This popular prayer, a favorite of many Catholics, dates back to the 15th century and takes its name from the first Latin word of the prayer, "memorare," which means "remember." The Memorare is of unknown authorship, although it has been attributed to St. Augustine (354-430), St. John Chrysostom (c. 347-407) and, with more reason, to St. Bernard of Clairvaux (c. 1090-1153). St. Bernard's sermons on Mary were famous, and it was his Cistercian monks in the monastery of Citeaux in the 12th century who popularized the name "Our Lady" for Mary. The Memorare has also been attributed to the French cleric Claude Bernard (1588-1641), known as the "poor priest" of Paris, whose homilies contain passages that echo its words. No matter who wrote this prayer, it was Father Bernard who did much to popularize it, teaching it in hospitals and prisons, where Mary's intercession was effective in working miracles of grace. The first manuscript of the Mem
Colleen,
ReplyDeleteI love that phrase! "Thin places" is a perfect way of decribing those special times and places where we especially sense God's presence :)
Colleen,
ReplyDeleteI'm with Mary- that is a wonderful phrase. Fr. Joseph Homick writes about how God "lifts the veil" for us in certain ways. It is the same idea- it allows us to have those very special "God Moments" or as you call them Sabbath Moments.
Thanks for this beautiful article and for helping us to be more aware of those thin places.