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The Memorare

The Rosary gets all the good press among Western Catholics, and rightly so, probably. Our Lady has a funny way of appearing and telling us to pray it. Fair enough.

For my devotion recently, the Memorare is becoming my favorite Marian prayer. I'm taking into account my situation, my strengths and weaknesses, and other things.

We are told in Scripture to "pray unceasingly". St. (Mother) Teresa of Calcutta, along with St. Therese of Lisieux, teach us to do little things with great love. St. Jose Maria Escriva gave us a whole spirituality of divinizing the ordinary.

God is not some ethereal ogre that I must placate and visit periodically; he's with me and for me, right here, and right now. By the mystery of His great love, he elevates you and me to sit in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus. I do not know your crosses, but I know that I am tempted with discouragement when the tasks of the day seem especially arduous. There is a time to grow in fortitude, and I'm thankful for those opportunities. And yet, little soul, if you cannot pray 50 prayers, pray 3, or one. If we can never return to Jesus the love He's given, it is for us to give our small portion back, rather than to despair of our smallness, and to give Him nothing.

I can give to God in these moments my widow's mite, and He is pleased. And I can do it throughout a day. And if we do this, we find that we have become great warrior souls of prayer, one small prayer at a time!
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