[father_elijah]

By choosing Our Lady under this title we may celebrate the joys of the Blessed Virgin Mary as Queen of the communion of saints and thereby also remember all of our favorite saints.

Mary, Queen of All Saints, pray for us.

[father_elijah]

ping ........ (((((((bells ringing)))))))

And it looks like, yes, it is! Its blue smoke!

[Aquinasfan]

Sounds like a good choice to me.

Since we're most often dealing with intellectual arguments, St. Thomas would be another logical candidate. But what else would you expect me to say?

Anyway, I think even St. Thomas would approve of this nomination ;o)

[Notwithstanding]

How scriptural!

Rosary - Scripture

---

 Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with you.

Luke 1:28 "And coming to her, he said, "Hail, full of grace" (NAB: "highly favored one") [kecharitomene]! The Lord is with you." 

Kecharitomene: favored by grace; suggests a permanent state of being "highly favored," thus "full of grace." God is infinite goodness. Mary is perfect created goodness, to the limit of her finite being.

Blessed art thou among women

Luke 1:41-42a "When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the infant leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth, filled with the holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice and said, "Most blessed are you among women..."

Luke 1:48 "For he has looked upon his handmaid's lowliness; behold, from now on will all ages call me blessed."

"Among all women": this Hebraicism suggests that Mary is the greatest of women. This must include Eve, whom God created immaculate, i.e. free of sin. Mary's preservation from sin by God's grace, both at her conception  and throughout life, is what makes her greater than Eve, who fell from the grace in which God created her.

Blessed is the fruit of your womb, Jesus

Luke 1:42b "and blessed is the fruit of your womb."

Jesus is Mary's fruit. Good fruit does not come from anything but a good tree (Mt. 7:17-18)! The all-holy Son of God could not be the fruit of any other tree than the Immaculate Virgin.

Holy Mary, Mother of God

Luke 1:43 "And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord [Kyrios] should come to me?

Kyrios - the Greek word used by the Jews in the Septuagint Bible (Greek translation) for Yahweh, the Divine Name of God. Thus, Elizabeth is actually saying: How is it that the mother of my God should come to me. Jesus is a single person, a Divine Person, the 2nd Person of the Most Holy Trinity. To be mother of the Person Jesus is to be mother of a Person who is God. The Church gave the title Mother of God to Mary in 431 AD in order to condemn opinions of that day which denied the unity of the two natures of Christ in the Person of the Word. 

Pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen.

Luke 2:35 "...and you yourself a sword will pierce so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed."

John 2:5 "His mother said to the servers, "Do whatever he tells you."

Mary sees a need and appeals to Her Son to satisfy it. He does.

 

The Power of Intercessory Prayer:

The saints of the Old Law and the New Law, the 12 Patriarchs and the 12 Apostles, intercede for those on earth.

James 5:16b "the fervent prayer of a righteous man is very powerful."

Rev. 5:8 "When he took it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each of the elders held a harp and gold bowls filled with incense, which are the prayers of the holy ones.

The angels, too, mediate our prayers. This is taught explicitly in the Jewish book of Tobit (Tob. 12:12) accepted by Christians as inspired until Luther on his own authority rejected it. It remains part of the Catholic Bible.

Tobit 12:12   I can now tell you that when you, Tobit, and Sarah prayed, it was I who presented and read the record of your prayer before the Glory of the Lord; and I did the same thing when you used to bury the dead.

Rev. 8:3 "Another angel came and stood at the altar, holding a gold censer. He was given a great quantity of incense to offer, along with the prayers of all the holy ones, on the gold altar that was before the throne."

