Pierre-Paul Cardinal Philippe (1905-1984) was a Dominican priest who taught at the Pontificium Athenaeum Angelicum in Rome, where he had Karol Wojtyla (future Pope John Paul II) as a student. In 1959, he became secretary of the Vatican’s Congregation for Religious, playing a significant role in the Second Vatican Council (1962-65). He became Secretary for the Congregation of Doctrine of the Faith in 1967 and was made a cardinal in 1973.
Part I: The Maternity of the Virgin Mary and the Priesthood
Chapter 1: The Mother of Christ the Priest
Mary is the Mother of Christ the High Priest. Through Mary, Christ did not need a special consecration to become Priest: He is the Priest by the sole fact of His Incarnation for He had united within Himself all of Divinity and all of humanity (cf. ST III, 24.4).
“All of the graces by which Infinite Love has enriched the Blessed Virgin Mary have the sole purpose to associate her as perfectly as possible with Our Lord in the two mysteries which engulf His entire life: The Incarnation, through which He inaugurated His priestly life, and the Redemption on Calvary, where He brought to completion the supreme act of His priesthood, the sacrifice of Himself for the salvation of humanity” (5).
It was supremely fitting that Mary “should possess a love which was proportionate to her mission. We may even say that it was a kind of love that simultaneously reached that Infinite love which was burning inside the Heart of Christ from the first moment of His Incarnation up the moment of His supreme Sacrifice on the Cross” (6).
“We may believe that Mary, from the first moment of her creation, was more holy that any other great saint at his highest point of holiness. Moreover, it may be said that Mary was more holy than all of the saints put together” (8). As long as she was living on earth, Mary’s holiness never ceased growing. Every act of Mary is a loving response to Infinite Love, a response which was more perfect than the preceding one (cf. RM 14).
Ch. 2: The Mother of Priests
“One can easily deduce that Mary is the Mother of priests from the fact that she is the Mother of the eternal Priest, from whom is derived their priesthood. Therefore, it was at the Annunciation and in her Fiat that everything was decided, that Our Lady became our Mother. Theologians state that at the time hers was a maternity in the embryonic stage, in potency” (18).
Mary sees us as a continuation of Christ the Priest and contemplates in us the Priesthood of her beloved Son. For Mary, a priest is always a priest, a living image of her Son. In Heaven, she can love every priest and look after everyone one of us as if we were the only person in the world. “Furthermore, from the moment this image is disfigured by sin, Mary ardently desires nothing more than to restore it to the likeness of Christ, for she sees this disfigurement as God sees it” (25).
“Mary loves us as a mother loves her son. She loves us with a tenderness and solicitude that makes our mother’s love look like a faint reflection. Our Lady has an ardent thirst to find Christ in our soul and desires to see this priestly grace in our life as priests yield a hundredfold. As St. Louis de Montfort states, she wants us to be “priests on fire,” ardent apostles on Infinite Love, hearts which live through Christ, her Son. Mary transfers to us the maternal love which she had for St. John. She has the same level of zeal for our sanctification. In short, she loves every one of us with an unexplainable tenderness and solicitude in such a way that we can honestly and truly call her “Mother” as Jesus, without any doubt, called her while on earth. For the most part, Mary’s love has something concrete, something which she wants to transform into reality: Mary wants to form her own sons!” (31-2).
We must be “devoted” to Our Lady in the original meaning of this phrase that St. Thomas used – to be offered and consecrated. St. Louis de Montfort invites us to “throw” ourselves and “lose” ourselves in Mary: “Admirably throw themselves, hide themselves, and lose themselves in her loving and virginal womb so that they may be set aflame with pure love. They do this so as to be purified of the slightest stain and fully discover Jesus” (Traitè 199).
