Meditation on Our Lady's Sorrows - Day Two

The Flight into Egypt

"And after they (the wise men) were departed, behold an angel of the Lord appeared in sleep to Joseph, saying: Arise and take the child and His mother and fly into Egypt: and be there until I shall tell thee. For it will come to pass that Herod will seek the child to destroy Him. Joseph arose and took the child and His mother by night, and retired into Egypt: and He was there until the death of Herod." – Matt. II, 13-14.
Meditation: Consider the sharp sorrow which Mary felt when, St. Joseph being warned by an angel, she had to flee by night in order to preserve her beloved Child from the slaughter decreed by Herod. What anguish was hers, in leaving Judea, lest she should be overtaken by the soldiers of the cruel king! How great her privations in that long journey! What sufferings she bore in that land of exile, what sorrow amid that people given to idolatry! But consider how often you have renewed that bitter grief of Mary, when your sins have caused her Son to flee from your heart.

Say one Ave Maria [Hail Mary] Try to think upon the sorrow your Mother underwent for your sake and offer your prayers in reparation for the neglect and lack of love of many. Amen+

Beautiful Holy Card

Another gem from Holy Cards for your Inspiration. Thank you Micki!

Meditation for the Month of Holy Souls II

(photo credit)

The Flight Into Egypt

"When the Magi had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream He said, "Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there till I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him." Joseph rose and took the child and his mother by night, and departed to Egypt, and remained there until the death of Herod. Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, was in a furious rage. He sent and killed all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or under. But when Herod died, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt. "Rise, take the child and his mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the child's life are dead." And he rose and took the child and his mother, and went to the land of Israel." Matthew 2:13-21.

When I think of this sorrow of Mary's I try to place myself into the scene. I imagine myself to be a small servant girl, employed by the Holy Family, the lowliest and least of all. Picture St. Joseph, head of the family, suddenly roused from sleep, moving quickly to wake his wife and bid her to gather their son. "We must flee now to save the Child!" Mary who is perfectly obedient, does not question her holy husband, but quickly does as he directs. No time to take much at all - no their lot is of pure trust in God's providence - surely He will provide for all our needs on such a perilous journey into the unknown. Shuffle along after this holy trio who grab what they can and rush out the door, into the darkness toward Egypt. Walk beside them in fear and trepidation for the life of this little innocent One. Feel the cold wind blow through your hair. Look up at the stars in the black sky. Feel the still warm sand on your feet....imagine the sorrow of leaving all you know, family, customs, language and faith for a place you've never been, fleeing for the life of a small baby, such a beautiful baby.

"Haste! Make haste, for the wolves are at the door!"

Flight Into Egypt II

"O God, must he who came to save men now flee from them?" ~St. Albert the Great

We can only poorly imagine the agony that Mary and Joseph underwent at their impending exile away from all and everything they knew. This sentiment is nicely put by St. Peter Chrysologus: "Flee from your friends to the abode of strangers; flee from the temple of God to the shrines of demons! O what tribulation for a newborn Infant, still at his mother's breast, to have to flee into a foreign land!"

Biblical scholars differ in opinion regarding the location of the Holy Family during their stay in Egypt. Brocard and Jansenius claim they lived in Matarea. St. Anselm records the residence at Heliopolis, or at Memphis, now the city of Cairo. The bible does not record anything of the poverty which must have been their companion there - they were strangers, without income, perhaps barely able to support themselves. St. Basil describes their situation thus: "Since they were destitute it is obvious that they must have worked very hard to provide themselves with the necessities of life."

Upon the death of Herod, the angel again appeared to Saint Joseph, instructing him to take his wife and the child back to Judea. At this time Jesus would have been seven years old. We can think with confidence that this too would have been a great suffering. A child of seven is too big to carry, but is yet too small to walk long distances. The Holy Family's return must have been a labor of joy mingled with great suffering and trial.

Saint Colette was graced with a mystical vision of the Blessed Virgin Mary, who: "showed her the Infant Jesus in a basin, bruised and mutilated. Mary said to her: 'This is the way sinners continually treat my dear son , renewing his death and my sorrows. My daughter, you must pray for them so that they will be converted."

Another vision granted to Ven. Joanna of Jesus and Mary: "One day, when she was meditating on the Infant Jesus persecuted by Herod, she heard a loud noise, like that of armed men pursuing someone. Immediately she saw before her a beautiful child all out of breath and running, who exclaimed: 'O Joanna, help me, conceal me! I am Jesus of Nazareth, I am fleeing from these sinners who wish to kill me and persecute me as Herod did. Please save me!'

(Source: The Glories of Mary by St. Alphonsus de Ligouri)

Prayer

Jesus and Mary, my two sweet loves, for you I will suffer; for you I will die; I am entirely yours and in nothing my own. ~St. Alphonsus Rodriguez

The Flight Into Egypt

"Your hair is like draperies of purple; a king is held captive in its tresses." (Cant 7:5)

This passage has been used to refer to Mary's constant thoughts regarding the passion of Jesus. The skin torn by whips, the blood that would be sacrificed were always before her eyes. This the second sword to pierce the heart of Mary was her son himself.