 

Vain repetition is mindless babbling not repeated prayer

The purpose of the different beads on the rosary is to count the various prayers as they are said. Unlike the Moslem prayer beads and the mantras of Buddhism, the prayers of the rosary are meant to occupy our whole being, body and soul, in meditating on the truths of the Faith. Simply to repeat prayers is not the vain repetition condemned by Christ (Mt 6:7), since He Himself repeats His prayer in the Garden three times (Mt 26:39, 42, 44) and the Psalms (inspired by the Holy Spirit) are often very repetitive (Ps 119 has 176 verses and Ps. 136 repeats the same phrase 26 times).

Matthew 6:7  In praying, do not babble like the pagans, who think that they will be heard because of their many words.

Psalm 136:1-26 
Praise the LORD, who is so good;
God's love endures forever;
[2] Praise the God of gods;
God's love endures forever;
. . .
[26] Praise the God of heaven,
God's love endures forever.

Matthew 26:39  He advanced a little and fell prostrate in prayer, saying, "My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me; yet, not as I will, but as you will."

Matthew 26:42 Withdrawing a second time, he prayed again, "My Father, if it is not possible that this cup pass without my drinking it, your will be done!"

Matthew 26:44 He left them and withdrew again and prayed a third time, saying the same thing again.

The Church believes that it is necessary for a Christian to meditate (prayerfully think about) the will of God, the life and teachings of Jesus, the price He paid for our salvation, and so on. Unless we do this we will begin to take these great gifts for granted and ultimately fall away from the Lord. Every Christian must meditate in some way in order to preserve the gift of salvation (James 1:22-25). Many Catholic and non-Catholic Christians prayerfully read and apply Scripture to their lives - that too is meditation.

The rosary is an aid to meditation. As one prays the rosary, the hands, the lips, and to a certain extent the mind, are occupied with the Creed, the Our Father, the Hail Mary and the Glory Be. At the same time one is supposed to meditate on one of 15 mysteries, from the Annunciation through the Passion, to the Glorification. By means of the rosary we learn what makes true holiness ("let it be done to me according to thy word"), about the great gift of salvation ("It is finished!") and the great rewards God has in store for us ("He is Risen"). Even Mary's own rewards (Assumption and Glorification) anticipate and teach us about our own sharing in the reign of Christ.

The faithful recitation of the rosary according to this pattern has been found by Catholics to be the door to greater gifts of prayer and holiness, as shown by the many canonized saints who have practiced and recommended the rosary, as does the Church.

---

Answered by Colin B. Donovan, STL

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[Brian Kopp DPM]

Excellent choice, Father! And I think we all know who our FR Catholic Caucus chaplain is.

[EODGUY]

I'm embarassed to say I overlooked our Blessed Virgin.

She is my wife's patron saint and the constant conduit of my prayers to our Lord.

Excellent choice, Padre.

[Cap'n Crunch]

"The power of Mary over all devils will be particularly outstanding in the last period of time. She will extend the Kingdom of Christ over the idolators and Moslems, and there will come a glorious era in which Mary will be the ruler and Queen of human hearts."-St. Louis De Montfort

"Peace shall return to the world because the Blessed Virgin Mary will breathe over the storms and quell them. Her name will be praised, blessed and exalted forever. Prisoners or captives shall recover their liberty; exiles shall return to their country, and the unfortunate or unhappy shall be restored to peace and hapiness. Between the most august Mary and her clients there will be a mutual exchange of prayers and graces, of love and affection. From the east to the west, from the north to the south, all shall proclaim the holy name of Mary; Mary concieved without original sin, Mary Queen of Heaven and earth. Amen."-Sister Marie Lataste

"We expect that the Immaculate Virgin and Mother of God, Mary, through her powerful intercession, will bring it about that our Holy Mother the Catholic Church, after removal of all obstacles and overcoming all errors, will gain in influence from day to day among all nations and in all places, prosper and rule from ocean to ocean, from the great stream to the ends of the earth; that she will enjoy peace and liberty...that all erring souls will return to the path of truth and justice after the darkness of their minds has been diselled, and that there will be then one fold and one shepherd."-Pope Pius IX

"The Virgin Mother of God invoked by such prayers will obtain from the Divine Savior liberation from present anxieties, the peace of hearts and fraternal concord among peoples."-Pope Pius XII

Excellent choice Father, I guess there could be no other! De Maria Numquam Satis!

