Hail Mary

our Lady at the Abbey

by Fr. Meinrad Miller Visitors to the Abbey are greeted

by our Coat of Arms, with a cross and the moon. This simple sign reminds us daily that we trust in the Lord who will provide. The moon, which represents Our Lady of Divine

Providence, reflects the light of the Cross of

Christ. The moon does not compete with the sun, or replace it; rather it brings the light of the sun to dispel the darkness of night just as Mary brings the light of Jesus to dispel the darkness of sin and unbelief in our hearts. Devotion to Our Lady, and an awareness of her concern for us, has been a part of the Christian life from the earliest years. We see in the Scriptures the role Mary played in the life of Jesus and the early community all the way from the Annunciation through Pentecost. In many ways Mary has been a model for those who embrace the Benedictine life because she teaches us how to say

“yes” to Jesus, and how to ponder His meaning for our lives.

Within a year of the founding of our community in 1857 Our Lady appeared again in our world at Lourdes, France, in 1858 to St. Bernadette Soubirous. Like all things that have to do with God’s providence, this apparition, which supported the teaching that she was the Immaculate Conception, came at a historical moment in need of this simple teaching. Sophisticated thinkers during the enlightenment had convinced themselves that the human race had no need for God. Our Lady appeared in a world where humanity had become the measure of itself, and reminded the world that the self-made man is an illusion. Even her sanctity is a gift from God given freely at the Immaculate Conception.

Through the ages Benedictines have pondered this great mystery each evening by ending Vespers with the hymn Our Lady cried out in the Gospel upon her visit to Elizabeth:

My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, My spirit rejoices in God my savior For he has looked with favor on his lowly servant.

St. Bede the Venerable (672-735), a Benedictine monk, taught us that these words of Mary’s Magnificat (Luke 1:46-55) remind us that she alone was chosen, and she burned with spiritual love for the son she so joyously conceived. When we chant these words every evening we also are reminded to stop and, through Mary, burn with spiritual love for Jesus.

St. Bede goes on to remind us of the advantages we have of singing the Canticle of Mary (Magnificat) at Vespers:

“Therefore it is an excellent and fruitful custom of holy Church that we should sing Mary’s hymn at the time of Evening Prayer. By meditating upon the

incarnation, our devotion is kindled, and by remembering the example of God’s Mother, we are encouraged to lead a life of virtue. Such virtues are best achieved in the evening. We are weary after the day’s work and worn out by our distractions. The time for rest is near, and our minds are ready for contemplation.”

A few important things to note here: first – meditating upon the incarnation is fruitful every day. This meditation should not be about merely something that happened in ancient history 2000 years ago. What we remember is that Christ who became flesh now continues to come to us. We should desire with all our hearts to encounter Christ as a present reality.

Second – St. Bede teaches us that remembering the example of God’s Mother, Mary, will encourage us to live a life of virtue. St. Benedict spoke of virtue in a few key places. First in the chapter on humility, he says that when “we arrive at humility we live no longer out of a fear of hell, but out of love for Christ, good habit, and delight in virtue” (RB 7:69). We often forget our destiny, we forget the one who creates us, saves us, forgives us, and loves us. Mary always remembers her Son and allows us to sing her song of praise.

At the very end of the Rule, St. Benedict mentions virtue again. After telling us not only to read the Rule, but to read the Old and New Testaments, the holy Catholic Fathers, John Cassian and St. Basil, St. Benedict ends with this thought: “After that, you can set out for the loftier summits of the teaching and virtues we mentioned above, and under God’s protection you will reach them. Amen” (RB 73:9).

Third – we are told by St. Bede that the words of Mary’s canticle lead us to rest and contemplation. We become like Martha in Luke 10, anxious and concerned about many things. Our Lady invites us to rest with her in Jesus.

Our first Abbot, Innocent Wolf, was a man of deep faith and learning, having received his doctorate in theology from Rome. He also was a capable administrator, having been appointed Prior at St. Vincent Archabbey in Latrobe, Pa. by Archabbot Boniface Wimmer. Others saw his leadership ability, and in 1875 he was about to be elected as second Abbot of St. John’s Abbey, Collegeville, Minn. However, Archabbot Boniface would not hear of losing his Prior. A year later he would have to let him go as the monks of Kansas elected Abbot Innocent as our first Abbot in 1876. He would later be elected Archabbot in Latrobe, but declined, choosing instead to stay in Kansas.

Abbot Innocent’s devotion is evident in the design of his coat of arms. In addition to the cross and moon as the symbols of the Abbey, Abbot Innocent had two hearts on his coat of arms: the heart of Jesus, and the heart of Mary.

Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta would often repeat that the Immaculate Heart of Mary is the cause of our joy because she brings us to Jesus, and we become the cause of her joy when we lead others to Jesus.

One aspect of our devotion to Mary is that for some it can seem remote and distant. What we find instead is one who is a great mother for all of us because she knows the human heart. She knows of fears, anxieties, and needs. As Pope Benedict XVI said of her initial response at the Annunciation: Her fear comes not from lack of understanding nor from that small-hearted anxiety to which some would like to reduce it. It comes from the trepidation of that encounter with God, that immeasurable joy which can make the most hardened natures quake.

We are reminded of Mary here at the abbey through our coat of arms, through visits to the Our Lady of Guadalupe Chapel, through her Canticle chanted daily, and at the end of the day through chanting one of the Latin Marian Antiphons. These hymns such as the Salve Regina (Hail, Holy Queen) unite our voices that rise to heaven through our Lady of Divine Providence as her light leads us to Jesus.

Pope Francis is entrusting the coming Year of Mercy to Mary:

I am convinced that the whole Church will find in this Jubilee the joy needed to rediscover and make fruitful the mercy of God, with which all of us are called to give consolation to every man and woman of our time. From this moment, we entrust this Holy Year to the Mother of Mercy, that she might turn her gaze upon us and watch over our journey.