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Title: |
Magnae Dei Matris
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Descr.: |
On The Rosary
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Pope: |
Pope Leo XIII
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Date: |
September 8, 1892
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To
Our Venerable Brethren, the Patriarchs, Primates, Archbishops, and
other Ordinaries in Peace and Communion with the Apostolic See.
1.
As often as the occasion arises to stimulate and intensify the
love and veneration of the Christian people for Mary, the great
Mother of God, We are filled with wondrous satisfaction and joy,
as by a subject which is not only of prime importance in itself
and profitable in countless ways, but which also perfectly accords
with the inmost sentiments of Our heart. For the holy reverence
for Mary which We experienced from Our tenderest years, has grown
greater and has taken firmer hold of Our soul with Our advancing
age.
The
Holy Father's Devotion to Mary
2.
As time went on, it became more and more evident how deserving of
love and honor was she whom God Himself was the first to love, and
loved so much more than any other that, after elevating her high
above all the rest of His creation and adorning her with His
richest gifts, He made her His Mother. The many and splendid
proofs of her bounty and beneficence toward us, which We remember
with deep gratitude and which move Us to tears, still further
encourage and strongly inflame Our filial reverence for her.
Throughout the many dreadful events of every kind which the times
have brought to pass, always with her have We sought refuge,
always to her have We lifted up pleading and confident eyes. And
in all the hopes and fears, the joys and sorrows, that We confided
to her, the thought was constantly before Us to ask her to assist
Us at all times as Our gracious Mother and to obtain this greatest
of favors: that We might be able, in return, to show her the heart
of a most devoted son.
Filial
Trust in Mary
3.
When, then, it came to pass in the secret design of God's
providence that We were chosen to fill this Chair of St. Peter and
to take the place of the Person of Christ Himself in the Church,
worried by the enormous burden of the office and finding no ground
for reliance upon Our own strength, We hastened with fervent zeal
to implore the divine aid through the maternal intercession of the
ever blessed Virgin. Never has Our hope, We are happy to
acknowledge, at any time of Our life but more especially since We
began to exercise the Supreme Apostolate, failed in the course of
events to bear fruit or bring Us comfort. Thus encouraged, Our
hope today mounts more confidently than ever to beseech many more
and even greater blessings through her favor and mediation, which
will profit alike the salvation of Christ's flock and the happy
increase of His Church's glory.
4.
It is, therefore, a fitting and opportune time, Venerable
Brethren, for Us to induce all Our children - exhorting them through
you - to plan on celebrating the coming month of October,
consecrated to our Lady as the august Queen of the Rosary, with
the fervent and wholehearted devotion which the necessities
weighing upon Us demand.
5.
It is only too plain how many and of what nature are the
corrupting agencies by which the wickedness of the world
deceitfully strives to weaken and completely uproot from souls
their Christian faith and the respect for God's law on which faith
is fed and depends for its effectiveness. Already the fields
cultivated by our Lord are everywhere turning into a wilderness
abounding in ignorance of the Faith, in error and vice, as though
blown upon by some hideous pest. And to add to the anguish of this
thought, so far from putting a check on such insolent and
destructive depravity, or imposing the punishment deserved, they
who can and should correct matters seem in many cases, by their
indifference or open connivance, to increase the spirit of evil.
6.
We have good reason to deplore the public institutions in which
the teaching of the sciences and arts is purposely so organized
that the name of God is passed over in silence or visited with
vituperation; to deplore the license - growing more shameless by the
day - of the press in publishing whatever it pleases, and the
license of speech in addressing any kind of insult to Christ our
God and His Church. And We deplore no less the consequent laxity
and apathy in the practice of the Catholic religion which if not
quite open apostasy from the Faith, is certainly going to prove an
easy road to it, since it is a manner of life having nothing in
common with faith. Nobody who ponders this disorder and the
surrender of the most fundamental principles will be astonished if
afflicted nations everywhere are groaning under the heavy hand of
God's vengeance and stand anxious and trembling in fear of worse
calamities.
The
Remedy
7.
Now, to appease the might of an outraged God and to bring that
health of soul so needed by those who are sorely afflicted, there
is nothing better than devout and persevering prayer, provided it
be joined with a love for and practice of Christian life. And both
of these, the spirit of prayer and the practice of Christian life,
are best attained through the devotion of the Rosary of Mary.
8.
