Fr. Corpus Delgado, CM writes in his article “Marian Spirituality and the Vincentian Charism”
Fr. Corpus Delgado, CM
I felt it would be good to center our work on two essential elements that make up the two parts of this presentation.
1. What are the inspirational sources of Marian Spirituality within the Vincentian Charism?
2. How can we create a living Marian Spirituality today within our Lay Vincentian Associations?
First, I will give some reflections on the concept of Marian Spirituality.
Fr. Robert Maloney described spirituality as such: It is, on the one hand, the specific way in which a person is rooted in God. It is, on the other hand, the specific way in which he or she relates to the created world. It is insight as the source of action. It is a vision that generates energy and channels it in a particular direction, thereby enabling a person to transcend him or herself. For the Christian, it is a way of seeing Christ and being in him that directs the individual’s energies in the service of the kingdom.”
Spirituality expresses a relationship with life according to the Spirit, following Christ, in a new way of being and living in the Lord.
Therefore, referring to Marian Spirituality does not mean revising devotional practices to the Virgin Mary. Referring to Marian Spirituality, is finding the inspiration to follow Christ in Mary.
Christianity does not consist of formulas, an ideology or concepts. It is above all gift, presence, experience, and life. The figure of Mary stands out as a challenge and an inspiration to embody Christian attitudes and values. Mary is presented to us as the most perfect disciple of Christ and the first Christian, by her attitudes, “in her own particular life, she fully and responsibly accepted the will of God, because she heard the word of God and acted on it, and because charity and the spirit of service were the driving force of her actions. She is worthy of imitation because she was the first and most perfect of Christ’s disciples. All of this has a permanent and universal exemplary value.”
“Mary is the perfect embodiment of Christian Spirituality.” She is Mistress of the spiritual life, according to the words of Paul VI. In this sense, the Church calls her model of Christians and of the Church: “As St. Ambrose taught, the Mother of God is a type of the Church in the order of faith, charity, and perfect union with Christ.” “Thus the daughter of Adam, Mary, consenting to the word of God, became the Mother of Jesus. Committing herself wholeheartedly and impeded by no sin to God’s saving Will, she devoted herself totally, as a handmaid of the Lord, to the person and work of her Son, under and with Him, serving the mystery of Redemption, by the grace of almighty God.” Mary is the perfect disciple of Jesus, she follows him from the Annunciation of the Angel to the foot of the Cross. “This union of the Mother with the Son in the work of salvation is made manifest from the time of Christ’s virginal conception up to his death.” Mary unreservedly allowed herself to be guided by the Spirit: she was filled with the Holy Spirit; her life was life in the Spirit.
Marian spirituality spontaneously flourished at the heart of the Church since the earliest centuries. Christians from various times have proposed forms, modalities and expressions according to the practices of each era. “Mary is a grace which continuously nourishes the spiritual life of the faithful.”
It is the same for the Vincentian Family. That is why it is essential for us to draw near to the inspirational sources of Marian Spirituality within the Vincentian Charism and see, once again, how we can promote a living Marian Spirituality within the heart of Vincentian Associations today.
He continues with sections on …
- Inspirational Sources of Marian Spirituality within the Vincentian Charism
- The Experience of the Vincentian Family since the Apparitions to Catherine Labouré=
- Giving Form Today to a Living Marian Spirituality within Lay Vincentian Associations
Word document Marian spirituality and the Vincentian Charism (with properly ordered footnotes)
———-
The full outline of the entry in the Vincentian Encyclopedia…
- 1 Introduction
- 2 Marian Spirituality
- 3 I. Inspirational Sources of Marian Spirituality within the Vincentian Charism
- 4 – 4. The Experience of the Vincentian Family since the Apparitions to Catherine Labouré=
- 5 II. Giving Form Today to a Living Marian Spirituality within Lay Vincentian Associations
- 6 Conclusion
- 7 Footnotes
Tags: Charism, Corpus Delgado, Featured, Mary the Mother of Jesus, Vincent, Vincentian
