In this day and age, the Gates of Hell have expanded so much so that we all feel its heat and smell its stench. We see it when we look at the news, (depending on where you go to Mass) we see it every Sunday, and if we are not careful we can see it in the mirror. Our Lord Jesus is in fact the only means by which we must be saved but you would be numbered among the deceived and foolish if you deny the will of God concerning the Blessed Virgin Mary. Therefore, the time is now for ridding yourself of any form of ignorance in instruction or negligence in obeying Holy Mother Church regarding this august Queen of Heaven and earth. Especially since God saw it fit to send Our Lady to us for our aid generation after generation to proclaim heavenly messages of conversion. Remember, Christ did say that the way to salvation is not only narrow but few even find it! Imagine for one moment if that ‘narrow way’ had a special command by Jesus Himself. A command that just may be earth’s last remedy!
Our Blessed Mother has, because of God, an important role in the salvation of mankind. In order to better understand this, we have to look at the beginning. In the Book of Genesis, (The Latin Vulgate / Douay Rheims) we are reminded of our first parents complete disregard for God’s request to stay in a state of perpetual grace by avoiding the fruit from the Tree of Good and Evil. However thanks to Satan’s seduction and their (Adam & Eve) desire to be like God drove them from the Garden God cultivated for them as well as willingly casting away their state of grace. Even though Satan may have succeeded in corrupting God’s creation, his victory was short lived as our Lord cursed the serpent and at the same time established the promise of redemption and salvation of mankind and destruction of Satan forever.
[14] And the Lord God said to the serpent: Because thou hast done this thing, thou art cursed among all cattle, and beasts of the earth: upon thy breast shalt thou go, and earth shalt thou eat all the days of thy life. [15] I will put enmities between thee and the woman, and thy seed and her seed: she shall crush thy head, and thou shalt lie in wait for her heel. – Genesis 3:14-15 (Douay-Rheims)
And so, Satan has heard his defeat even from the beginning and it shall come not only by God’s hand but “the woman’s heel” as she crushes his head! But who is this woman and when we discover her, how can we know she is the woman of Satan’s demise? Let us look at some more clues, shall we?
[24]I am the mother of fair love, and of fear, and of knowledge, and of holy hope. [25]In me is all grace of the way and of the truth, in me is all hope of life and of virtue. [26] Come over to me, all ye that desire me, and be filled with my fruits. [27] For my spirit is sweet above honey, and my inheritance above honey and the honeycomb. [28] My memory is unto everlasting generations. [29] They that eat me, shall yet hunger: and they that drink me, shall yet thirst. [30] He that hearkeneth to me, shall not be confounded: and they that work by me, shall not sin. – Ecclesiasticus 24: 24-30 (Douay-Rheims)
Very interesting. Note that this mother clearly states, “In me is all grace of the way and of the truth, in me is all hope of life”. Is this not clearly what Jesus told Thomas at the Last Supper that He is the Way, the Truth and the Life? At any rate, it would behoove understand this is what the Holy Ghost moved Our Lady to echo as she blessed God with her Magnificat.
[46] And Mary said: My soul doth magnify the Lord. [47] And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour. [48] Because he hath regarded the humility of his handmaid; for behold from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed. [49] Because he that is mighty, hath done great things to me; and holy is his name. [50] And his mercy is from generation unto generations, to them that fear him. [51] He hath shewed might in his arm: he hath scattered the proud in the conceit of their heart. [52] He hath put down the mighty from their seat, and hath exalted the humble. [53] He hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich he hath sent empty away. [54] He hath received Israel his servant, being mindful of his mercy: [55] As he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his seed for ever. – Luke 1: 46-55
As Mary was to birth Jesus the Messiah, that excerpt from Ecclesiasticus perfectly describes Our Lady and even goes a bit further by explaining her role of intercession for us: “He that hearkeneth to me, shall not be confounded: and they that work by me, shall not sin.”
