The Feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary : Fra Angelico

Re-posted from 22 August 2020 

Three framed prints hang on the wall of our living room. They have been there several years and depict the Annunciation, the Nativity and the Flight into Egypt. They were given by a person unable to specify the name of the painter and it was only a few days ago that I happened by chance to be browsing online through paintings by the great Fra Angelico. To my amazement, I recognised one of the paintings as his and located the other two after a little research. 

Laudetur Jesus Christus et Maria Immaculata!

I offer the following post in honour of Maria Immaculata, on this feast of her Immaculate Heart. The three images are presented with my own annotations. I also pray that the Immaculata will watch over and protect EB whose birthday it is today: ad multos annos !

The Annunciation: setting

The first print is of the second image in a panel (shown below) forming part of the Armadio degli Argenti ("Wardrobe of the Silversmiths"), a series of tempera on panel paintings completed by Fra Angelico 1451-53. Designed for the Santissima Annunziata, a Florentine church founded in 1250,  the Armadio illustrates the life of Christ, culminating with His Passion, Death, Resurrection, the General Judgement  and the Coronation of Our Lady. 

Armadio degli Argenti. Fra Angelico. 1451-53.  Museo nazionale di San Marco in Florence

The image above shows the first nine of the Armadio series and depicts: 

 Ezekiel's Vision,                   the Annunciation,                             the Nativity

The Circumcision,                the Adoration of the Magi,               the Presentation of Christ in the Temple

The Flight into Egypt,           the Massacre of the Innocents          the Christ Child in the Temple.

                  

The Annunciation: a short commentary

The Annunciation. Fra Angelico. 1451-53.  Museo nazionale di San Marco in Florence

The painting features two scrolls with excerpts from Sacred Scripture:

ecce virgo concipiet, et pariet filium, et vocabit[ur] nomen ejus Emmanuel

Behold a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and his name shall be called Emmanuel.[This verse is taken from Is vii. 14. Quaere reference to 'Isa. VI. C' - presumably Caput VI]

This is the prophecy of Isaias, made some 700 years before the Word was made flesh. 

There then follow the words uttered by Gabriel to the Blessed Virgin Mary:

Ecce concipies in utero, et paries filium, et vocabis nomen ejus Jesum

Behold thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and shalt bring forth a son; and thou shalt call his name Jesus. [Luc. i. 31]

The parallels are striking: ecce, concipiet/concipies, pariet/paries, filium, vocabitur nomen eius/vocabis nomen eius, Emmanuel/Jesum. 'Emmanuel' means 'God with us' and 'Jesus' means 'God saves (us).'

Dominating the composition are two figures. Mary, who will one day be hymned as the Queen of Angels, is kneeling on the ground. Perhaps she was kneeling in prayer whilst, according to an ancient tradition, she meditated upon the prophecy of Isaias.  Her attention is now completely focused on the second figure, the Angel Gabriel ('Fortitudo Dei', the Strength of God). Despite his lofty status and his role as God's own envoy, he kneels before the future Theotokos ('God-bearer') and the Regina Cæli (Queen of Heaven). She listens attentively to his announcement. His finger points Heavenward and we catch sight of a dove descending towards Mary. We recall his words:

Spiritus Sanctus superveniet in te, et virtus Altissimi obumbrabit tibi. Ideoque et quod nascetur ex te sanctum, vocabitur Filius Dei.

The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the most High shall overshadow thee. And therefore also the Holy which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. [Luc. i. 35]

The Holy Ghost is at the high point of a line dividing the composition into two almost perfectly symmetrical halves. This symmetry suggests a mirror and Mary, the Speculum Justitiae (Mirror of Justice) is also a mirror in other ways. She has been compared to a mirror of the Holy and Undivided Trinity; for she is the daughter of the Father, the spouse of the Holy Ghost and the mother of the Word. Kneeling in humility, she reflects this and all other virtues super-abundantly. Facing Gabriel, Fortitudo Dei, she is the mulier fortis (strong and valiant woman) par excellence (Ecclesiasticus xxvi. 2).

