The Most Holy Name of Mary

THE MOST HOLY NAME OF MARY The name, MARY was decreed and formed by the three Divine Persons from the beginning before ages, with delight. God Himself who gave the Name, Mary to our Lady explains to the Venerable Mother Mary of Agreda in a vision as He says:  “Our Chosen One shall be called MARY, and this Name is to be powerful and significant. Those that shall invoke it with devout affection shall receive most abundant graces; those that shall honour it and pronounce it with reverence shall be consoled and vivified, and will find in it the remedy for evils the treasures for their enrichment, light which shall guide them to heaven. It shall be terrible against the power of hell, it shall crush the head of the serpent and it shall win glorious victories over princes of hell. ” Our Lady herself says to the Visionary Mary of Agreda: “Be very devout towards my most sweet Name. I wish that thou be convinced of the great prerogatives and privileges, which Almighty God concedes to it, so that I myself, when I saw them in the Divinity, felt most deeply obliged to and solicitous to make a proper returns, and whenever the Name MARY occurred to my mind and whenever I heard myself called by that name I was roused to thankfulness and urged to new fervor in the service of the Lord who gave it to me.” St Alphonsus de Liguori, also affirmed that in his Book titled, THE GlORIES OF MARY Saying: “The great name of Mary, which was given to the Divine Mother, did not come to her from her parents, nor was it given to her by the mind or will of man, as it is the case with all other names that are imposed in this world, but it came from heaven, and was given by a divine ordinance.” St Bernard raises his heart to our Lady saying, “O great! O pious! O thou who art worthy of all praise! O most Holy Virgin Mary! Thy name is so sweet and amiable, that it cannot be pronounced without inflaming those who do so with love towards thee and God.” With regard to its power over the devil, Thomas à Kempis said that,”the devils fear the Queen of heaven to such a degree that only on hearing her great name pronounced, they fly from him who does so as from a burning fire.” Our Lady herself revealed to  St Bridget “that there is not on earth a sinner, however devoid he may be of the love of God, from whom the devil is not obliged immediately to fly, if he invokes her holy name with a determination to repent. On the power of the sweet name of Mary during life and at hour of death, St Alphonsus de Liguouri says; “The most holy name of Mary is sweet indeed to her clients during life, on account of the very great graces that she obtains for them. But sweeter still will it be to them in death on account of the tranquil and holy end that it will insure them.” From Etymological point of view, St Bonaventure interpretes the Name Mary as a bitter sea to the demons;  to men She is the Star of the sea; while to the Angels She is illuminatrix, and to all creatures She is Lady ." [St. Bonaventure +1274] The Feast of the Most Holy Name of Mary originated in Spain and was granted Papal Indult by Pope Julius II to the Diocese of Cuenta in1513.  It was assigned with proper Office on September 15, the Octave of Our Lady’s Nativity. In 1683, Pope Innocent XI extended the feast to the Universal Church  to be celebrated on the 12th of September. It is now celebrated as an Optional Memorial. O Clement! O Loving! O Sweet Virgin Mary!