Having heard that the King of Jerusalem was born, Herod feared he would lose his kingship over the people. St. Fulgentius writes of this: "Why are you disturbed, Herod? The King who is born does not come to conquer kings by the sword. He will subjugate them in a most remarkable manner by his death." When King Herod realized he had been decieved by the magi who did not return as he had asked, he decreed that all male babies under the age of two be cruelly massacred. It was due to this that the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph: "Arise, and take the child and his mother, and flee into Egypt" (Mt 2:13). St. Joseph, a strong and wise protector, immediately did as he was instructed. "He arose and took the child and his mother, by night, and withdrew into Egypt" (Mt 2:14).

We see here that the persecution of Jesus begins right after his birth and the prophesy of Simeon begins to unfold: "He is set for a sign that shall be contradicted" (Lk 2:34). What suffering this exile must have been for Mary and Joseph. They left behind their family, friends, home, land, culture and language. They went to a place where they knew no one, did not speak the language, and all this in fear for the life of their newborn son.

Some experts estimate the journey to have been 400 miles, a journey of no less than 30 days. The road with rough, unknown and rarely traveled. It was winter, requiring traversing through snow, rain, wind - without servants, without enough supplies for the duration. Imagine the very young and delicate Blessed Virgin with her newborn infant swaddled in her arms, her husband at her side, wandering through the wilderness. What did they eat? Where did they sleep? According to St. Bonaventure: "They were probably satisifed with a hard piece of bread, either brought along by Joseph or begged as alms. Thy only place they could have slept along the road, especially through two hundred miles of desert where there were no houses or inns, was on the sand or under a tree, in the open air and exposed to the dangers of robbers and wild animals with which Egypt abounded. If anyone had met these three - the greatest of all personages in the world - would he not have thought that they were but three poor wandering beggars?"

The thought of Jesus with his parents wandering as fugitives amidst foreign lands teaches us that we also are to live as pilgrims on this side of the vale. "Here we have no permanent city, but seek for the city that is to come" (Heb 13:14). Or as St. Augustine said: "You are only a guest here. You glance around and then pass on." Or even better, from the lips of the Blessed Virgin Mother herself to Bl. Veronica of Binasco: "Daughter, you have seen how difficult it was for us to reach this country {Egypt}. Learn from this that no one receives graces without suffering."

Prayer

My most sweet Mother, let me have tears to weep over my ingratitude. By the sufferings you endured on that journey to Egypt, help me in the journey I now have to make to eternity so that I may finally be united to you in loving my persecuted Savior in the kingdom of the blessed. Amen+

Visions of St. Bridget III

Flight Into Egypt

Visions of St. Bridget of Sweden

(1303-1373)

(Source: Revelations of St. Bridget by TAN Books)

Our Lady's second sorrow, the fight into Egypt was discussed personally by Our Lord in a conversation He had with St. Bridget. We are reminded by these words of what happened directly after the infant Jesus was taken by Mary and Joseph into exile - the slaughter of the innocents. We learn more of the import of this tragic happening and of what good the Lord in His mercy wrought through such an unspeakable act of evil.

A few words regarding private revelation: These writings bear the Church's Imprimatur and have been widely disseminated and promulgated by Holy Mother Church. It is not wise nor prudent to reject such things as personal revelation that we are not required to believe in. Although there is no requirement - we must not despise such things either, but rather approach with prayerful discernment.

Jesus speaks: "By My flight into Egypt, I showed the infirmities of My humanity, and fulfilled the prophecies; I gave, too, an example to My disciples, that sometimes persecution is to be avoided for the greater future glory of God. That I was not found by My pursuers, the counsel of My Deity prevailed over man's counsel, for it is not easy to fight against God. That the innocents were slain was a sign of My future Passion, a mystery of those to be called, and of divine charity; for though the innocents did not bear testimony unto Me by voice and mouth, yet they did by their death, as agreed with My childhood; because it was foreseen that even in the blood of innocents, praise should be perfected to God. For though the malice of the unjust unjustly afflicted them, yet My divine permission, ever just and benignant, exposed them only justly, to show the malice of men and the incomprehensible counsel and piety of My divinity. Therefore, when unjust malice wreaked itself on the children, there justly superabounded merit and grace; and where the confession of the tongue and age were wanting, there the blood shed accumulated the most perfect good."

Prayer

O Lord, hear my prayer and let my cry come unto You.
O Lord Jesus Christ,

once You embraced and placed Your hands upon the little children

who came to You, and said: "Suffer the little children to come unto Me,

and forbid them not, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven,

and their angels always see the face of my Father!"

Look now with fatherly eyes on the innocence of children and their

parents' devotion, and bless them this day through your mercy.

In Your grace and goodness let them advance continually,

longing for You, loving You, fearing You, keeping Your commandments.

Then they will surely come to their destined home,

through You, Savior of the world.

Who lives and reigns forever and ever.

Amen+
(Taken from the Church's official blessing of children of the Feast of the Holy Innocents, included in the Roman Ritual.)