EIGHTH DAY Who is this that comes up from the desert, flowing with delights, leaning upon her beloved? (Song 8, 5) San Bonaventura was entirely certain that, as God had preserved the most holy Virgin Mary from the violation of her virginal purity and integrity in conceiving and in childbirth, he would never have permitted […]
SEVENTH DAY Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, for he has visited and brought redemption to his people. (Lk 1:68) When, during the Middle Ages, scholastic theology was especially flourishing, St. Albert the Great who, to establish this teaching, had gathered together many proofs from Sacred Scripture, from the statements of older writers, […]
SIXTH DAY A great sign appeared in the sky, a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. (Rev 12:1) The scholastic Doctors have recognized the Assumption of the Virgin Mother of God as something signified, not only in various figures of the […]
FIFTH DAY Among the scholastic theologians there have not been lacking those who, wishing to inquire more profoundly into divinely revealed truths and desirous of showing the harmony that exists between what is termed the theological demonstration and the Catholic faith, have always considered it worthy of note that this privilege of the Virgin Mary’s […]
FOURTH DAY Shout for joy, O daughter Zion! sing joyfully, O Israel! Be glad and exult with all your heart, O daughter Jerusalem! (Zep 3:14) St. John Damascene, an outstanding herald of this traditional truth, spoke out with powerful eloquence when he compared the bodily Assumption of the loving Mother of God with her other […]
The Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name. (Lk 1, 49) THIRD DAY The fact that the Apostolic See has made the celebration of the feast of the Assumption ever more solemn, has certainly and effectively moved the attentive minds of the faithful to appreciate always more completely […]
SECOND DAY My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord;my spirit rejoices in God my saviour. For he has looked upon his handmaid’s lowliness; behold, from now on will all ages call me blessed. (Lk 1: 46-48) From antiquity, the celebration of either the feast of the Dormition of Mary or the Assumption of Mary […]
FIRST DAY The Virgin Mary, throughout the course of her earthly pilgrimage, led a life troubled by cares, hardships, and sorrows, and that, moreover, what the holy old man Simeon had foretold actually came to pass, that is, that a terribly sharp sword pierced her heart as she stood under the cross of her divine […]
On this 6th day of prayer specially dedicated to grandparents and the elderly, Pope Leo XIV invites us to make time for them! We have so much to learn from their lives, rich in experience and wisdom. He encourages us with the words of the prophet Isaiah not to leave them alone: “Yet I will […]
The 29th June is the day in which we celebrate the ancient feast of the martyrdom of Saints Peter and Paul, patrons of Rome. The importance of this Solemnity is shown by the fact that in the fourth century three Masses were celebrated on this feast: one at St Peter’s Basilica, the other at Saint […]