Part II: The Virgin Mary and the Interior Life of the Priest
Ch. 3: The Virgin Mary and the Heart of Christ the Priest
Mary’s union “with Jesus at the foot of the Cross is a unique union of love, overflowing from the bonds of divine motherhood. It contains the entire mystery of Compassion. There is nothing else except love. But this love is a friendship; although Mary remains the Mother of Jesus at the foot of the Cross, it is necessary to have another term to delineate precisely the particular bond which unites her to Christ. Tradition and Liturgy have found this term in the Song of Songs: “spouse” (4:9, cf. Terrien, La Mère de Dieu, 179-188). Mary is truly the spouse of the Song for she espouses all the sentiments that Christ crucified has for His Father and for humanity. She is united to nothing else but to the Heart of Jesus, to the act of love which emanated from the Heart of Jesus and which was sufficient to bring about the salvation of the world” (54-5).
The blood which overflowed from Jesus and the tears of Mary are only the external manifestation of the interior oblation which has been aptly called, “the soul of the Sacrifice of the Cross” (Garrigou-Lagrange). This is a true fusion of hearts, an intimacy which brought about unity in the order of love… Mary enters into the intimacy of the interior life of Jesus according to the law of mutual compenetration of hearts and minds which St. Thomas presents as being the fruit of friendship (cf. ST I-II, 28.2).
Mary “is by the side of Christ. She is the Queen who stands beside the King. She is the spouse of the High Priest who, in her heart and love, intimately shares in all of His wishes and priestly activity” (54).
“The Blessed Virgin Mary was not chosen by the Lord to be a “minister,” but to be the “spouse,” that “help” according to what is stated in the Book of Genesis: “Let us make him a helpmate” (2:18). The Blessed Virgin Mary is not a “vicar” [an agent], but a “coadjutrix” and a “companion,” participating in the kingdom as she had participated in the Passion, when all the ministers and disciples had run away and she alone remained at the foot of the Cross. The wounds which Christ received in His body, Mary felt in her heart” (St. Albert the Great, Mariale, 42).
Ch. 4: The Virgin Mary and Priestly Union
Since Jesus deigned to need her to assist Him in the principal act of His priesthood, we can speak quite a lot about the necessity of her presence in the intimate life of the priest: “There is more than a parallel which exists between Christ and ourselves, for there is an actual living bond that unites us to His Priesthood and to His sacrifice. In fact, the sacrifice of the Mass is none other than the sacrifice of the Cross renewed on the altar: “Just as the priest continues and reproduces at the altar the Priesthood of Christ in its principal act, so also Mary’s union with the sacrifice of Christ is continued and reproduced” (74).
“Jesus was offered only once at Calvary where He alone was the Priest. At that time, Our Lady was near Him in the capacity of Mother and Spouse. Today, when He offers Himself on the altar, He does so through the means of poor men like us. He takes us into Himself, or rather, He enters into us and puts in our heart – in proportion to the degree of our love, which is frequently very weak – all the feelings which He had on the Cross for the Father, for the Virgin Mary, and for all souls, as well as for whose intentions that particular Mass is being celebrated. It is an “authentic friendship” which He establishes in us, a total “union,” a koinonia, a communion with all the secrets of His Sacred Heart: “All mine are yours, all yours are mine” (Jn 17:10)” (64).
The mystery of Mary as co-Redemptix with the Redeemer is continued daily at Mass (cf. JP2, June 5.83). Thus, at the altar, the priest receives help from the Blessed Virgin. it is that help with Christ, whom the priest represents, received on the Cross. Just as Jesus had deigned to need her on Calvary, so the priest really needs that sacred presence each time he celebrates Mass. It is an invisible presence. Yet, it is very effective on his poor human heart. He is its receiver because Mary gives herself to him in such an ineffable manner that the mystery of the Cross is perfectly reproduced (cf. JP2, June 5.83). (75).
At the time of Communion, priests need Mary in a very particular way. The priest needs her assistance not so much to be “Christ”—the priestly character carries the seal of the Priesthood of Jesus—but to fully profit from the grace of identifying himself with the Lord. Mary teaches him how to unite himself to the sacred Victim of Calvary, to conform himself to the Host of His sacrifice” (75).