The well-known origin of the Rosary, illustrated in celebrated
monuments of which we have made frequent mention, bears witness to
its remarkable efficacy. For, in the days when the Albigensian
sect, posing as the champion of pure faith and morals, but in
reality introducing the worst kind of anarchy and corruption,
brought many a nation to its utter ruin, the Church fought against
it and the other infamous factions associated with it, not with
troops and arms, but chiefly with the power of the most holy
Rosary, the devotion which the Mother of God taught to our Father
Dominic in order that he might propagate it. By this means the
Church triumphed magnificently over every obstacle and provided
for the salvation of her children not only in that trial but in
others like it afterward, always with the same glorious success.
For this reason, now, when human affairs have taken the course
which We deplore, bringing [affliction] to the Church and ruin to the
State, all of us have the duty to unite our voice in prayer, with
like devotion, to the holy Mother of God, beseeching her that we
too may rejoice, as we ardently desire, in experiencing the same
power of her Rosary.
The
Mother of Mercy
9.
When we have recourse to Mary in prayer, we are having recourse to
the Mother of mercy, who is so well disposed toward us that,
whatever the necessity that presses upon us especially in
attaining eternal life, she is instantly at our side of her own
accord, even though she has not been invoked. She dispenses grace
with a generous hand from that treasure with which from the
beginning she was divinely endowed in fullest abundance that she
might be worthy to be the Mother of God. By the fullness of grace
which confers on her the most illustrious of her many titles, the
Blessed Virgin is infinitely superior to all the hierarchies of
men and angels, the one creature who is closest of all to Christ.
"It is a great thing in any saint to have grace sufficient
for the salvation of many souls; but to have enough to suffice for
the salvation of everybody in the world, is the greatest of all;
and this is found in Christ and in the Blessed Virgin."(1)
Jesus
and Mary
10.
It is impossible to say how pleasing and gratifying to her it is
when we greet her with the Angelic Salutation, "full of
grace"; and in repeating it, fashion these words of praise
into ritual crowns for her. For every time we say them, we recall
the memory of her exalted dignity and of the Redemption of the
human race which God began through her. We likewise bring to mind
the divine and everlasting bond which links her with the joys and
sorrows, the humiliations and triumphs of Christ in directing and
helping mankind to eternal life.
11.
It pleased Christ to take upon Himself the Son of Man, and to
become thereby our Brother, in order that His mercy to us might be
shown most openly; for "it behooved him in all things to be
made like unto his brethren that he might become a merciful and
faithful high priest before God."(2) Likewise because Mary
was chosen to be the Mother of Christ, our Lord and our Brother,
the unique prerogative was given her above all other mothers to
show her mercy to us and to pour it out upon us. Besides, as we
are indebted to Christ for sharing in some way with us the right,
which is peculiarly His own, of calling God our Father and
possessing Him as such, we are in like manner indebted to Him for
His loving generosity in sharing with us the right to call Mary
our Mother and to cherish her as such.
Our
Mother in Christ
12.
While nature itself made the name of mother the sweetest of all
names and has made motherhood the very model of tender and
solicitous love, no tongue is eloquent enough to put in words what
every devout soul feels, namely how intense is the flame of
affectionate and active charity which glows in Mary, in her who is
truly our mother not in a human way but through Christ. Nobody
knows and comprehends so well as she everything that concerns us:
what helps we need in life; what dangers, public or private,
threaten our welfare; what difficulties and evils surround us;
above all, how fierce is the fight we wage with ruthless enemies
of our salvation. In these and in all other troubles of life her
power is most far-reaching. Her desire to use it is most ardent to
bring consolation, strength, and help of every kind to children
who are dear to her.
13.
Accordingly, let us approach Mary confidently, wholeheartedly
beseeching her by the bonds of her motherhood which unite her so
closely to Jesus and at the same time to us. Let us with deepest
devotion invoke her constant aid in the prayer which she herself
has indicated and which is most acceptable to her. Then with good
reason shall we rest with an easy and joyous mind under the
protection of the best of mothers.
The
Rosary as Meditation
14.
To this commendation of the Rosary which follows from the very
nature of the prayer, We may add that the Rosary offers an easy
way to present the chief mysteries of the Christian religion and
to impress them upon the mind; and this commendation is one of the
most beautiful of all. For it is mainly by faith that a man sets
out on the straight and sure path to God and learns to revere in
mind and heart His supreme majesty, His sovereignty over the whole
of creation, His unsounded power, wisdom, and providence. For he
who comes to God must believe that God exists and is a rewarder to
those who seek Him. Moreover, because God's eternal Son assumed
our humanity and shone before us as the Way, the Truth, and the
Life, our faith must include the lofty mysteries of the august
Trinity of divine Persons and of the Father's only-begotten Son
made Man: "This is eternal life: that they may know thee, the
only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent."(3)
15.
