Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ Jesus,
First, all parishioners from our parishes are invited to take part in our Day in Honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary - held Sunday, August 20! We will have a procession after the 10:30am Holy Mass at the Church of St. Michael, followed by hospitality in the church hall. Anyone is welcome to attend this event in honor of our Blessed Mother!
Second, congratulations to our St. Paul CCW for a wonderful salad luncheon! It was well done and many enjoyed the welcoming atmosphere and great food!
This coming Tuesday, August 22, we celebrate the Immaculate Heart of Mary and Mary, Queen of Heaven. Here is some information on this beautiful day in of honor of our Blessed Mother, the Virgin Mary:
The meaning of this day for those who belong to Jesus and His Kingdom is profound. This day means we claim not only Jesus as our King and Spiritual Head, but also, the Virgin Mary, His Mother and our Mother, as our Queen. She is the Queen who has been granted special graces from Jesus, our King, to have a place next to Him in Heaven and a share of His spiritual authority that rules over all of Heaven and earth.
Here is more about this special spiritual grace and role that our Queen, the Virgin Mary, has in Heaven and over the earth:
“What then does it mean for Mary to be the Queen of Heaven? In the Old Testament monarchy the Queen of the Davidic Kingdom was the Queen Mother. The Kings, for reasons of state and human weakness, had many wives, none of whom fittingly could be called Queen. That honor was reserved for the mother of the King, whose authority far surpassed the many ‘queens’ married to the king. We see this is the role Bathsheba played with respect to King Solomon and the occasions when the Queen Mother acted as regent on behalf of juvenile successors to the throne.
The role of the Queen Mother, therefore, is a prophetic type of the Kingdom role of Mary, just as the role of the Davidic King is a prophetic type of the Kingdom role of Jesus. Jesus inherited the King-dom promised to David, who was told that one of his descendants would rule forever. The angel Gabriel revealed this fact to Mary at her Annunciation,
Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father, and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end." (Luke 1:31-33)
Aside from the prophetic types present in the Kingdom of Judah, there is also the text of Psalm 45, which when speaking of the Kingdom of God also speaks of its Queen.
“With myrrh, aloes, and cassia your robes are fragrant. From ivory-paneled palaces stringed instruments bring you joy. Daughters of kings are your lovely wives; a princess arrayed in Ophir’s gold comes to stand at your right hand. Listen, my daughter, and understand; pay me careful heed. Forget your people and your father’s house, that the king might desire your beauty.
He is your lord; honor him, daughter of Tyre. Then the richest of the people will seek your favor with gifts. All glorious is the king’s daughter as she enters, her raiment threaded with gold; In embroidered apparel she is led to the king. The maids of her train are presented to the king. They are led in with glad and joyous acclaim; they enter the palace of the king. The throne of your fathers your sons will have; you shall make them princes through all the land. I will make your name renowned through all generations; thus nations shall praise you forever.” (Psalm 45:9-18)
That Kingdom ruled by God is the same ) as the Kingdom ruled eternally by the Son of David. It is not an earthly kingdom, though it is present on earth in the Church, but a heavenly kingdom, the Kingdom of God. The Queen of that Kingdom is the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of the Lord God Jesus Christ.” (portions by Colin B. Donovan, STL and taken from www.ewtn.com)
Through the intercession of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, St. Joseph, St. Paul, and St. Michael, may the Infinite Mercy of Our Lord Jesus come upon our families, parishes, the whole Church and entire world!
In Christ through Mary,
Fr. Kasel