Strictly speaking this is the work of Jesus in us. It is the work of the sacramental grace of the priesthood, and of our Communion at Mass. But all of this comes to us through Mary. She is the Mediatrix of all graces: insofar as we live our Mass as crucified priests, we must have the prayer and presence of Our Lady in our souls. She is the Lady of Compassion. It is impossible to conceive of a priest united with Christ at Mass without the help of Mary. The proof lies in the marvellous intimacy which existed between St. John and the Blessed Virgin during the Crucifixion. M. Olier wrote about this union in a sublime fashion: “St. John was for Mary the continuation of Jesus Christ… and in the culminating moment of his ministry, he was entirely hers. He had to enter into her intentions and lose his own intentions in those of Mary’s. He was given to her as her own special priest, so as to offer up the sacrifice for the intentions she wished” (Le vie interirure de la Tres Sainte Vierge, Parish 1875, ch.16). (76).
Similarly, each day, while representing Christ in the principal act of His Priesthood, the priest has the unique privilege of being invisibly assisted by Our Lady. He has the privilege to reproduce the mystery of consolation and union which was forged on Calvary between the Heart of Jesus and the Heart of her who was His mother and spouse. Moreover, the union which begins on the altar should extend itself over the entire day of the priest, especially during the very important time of prayer. In fact there is established between Our Lady and the priest a deep union of love, a totally spiritual friendship, even a divine friendship. God is the bond between their hearts: they love each other in God alone, for the bond which unites Mary to the priest and the priest to Mary is solely that of love” (76).
“It is quite possible that a spiritual friendship may arise between a mother and her son through the love which unites them in God. But it is rare that the bond of kinship does not, more or less, place any obstacles to that kind of freedom which is essential between friends. On the contrary, nothing can prevent Mary from becoming the holy friends of her sons, since she is their mother through the love of her Most Pure Heart. The Blessed Virgin Mary loves us in God with a love of supernatural friendship which beckons reciprocity: she expects from us the same kind of love with which she loves us” (77).
The priest is called to love Mary as Christ loved her when He was here on earth, thereby reliving and perpetuating across the centuries the union of Jesus and Mary. It is a love friendship which is truly pure and holy (cf. JP2, Aug.8.82). This is the entire secret of the Marian life of the priest. When a priest understands this, his entire life changes. He loves Mary with a pure and distinct love. He loves her with a strong and vital love. In the hour of isolation or, perhaps, of temptation, he sees in her the secure friend whom his human heart desperately needs. The Immaculate Heart of Mary is the heart that the priest needs so that “he may not feel alone” (Gen 2:18).
The first saint to live this friendship was St. John: “No one can fully understand the love which St. John bore for Our Lady. It was a pure and spiritual love, without the embroilment of the senses. Faith was its source and nourishment. It was a strong, vigorous, and powerful love that was always even-keeled. Such a love carried him to Mary and bound him so powerfully and closely to Jesus that he saw her close to him more clearly through spiritual eyes than his corporal eyes could behold her in person” (JJ Olier, La vie interieure, ch.16).
“A mutual compenetration is born from this reciprocal gift. St. Thomas considers this to be the finest gift of friendship. Henceforth the priest lives in Mary, and Mary lives in him. After all, what is love all about if not to want for the beloved all the good of which he is capable? To love the Blessed Lady is to rejoice in the happiness which is hers and to desire the increase of her glory. When we so desire such goodness for our friends, in a certain way we come to live in them, experiencing the sadness or happiness which befalls them as if it had happened to us personally” (81).
“The same may be said of the priest who consistently grows in his knowledge and love of Mary. He shares ever more deeply in her joys and sufferings, forgetting himself to the point of becoming only interested in her and her concern for the greater glory of God. According to the law of love, he no longer lives for himself, but he lives in her and for her. By the same token, he possesses Mary in his heart; he guards her as a treasure; he never ceases thinking of her and giving her all of his love. Mary is the only creature to whom he gives his whole heart” (81).