The setting is altogether ascetic in its simplicity and spareness. Fra Angelico, a Domican friar, was himself an ascetic and much of his work reflects the plain architecture and decor of the convent in Florence where he painted many of his works. Adding depth to the composition, the linear perspective has for its vanishing point the end of a 'strait and narrow' corridor, similar to the corridors in Fra Angelico's convent of San Marco.

The Flight into Egypt

This is a print of the seventh image in the Armadio panel (see above).

The Flight into Egypt. Fra Angelico. 1451-53.  Museo nazionale di San Marco in Florence

The texts from Sacred Scripture in this image are as follows:

Ecce elongavi fugiens; et mansi in solitudine.

Lo, I have gone far off flying away; and I abode in the wilderness.[Ps. liv. 8]

This is a Psalm of David (c. 1000 years before Christ): "A prayer of a just man under persecution from the wicked. It agrees to Christ persecuted by the Jews, and betrayed by Judas."[Douay-Rheims]

The bottom text refers to the instruction given to St Joseph by an angel:

Surge, et accipe puerum, et matrem ejus, et fuge in Ægyptum

Arise, and take the child and his mother, and fly into Egypt: [Matt. ii. 13]

With light coming from the left and compositional lines and arrangement forming an arrow pointing to the right, a dynamic effect of movement is achieved. The shapes are solidly three-dimensional and depth is suggested by the diminishing proportions in a simple perspective and the slight transition from darker to lighter.

The Blessed Mother cradles baby Jesus tenderly as she gazes into the distance, pondering all these things in her heart.

The Nativity: Setting

This image comes from a different setting, being a fresco on the wall of Cell 5 of the Convento di San Marco in Florence. The Convent, dating from the 12th century, was renovated for the Dominican Order around 1440 and it seems this fresco was completed shortly after this date. Most of the cells have frescoes by Fra Angelico.

The Nativity. Fra Angelico. 1440-41. Fresco, 193 x 164 cm. Convento di San Marco, Florence. 

The Nativity: A short commentary

Fra Angelico painted the newborn baby naked and luminous, following the vision of the mystic St. Bridget of Sweden (c1303-1373). His halo bears the cross that he was Himself to bear before His salvific death on Calvary. The haloes are painted in two dimensions, representing the traditional format  in contrast to the three dimensional versions that the artist tried later in life (see above).  The Baby is lying on straw and His eyes are fixed upon His mother, the Blessed Virgin Mary, who tenderly returns His gaze : Ad Jesum per Mariam...

Four figures kneel in adoration before the Christ child, Who is the Word made flesh. Apart from His mother, we see His foster-father, St Joseph. Behind Mary is St Catherine of Alexandria (martyred c 305 AD) and in the foreground to our right is St Peter the Martyr (1206-1252).

Saint Catherine was a virgin, who was martyred in the early 4th century at the hands of the emperor Maxentius. She became a Christian around the age of 14, converted hundreds of people to Christianity and was martyred around the age of 18. Saint Peter Martyr was a Dominican friar (like Fra Angelico) as well as a priest. He was a celebrated preacher who was killed by an assassin sent by the Cathars. He is buried in Milan, in the Church of Sant'Eustorgio. According to tradition, he conversed with St Catherine.

In the background, a wooden structure has been added to a cave to create the stable where Christ was born. The ox and the ass are clearly visible next to the manger.

Cognovit bos possessorem suum, et asinus praesepe domini sui; Israel autem me non cognovit, et populus meus non intellexit.

The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master's crib: but Israel hath not known me, and my people hath not understood.[Isaiah i. 3]

Under the Law, the Jews were forbidden from mingling with the Gentiles. The ox (a castrated bull) was a clean animal but the ass was not; accordingly, the ox represented the circumcised Jews and the ass the Gentiles.

Non arabis in bove simul et asino.

Thou shalt not plough with an ox and an ass together.[Deut. xxii. 10]

The Incarnation was to change all this:

Non est Judæus, neque Græcus : non est servus, neque liber : non est masculus, neque femina. Omnes enim vos unum estis in Christo Jesu.

There is neither Jew nor Greek: there is neither bond nor free: there is neither male nor female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus.

Si autem vos Christi, ergo semen Abrahæ estis, secundum promissionem hæredes

And if you be Christ's, then are you the seed of Abraham, heirs according to the promise.[Gal, iii.28-29].