But does this prove that Mary is the prophesied ‘Woman’? It should be enough, but wait…there’s more! We understand and believe the nature of Jesus as True God and True Man, as the Holy Ghost overshadowed Mary and she conceived in her womb the messiah. God made flesh but remember the flesh came from his mother, knitted together in her womb and filled with God Himself!
(Now ponder on eating Jesus’ Flesh and drinking His Blood in Holy Communion. It is almost as if God made it impossible to receive Jesus without His Mother’s assistance…Imagine that?!…)
The Incarnation of Our Lord is also better understood by looking back into the Old Testament, the Book of Exodus to be exact. In Chapter 25, God instructs Moses to build a sanctuary for Him:
[8] And they shall make me a sanctuary, and I will dwell in the midst of them: [9] According to all the likeness of the tabernacle which I will shew thee, and of all the vessels for the service thereof: and thus you shall make it: [10] Frame an ark of setim wood, the length whereof shall be of two cubits and a half: the breadth, a cubit and a half: the height, likewise, a cubit and a half. [11] And thou shalt overlay it with the purest gold within and without: and over it thou shalt make a golden crown round about: [12] And four golden rings, which thou shall put at the four corners of the ark: let two rings be on the one side, and two on the other. [13]Thou shalt make bars also of setim wood, and shalt overlay them with gold.[14] And thou shalt put them in through the rings that are in the sides of the ark, that it may be carried on them. [15] And they shall be always in the rings, neither shall they at any time be drawn out of them. Exodus 25:8-15 (Douay-Rheims)
Whoa…the Ark of the Covenant? What does this have to do with Mary the Mother of Jesus? More than you think! So why is the “ark of setim wood” underlined and in bold? This wood, also referred to as ‘acacia’ means incorruptible or without stain of rot. This would clearly correlate to Our Lady’s incorruptible nature as Holy Mother Church teaches (Doctrine of the Immaculate Conception)! Do you also remember what was placed inside the Ark of the Covenant? The Ten Commandments (The Word of God), a pot of manna (The Bread from Heaven), and Aaron’s rod (representing power/authority and majesty). Now think for a moment of the child in Mary’s womb. Jesus, also known as the Bread from Heaven, the Word of God (made flesh). And as for the rod of authority:
[5] And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with an iron rod: and her son was taken up to God, and to his throne.- The Apocalypse 12:5 (Douay-Rheims)
But what of Mary and the Ark of the Covenant again? The Old and New Testament:
[9] And David was afraid of the Lord that day, saying: How shall the ark of the Lord come to me? / [14] And David danced with all his might before the Lord: and David was girded with a linen ephod. [15] And David and all the house of Israel brought the ark of the covenant of the Lord with joyful shouting, and with sound of trumpet. / [20] And David returned to bless his own house: and Michol the daughter of Saul coming out to meet David, said: How glorious was the king of Israel today, uncovering himself before the handmaids of his servants, and was naked, as if one of the buffoons should be naked. – 2 Kings (2 Samuel) 6: 9/14-15/20 (Douay-Rheims)
Fast forward to the Second Joyful Mystery of the Rosary (Mary visits her cousin Elizabeth six months pregnant with John the Baptist):
[41] And it came to pass, that when Elizabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the infant leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost: [42] And she cried out with a loud voice, and said: Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb. [43]And whence is this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?[44] For behold as soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy.[45] And blessed art thou that hast believed, because those things shall be accomplished that were spoken to thee by the Lord.- Luke 1: 41-45 (Douay-Rheims)
Incredible! Notice that King David, like the babe in Elizabeth’s womb, danced for joy because of the presence of God within Mary/the Ark. Like the Old Testament being fulfilled by the New, Our Lady not only reflects similarities with the Ark of the Covenant but perfectly replaces it as a greater sanctuary i.e. Her incorruptible womb!