“This presence of Mary does not consist only in the fact that we, in our thought and with love, keep her present in our spirit and heart. St. Thomas notes, “Love is sufficient to create an effective union. But the effective union which is realized through the presence of the beloved is much more desirable” (I-II 28.1). He who loves Mary and knows her through faith would have the great desire to be closer to her and to effectively place himself in her presence.
What is needed, then, to place ourselves in the presence of Mary? St. Thomas replies that “a person is present to another person when the former is seen by the latter (ST I 8.3.2). Now, the Blessed Virgin Mary, as in the case of Jesus Christ in His sacred humanity, does not cease seeing us from the heights of heaven. Therefore, all of us are present to Mary, and consequently, we can say that Mary is always present to us according to the measure that we believe that she sees us. Without a doubt, this presence in faith is almost nothing when we compare it to the presence which we will enjoy in heaven. Nonetheless, it stands for a precious pledge of what the vision of our Mother will be like, and of the eternal “dialogue” we shall have with her” (82-3).
Part III: The Virgin Mary and Priestly Ministry
Ch. 5: The Virgin Mary and the Ministry of Christ the Priest
“In order to comprehend the mediating role that Jesus and Mary exercise over us from heaven, we must take into account another consideration which will give us the full comprehension of this mystery of infinite love they have toward every one of us: Jesus is not only our Priest, He is also our King; and Mary is not only our Mediatrix, but she is also our Queen (cf. RM 41). Their power is not only in being an intermediary between God and humanity, but also is a power of governance over our souls. It is a power which has been given to them to help us be better disposed to receive the divine graces and make the best of them” (103).
The Virgin Mary is Queen because Jesus is King. She is Queen only in and through Christ the King. But she is totally the Queen because she is able to dispose of regal power in heaven in accordance with the way Christ disposes of us (cf. RM 41). She governs the Church with Him. She orients it to its ultimate end, disposing of the divine graces which she acquired on Calvary with Him and distributing them for the particular good of souls, according to the general order of the Mystical Body.
As King, Jesus has the power to judge. As Queen, Mary has the mission of mercy, which is proper to every mother. By her prayer and spiritual action in us, Mary disposes us toward divine grace. As Queen, her prayers are very efficacious. She knows what we need because she sees our needs in the Beatific Vision. She has a universal, though subordinate, royalty.
“A real bond exists between Mary and us, something which surpasses the “moral” bond of thought and love. This is the bond that unites all Christians to Jesus Christ in the Mystical Body, the bond of actual and sanctifying grace. She is the Queen of our hearts. She has all the power to lead us to Jesus” (108).
After Jesus said, “Behold your mother!” (Jn 19:26) the Evangelist noted that Jesus became aware that everything that complete. The gift of a Mother was the final gift which Jesus accorded to humanity as the fruit of His sacrifice. It relates a gesture which He wanted to use to crown the work of redemption.
Ch. 6: The Virgin Mary and the Ministry of the Priest
“The supreme rule of our priestly life should be the love of God, and the desire to do His will and adhere to be disposed to His divine good pleasure. Ultimately, our ideal as well as the entire reason for our existence should be our union and our identification with the Heart of Christ the Priest, and with His love for God and for souls. Therefore, our mission is thus: to continue the ministry of Christ, to be Christ to the souls who see us, to be like a sacrament of Christ the Priest, a sacrament of the Infinite Love of the Heart of Jesus the Priest” (122).
Let us rely on Mary and frequently seek her advice: “Let us entrust our life of prayer to her, for she will protect the focus of our soul amidst the overwhelming demands of our daily life. She knows better than anyone else how difficult it is to preserve this invisible contact with God and with Christ when our attention is constantly being bombarded with the countless worries of our ministry. Above all else, let us ask her to purify our love to the point that what propels us to work for the salvation of souls will be solely our zeal for the glory of God” (125).
Mary also needs us to establish her reign with Christ. She wants us as her privileged sons, her servants. She expects us to give souls to her, to make her known to the faithful, and to teach them how to entrust themselves to her. Our Lady wishes to be loved by priests in the same way that Jesus loved her (133).
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