By Fr Jason Smith
The Immaculate Conception teaches us something very positive: God is stronger than sin and where sin abounds, grace abounds even more. (Romans 5:20)
This truth is brought home in a special way in Mary’s life, for she, on account of a singular privilege of God, and in view of the merits of Christ’s death, was preserved from contracting original sin, and came into existence already completely holy. More…
Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows
Fr Jason Smith
It’s been a while since I’ve posted on Biltrix, but now that I’m ready to get back in the swing of things, I can think of no better way than starting off with the Blessed Virgin Mary. She has meant so much to me that I’ve found I can’t help myself but snap pictures with my iPhone of the beautiful statues where I’ve offered an Ave. More…
September 8, Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
In the Church’s liturgical calendar, we celebrate 3 birthdays: Jesus, John the Baptist and the Blessed Virgin Mary. More…
Fr Jack Collins bets “you don’t know Jack… about the Feast of the Assumption.” More…
My favorite scene from the Passion of the Christ
As usual, I arrived at Mass this morning my normal groggy self, still not even sure what day it was. The opening hymn, “Immaculate Mary,” stirred me from my slumber. It was not until I saw the priest’s vestments that I realized I did it again. More…
Our Lady of the Streets
Last summer I had the opportunity to do something most people will never do in their life time. I went on a 30 day silent retreat (Ignatian Spiritual Exercises). More…
And of course, we can’t go with out honoring our Lord’s mother today – Chaire! Kecharitomene! Highly favored for her being chosen for this unmerited grace and for her humble response and submission to God’s call.
St Jerome translated the Angel’s works to Mary from Greek to Latin as “Ave! Gratia plena,” i.e., “She who has been filled with divine grace,” whence the prayer in English derives it’s opening line, “Hail Mary! Full of grace!” It remains understood, that God’s grace is an unmerited gift and a gift that merits a response on the part of the receiver. Mary’s response was the response to motherhood, giving herself fully as our Savior’s mother.
By reflecting and meditating on this passage from chapter 1 of the Gospel according to Luke, we can recognize that motherhood is a gift and blessed vocation of self-giving and love.
Eight mothers in the Bible played key roles in the coming of Jesus Christ. None of them was perfect, yet each showed strong faith in God. God, in turn, rewarded them for their confidence in him.
These mothers lived in an age when women were often treated as second class citizens, yet God appreciated their true worth, just as he does today. Motherhood is one of life’s highest callings. Learn how these eight mothers in the Bible put their hope in the God of the Impossible, and how he proved that such hope is always well-placed.
Eight mothers in the Bible played key roles in the coming of Jesus Christ. None of them was perfect, yet each showed strong faith in God. God, in turn, rewarded them for their confidence in him.
These mothers lived in an age when women were often treated as second class citizens, yet…
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I had no idea that Michelangelo’s Pietà came to the United States:
You have to go to Rome to see the original Pietà. But if you can’t make it that far, there are two exact replicas New York City.
If you can’t make it to New York, Here are some photos… More…
Our Lady of Light
Since Thursday is the day when we contemplate the Luminous Mysteries, instituted by Blessed John Paul II, I decided to dedicate today’s article to Our Lady of Light, depicted in the painting above by Russian artist, Natalia Tsarkova. (Click on the photo above for a larger image).
Before I explain the painting, here is a video explaining the artist’s relationship with the late John Paul II. More…
The curses and insults have begun to dwindle. The large crowd is no longer interested in watching Jesus die. The show is over. More…
Biltrix 