[pax_et_bonum]

Church Militant ping

[tiki]

I certainly agree with your choice. As Mary is the queen of all saints we can always ask her to ask all the saints to pray for us also. So in this choice we can invoke all those Saints of the Church who have gone before us.

[BlessedBeGod]

Oh, boy! We'd better get this prayer going fast!:

Remember, O most gracious Virgin Mary, that never was it known that anyone who fled to thy protection, implored thy help, or sought thy intercession was left unaided. Inspired by this confidence, we fly unto thee, O Virgins of virgins, our Mother. To thee we come, before thee we stand, sinful and sorrowful. O Mother of the Word Incarnate, do not despise our petitions, but in thy mercy hear and answer us. Amen.

[HowlinglyMind-BendingAbsurdity]

"Gloria in Excelsis Deo"

And suddenly there was with the angel
a multitude of the heavenly host, praising
God, and saying:

"Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace to men of good will."

Sung by Angels (Luke 2:13-14):Click Here

[father_elijah]

A Blessed Feast of the Annunication to One and to All!

[Askel5]

Just returned (singing the Ave on the sidewalks) from noon mass. What splendid news on the Feast (celebrated) of the Annunciation.

[eastsider]

Hail, holy Queen,
mother of mercy,
our life, our sweetness,
and our hope.

To thee do we cry,
poor banished children of Eve.

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,
and after this our exile
show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary.

Pray for us, O Holy Mother of God.
That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

[Gophack]

Bump for Mary, Queen of All Saints.

Please add me to your Catholic bump list. Thank you. :-)

[Lady In Blue]

I think Our Lady,under her title of "Queen of All Saints" is a fantastic idea!

[father_elijah]

ping!

[father_elijah]

Sing of Mary, pure and lowly,
Virgin Mother undefiled;
sing of God's own Son most holy,
who became her little child.
Fairest child of fairest Mother,
God the Lord who came to earth,
Word made flesh, our very brother,
shares our nature by his birth.

Sing of Jesus, son of Mary,
in the home at Nazareth,
toil and labor cannot weary
love enduring unto death.
Constant was the love he gave her,
though he went forth from her side,
forth to preach, and heal, and suffer
till on Calvary he died.

Sing of Mary, sing of Jesus,
holy Mother's holier Son.
From his throne in heaven he sees us,
thither calls us every one,
where he welcomes home his Mother
to a place at his right hand,
there his faithful servants gather,
there the crownèd victors stand.

Joyful Mother, full of gladness,
in thine arms thy Lord was borne.
Mournful Mother, full of sadness,
all thy heart with pain was torn.
Glorious Mother, now rewarded
with a crown at Jesus' hand,
age to age thy name recorded
shall be blessed in every land.

Glory be to God the Father;
glory be to God the Son;
glory be to God the Spirit;
glory to the Three in One.
From the heart of Blessèd Mary,
from all saints the song ascends,
and the Church the strain reechoes
unto earth's remotest ends.

------------------------
Words: Roland Ford Palmer, 1914

[fatima]

Yes,Yes Yes,Hi Mom most beautiful Mother, watch over your forum here on Free Republic and thank you Jim.Jim you gave us everything and spoil us.Thank you Father,you picked the best ,smart priest,I only work with the best,I say that humbly Father and I am proud of my humility.Today is a special feastday of Our Lady.Maria Queen of All Saint's pray for us,Viva Maria

[HowlinglyMind-BendingAbsurdity]

Great gallery. Keep it going.

Dante Rossetti's The Annunciation (1849-50)
Tate Gallery, London

[Aliska]

St. Isaac Jogues and the American Martyrs, pray for us. Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha, pray for us.