From the vicar...
Here are the devotions I wrote for tonight’s Rosary prayer
group at Bethany House (in case you’d like to use them again). They begin with the prayers for the virtues
of faith, hope, and love. Then come the
five Joyful Mysteries (the Annunciation, the Visitation, the Holy Nativity, the
Presentation, and the Find of Jesus in the Temple). Each devotion is followed by the Our Father, Ten Hail Mary’s (during which we contemplate the Gospel scene given to us
in the devotion), and the Glory Be...
For the Virtue of Faith: Lord Jesus, pour into us the gift
of faith. Deepen our trust in what you
reveal about yourself. Fill us with the
knowledge of who you are. Holy Mother,
pray for us, that the beauty of your Son would fill every corner of our souls.
For the Virtue of Hope: Lord Jesus, help us to lean on
you. When we are weak and worried, teach
us to look to you for our provision and victory. Holy Mother, pray for us, that the sturdiness
of your Son would fill every corner of our souls.
For the Virtue of Love: Lord Jesus, help us to love as you
love. Separate from us all desire to
hold something back. Teach us to love
you and our neighbors with complete abandon.
Holy Mother, pray for us, that the passion of your Son would fill every
corner of our souls.
The First Joyful Mystery: The Annunciation of our Lord Jesus
to the Blessed Virgin.
Was it daytime? Was
it evening or deepest night? We don’t
know. What we do know is that in a
private moment – a moment of grace and mercy – the archangel appeared to a
Virgin and startled her. It wasn’t,
perhaps, so much his presence as his words: “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.” He went on to say: “Do not be afraid, Mary,
for you have found favor with God.” Had
she prayed for a life of significance in the eyes of the Lord? Had she gone out of her way to be holy? We don’t know. Probably, she had thought very little of
herself. And that is probably why the angel’s
words startled her.
Lord Jesus, take us out of ourselves. Turn our eyes to you: To you in the Blessed
Sacrament, to you in your Word, to you in our prayers and worship, and to you
in those around us – especially in those who rub us the wrong way. Startle us to find you there and to see that
we were chosen to be there with you.
Holy Mother, pray for us, that we would lose ourselves in
your Son.
The Second Joyful Mystery: The Visitation of the Blessed
Mother to Saint Elizabeth.
Sometimes good news, just like bad news, must be
commiserated over. Sometimes the
surprise must be incubated, carefully tended, and nurtured with someone who
understands. The angel told Mary that a
similar surprise had been sprung on her relatives Elizabeth and Zechariah. Elizabeth was thought to be barren, and
Zechariah had just been struck unable to speak – but they, too, were about to
have a baby. Yes, they would
understand. She could share with
Elizabeth what the Lord had shared with her.
She could find comfort and consolation in the presence of another soul
chosen by the Lord.
Lord Jesus, the words and promises you bring into our lives
are usually given reality as we share them with trusted companions in your
family. Grant us the gift of finding our
“Elizabeths”, that we might make sense of what you’re telling us and understand
where you’re sending us.
Holy Mother, pray for us, that your Son would send us such
companions.
The Third Joyful Mystery: The Nativity of our Lord Jesus
Christ.
When a gift has been announced and pondered, it must then be
given. The gift coming forth from the
God-bearer was, of course, God with us, Emmanuel. Unlike most of us, though, Mary deeply
understood that the gift she was about to bear was not only for, but the whole
world. She seems to have been prepared –
by the words of the angel and the counsel she took with Elizabeth – for the
reality that her Son would not belong to her alone. By stages, the Lord was preparing her for the
onslaught of the world into her private life.
So it’s not surprising that when the shepherds showed up, making “known
what had been told them about this Child,” she “treasured all these words and
pondered them in her heart.”
Lord Jesus, we say that we belong to you. We say that we do not belong to
ourselves. We know that we should hold
all your gifts – especially the gift of our lives – with open hands. But you know
how often we fail; how often we cling to your gifts instead of giving
them away, not trusting you to supply us all the more because we have loved
generously – as you love. Lord Jesus,
gently hold our hands open.
Holy Mother, pray for us, that we would live in the promise
of your Son’s generosity.
The Fourth Joyful Mystery: The Presentation of our Lord in
the Temple.
Because we live in a fallen and troubled world, we know that
any gift we offer can – and often will – be destroyed. We can’t imagine how the joy of that
presentation day in the Temple turned to sorrow. We can’t imagine how the radiance of Simeon’s
face must’ve delighted Mary’s proud mother-heart. What joy it must’ve been to hear him say “my
eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the presence of all
peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people
Israel.” But there were other words, too
– words that confirmed the status of this little boy: “This child is destined
for the falling and the rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be
opposed so that the inner thoughts of many will be revealed – and a sword will
pierce your own soul, too.”
Lord Jesus, we struggle to hear the words that tell us of
trouble. We struggle to know that
faithfulness may mean suffering and heartache.
We struggle to let ourselves draw closer to you because of this. We want to tightly wrap up our gift and run
away to protect it. Help us, instead, to
offer it all the more faithfully to you and your world.
Holy Mother, pray for us, that we would not allow our hearts
to become hardened.
The Fifth Joyful Mystery: The Finding of the Child Jesus in
the Temple.
When we give our gifts away, we find that they’ll do the
most remarkable things. They will
surprise and astonish us. Better still,
the Giver of our gifts will shine through us when, at last, we let go. This was a hard lesson for Mary and Joseph to
learn – it’s harder still for us! But
losing Jesus in the crowd and spending three days searching for him brought
home the extravagant magnificence of God’s gift to his world. They “found Jesus in the Temple, sitting
among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. And all who heard him were amazed at his
understanding and his answers.” How
could it be otherwise? This gift is God
with us, Emmanuel.
Lord Jesus, we want to put you in a box and package you into
something we can understand. But you
won’t have it. You will do all you can
to startle, surprise, and stretch us.
Remind us of this as we enter Holy Week.
Prepare us to see you anew, knowing that we need to see the real gift
you’ve brought us, not something on our wish list.
Holy Mother, pray for us, that we will see your Son as he
is.