In the celestial vault over the scene are four winged angels. Like the kneeling figures below, their hands joined in prayer: silent adoration, contemplation, wonder and  joyous peace.

Totus tuus ego sum 

Et omnia mea tua sunt;

Tecum semper tutus sum:

Ad Jesum per Mariam

 

 

 

Assumpta est Maria in cælum

I am republishing last year's post as a gift to Our Blessed Mother, to celebrate her feast day by sharing images of a painting : The Dormition and Assumption of the Virgin by Fra Angelico. I have added a few notes.

The images below are reproduced with thanks to the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston. 

Here is the first image showing the painting in its entirety.

    The Dormition and Assumption of the Virgin by Fra Angelico. Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum

Dimension Notes

Tempera with oil glazes and gold on panel, 61.8 x 38.3 cm (24 5/16 x 15 1/16 in.).

Provenance

Possibly commissioned for the church of Santa Maria Novella, Florence by its sacristan Fra Giovanni di Zanobi Masi as one of four reliquaries around 1430. Remained at the church until at least 1754.

Collection of Rev. John Sanford (d.1855), Nynehead, Somerset by 1816. Exhibited at the British Institution, London in the same year.

Bequeathed by Rev. John Sanford to Frederick Henry Paul Methuen (d.1891), 2nd Baron Methuen, Corsham Court in 1855.

By descent to Paul Sanford Methuen (d.1932), 3rd Baron Methuen, Corsham Court around 1891.

Purchased by Isabella Stewart Gardner from the art dealers Colnaghi & Co., London on 23 February 1899 for £4,000 through Bernard Berenson (1865–1959), American art historian.

Notes on the lower register

In the lower register, Our Lady's body lies on a stretcher covered in golden drape; her head rests upon a small pillow and the whole is supported by a low bed or mattress, also covered in golden material. Framed by a halo, her head is slightly raised. Her eyes are closed and we are given a glimpse of her right hand clasping her left. Her skin is pale but her lips show a natural colour. She wears a blue cloak and hood, edged with gold.

Her bier is surrounded by four lighted candles of unbleached wax, traditionally used for a Requiem Mass. 

Fifteen bare-footed figures surround Our Blessed Lady. Is it fanciful to catch an echo of the fifteen mysteries of the Rosary?

In the centre stands Our Lord, gazing down at His mother. He holds in His arms a small figure whose hands are joined in prayer. This is said to represent Our Lady. His tunic is unique amongst those of the other figures - does it suggest Christ as the High Priest? The symbols appear to include the Greek letters Alpha and Omega.

Peter, James and John. Fra Angelico. Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum

The cross in the Redeemer's halo finds an echo in the pallium worn by the man on the left of the painting. The modern pallium is a circular band about two inches wide, worn about the neck, breast, and shoulders, and having two pendants, one hanging down in front and one behind. The use of the pallium is reserved to the pope and archbishops, but the latter may not use it until on petition they have received the permission of the Holy See. Bishops sometimes receive the pallium as a mark of special favour, but it does not increase their powers or jurisdiction nor give them precedence. The pope may use the pallium at any time. [Catholic Encyclopedia]. This is evidently Peter, the first Pope, who is reading or singing from a small volume. Perhaps it is a Psalter, or perhaps he is chanting the In Paradisum...

To Peter's left is a figure holding a bucket (aspersorium) and a sprinkler (aspergillum), still used in today's Requiem Mass.

The palm frond.  Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum

On the extreme right of the picture, a man is holding what may be a palm frond. Brian G. Svoboda identifies him as St John the Evangelist: see the Catholic Thing. St John, however, is traditionally portrayed as a clean-shaven young man and I suspect that he is the one with hands clasped in prayer next to St Peter. This would suggest that the man with the aspergillum may be St James, as Peter, James and John are frequently grouped together in the New Testament.

Notes on the middle register

In the middle register, Our Blessed Lady is rising Heavenwards, drawn aloft by the power of her Divine son. her cheeks and her complexion are no longer pale. Her eyes are now open and she is looking upwards. Her hands are raised in what the Abbé Fouard observes is the traditional Oriental manner of praying: in adoration, praise and thanksgiving. 

