Fr. Thomas M. Pastorius
October 19, 2014
Spiritual Ponderings
Images of Blessed Virgin Mary

As we continue to learn more about God by exploring Jesus’ relationship with His mother let us once again reflect on a different image of Mary.

The third image I would like to look at is called Our Lady of Garden from Genoa, Italy. For help in our exploration we will be using The Other Faces of Mary: Stories, Devotions, and Pictures of the Holy Virgin Around the World by Ann Ball.

The image of Mary known as “Our Lady of the Garden” actually does not depict the Blessed Virgin Mary in a garden. The painting receives its name from the location the painting originally hung – a small garden (City Park) in Genoa, Italy.

Maria de Quercio made a vow to God that if her family escaped the cholera epidemic she would create an outward shrine to the Blessed Virgin Mary in gratitude. As part of the shrine, she had a painting of the Blessed Virgin Mary commissioned by Renaissance painter Benedict Borzone. The image became a place where people came to pray for healing during a horrible epidemics.

The image in a special way depicts the last petition of the Hail Mary: “Pray for us sinners now and at the hour of death,” because Mary’s hand is directing the Christ child’s hand in making the Sign of the Cross (or in other words in blessing the city).

“When the Divine enters into the human, then the souls thinks less of asking than of loving Him. The lover seeks no favors from the beloved; Mary has no petitions but only praise. As the souls becomes detached from things and is conscious of itself and of its destiny, it knows itself only in God” – Fulton Sheen

Hail Mary! Daughter of God the Father.
Hail Mary! Mother of God the Son.
Hail Mary! Spouse of God the Holy Ghost.
Hail Mary! Temple of the Most Blessed Trinity.
Hail Mary! Pure Lily of the Effulgent Trinity, God.
Hail Mary! Celestial Rose of the ineffable Love o God.
Hail Mary, Immaculate! Conceived without sin!
Hail Mary, Full of Grace, The Lord is with thee!
Hail Mary! Virgin pure and humble, of whom the King of Heaven willed to be born and with thy milk to be nourished.
Hail Mary! Virgin of virgins.
Hail Mary! Queen of Martyrs, whose soul as sword transfixed.
Hail Mary! Lady most blessed, unto whom all power in Heaven and earth is given.
Hail Mary! My Queen and my Mother! My life, my sweetness and my hope.
Hail Mary! Mother most amiable.
Hail Mary! Mother most admirable.
Hail Mary! Mother of Divine Love.
Blessed art thou among women and blessed is the Fruit of thy womb, Jesus!
Blessed be thy spouse, Saint Joseph.
Blessed be thy father, Saint Joachim.
Blessed be thy mother, Saint Anne.
Blessed be thy guardian, Saint John.
Blessed be thy holy angel, Saint Gabriel.
Glory be to God the Father, Who chose thee.
Glory be to God the Son, Who loved thee.
Glory be to God the Holy Spirit, Who espoused thee.
O Glorious Virgin Mary,
May all men love and praise thee.
Holy Mary, Mother of God, Pray for us and bless us,
Now and at death, in the Name of Jesus, thy Divine Son.
(Composed by St. John Eudes - 1601 to 1680.)