raise our minds to God in an act of love and so remain always close to Him. It is not our work which prevents us from praying constantly, but our attachment to worldly things, our excessive love of ourselves and of other creatures. We must avoid these distractions if we wish to live like Mary in a continual state of prayer.

3. Mary, my Mother, obtain for me that spirit of prayer which will keep me always close to God. I know that sin can never conquer me if I remain united to God. I know if my heart is filled with the desire of heavenly gifts, there will be no room in it for useless or sinful affections. I wish to follow your example and live a life of prayer and recollection. But I am very weak and unstable. Please obtain for me the gift of constant and persevering prayer and grant that I may never lose it. Amen.