Her sky blue tunic and robe, edged with gold, with diaphonous and translucent scrolls, dazzle the eye. The golden motifs on her garments suggest tiny winged angels bearing her to Heaven; or perhaps a shower of gifts from the Holy Ghost, in the form of tongues, as it were, of fire. They are echoed in the robes of the Angels around her.

The Angels are portrayed in three groups. The lowest group are four in number and are kneeling before the Queen of Angels. The one on the left seems to be shielding his gaze from the dazzling brightness.

The Angels in the middle group are holding hands as though executing a celestial dance; their movement shows in the flowing pleats of their garments. Music is provided by the uppermost group, an angelic sextet, featuring two trumpets, a tambourine, a psaltery, a fiddle and a lute.

Notes on the upper register

The upper register features Christ in Heaven gazing down towards His mother as she is assumed by His Divine power into His Royal Court. The triangular cutaway in the frame suggests the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Father, Son and Holy Ghost. 

Assumpta est Maria in cælum: gaudent angeli, laudantes benedicunt Dominum.

Mary was taken up into Heaven, the angels rejoice, and with praises bless the Lord. 

[Antiphon from Lauds, the Little Office of the Blessed Virgin Mary]

Totus tuus ego sum 

Et omnia mea tua sunt;

Tecum semper tutus sum:

Ad Jesum per Mariam

The Plague Cross : Crux Christi salva me

I was delighted to receive a letter with news from Golgotha Monastery Island (Papa Stronsay). There was a reference in this letter to "Plague Crosses:" 

"At the beginning of 2020, we blessed and strategically erected the powerful sacramentals called 'Plague Crosses'. Negotiating the past two years, by the grace of God, we were spared all the ill effects of the prevailing winds in all of the forms they blew upon us. Given that there are eighteen persons here and from all over, that is remarkable and thanksworthy."

Included in the envelope was a laminated card with the image which I have posted below. I had not heard of Plague crosses and had no idea what the mysterious letters signified below the image of the crucified Christ.

After research online, I found the letters come from a Latin prayer to Almighty God for protection against the Plague. Here is the Latin text with my English translation:

From Papa Stronsay.
July 2022

✠   Crux Christi salva me.

✠       Cross of Christ, save me.

Z    Zelus domus tuæ liberet me.

Z        May zeal for Thy house free me.

✠   Crux vincit, Crux regnat, Crux imperat; per signum Crucis libera me, Domine, ab hac Peste.

✠       The Cross conquers, the Cross reigns, the Cross rules; through the sign of the Cross deliver me, O Lord, from this plague.

D    Deus, Deus meus, expelle Pestem a me, et a loco isto, et libera me.

D        God, my God, drive this plague away from me and away from this place, and deliver me.

I     In manus tuas, Domine, commendo spiritum meum, cor et corpus meum.

I        Into Thy hands, O Lord, I commend my spirit, my heart, and my body.

  

A    Ante Cœlum et Terram Deus erat, et Deus potens est ad expellendam Pestem ab hoc loco, et a corpore meo.

A        Before heaven and earth, God was; and God is able to liberate me from this plague.

✠   Crux Christi potens est ad expellandam ab hoc loco, et a corpore meo.

✠       The Cross of Christ has power to expel the plague from this place and from my body.

B    Bonum est præstolari auxilium Dei cum silentio, ut expellat Pestem a me.

B        It is good to wait for the help of God in silence, that he may drive away this plague from me.

I     Inclinabo cor meum ad faciendas justificationes tuas, ut non confundar, quoniam invocavi te.

I         I will incline my heart to performing Thy just deeds, lest I be confounded, for I have called upon Thee.

Z    Zelavi super iniquos, pacem peccatorum videns speravi in te.

Z        I have been zealous over the wicked; seeing the peace of sinners, I have hoped in Thee.

✠   Crux Christi fuget Dæmones, Aerem corruptum, et Pestem expellat.

✠       May the Cross of Christ put demons and corrupt air to flight and may it drive away the plague.

S    Salus tua ego sum, dicit Dominus : clama ad me, et ego exaudiam te, et liberabo te ab hac Peste.

S        I am thy salvation, says the Lord; cry out to me, and I will hear thee, and I will liberate thee from this plague.

