THE SORROWFUL MYSTERIES
As we say the Sorrowful Mysteries, we might recall that this is Mary’s son suffering in the body which she gave Him. He is suffering for Mary; indeed she is the first and most perfect fruit of the redemption. He is suffering with Mary; they are fully united in their complete submission to the will of the Father. We will profit most from our sufferings if we endure them in union with Christ’s and Mary’s pains and offer them for Christ’s and Mary’s intentions. Through the Communion of Saints it is a fact that Christ and Mary are with us in our suffering, and the divine life which they foster within us gives our trials a value far beyond anything our unaided human nature could ever expect. Since our present life of exile is primarily a life of testing and purification, it is especially important to recall and renew our consecration and union with Mary in times of trial.
THE GLORIOUS MYSTERIES
As we say the Glorious Mysteries, we see the great triumph and glory which Christ and Mary have gained for themselves and for all our race. The more fully we are at one with them, the more fully we shall partake of this glorious victory. Our consecration, therefore, promises us a special abundance of glory through all eternity.
Besides reminding us of our consecration to Mary and of her active presence in all of our works, the Rosary can help us to understand more fully the wonderful personality of this woman who walks with us. We can think with each mystery of the special virtue Mary shows in that mystery, such as her humility at the Annunciation, her zeal at the Visitation, etc. Or we can think about the delight which her company must have brought to those around her—to the Angel Gabriel at the Annunciation, to Elizabeth and John and Zachary at the Visitation, etc. Or we can take some virtue which we admire or need, and see how she reveals it through all of the mysteries,
ADAPTABILITY
For instance, a spontaneous adaptability which enables us to fit in gladly with all of God’s plans for us is a rare and appealing and highly useful virtue. Mary reveals it. She had vowed virginity and prepared for a childless life, but at the Annunciation she accepts a radical change in accepting a child, and a divine child at that, without any upsetting excitement or confusion. Mary, as Luke tells us, liked to ponder over things in quiet seclusion. Yet the Visitation shows her going in haste to serve Elizabeth at the very moment when she has Divinity Itself beneath her heart to meditate upon. At the Nativity she has only a stable for shelter, but provides or improvises swaddling clothes and transforms a manger into a crib.
Nothing seems to disturb her, not even the opposite things of living in a stable and welcoming the Magi. She retires peacefully to the shadows during Christ’s public life; she stands bravely on the top of Calvary before the hostile crowds when it comes time to offer her son to the Father. Adaptability grows harder as we grow older, but Mary, as the Glorious Mysteries remind us, started a brand new life when Christ ascended to heaven and left her behind for many years to mother the infant Church.
THE BLUE OF FIDELITY
Thus we see that associating these pages with our daily spiritual exercises, especially the Rosary, will be very helpful. But even non-spiritual things can help us to remember and appreciate Mary. Her special colour is blue, and blue has long been associated with fidelity. If we are on the watch for it, we will see blue things about us often during the day. Each time that we see blue, it can remind us that Mary is “true-blue,” that she is called the Virgin Most Faithful, that she never failed Christ and will never fail us.
God Himself, thousands of years ago, used blue symbolically to urge men to be faithful to His law; for we read in the early pages of Scripture:
“The Lord said to Moses, “Tell the children of Israel to make fringes in the corners of their garments, putting there ribbons of blue. When they shall see this blue, they will remember the commandments of the Lord”.”
Mary wove these blue threads into Christ’s garments, and through the years when Christ saw them He thought of His Father, who commanded them, and of His Mother, who wove them. Blue can remind us, too, of the abiding law of our Father and the abiding love of our Mother. Clouds come and go, storms grow and die, but the blue of the skies and seas remains forever, as God’s law remains and Mary’s love.
If whenever we see blue we recall its symbolism of faithfulness and its dedication to Mary, we will be constantly reminded of her fidelity to us, constantly urged to remember her faithfully in return. Anything blue, a flower or dress or book or river, can remind us of Mary’s ever-faithful love. Wearing something blue, especially on Saturdays, helps one to recall her loving protection, and it pleases Mary by honouring her day by wearing her symbol of fidelity. It reminds us to pray to her; it is indeed a prayer in itself.