Tuesday, June 10, 2008

To love St Anne is to love Our Lady


I had planned to talk about the inseparable connection between St Anne and her Immaculate daughter and then something happened that confirmed the timing of it. Over at 4Real, Melinda asked the question, What has the Blessed Mother...which continued on in the post as....been up to in your life lately? Interestingly enough Melinda mentioned St Anne. That the deepening in the knowledge of and love for her was also giving her a stronger connectedness to her blessed daughter (or that’s how I interpreted it.)

I followed by my own thoughts further down the post and found myself saying with great conviction, that to think of St Anne has to make me think of Our Lady, giving joy to both. And it is so true.

The Good St Anne manual has this to say:

“Veneration of St Anne is closely allied to veneration of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The feast of Mary’s nativity and presentation are in reality feasts of St Anne, as all praises referring to the daughter are directed also to the mother. Mary surpasses all the faithful in veneration, esteem and in tender and filial love for her holy mother. While Anne and Mary lived on earth, the bond of love that united their hearts was most ardent and intimate. Nor has this bond been dissolved in Heaven. Rather, it has been drawn still closer and has become indissoluble for all eternity.”

So these words have been great food for thought, for me as a True Devotee of Mary (St Louis deMontfort) Devotion to St Anne in particular is also another beautiful way to further honour Our Lady. It is within St Anne’s womb that the Immaculate Conception resided. As a true devotee we know it is a Christ centered devotion ultimately since in honouring and imitating Our Lady we are honouring and imitating Our Lord - she is His masterpiece, the one who never refused Him and His graces. Also Our Lord naturally upheld His own commandments to Divine perfection and so no one can outdo His own honour, respect and love He gave to His mother, we only seek to imitate Him. Devotion to St Anne is based on that same principle, to honour St Anne is to honour the daughter and to give her joy, since she loved her mother without fail in any way.

Here is a story from Good St Anne:

“Mary once appeared to one of her clients and asked her to add to her customary Rosary devotion an Our Father and Hail Mary in honor of Mary’s holy mother, St Anne. “Those who honor St Anne,” said Our Lady, “will obtain great aid in every need, especially at the hour of death.” To another person she said: “The Honor you show to my mother is doubly dear and pleasing to me.”

The learned Bollandists relate that a hermit who was especially devoted to the Blessed Virgin was once seized with bitter anguish of spirit. He fled for refuge to the Queen of Heaven. Radiant with splendor, Mary appeared to him and said: “Since you are lovingly devoted to me, I will take away all your grief and sorrow of soul, but I admonish you to venerate and praise my dear mother also, if you desire great graces from me. I am highly pleased with the affection accorded to my beloved mother. Know, too, that my Son, Jesus, has promised to deliver from misfortune all who honor my mother and to assist them in attaining eternal glory. My son, practice this devotion and make it known.”

After speaking these words, Mary vanished, leaving a heavenly perfume in the hermit’s cell. The anchorite faithfully complied with the request of the Virgin Mother. From that time on, to every greeting addressed to the Queen of Heaven, he added the prayer: “And blessed be thy sweet mother, Anne, from whom thou didst assume thy virginal flesh.”

If we wish to give Mary special joy, let us fervently venerate St Anne, for every child is pleased to see her mother honored.”


I would like to finish by saying that so many of the prayers to St Anne, mention Our Lady, it shows their intimate connection to one another, here are a few of them below.

A prayer in Honour of The Blessed Virgin and Saint Anne

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee, and may thy grace be with me! Blessed art thou among women, and blessed be St. Anne, thy mother who brought thee forth, O Virgin Mary, all immaculate, who didst give birth to Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God. Amen.

Novena Prayer to Saint Anne To obtain some special favour

O Glorious St. Anne, filled with compassion for those who invoke thee and with love for those who suffer, heavily laden with the weight of my troubles, I cast myself at thy feet and humbly beg of thee to take under thy special protection the present affair which I commend to thee.
(State your petition.)

Be pleased to commend it to thy daughter, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and lay it before the throne of Jesus, so that He may bring it to a happy outcome. Cease not to intercede for me until my request is granted. Above all, obtain for me the grace of one day beholding my God face to face and, and with thee and Mary and all the Saints, of praising and blessing Him for all eternity. Amen.

Good Saint Anne, mother of her who is our life, our sweetness and our hope, pray to her for us and obtain our request. (three times)
Good Saint Anne, pray for us.
Jesus, Mary, Anne.

Memorare to Saint Anne To obtain some special favour

Remember, O holy mother Saint Anne, that never was it known that anyone who fled to thy protection, implored thy help and sought thy intercession was left unaided, for thou art a most merciful mother and aid all who are in distress. Inspired with this confidence, I take refuge with thee and beseech thee, by thy great prerogative of being the mother of the Queen of Heaven and Grandmother of the Saviour of the world, come to my aid with thy powerful intercession, and obtain from thine Immaculate Daughter this favour (mention it). In honour of the nine months during which thou didst bear the ever-blessed Virgin in thy womb and brought her forth without stain of Original Sin, I now pray nine Hail Mary’s (Ave Marias), which I offer thee through my Guardian Angel. Amen.

Ave Maria (nine times)

Recommendation to Saint Anne

Hail, O illustrious Saint Anne, blessed among women because thou hadst the happiness of bearing in thy womb the holy and immaculate Virgin Mary, Mother of God. I participate in the joy thou didst experience on giving birth to her and offering her in the Temple to the Eternal Father. I pray thee, good mother, to present me to thy well-beloved Daughter and to her Son, Jesus. Be my protectress and advocate with Jesus and Mary; be my intercessor, my refuge, my consolation. Amen.

2 comments:

molly said...

I am so grateful for you educating me about St Anne. We have made an altar to her, and I have been praying to her daily.
Another wonderful post.

Shari said...

I am grateful, too. Your blog is like a mini-retreat, Anne. Very beautiful!