Our Blessed Mother, Mother of virtues…
Dear sisters and brothers in Jesus Christ,
The great soul prays, ‘Lord, make me as big as my problems.” The little soul prays, ‘Lord, let me off easy”.
The giant soul prays, “Lord, give me strength sufficient for a hard day”, while the small soul begs, “Lord let me have lighter load”.
The busy soul prays, ‘Lord, stand with me until I finish my work”, while the weak soul says, “I got tired and quit”.

As we celebrate the feast of Our Lady of Health, Vailankanni at the renowned Shrine of the Blessed Virgin Mary, I pray to Our Blessed Mother that she may bless each one of you and give you good health of mind and body. It is the birthday of our blessed Mother and this day is significant as the whole human race is blessed and the course of history changed. So Elizabeth greeted, “Blessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit of your womb” Luke 1:42. Born as a human being and being privileged to be the chosen one to bear the Lord, she remains as the hope of every human being to regain the dignity lost due to the disobedience of our first parents.

The condition of human beings today is no better than it was during the time of the people of the past. We persist in sin and selfishness. We have our interior motive and our actions flow from it. Our secret agenda is not doing God’s will; but rather centered around fulfilling our desire. It is not possible to receive God’s blessings if we ourselves are centered on our desires. A complete self denial is the most conducive atmosphere for God to act with in us. Our Blessed Mother said, “ Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be done with me according to your word” Lk 1:38

The virtue of purity remains the central part of Our Blessed Mother’s call. Conceived without sin, she lived in holiness, and was assumed to heaven in blessedness. St.Cyprian writes, “Chastity is the flower of the church, the beauty of spiritual grace, happiness, the incorrupt and complete work of praise and honour. It is the image of God, corresponding to the holiness of God; it is the noblest part of God’s flock”. Our Blessed Mother stands as a model for purity and holiness. It is a rare privilege conferred by God on the Virgin Mary to be sinless. She gives the hope and strength to human beings to surrender their natural desire and their life for the sake of God and His Kingdom. It is a surrender of oneself for a cause that is the cause of the kingdom The Blessed Virgin Mary practised the virtue of humility all through her life. Though she was to bear the Son of God, a rare privilege for a Jewish mother she remained humble and unassuming. After the annunciation her immediate response was, “He looked with favour on the lowliness of his servant” Lk 1:48. It is a complete surrender of the creature to the creator. She realized the greatness of God and the smallness of herself. It is this realization that made her the woman par excellence. As we boast about our small achievements we are to look at Our Blessed Mother and learn to be humble and modest.

Our Blessed Mother remains as the mother who followed deeply the Virtue of charity. As human beings tend to be closed and selfish, charity has become a rare virtue. Our Blessed Mother gave up all that a human being would like to have legitimately and throughout her life she willingly renounced everything and always showed concern for others. Her charity reached infinite heights in her offering of her Son to the world as a victim and thus as every charity is painful she experienced the height of deprivation in her life. How far we have measured us to her standards? Our Blessed Mother is full of love and concern, that is shown in her life and in her apparitions. In the case of Vailankanni, Our Blessed Mother appeared to help the people in need and who were helpless.

Our Blessed Mother practiced the virtue of forgiveness. In a world of hatred and malice, the Virgin Mary teaches us to forgive all people. Imbued with charity she remains as the model for unconditional forgiveness at the moment of hurt and humiliation. From the moment of annunciation she had to undergo innumerable sufferings and even threat to her life. She had sensed the growing opposition among the people towards her son and his imminent death. Seeing her son suffering from excruciating pain and agony, would be the most heart rendering experience in her life and her response was pleading for forgiveness for the accusers.

In this time of the feast of our patroness Our Lady of Good health, I wish and pray that we emulate the virtues of Our Blessed Mother and become more like her in her life and charity. I also pray that all who pray to Our Lady of Good Health may experience the joy of their prayers being heard.

God bless you,

Most Rev. Dr. M. Devadass Ambrose
Bishop of Thanjavur