The Advent and Christmas Assault Mary

The annual full throttle assault on our Heavenly Mother has arrived. For most of the year our Heavenly Mother is neglected and rejected by most Protestants and many Catholics as well, but once Advent and Christmas arrive, these assault seem to take on a whole new dimension. They come in the form of sappy movies depicting the Mother of God as ordinary, and someone not fully aware of what was going on with the miraculous event. The songs are even worse, denying the true holiness and extraordinariness of this most holy of women. The Scriptures are very clear about the special nature of Mary and her absolute freedom from sin, for her whole life. The Angel after all hailed her as Full of Grace, and Elizabeth reinforced this greeting with her own, proclaiming her to be the Mother of God, right there in the Gospel of Luke. For centuries many have been trying to explain away and negate these Truths, both Protestant and Catholic, It's pretty bewildering why this is so. Why are so many so resistant to the idea and Truth that God wanted us to have a heavenly and spiritual mother, why do so many reject the awesome gift he has bestowed on us? Why do so many refuse to honor her, and pray to her. Most Christians will ask their own family, friends and church communities to pray for them in times of need, but for some reason these same Christians negate the power of prayers on our behalf from the Saints, and from the Greatest Saint in Heaven - Our Mother Mary.

It seems this onslaught and attack on Mary started a few weeks ago with the new musical "Journey to Bethlehem". So many are praising this movie, but many faithful and devoted Catholics are writing about it and warning us of it's betrayal of our Mother and it's blasphemous portrayal of Saint Jospeh. This movie portrays our perfect Mother of God as a rebellious teenager, someone who wanted a career instead of motherhood, and a woman who was being forced to marry Joseph. It is unbiblical and heretical. It is also very dangerous. Mary, after all, is the Co-Redeemer, she is someone we should emulate and she has been given great glory in Heaven. This should be admired and exalted, not ridiculed and misrepresented. Christ takes very seriously the offenses against His mother. Songs such as "Mary Did You Know", and "Joseph's Song" insult and refute the dignity of her office as Mother of God and Queen of Heaven. Mary was granted very special Graces from God, from the moment of her conception. She was free from all blemish of sin, and knew intimately the scriptures and prophecies about the Redeemer. At the presentation, Simeon told her all she needed to know, in great detail. She knew everything that would happen, including the great suffering her Holy Family would undergo. She still remained faithful, and strong, and devoted to God. She gave everything she was to Him, and she is now greatly rewarded for that. Perhaps she is just to much to aspire to and for so many it's easy to insult and tear her down, rather than to strive after the same kind of holiness. Mary is a woman of works, some of the greatest works of humankind - her witness at the Cross is her greatest moment of glory, and her true example of sacrificial self giving. That is hard for us to bear ourselves and even understand.

Mary knew this would happen. In December of 1925 she appeared to Sister Lucia, the last living seer at Fatima and asked for the First Saturday devotion. She stated:

"See, my daughter, My Heart surrounded with thorns with which ingrates pierce me at every moment with blasphemies and ingratitude. You, at least, make sure to console me and announce that all those who for five months, on the first Saturdays, go to confession, receive Communion, say five decades of the Rosary and keep me company for 15 minutes meditating on the mysteries of the Rosary, with the purpose of making reparation to Me, I promise to assist them at the hour of death with all the graces necessary for the salvation of their souls."
— Our Lady, December 10, 1925

The First Five Saturdays devotion grants remarkable promises to those who honor it. Here are the requirements for this devotion:
Go to Confession,
Receive the Sacrament of Holy Communion,
Say five decades of the Rosary,
Meditate for 15 minutes on the mysteries of the Rosary.

Our Lord is very grieved by these blasphemies and insults. The devotion was instituted to combat and remedy five different heresies being propagated against our Most Holy Mother, they are:

Blasphemies against the Immaculate Conception
Blasphemies against her virginity
Blasphemies against her divine maternity, at the same time the refusal to accept her as the Mother of all men
Instilling indifference, scorn and even hatred towards this Immaculate Mother in the hearts of children
Direct insults against Her sacred images

Need I say more. The depictions of Mary insult her divine maternity. Yes, I know they make us feel good, but for the wrong reasons, and we should never take delight in messages that do not honor our Mother the way she deserves. She is, after all, Queen of Heaven. We bow before Queens here on Earth, why would we not offer this some respect and honor to Our Queen of Heaven?

Mary is the most powerful of all intercessors. Her son will not deny her anything. The prophecies about her office and station as Queen is outlined in the Old Testament, and the Davidic Kingdom. Christ initiated this kingdom during His lifetime on Earth, and Mary has been crowned as our Queen Mother, just like the Queen Mother of the Davidic Kingdoms who interceded for their people, and sat at the right side of their sons. The Heavenly Kingdom is the fulfillment of these Earthly Kingdoms. We need to learn our roles, as sons and daughters of the new Queen and King. It is our destiny, hopefully. If we want it. It would seem many are ignorantly rejecting this, with silly songs, movies and inaccurate depictions of eternity. There are some great books to learn more: Jesus and the Jewish Roots of Mary, is a great one. I would highly recommend this book.

Advent blessings! Please let's npt be one of the reasons for the Five Saturdays devotion. Defend our Mother, we will be greatly rewarded!