Vigils Reading – Mary Mother of God

LOOK TO MARY

From the letters of Adam of Perseigne

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You, Lady, are my all. In your hands has been stored for me the fulness

of all good. With you have been hidden the unfailing treasures of truth and

grace, of peace and pity, of salvation and wisdom, of glory and of honor. You

are my anchor amid the billows, port in shipwreck, support in tribulation,

comfort in grief. You are, for those who are yours, aid in oppression, help in

time of crisis, temperance in prosperity, joy in time of waiting, refreshment in

toil…

When you conceive the sun of righteousness, you like the moon are

illumined by the good office of the blazing sun. The moon borrows from the sun

the light which the nature of its gross body denies it. Therefore whatever beauty

it possesses it has through the gift of its borrowed splendor. When you bring

forth the sun of righteousness, you are compared to the sun because of the close

likeness. Just as the body of the sun is not injured or diminished when it puts

forth its rays, so the bringing forth of the holy birth does not violate the mother.

And what, you who are glorious as the sun, what is your offspring but the eternal

splendor of a certain sun?…

Therefore, dear friend, all our confidence lies in the childbearing of our

Virgin and though I may be unworthy I shall not cease to dwell upon her praises.

If you stand in need of mercy, it is found in full measure in the heart of the

Virgin. If you reverence the truth, give thanks to the Virgin, since from the

ground of her virgin flesh the truth which you worship has arisen. No less give

thanks to the Virgin if you follow after peace, since from her is born for you the

peace which passes all understanding. If you pursue justice, see that you are

not ungrateful to the Virgin, for at the opening of her womb justice looked forth

from heaven. If your faith is shaken by some assault from an enemy, turn your

eyes upon the Virgin and that in which was wavering will be firmly fixed. If the

lust of the flesh delights you, turn your gaze upon the Virgin, and the danger to

your chastity is removed. If pride disturbs your spirit, turn your gaze upon the

Virgin, and by the merit of her unsullied humility your swelling spirit will

subside. If you are set on fire by anger’s torches, lift your eyes to the Virgin and

you will grow gentle through her calm. If ignorance or error have led you astray

from the way of life, look to Mary, star of the sea, and in her light you will be led

back to the path of truth… In every peril the goodness of the Virgin comes to

<our aid>. Give thanks…for us the Virgin brought forth, ours is the birth, for

us the child was born and to us the son was given.

2 Adam of Perseigne. The Letters of Adam of Perseigne. CF 21. Trans. Grace Perigo. Kalamazoo, MI: Cistercian

Publications, INC, 1976, 72-75.5