From a Letter by St. Ambrose to Pope Siricius
But why should it be incredible that Mary,
contrary to the usage of natural birth, should bring forth and yet remain a
virgin; when contrary to the usage of nature, the sea saw and fled, and the
floods of Jordan retired to their source. It should not exceed our belief that
a virgin should bring forth, when we read that a rock poured forth water, and
the waves of the sea were gathered up like a wall. Nor need it, again, exceed
our belief that a man should be born of a virgin, when a running stream gushed forth
from the rock, when iron swam upon the waters, and a man walked upon them. If
therefore the waves carried a man, could not a virgin bring forth a man? But
what man? Him of Whom we read, The Lord shall send them a Man Who shall deliver
them; and the Lord shall be known to Egypt. Wherefore in the old Testament a
Hebrew virgin led the people through the sea, in the New Testament a royal
virgin was elected to be a heavenly abode for our salvation.
From St. Ambrose: Concerning Virginity: Book 2:
Chapter 2
Let, then, the life of Mary be as it were
virginity itself, set forth in a likeness, from which, as from a mirror, the
appearance of chastity and the form of virtue is reflected. From this you may
take your pattern of life, showing, as an example, the clear rules of virtue:
what you have to correct, to effect, and to hold fast.
The first thing which kindles ardor in learning is
the greatness of the teacher. What is greater than the Mother of God? What more
glorious than she whom Glory Itself chose? What more chaste than she who bore a
body without contact with another body? For why should I speak of her other
virtues? She was a virgin not only in body but also in mind, who stained the
sincerity of its disposition by no guile
HOMILY: ST. BEDE: Visitation BVM: Homily 2
“My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, and
my spirit rejoices in God my savior. With these words, Mary first acknowledges
the special gifts she has been given. Then she recalls God’s universal favors,
bestowed unceasingly on the human race. When a man devotes all his thoughts to
the praise and service of the Lord, he proclaims God’s greatness. His
observance of God’s commands, moreover, shows that he has God’s power and
greatness always at heart.
His spirit rejoices in God his savior and delights
in the mere recollection of his creator who gives him hope for eternal
salvation. These words are often for all God’s creations, but especially for
the Mother of God. She alone was chosen, and she burned with spiritual love for
the son she so joyously conceived. Above all other saints, she alone could
truly rejoice in Jesus, her savior, for she knew that he who was the source of
eternal salvation would be born in time, in her body, in one person both her
own son and her Lord.
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