09/24/2024
Though it's generally not celebrated liturgically, September 24 is the feast of Mary as the Mother of Mercy!
Mary is popularly invoked as "Mother of Mercy" in the "Hail, Holy Queen" prayer, but what does that title mean? For one thing, it signifies that Mary is the masterpiece of God's mercy in the world and a sign of His "prevenient" grace ("prevenient" meaning "to come before."). In preserving Jesus' Mother from sin before we could even ask for it, before we knew that we needed it, God was working on our behalf by preparing a most fitting vessel for the arrival of His Son in the world. But Mary is also, of course, the Mother of Jesus Christ, our Savior, who is Mercy Itself! And as the Mediatrix of all graces, she mediates Jesus' mercy to us in a special way, giving us all that we need from the Heart of Her Son through her own maternal heart.
In art, you may see Mary depicted as sheltering people under her outstretched mantle; this image is commonly known as the "Virgin of Mercy." The image is also often paired with an ancient Marian prayer, the "Sub tuum praesidium" ("Beneath thy mercy"; in the Latin Church, it's often translated thus: "We fly to thy protection, O Holy Mother of God; Do not despise our petitions in our necessities, but deliver us always from all dangers, O Glorious and Blessed Virgin.").
We pray in a special way for our own Mary, Mother of Mercy Pastorate today! Mary, Mother of Mercy, pray for us!