God gave us a most precious blessing when He gave us faith. By
this gift we are not only raised above the level of human things,
to contemplate and share in the divine nature, but are also
furnished with the means of meriting the rewards of heaven; and
therefore the hope is encouraged and strengthened that we shall
one day look upon God, not in the shadowy images of His creatures,
but in the fullest light, and shall enjoy Him forever as the
Supreme Goodness. But the Christian is kept so busy by the various
affairs of life and wanders so easily into matters of little
importance, that unless he be helped with frequent reminders, the
truths which are of first importance and necessity are little by
little forgotten; and then faith begins to grow weak and may even
perish.
Our
Faith and the Mysteries of the Rosary
16.
To ward off these exceedingly great dangers of ignorance from her
children, the Church, which never relaxes her vigilant and
diligent care, has been in the habit of looking for the staunchest
support of faith in the Rosary of Mary. And indeed in the Rosary,
along with the most beautiful and efficacious prayer arranged in
an orderly pattern, the chief mysteries of our religion follow one
another, as they are brought before our mind for contemplation:
first of all the mysteries in which the Word was made flesh and
Mary, the inviolate Virgin and Mother, performed her maternal
duties for Him with a holy joy; there come then the sorrows, the
agony and death of the suffering Christ, the price at which the
salvation of our race was accomplished; then follow the mysteries
full of His glory; His triumph over death, the Ascension into
heaven, the sending of the Holy Spirit, the resplendent brightness
of Mary received among the stars, and finally the everlasting
glory of all the saints in heaven united with the glory of the
Mother and her Son.
17.
This uninterrupted sequence of wonderful events the Rosary
frequently and perseveringly recalls to the minds of the faithful
and presents almost as though they were unfolding before our eyes:
and this, flooding the souls of those who devoutly recite it with
a sweetness of piety that never grows weary, impresses and stirs
them as though they were listening to the very voice of the
Blessed Mother explaining the mysteries and conversing with them
at length about their salvation.
18.
It will not, then, seem too much to say that in places, families,
and nations in which the Rosary of Mary retains its ancient honor,
the loss of faith through ignorance and vicious error need not be
feared.
True
Christian Living
19.
There is still another and not lesser advantage which the Church
earnestly seeks for her children from the Rosary, and that is the
faithful regulation of their lives and their conduct in keeping
with the rules and precepts of their holy religion. For if, as we
all know from Holy Scripture, "faith without works is
dead"(4)because faith draws its life from charity and charity
flowers forth in a profusion of holy actions - then the Christian
will gain nothing for eternal life from his faith unless his life
be ordered in accordance with what faith prescribes. "What
shall it profit, my brethren, if a man say he hath faith, but hath
not works? Shall faith be able to save him?"(5) A man of this
sort will incur a much heavier rebuke from Christ the Judge than
those who are, unfortunately, ignorant of Christian faith and its
teaching: they, unlike the former, who believes one thing and
practices another, have some excuse or at least are less
blameworthy, because they lack the light of the Gospel.
"And
Dwelt Among Us"
20.
In order therefore that the faith we profess may the better bring
forth a harvest of fruits in keeping with its nature, while the
mind is dwelling on mysteries of the Rosary the heart is
wonderfully enkindled by them to make virtuous resolutions. What
an example we have set before us! This shines forth everywhere in
our Lord's work of salvation. Almighty God, in the excess of His
love for us, takes upon Himself the form of lowly man. He dwells
in our midst as one of the multitude, converses with us as a
friend, instructs and teaches the way of justice to individuals
and to multitudes. In His discourse He is the teacher unexcelled;
in the authority of His teaching He is God. To all He shows
Himself a doer of good; He relieves the sick of the ills of their
bodies and, with paternal compassion, heals the most serious
sickness of their souls. Those above all whom sorrow troubles or
whom the weight of worry crushes, He comforts with the gentle
invitation: "Come to me, all you that labor, and are
burdened, and I will refresh you."(6) Then into us, at rest
in His embrace, He breathes that mystic fire which He has brought
to all men, and benignly imbues us with the meekness and humility
of His own heart, with the hope that, by the practice of these
virtues, we may share the true and solid peace of which He is the
Author: "Learn of me, because I am meek, and humble of heart;
and you shall find rest to your souls."(7) For Himself, in
return for that light of heavenly wisdom and that stupendous
abundance of blessings which only He could merit for mankind, He
suffers the hatred of men and their most atrocious insults; and,
nailed to the cross, He pours out His blood and yields up His
soul, holding it to be the highest glory to beget life in men by
His death.
