1. God is the primary origin of all holiness. But the Blessed Virgin gave us Jesus, Who is our Redeemer, and the author of grace. For this reason she may be called the source of grace, the divine aqueduct, as St. Bernard puts it, through which the supernatural life of grace is brought to us. (In adv. Domini, Serm. 2, n.5) She was, moreover, full of grace and outstanding in holiness; as the Mother of God she can obtain anything for us from her divine Son, because “it is the will of God that we receive everything through the hands of Mary.” (St. Bernard, In Nativ. B.M.V., Serm., n. 7) Thirdly, even by her example she can be the source of sanctity for us. If we study her amazing humility, we shall learn to be humble, for our sinfulness gives us such good reason to humble ourselves. If we meditate on her spotless purity we shall experience a great desire and love for this beautiful virtue and shall have recourse to her in every danger to save us from impurity. Then let us reflect on her …More