A    Abyssus abyssum invocat, et voce tua expulisti Dæmones ; libera me ab hac Peste.

A        Abyss calls to abyss,[1] and by Thy voice Thou hast expelled demons ; deliver me from this plague.

B    Beatus vir qui sperat in Domino, et non respexit in vanitates, et insanias falsas.

B        Blessed is the man who hopeth in the Lord, and who hath not looked upon vanities, and false extravagances.

✠   Crux Christi, quæ antea fuit in opprobrium, et contumeliam, et nunc in gloriam, et nobilitatem, sit mihi in salutem, et expellet a loco isto Diabolum, et aerem corruptum, et Pestem a corpore meo.

✠       May the Cross of Christ, which was once the cause of scandal and indignity, and is now in glory and nobility, be for my salvation, and expel from this place the demon, and corrupt air, and the plague from my body.

  

Z    Zelus honoris Dei convertat me antequam moriar, et in nomine tuo salva me ab iste Peste.

Z        May zeal for the honour of God convert me before I die and, in Thy name, save me from this plague.

✠   Crux signum liberet Populum Dei, et a Peste eos, qui confidunt in eo.

✠       May the sign of the Cross free the people of God, and those who trust in Him, from the plague.

H    Hæcne reddis Domino, popule stulte? Redde vota tua offerens sacrificium laudis et fidei illi, quia potens est istum locum, et me ab hac Peste liberare, quoniam qui confidunt in eo non confundetur.

H        Will thou, foolish people, return to the Lord? Make good on thy vows, offering a sacrifice of praise and faith to Him, because He is able to deliver this place and me from this plague; for whoever trusts in Him will not be confounded.

G    Gutturi meo, et faucibus meis adhærat lingua mea si non benedixero tibi ; libera sperantes in te ; in te confido, libera me Deus meus, fiat lubrica, et tenebrosa Diaboli potestas, qui ad hoc venisti, Fili Dei vivi, ut dissolvas opera Diaboli ; expelle tua potentiam a loco isto, et a me servo tuo Pestem istam ; discedat aer corruptos a me in tenebras exteriores.

G        If I will not praise Thee, let my tongue stick to my throat and to my jaws; deliver those who hope in Thee; in Thee I trust; deliver me and this place, O God, from this plague, for Thy name has been invoked in prayer.

F    Factæ sunt tenebræ super universam Terram in morte tua, Domine : Deus meus, fiat lubrica, et tenebrosa Diaboli potestas, qui ad hoc venisti, Fili Dei vivi, ut dissolvas opera Diaboli ; expelle tua potentia a loco isto, et a me servo tuo Pesto istam ; discedat aer corruptus a me in tenebras exteriores.

F        At your death, O Lord, darkness fell over the whole earth; my God, render the power of the devil tenuous and dim, Thou who for this didst come, O Son of the living God: so that Thou mayest destroy the works of the devil. With Thy power, drive out this plague from this place and from me, Thy servant; and may the corrupt air depart from me into the outer darkness.

✠   Crux Christi defende nos, et expelle a loco isto Pestem, et servum tuum libera a Peste ista, qui benignus es, et misericors, et multæ misericordiæ , et verax.

✠       Defend us, O Cross of Christ, and expel from this place the plague, and free Thy servant from this plague, Thou who art kind, and merciful, and of many mercies, and true.

B    Beatus qui non respexit in vanitates, et insanias falsas : in die mala liberabit eum Dominus; Domine, in te speravi, libera me ab hac Peste.

B        Blessed is he who hath not looked upon vanities, and false extravagances; on the day of evil the Lord will free him; Lord, I have trusted in Thee; free me from this plague.

F     Factus est Deus refugium mihi : quia in te speravi, libera me ab hac Peste.

F         God is become my refuge; because I have trusted in Thee, free me from this plague.

R    Respice in me, Domine Deus meus Adonai de sede sancta Majestatis tuæ, et miserere mei, et propter misericordiam tuam ab ista Peste libera me.

R        Look upon me, O Lord my God, Adonai, from the holy seat of Thy Majesty, and have mercy on me, and because of Thy mercy, free me from this plague.  

S    Salus mea tu es ; sana me, et sanabor : salvum fac, salvus ero.

