Our Body Armor
I have come across so many good and otherwise faithful Catholics, who deliberately spurn the scapular and the devotions accompanying it, because they think that it is somehow superstitious. This is very sad, especially when you consider something very interesting which was revealed to Francis of Yepes (who was the brother of St. John of the Cross). The demons told Francis, "Three things especially torment us; the first is the Name of Jesus; the second, the Name of Mary, and the third, the Brown Scapular of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel." "Take off that habit, which snatches so many souls from us. All those clothed in it die piously and escape us".
There is nothing superstitious about deliberately clothing yourself in a garment that reminds us of Our Lady, and yes, protects us from the devil. We know it protects us from the devil, because of what Our Lady told St. Simon Stock: "Whosoever dies clothed in this [scapular], shall not suffer eternal fire." (Promise given to St. Simon Stock on July 16th, 1251)
It is not the piece of brown wool that keeps us from hell. It is the disposition that precludes the wearing of such a symbol, that saves us from eternal damnation. To take up the scapular and wear it, means that you acknowledge it to be Mary's special garment, and that you love her, you are loyal to her. . . you are her special knight, and will fight for her honor, for her glory, and spread love for her wherever you go, whenever you can. In return, you expect her maternal protection, her constant intercession (as the lady of a medieval knight would do as well in the olden days; she would constantly pray for the knight who had been given a piece of her livery to wear), and special graces from her Son, who refuses His Mother nothing!
"Wear it devoutly and perseveringly. It is my garment. To be clothed in it means you are continually thinking of me, and I in turn, am always thinking of you and helping you to secure eternal life."~Mary to St. Simon Stock.
So what happens if we know this already, we would really like to be devoted to Mary and all this stuff, but we just aren't? We can't conjure up even an inkling of love in our hearts for her. Well, for one thing, how can you love someone that you do not know? That is the first step. Get to know Our Lady. The best way to get to know someone is to spend time with that person, and talk to that person. Ask Our Lady for help. Tell her your problems, because she is your most excellent Mother. Confide in her, just as you would a friend sitting right beside you. And most especially, be silent and let her answer you. She will speak to you through spiritual reading, and signs that you will recognize. That is why it is so important to always be reading something holy. The Imitation of Mary, or The World's First Love are great books. You will then get to know the Supreme and Most Holy Mother of God, and you will love her. How could you not come to love the Darling of Heaven? You won't, if you will not do what it takes.
The other thing you must realize is that, since we are human, we have these fickle things called emotions. Emotions, if left unguarded, can actually rule over us, guiding every decision we make, every thought that we have. This is silly, and not how a Child of God must live. We were made to rule over our emotions, to discipline them into obedience to our wills; not to be ruled by them, and kowtow to them. But most of us think that if we do not feel something, then we are actually not doing this thing. As in, if we don't feel a warm and sappy love for Our Lady, then we actually don't love her. This is not true, however.
Love is not a feeling. It is an act of will. There are plenty of times when you don't feel like loving someone, but you know that you do. You will to. If you do not feel any love for Our Lady, or even feel that she really is your mother, that is okay. Your emotions are not there right now. No problem. You know, however, by the teachings of the Church, and the Saints, that Mary IS indeed your mother, and that you ought to love her. Make a conscious act of the will to love her. Tell her that you want to love her, and that you want to be her daughter or son. Ask her for the grace to be able to love her and know her.
Jesus said "ask and you shall receive". Love for Jesus, and love for Mary are exactly such things as you should ask for. These things will not be refused to you. But you must ask, and you must distrust the emotions, because they are liars and easily manipulated by the things around you.
There is nothing superstitious about deliberately clothing yourself in a garment that reminds us of Our Lady, and yes, protects us from the devil. We know it protects us from the devil, because of what Our Lady told St. Simon Stock: "Whosoever dies clothed in this [scapular], shall not suffer eternal fire." (Promise given to St. Simon Stock on July 16th, 1251)
It is not the piece of brown wool that keeps us from hell. It is the disposition that precludes the wearing of such a symbol, that saves us from eternal damnation. To take up the scapular and wear it, means that you acknowledge it to be Mary's special garment, and that you love her, you are loyal to her. . . you are her special knight, and will fight for her honor, for her glory, and spread love for her wherever you go, whenever you can. In return, you expect her maternal protection, her constant intercession (as the lady of a medieval knight would do as well in the olden days; she would constantly pray for the knight who had been given a piece of her livery to wear), and special graces from her Son, who refuses His Mother nothing!
"Wear it devoutly and perseveringly. It is my garment. To be clothed in it means you are continually thinking of me, and I in turn, am always thinking of you and helping you to secure eternal life."~Mary to St. Simon Stock.
So what happens if we know this already, we would really like to be devoted to Mary and all this stuff, but we just aren't? We can't conjure up even an inkling of love in our hearts for her. Well, for one thing, how can you love someone that you do not know? That is the first step. Get to know Our Lady. The best way to get to know someone is to spend time with that person, and talk to that person. Ask Our Lady for help. Tell her your problems, because she is your most excellent Mother. Confide in her, just as you would a friend sitting right beside you. And most especially, be silent and let her answer you. She will speak to you through spiritual reading, and signs that you will recognize. That is why it is so important to always be reading something holy. The Imitation of Mary, or The World's First Love are great books. You will then get to know the Supreme and Most Holy Mother of God, and you will love her. How could you not come to love the Darling of Heaven? You won't, if you will not do what it takes.
The other thing you must realize is that, since we are human, we have these fickle things called emotions. Emotions, if left unguarded, can actually rule over us, guiding every decision we make, every thought that we have. This is silly, and not how a Child of God must live. We were made to rule over our emotions, to discipline them into obedience to our wills; not to be ruled by them, and kowtow to them. But most of us think that if we do not feel something, then we are actually not doing this thing. As in, if we don't feel a warm and sappy love for Our Lady, then we actually don't love her. This is not true, however.
Love is not a feeling. It is an act of will. There are plenty of times when you don't feel like loving someone, but you know that you do. You will to. If you do not feel any love for Our Lady, or even feel that she really is your mother, that is okay. Your emotions are not there right now. No problem. You know, however, by the teachings of the Church, and the Saints, that Mary IS indeed your mother, and that you ought to love her. Make a conscious act of the will to love her. Tell her that you want to love her, and that you want to be her daughter or son. Ask her for the grace to be able to love her and know her.
Jesus said "ask and you shall receive". Love for Jesus, and love for Mary are exactly such things as you should ask for. These things will not be refused to you. But you must ask, and you must distrust the emotions, because they are liars and easily manipulated by the things around you.
posted by Therese_Rose_Morning at 1:12 PM
1 Comments:
You having great writing skills mate. You have described the love in the beautiful way. Love is not only a feeling it is something we can feel inside us.
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