If finding all this out for the first time, we are beginning to see that Mary did more than just give birth to the savior. In fact, Mary is being revealed as a much larger character in the plan for mankind’s salvation. But again, is she the woman that God promised to crush the head of the serpent? Enter Jesus and Mary to the Wedding of Cana:
[1] And the third day, there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee: and the mother of Jesus was there. [2] And Jesus also was invited, and his disciples, to the marriage. [3] And the wine failing, the mother of Jesus saith to him: They have no wine. [4] And Jesus saith to her: Woman, what is that to me and to thee? my hour is not yet come. – John 2:1-4 (Douay-Rheims)
I wonder if Satan was a fly on the wall when Jesus replied to His mother! Some would ignorantly state that Jesus was being rude to His mother by calling her, “Woman” but on the contrary, Jesus was fulfilling prophecy of Genesis! Fast forward to Christ dying the cross:
[26] When Jesus therefore had seen his mother and the disciple standing whom he loved, he saith to his mother: Woman, behold thy son. [27] After that, he saith to the disciple: Behold thy mother. And from that hour, the disciple took her to his own. – John 19:26-27 (Douay-Rheims)
Jesus once again claims His mother as the Woman prophesied from the fall from grace. Also note that Jesus gave His mother to us in spiritual adoption. How can I say this? Because any person that is validly baptized and follows Christ’s commands is effected by John’s adoption of Mary into his house. How is that so, you ask? Because Christ made it clear to St. Paul (then Saul) on the way to Damascus to persecute Christians, “Saul, Saul! Why are you persecuting ME?”In other words, what happens to one Christian, happens to Christ or His Mystical Body. As St. Paul helped us understand that we all play a role in His Mystical Body:
[14] For the body also is not one member, but many. [15] If the foot should say, because I am not the hand, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body?[16] And if the ear should say, because I am not the eye, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body? [17] If the whole body were the eye, where would be the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where would be the smelling? [18] But now God hath set the members every one of them in the body as it hath pleased him. [19] And if they all were one member, where would be the body? [20] But now there are many members indeed, yet one body. – 1 Corinthians 12:14-20 (Douay-Rheims)
Due to His Mystical Body, what happens to one of us happens to us all; whether bless or curse, love or hate, His Mystical Body is affected by these forces. Another way to put it, if you were the only baptized Christian on an island of atheists, then the entire Church would be present in you. Understanding this, Jesus bound Mary to John as his mother and John her son and thus by extension, because of His Mystical Body, to us. Mary our Mother!
So she indeed is the Woman but how is she our Last Remedy for the end of days?
A book called the Secret of the Rosary by St. Louis De Monfort has important mystical knowledge and revelations of the Saints concerning Mary’s involvement in mankind’s salvation. St. Louis De Monfort writes:
This picture, which is the one that graces the cover of the book, is somewhat mysterious in its origin, and was discovered at the time of the 1918 armistice in the cellar of the boarding school where Berthe Petit, a humble Franciscan Tertiary, had been educated. After the troops had departed one of the Bernardine nuns in putting things in order found a piece of cardboard on which was pasted a pornographic picture and she tore it off to consign it to flames. To her astonishment she found that it covered this beautiful representation of the Blessed Virgin! It seems to combine the art of both the Eastern and the Western Rites. The facial features resemble those of the well known Pieta. Prayer before this picture has brought signal favors.
Confided by Our Lord to Berthe Petit: “Teach souls to love the Heart of My Mother pierced by the very sorrow which pierced Mine.” [Dec. 25, 1909]
In Belgium of 1870, during the Franco-Prussian War a special baby girl was born, who was later to become a mystic. She was named Berthe Maria. Before she received any visions from Our Lord, she had received the invisible stigmata: in her humility she had begged that the marks not be made visible. The wounds were very painful for her, especially on Good Friday and other Fridays. She experienced the pains in her hands and feet and side. The worst pain of all was caused by the torment to her head which was like the pain of thorns pressing into her. This pain was so great and constant she slept but rarely.