S        Thou art my Salvation: heal me, and I will be healed; save me, and I will be saved.

[1]  [8] Deep calleth on deep, at the noise of thy flood-gates. All thy heights and thy billows have passed over me.

        Abyssus abyssum invocat, in voce cataractarum tuarum; omnia excelsa tua, et fluctus tui super me transierunt.  [Ps xli 8]

Totus tuus ego sum

Et omnia mea tua sunt;

Tecum semper tutus sum:

Ad Jesum per Mariam.

The Feast of St Peter and St Paul

El Greco. (1590-1600).Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya. 

***This is a cross-post from the Life of Christ site.***

Background

This site (The Life of Christ) was established in 2019 to provide a platform for presenting and illustrating the life of Christ. This was in response to an idea which seemed to speak from the last line of the motto I had adopted in the same year (see below and at the end of each post):

Ad Jesum per Mariam.

I have, D.G., so far produced three versions:

• The first Life followed the format of The Life of Our Lord Jesus Christ by the remarkable artist James J Tissot (1897). The posts began on the 14th of October 2019 and concluded on the feast of the Ascension, the 21st of May 2020.
• The second Life followed the work of l'Abbé Constant Fouard:  La Vie de N-S Jésus-Christ (1880). The first post was published on the feast of Corpus Christi (11th of June 2020) and the series concluded on the 4th of October 2020.
• The third Life followed the Gospel of St Mark, making extensive use of a work by Madame Cecilia published in 1904 entitled The Gospel according to St Mark. This Life opened on the Feast of St Mark (25th April 2022) and concluded on the 26th of June 2022.

St Peter and St Paul

It seems highly propitious that the feast of the Apostles Peter and Paul should fall so swiftly after the conclusion of our series based on the Gospel of St Mark, who was so close to St Peter. I pray, accordingly, that the feast will serve as a suitable launching point for a new series on the Acts of the Apostles, in which St Peter and St Paul feature so prominently. Apart from the natural continuity this offers to the series on the Life of Christ Our Lord, I am also keen to explore my patron saint's life after the Ascension; I have, moreover, long felt a desire to look more closely into the life and writings of St Paul.

Exposition in the chancel of Corpus Christi.
Andy Scott. CC BY-SA. 2018.

The image here shows the chancel of Corpus Christi Church in Maiden Lane, Covent Garden. The statues of St Peter and St Paul are set in elevated niches on either side of the altar. Like the rest of the interior, these statues have been extensively and richly restored since the days when I first  knew the church.

Following treatment in King’s College Hospital for an injury received in the Brixton riots in April 1981, I was making my way back home across London when I stumbled by chance upon this church. I decided to pop inside and, quite providentially, I was just in time for Mass. There was an almost palpable atmosphere of reverence and I was especially impressed by the solemn demeanour and dignity of the priest, Father Henry Dodd. I was to return many times and the church was to play an important part in my family, albeit for a tragically brief period of time.

Fr Dodd was especially impressive in his sermons where, without any notes, he displayed a powerful eloquence and an effortless erudition - so much so that some of his expressions remain with me to this day. He had a particularly strong devotion to the Blessed Sacrament and to Our Blessed Lady. One Saturday each month he led devotions which included all the mysteries of the most Holy Rosary, interspersed with readings and hymns, and which finished with Benediction. This devotion was nicknamed the "Mariathon."

In praying that St Peter and St Paul will, on this their feast day, extend their help to this project, I offer the work to our gentle Queen and Mother, with a petition that she present it as an act of reparation to her Divine Son so as to heal the wounds, repair the damage and undo the scandal caused by sins against His Most Sacred Heart and against the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

Totus tuus ego sum

Et omnia mea tua sunt;

Tecum semper tutus sum:

Ad Jesum per Mariam.

Feast of Our Mother of Perpetual Succour

 

On today's great Marian feast, I have posted this image of Our Lady of Perpetual Help taken from a prayer card which recalls the Redemptorist Mission during Lent 1984 to the church of Our Lady and St Joseph (Balls Pond Road, N1).

Please remember in your prayers Fr Kay, the good and holy Parish Priest in that era, as well as the two Redemptorist priests, Fr Creech and Fr Gallagher.

