Saint Bernard

Thy soul therefore was transpierced by a violent sorrow, in such a way that it is not without a reason that we proclaim thee more than a Martyr, thou in whom the feeling of corporal suffering was surpassed by the affectionate feeling of compassion.

Were not these words, penetrating so deep as to divide the soul from the spirit, more than a sword piercing thy soul; Mother, behold thy son. Oh! What an exchange! John is given thee instead of Jesus, the servant instead of the Lord, the disciple instead of the Master, the son of Zebedee rather than the Son of God a mere man rather than a true God.
How would hearing such words not have pierced your soul, affectionate beyond comparison, while mentioning them alone cruches our own hearts, our hearts of stone and iron?

When they arrived at the place called Calvary, they crucified him here.
However, by the cross of Jesus, was standing his mother. Then, the sword of sorrow transpierced her blessed soul.

(Sermon on the twelve stars)

This passage from the Holy Gospel is very meaningful to us Servants of Our Lady, and it makes us discover who is really the Blessed Virgin Mary.
"Behold thy Mother", said Jesus to Saint John who represented us all. We cannot take this words lightly; Christ gives us his Mother at the most pathetic moment of his mission here below.
A dying man does not speak trifling things; these are his last wishes which he dictates. Attached to the cross, he leaves us what is dearest to him on earth, giving us as our mother, his own Mother.

Therefore we, Servants of Our Lady, want to take Mary into our home in order to accomplish the last whish of Christ who invites us to take his own Mother into our home, after the example of Saint John.
That is why we open wide the doors of our lives to her, and we want to give her the place she deserves all through our days.

Attending her school, we know that in Her is found the perfect example to be followed, in order to more perfectly and more surely reproduce Christ into our lives. Then the Most Blessed Virgin Mary really becomes our educator.

In the Mystery of the Visitation, one can say that Mary is driven by the Holy Spirit. Through this very fact, She becomes the Messenger of God and still nowadays, we can see that it is still the same Holy Spirit that commissions Mary as the Messenger of God on the instances of her various Apparitions on the surface of the globe.

In fact, we notice it almost daily with the Apparitions of this Good Mother, of which is favored our very venerated Founder, Bishop Jean Marie. Every month, She comes and visits officially her people with the same charity, the same compassion.

She comes and reminds us the requirements of the Holy Gospel of her Divine Son and very often, moved by the same Holy Spirit, She prophesies on the events to come, in order to invite God's people to a true conversion.

That is why our Congregation, Fraternite Notre Dame, meditates very often both on the Passion of Our Lord and on the Compassion of Mary and her mediation, and finally on her sorrows.

"There were standing by the Cross of Jesus, his Mother and his mother's sister, Mary of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus, therefore, saw his Mother and the disciple standing by, whom he loved, he said to his Mother, "Woman, behold, thy Son". Then he said to the disciple, "Behold, thy Mother". And from that hour the disciple took her into his home."

(St John Ch 19 v 25-27)

Our devotion, our great love toward the Most Blessed Virgin Mary manifests itself externally by the fact that we solmnize the feasts that are consecrated to her, along with the first Saturday of each month, dedicated to her Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart.

We also solemnize the months of May and October, which are consecrated to her, and the 14th of each month. Everyday, we start with the song of the Ave Maris Stella as a sign of our consecration to her Amiable Person.

Each day, always, we recits the Holy Rosary, followed notably by the Litany of Lorette. After the great Hours of Divine Office, we psalmody a Request to Mary, which is proper to our Congregation.
On August 22, we celebrate the Feast of the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary, Mother, Patroness and Protectress of our Congregation.
We love and venerate images, icons and statues representing our Immaculate Mother.

Fraternite Notre Dame
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Copyright FND August 2005