21.
It would be utterly impossible for anyone to meditate on and
attentively consider these most precious memorials of our loving
Redeemer and not have a heart on fire with gratitude to Him. Such
is the power of a faith sincerely practiced that, through the
light it brings to man's mind and the vigor with which it moves
his heart, he will straightway set out in the footsteps of Christ
and follow them through every obstacle, making his own a
protestation worthy of a St. Paul: "Who then shall separate
us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation? or distress? or
famine? or nakedness? or danger? or persecution? or the
sword?"(8) "I live, now not I; but Christ liveth in
me."(9)
The
Life of Mary
22.
But lest we be dismayed by the consciousness of our native
weakness and grow faint when confronted with the unattainable
example which Christ, who is Man and at the same time God, has
given, along with mysteries which portray Him, we have before our
eyes for contemplation the mysteries of His most holy Mother.
23.
She was born, it is true, of the royal family of David, but she
fell heir to none of the wealth and grandeur of her ancestors. She
passed her life in obscurity, in a humble town, in a home humbler
still, the more content with her retirement and the poverty of her
home because they left her freer to lift up her heart to God and
to cling to Him closely as the supreme Goodness for which her
heart yearned.
24.
The Lord is with her whom He has filled with His grace and made
blessed. She is designated by the heavenly messenger sent to her
as the Virgin from whom, by the power of the Holy Ghost, the
expected Savior of nations is to come forth clothed in our
humanity. The more she wonders at the sublime dignity and gives
thanks to the power and mercy of God, the more does she, conscious
of no merit in herself, grow in humility, promptly proclaiming and
consecrating herself the handmaid of God even while she becomes
His Mother.
25.
Her sacred promise was as sacredly kept with a joyous heart;
henceforth she leads a life in perpetual union with her son Jesus,
sharing with Him His joys and sorrows. It is thus that she will
reach a height of glory granted to no other creature, whether
human or angelic, because no one will receive a reward for virtue
to be compared with hers; it is thus that the crown of the
kingdoms of heaven and of earth will await her because she will be
the invincible Queen of Martyrs. It is thus that she will be
seated in the heavenly city of God by the side of her Son, crowned
for all eternity, because she will drink with Him the cup
overflowing with sorrow, faithfully through all her life, most
faithfully on Calvary.
Mary,
Our Model
26.
In Mary we see how a truly good and provident God has established
for us a most suitable example of every virtue. As we look upon
her and think about her we are not cast down as though stricken by
the overpowering splendor of God's power; but, on the contrary,
attracted by the closeness of the common nature we share with her,
we strive with greater confidence to imitate her. If we, with her
powerful help, should dedicate ourselves wholly and entirely to
this undertaking, we can portray at least an outline of such great
virtue and sanctity, and reproducing that perfect conformity of
our lives to all God's designs which she possessed in so marvelous
a degree, we shall follow her into heaven.
27.
Undaunted and full of courage, let us go on with the pilgrimage we
have undertaken even though the way be rough and full of
obstacles. Amid the vexation and toil let us not cease to hold out
suppliant hands to Mary with the words of the Church: "To
thee do we send up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this valley
of tears; turn then, most gracious advocate, thine eyes of mercy
toward us...Keep our lives all spotless, make our ways secure,
till we find in Jesus joys that will endure."(10)
28.
Although she was never subject to the frailty and perversity of
our nature, Mary well knows its condition and is the best and most
solicitous of mothers. How willingly will she hasten to our aid
when we need her; with what love will she refresh us, and with
what strength sustain us. For those of us who follow the journey
hallowed by the blood of Christ and by the tears of Mary, our
entrance into their company and the enjoyment of their most
blessed glory will be certain and easy.
Devout
and Frequent Recitation of the Rosary
29.
Therefore the Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary, combining in a
convenient and practical form an unexcelled form of prayer, an
instrument well adapted to preserve the faith and an illustrious
example of perfect virtue, should be often in the hands of the
true Christian and be devoutly recited and meditated upon. We
address this commendation especially to the Confraternity of the
Holy Family which We recently praised and approved. Since the
mystery of the hidden life which Christ our Lord long led within
the walls of the house in Nazareth is the reason for the existence
of this association, that its members may constantly conform
themselves to Christian life on the model of the Holy Family
established by God Himself, its intimate connection with the
Rosary is plain.
30.