On a personal note, I offer the Memorare to Our Blessed Mother with special intentions for the members of my family:*

MEMORARE, O piissima Virgo Maria, non esse auditum a saeculo, quemquam ad tua currentem præsidia, tua implorantem auxilia, tua petentem suffragia, esse derelictum. Ego tali animatus confidentia, ad te, Virgo Virginum, Mater, curro, ad te venio, coram te gemens peccator assisto. Noli, Mater Verbi, verba mea despicere; sed audi propitia et exaudi. Amen.

REMEMBER, O most gracious Virgin Mary, that never was it known that anyone who fled to thy protection, implored thy help, or sought thy intercession was left unaided. Inspired with this confidence, I fly to thee, O Virgin of virgins, my Mother; to thee do I come; before thee I stand, sinful and sorrowful. O Mother of the Word Incarnate, despise not my petitions, but in thy mercy hear and answer me. Amen.

*E, E, K, P, T, E & E; E & A

P.S. Ten years ago to this day, I was in the Brompton Oratory and was present when Fr John Hunwicke said Mass at the Lady Altar. This was his first Mass in full communion. For a summary, see his Liturgical Notes blogspot for today's date.

Totus tuus ego sum

Et omnia mea tua sunt;

Tecum semper tutus sum:

Ad Jesum per Mariam.

The Queenship of Mary

This is the Image of our Queen

The Coronation of the Blessed Virgin. Velasquez, c1635.
Museo del Prado.

This is the image of our Queen

who reigns in bliss above;

of her who is the hope of men,

whom men and angels love.

Most holy Mary, at thy feet

I bend a suppliant knee;

in this thy own sweet month of May,

do thou remember me.

The homage offered at the feet

of Mary’s image here

to Mary’s self at once ascends

above the starry sphere.

Most holy Mary, at thy feet

I bend a suppliant knee;

in all my joy, in all my pain,

do thou remember me.

How fair so ever be the form

which here your eyes behold,

its beauty is by Mary’s self

excell’d a thousandfold.

Most holy Mary, at thy feet,

I bend a suppliant knee;

in my temptations each and all,

do thou remember me.

Sweet are the flow’rets we have culled,

this image to adorn;

but sweeter far is Mary’s self,

that rose without a thorn.

Most holy Mary, at thy feet

I bend a suppliant knee;

when on the bed of death I lie,

do thou remember me.

O Lady, by the stars that make

a glory round thy head,

and by the pure uplifted hands,

that for thy children plead;

when at the Judgement seat I stand,

and my dread Saviour see,

when waves of night around me roll

and hell is raging for my soul;

do thou remember me.

Totus tuus ego sum

Et omnia mea tua sunt;

Tecum semper tutus sum:

Ad Jesum per Mariam.

Constant mutual charity

Today's Epistle

Lord, save me! J-J Tissot

Lesson from the first letter of St. Peter the Apostle
1 Pet 4:7-11.

Beloved: Be prudent and watchful in prayers. But above all things have a constant mutual charity among yourselves: for charity covers a multitude of sins. Be hospitable to one another without murmuring. According to the gift that each has received, minister it to one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. If anyone speaks, let it be as with words of God. If anyone ministers, let it be as from the strength that God furnishes; that in all things God may be honored through Jesus Christ our Lord.
R. Thanks be to God.

Lectio
Léctio Epístolæ beáti Petri Apóstoli
1 Pet 4:7-11

Caríssimi: Estóte prudéntes et vigiláte in oratiónibus. Ante ómnia autem mútuam in vobismetípsis caritátem contínuam habéntes: quia cáritas óperit multitúdinem peccatórum. Hospitáles ínvicem sine murmuratióne: unusquísque, sicut accépit grátiam, in altérutrum illam administrántes, sicut boni dispensatóres multifórmis grátiæ Dei. Si quis lóquitur, quasi sermónes Dei: si quis minístrat, tamquam ex virtúte, quam adminístrat Deus: ut in ómnibus honorificétur Deus per Iesum Christum, Dóminum nostrum.
R. Deo grátias.

Totus tuus ego sum

Et omnia mea tua sunt;

Tecum semper tutus sum:

Ad Jesum per Mariam.