The Perfect Faith of Mary and the Power of Her Prayer

Remember, O most gracious Virgin Mary, that never was it known that anyone who fled to thy protection, implored thy help, or sought thy intercession, was left unaided. Inspired by this confidence, I fly unto thee, O Virgin of virgins, my Mother. To thee do I come, before thee I stand, sinful and sorrowful. O Mother of the Word Incarnate, despise not my petitions, but in thy mercy hear and answer me. Amen. 

The Memorare prayer. So ridiculously beautiful and so needed. I absolutely love how this prayer highlights that Mary never leaves us unaided when we call on her for help. What a comfort that is! I am sure all of us have experienced the pain and disappointment of a person in our life not showing up or being present. When someone changes plans, is no longer able to help, or even is intimidated by the magnitude of our struggles or load we bear, we suffer immensely and may even question our own worth. Am I not worthy of time? Am I meant to suffer alone? I imagine Mary very quietly but confidently answering all of these self-doubts instantly: You are worthy. The creator of time itself awaited your creation and entrance into this world. You are not alone in your suffering- did I not stand under the cross of my Son? Unite your passion with His. I am with you too as you bear your own suffering. 

Mary, so united to God, is a beacon of pure, unwavering faith. The Catechism reminds us that “By faith, man completely submits his intellect and his will to God. With his whole being man gives his assent to God the revealer.” (CCC143) Mary operates from a place of complete confidence in her perfect relationship with God as His mother, spouse and daughter. It is from the fullness of her Grace that she wants to share the light of faith with us.  The Catechism states that “the Virgin Mary most perfectly embodies the obedience of faith… Throughout her life and until her last ordeal when Jesus her son died on the cross, Mary's faith never wavered. She never ceased to believe in the fulfillment of God's word. and so the Church venerates in Mary the purest realization of faith.” (CCC149) This is the reason why Mary so quickly wants to give us reprieve and the peace of her Son. She, as Theotokos, bears the Holy Spirit to us so that through prayer the virtue of Faith could be rekindled by grace. 

We are asked to mirror Mary’s obedience to faith- trusting God with our life, and all of our sufferings. Through the intercession of Mary, we can ask for our faith to not waver. We can ask for deeper trust in Christ– that even if we feel the darkness creep in on our mind and start to engulf our heart, we can trust in Him who is our Light. Even in the old Testament, Christ’s triumph over all our darkness was foretold:

“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; upon those who dwelt in the land of gloom a light has shone. You have brought them abundant joy and great rejoicing …For the yoke that burdened them, the pole on their shoulder, and the rod of their taskmaster you have smashed, as on the day of Midian.” -Isaiah 9:1-6

In the core of her being, Mary knew this in the depths of her person. She knew that God’s light and goodness is unsurpassable, and she had unshakable faith and confidence in Him.  Although like us she was bound by the constraints of human cognition, she possessed supernatural faith. As she proclaimed to her cousin Elizabeth:

“My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour, for he has looked with favour on his lowly servant…He has come to the help of his servant Israel for he has remembered his promise of mercy, the promise he made to our fathers, to Abraham and his children forever.” -Luke 1: 46-56

As she was constantly in perfect communion with God, her light of faith never wavered. Even on the day when her very heart got wounded with incomprehensible pain from watching her son get humiliated, tortured and die on a cross, she remained constant in love. This is why we need Mary’s intercession and for her to tenderly bring the flame of faith from her Son into our hearts and minds. She is not intimidated by our wounds or brokenness. Instead, the more wounded and broken we are, the more she aches to fly to our aid.