Especially is this so in the joyful mysteries, which end with the
one in which Jesus, after manifesting His wisdom in the temple,
came with Mary and Joseph to Nazareth and was subject to them,
preparing, as it were, for the other mysteries which are more
closely connected with the instruction and the Redemption of
mankind. From this all the members may understand that it is their
duty to be devotees of the Rosary themselves and to be diligent in
propagating devotion to it among others.
31.
For Our part, We confirm and ratify the grants of sacred
indulgences made in years past in favor of the faithful who spend
the month of October in the manner We have prescribed. Because of
your authority and zeal, Venerable Brethren, We know that the
Catholic people will be fired with devotion and holy emulation in
venerating through the Rosary, the Blessed Virgin, Help of
Christians.
The
Holy Father's Source of Consolation
32.
And now let Us bring Our exhortation to a close in the way it
began, proclaiming once more and even more openly the devotion we
cherish toward the great Mother of God, a devotion both mindful of
past blessings and full of joyous hope. We ask the prayers of the
Christian people in devout supplication before her altars on
behalf of the Church, tormented by such adverse and turbulent
times, and on behalf of Ourself as well. Advanced in age, worn out
with labors, fettered by distressingly difficult events with no
human help to rely upon, We must yet carry on the government of
the Church. Our hope in Mary, powerful and benign Mother, is daily
more confirmed and more sweetly consoling. To her intercession We
attribute the many and remarkable gifts We have obtained from God;
with thanks still more profuse do we attribute the fact that it
has been given Us to reach the fiftieth anniversary of Our
episcopal consecration.
33.
It is, indeed, a great comfort to us, looking back over the long
years of Our pastoral charge, troubled as they have been by daily
worry, that We are still engaged in ruling the whole Christian
flock. During that time We have had, as happens in men's lives and
as the mysteries of Christ and Mary illustrate, reasons for joy
mixed with reasons for many and bitter sorrows, as well as
occasions to glory in gains won for Christ. All of this We, with a
mind submissive to God and with a grateful heart, have tried to
turn to the good and the honor of the Church. And now - for the rest
of Our life will run a course not unlike the past - should new joys
come to gladden Our heart, or sorrow to threaten Us, or honors to
glory in, We, steadfast in the same heart and mind, yearning only
for the heavenly glory which God confers, say with David:
"Blessed be the name of the Lord";(11) Not to us, but to
thy name give glory."(12)
The
Shepherd's Plea to His Flock
34.
From Our devoted children, whose filial and affectionate concern
for us We know burns bright, We look for heartfelt thanks to God,
prayers, and holy aspirations, rather than for congratulations and
honors. It will be a special joy to Us if they ask for Us this
grace, that all the strength and life that remain to Us, all the
authority and grace with which We are invested, may profit the
Church, and in the first place bring back into her fold her
enemies and those who have wandered from the right way, to whom
our voice has this long time been appealing for reconciliation.
35.
Upon all of Our dearly beloved children may there flow, from the
happiness and joy of Our coming Jubilee, God granting, gifts of
justice, peace, prosperity, holiness, and all good things. This,
with paternal love, We beg God; this do We exhort in the words of
His Holy Scriptures: "Hear me...and bud forth as the rose
planted by the brooks of waters: Give ye a sweet odor as
frankincense...Send forth flowers, as the lily, and yield a smell,
and bring forth leaves in grace and praise with canticles and
bless the Lord in his works. Magnify his name, and give glory to
him with the voice of your lips, and with the canticles of your
mouths, and with harps...With the whole heart and mouth praise ye
him, and bless the name of the Lord."(13)
36.
If these plans, so ardently desired, be scoffed at by the wicked
who blaspheme that of which they are ignorant, may God mercifully
spare them. But that He may give Our hopes His propitious aid
through the prayers of the Queen of the Most Holy Rosary, take as
a token of divine favor and at the same time as a pledge of Our
affection, Venerable Brethren, the Apostolic Benediction, which
We, lovingly in the Lord, bestow on each of you, on your clergy,
and on your people.
Given
at Rome, at St. Peter's, the eighth of September, 1892, in the
fifteenth year of Our Pontificate.
Endnotes:
1.
St. Thomas Aquinas, Super Salut. Ang. | 2. Heb. 2:17 | 3. Jn. 17:3
| 4. Jms. 2:20 | 5. Jms. 2:14 | 6. Mt. 11:28 | 7. Mt. 11:29 | 8.
Rom. 8:35 | 9. Gal. 2:20 | 10. Sacred Liturgy | 11. Ps. 112:2 |
12. Ps. 113:1 | 13. Ecclus. 39:17-20, 41
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