It was not until she was 39 years old that the indication of her actual mission was made manifest: During Midnight Christmas Mass she saw the wounded Heart of Jesus and close by was the pierced Heart of His Mother. Then she heard these words:
“Cause My Mother’s Heart, transfixed by sorrows that rent Mine, to be loved.”
“The Heart of My Mother has the right to be called Sorrowful and I wish this title placed before that of Immaculate because she has won it herself. The Church has defined in the case of My Mother what I myself had ordained —- Her Immaculate Conception. This right which My Mother has to a title of justice, is now, according to My express wish, to be known and universally accepted. She has earned it by her identification with My sorrows; by her sufferings; by her sacrifices and her immolation in Calvary endured in perfect correspondence with My grace for the salvation of mankind . . . ” [Sept. 8, 1911]
“It is hearts that must be changed. This will be accomplished only by the Devotion proclaimed, explained, preached and recommended everywhere. Recourse to My Mother under this title I wish for her universally, is the last help I shall give before the end of time.” [July 2, 1940]
Shocking to read, for sure but how do we know this is for our time? Well, in 1917 Fatima, Portugal, Our Blessed Lady revealed 3 secrets that would not only help us better understand the plans of Satan but also a plan for our deliverance from Hell’s tyranny which is to, with the obedience of the Pope in union with all the world’s bishops, consecrate Russia to Mary’s Immaculate Heart. Jesus Himself even added a warning about delaying in this consecration when He spoke to Sister Lucia in 1931,
Make it known to My ministers given that they follow the example of the King of France in delaying the execution of My command, like him they will follow him into misfortune.
This was a reference to Louis XVI, who failed to consecrate France to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, and was later overthrown in the French Revolution and beheaded in 1793.
Moreover, we the laity can also assist in this spiritual warfare as our Lady placed great significance on the recitation of the Most Holy Rosary as Sister Lucia (the eldest of the three shepherd children) was quoted,
“The Most Holy Virgin in these last times in which we live has given a new efficacy to the recitation of the Rosary to such an extent that there is no problem, no matter how difficult it is, whether temporal or above all spiritual, in the personal life of each one of us, of our families…that cannot be solved by the Rosary. There is no problem, I tell you, no matter how difficult it is, that we cannot resolve by the prayer of the Holy Rosary.”
But again, there was more to it than just praying the Most Holy Rosary everyday. She, sent by the Blessed Trinity, requested that the Pope and all of the world’s bishops are to consecrate Russia (and Russia ALONE) to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. As the Blessed Mother said to Sister Lucia,
I shall come to ask for the Consecration of Russia to My Immaculate Heart…If people attend to My requests, Russia will be converted and the world will have peace.
However, Satan works cunningly and did a great job covering up the infamous third secret which was not only the warning the world needed but also its remedy. Although, thanks to Benedict XVI, we know that the Church approved apparition of Our Lady in Akita, Japan is, “in essence, the same message.”
Even so, the revelation given to us by God through Our Lady at Fatima is not an article of the faith, it would however be a grievous mistake to discredit Our Lady and by extension her Son Jesus on this particular matter. If Jesus gave us an express order to honor His mother in such a way, then we have a duty to listen otherwise we will find ourselves lost. Holy Mother Church has already declared Our Lady as our chief intercessor, who always stands in the presence of her Son our Lord. When will we listen? When will we take Our Lady’s plea seriously? When will the Pope and all the world’s bishops finally consecrate Russia to Mary’s Immaculate Heart? Who knows?! However, we were given a promise by Our Lady herself,
In the end, My Immaculate Heart will triumph. The Holy Father will consecrate Russia to Me, and she will be converted, and a period of peace will be granted to the world.
So take up courage and listen to our Lord and Lady for salvation! Pray the Rosary not only for souls but also for the consecration of Russia!
Glory be to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost! As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.
Our Lady of Fatima, pray for us!
Credo Sanctum 