Like Moses
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| Ferdinand Georg Walmuller Sonntagrune 1859 |
"Every mother is like Moses... she prepares a world she will not see." (Pope Paul VI)
The Memorare
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
How absolutely beautiful! I too thought of Moses today at Mass. I could not get the thought out of my mind that mothers are shepherdesses for their little flock. I pictured the old stone circle where the shepherd would sit in the doorway protecting the sheep at night. This to me represents the home. What happens in the home and what is allowed in or not is up to the mother. But then I pictured Zaporiah and her sisters who watched the flock. When Moses came to the well and protected the shepherdesses from the thieves. See us mothers need to be protected too in our vocation of caring for our little flocks. Christ is our first Shepherd, I pray that in our husbands, priests, and Bishops they increasingly aid us in raising "the world (we) will not see" up to Christ. Amen.
ReplyDeleteSusan, I love what you wrote... I hope to spend some time with it tonight in prayer and meditation. Thank you so much! - Nancy S.
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