St Philip High School - Statuette Yearbook (Battle Creek, MI)

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gif, f gl . 9' X G 9- , 9' .gn T0 JESUS THROUGH MARY O, Man, even the angels envy you! Almighty God so loved you that He gave His only Son as a ransom for your sins. His Son, in turn, gave His own Mother to be your Mother. He filled her hands with all the graces that have come, that are here, and that will come. Mary is the Gift of God to men. He who uses that ever-precious Gift well, shall discover the secret of sanctity. Whosoever shall find Mary, shall find Christ, the Lord. The entrance of Mary into life was beautiful like the dawn of a spring morn- ingg she was a child of God's love. 1 The ugly scar of original sin had never marred the spotless purity of her soul, conceived immaculate. This soul was as a price- less jewel shooting forth dazzling rays of virtue to the throne of God, the Father, Who watched her grow in age and wisdom and when- the appointed time had come, the heavenly voice of His own messenger broke the stillness, Ave! The begin- ning of a new era of grace and joy was here at last. As the little snowdrop, when the first warm rays of the sun kiss the frozen earth, wakes up from wintry drowsiness and heralds the coming of spring, so this angelic Salutation announces the arrival of a second spring for the human race. 2 No many months later, in a damp cave near Bethlehem, the Infant King slept in Mary's arms. To us through one of us. Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with Thee! How near Christ is to us when we are near Mary. A flood of joy surged through Mary's as she lifted the tiny Child from the straw and held Him to her heart. Grace after grace had been offered her and she had accepted them all, Each day, she ad- vanced in virtue. She possessed the foundation virtue of humility in the high- est degree. The other virtues were wa- tered by it and grew to their capacity within her. Her soul became as a lovely rosebud, growing more beautiful each moment, until its petals burst forth in full-blown glory full of grace. A soul that is full of grace is also full of love for the more grace a soul has, the closer it is to God Who is the essence of love. 3How close the soul of Mary must then be to God. How dearly He must love this Child of Perfection to send His only Divine Son to a sinful world through her. How dearly He must love those who love her who bore the Light of the World! The words from the Litany of Lor- etto, Mediatrix of all Grace, pray for us, imply a great secret. Mary gave being and life to the Author of all grace.. . God the Father from Whom every per- fect gift and all grace come, as from its essential source, has given all graces to Mary by giving her His Son. 4 There- fore Mary is the Universal Treasurer of grace. Through her hands, all grace flows, is administered and distributed. This beautiful title, Mediatrix of All Grace also implies that because she was the Mother of God in the natural order, she is our spiritual Mother in the order of grace. In her, Christ, the Head of the Mystical Body was formed. Since it is impossible to form the head without the members, it is also Mary's duty to form the members, all true Christians. Without grace and truth, no one can possibly hope to be a true brother in Christ. Mary possesses this grace needed in its fullness and because the heart of Mary cherishes for us a love such as no earthly mother could have for her children, her hands full of grace are ever extended to each of her spiritual children. O Lady, thou art the dispenser of all graces, our salvation is in Thy hands. 5 When Mary answered l do to God's proposal, she became not only the Mother of Joy but the Mother of Sorrow. From the moment Simeon's prophetic sword pierced her tender heart until She saw her only Son sealed into a cold tomb, Mary walked in the shadow of the Cross. None of us will ever have to endure the choking agony she endured standing on the barren Golgotha and staring in dis- belief at the raw, writhing Body hanging in shame before her. So intensely did she suffer with Christ, that she can truly be called the Co-Redemptrix of the human race. God has told us that if we would follow Him, we must take up our cross. How many times have we fallen under it Qthough it is indeed light, and what better place can we find the courage to lcontinued on page 741

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S E I 0 R S LEO WILSON AUDETTE Class Treasurer 2: Football 2, 43 Basketball 2: Christmas Play 3g Choir 4g Pep Meeting 2,3,4g Glee Club 4. RICHARD LEE BECKER Basketball I,2, 3,4g Baseball 2g Varsity Club 3g Columbian Squires Ig Halloween Dance Committee. CATHERINE ANN BOGOSOFF Music Festival 4g Glee Club I,4. JAMES WILLIAM BOND Honor Student I, 2, 3. 4: Statuette Staff 43 Latin Club Christmas Play I, 4. l 1 8