“We ought, however, to discuss for a moment the character of the devotion to Mary. This devotion had marks and traits of its own in the Order of Carmel. Whereas in the Order of St. Francis of Assisi, Mary’s Immaculate Conception is especially regarded, in our own Order attention is focused upon Mary as Mother of God. As such, she had already been foreshadowed in the little cloud above Carmel; as such she was honoured on Carmel; as such she has ever been invoked in our Order. When the first members of the Order looked out from their high mountain towards the country, their looks met first of all Nazareth, and this little town recalled to their minds the coming of the Angel to Mary and the accomplishment of the mystery of the Incarnation in the overshadowing of the Holy Ghost. The contemplation of this mystery has led to a twofold devotion to Mary, which we had better describe as an imitation of Mary, gradually deepening into a closer union with her. We may see the same in the Imitation of Christ in the 14th and 15th centuries, which matured in the 16th century into a close union with Christ. One should not think of the imitation without thinking of the union, nor of the union without the thought of the imitation. Both flow into each other, but in one period the former is more prominent, in another more attention is paid to the latter. One should rather see both trends blended together into one harmonious whole.”
Bl. Titus Brandsma
What do you think of this quote? Write it on the comment section.
