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The Light of the World
As the royal bride is escorted from her father’s house by a resplendent procession, she is
followed by so vast a multitude that the Psalmist sees before his eyes the peoples of all nations.
All the cities of the world are represented. Led by the queen, the Church, they will be brought
to the palace of the King. To her, sons will be born of water and the Holy Ghost. She will be the
mother of many children, the Church of innumerable saints, who will carry the message of the
royal bridegroom to the ends of the earth. As the years pass, more men and nations will join
the long procession which is marching to Sion to pay homage to the divine King. They, too, are
to enjoy His love and generosity. “Let all the earth adore Thee, O God, and sing to Thee; let it
sing a psalm to Thy name, O Most High” (Introit).
The various dioceses of the world, the parishes, the religious communities, the individual souls
of men are also daughters of the King. The more intimately united they are with the bride of
Christ, the queen, the Church of Rome, the more fruitful will be their union with Christ.
The palace in which the bride is united to the bridegroom is the house of God. The
throne at which the marriage takes place is the altar. “Forget thy people and thy father’s house.”
Leave all, offer all, give all that you have. Then thou canst partake of the wedding feast of Holy
Communion, which is the foundation of our participation in the eternal and blessed life that
is to come.
The escort of the bride is the Holy Spirit. He it is who forges the bond of love between the
bride and the bridegroom. He clothes the soul in the wedding garment of sanctifying grace and
makes her fit to become the bride of Christ. “The charity of God is poured forth in our hearts,
by the Holy Ghost who is given to us” (Rom 5:5). Blessed art thou, O heavenly bride. Thou
art obedient to Him in all things, completely possessed by Him, giving undivided affection to
Him; thou art fruitful to Him in spiritual children, in virtue, in good works. “Forget thy people,
and thy father’s house.” Leave all earthly things, leave flesh and blood, and live for Him alone.
Prayer
Shout with joy to God, all the earth, sing ye a psalm to His name. Come and hear, all ye who
fear God, and I will tell you what great things He hath done for my soul, alleluia. (Offertory.)
Wednesday
“At that time there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee; and the mother of Jesus was there. And
Jesus also was invited, and His disciples, to the marriage” (Gospel). In the union of Christ, the
Son of God, to humanity, Mary played a leading role. In the liturgy she herself is the bride whom
the Lord chose, the new Eve alongside the new Adam, Christ. In admiration the Church in her
liturgy gazes untiringly on Mary, on the picture which the Psalmist describes: “The daughters
of kings have delighted Thee in Thy glory. The queen stood on thy right hand in gilded clothing,
surrounded with variety” (Ps 44:10).
Mary is the royal bride to whom the Father entrusted His Son, the King of Glory. From the
very first moment of her existence, the Father began to prepare her for her union with His Son.
Never did the stain of sin touch the future bride. Immaculately she was conceived, free from
all inordinate passions, shining with the brilliance of the choicest gifts of mind and heart. The
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