Lest You Remain

The childhood and youth of the future Founder of the Marians strengthened a conviction of Mary’s love for him and for all people. As a young priest in his con- ferences to Marian sodalities — in a style typical of the times, which today might cause some surprise — he spoke thus: “Truly many different virtues of the Most Blessed Virgin revealed themselves in visible ways at different occasions, yet her love for us and her invincible fortitude of spirit during the saddest times of her Son’s passion manifested themselves in a particular way. As far as love is con- cerned, I do not doubt that she was burning with such a desire to redeem mankind, that if it were necessary, she herself would supply the nails to fix her Son to the cross for our salvation” (Prodromus reginae artium). Certainly not a unique, but an important reason for Fr. Papczy<ski ’s choosing the Piarist Order, was its Marian spirit rightly expressed in its title “Poor Priests of the Order of Pious Schools of the Blessed Mother.” Father Stanislaus was absolutely fas- cinated by the spiritual beauty of Our Lady. He thus spoke of it in Inspectio cordis : “O my soul, up to this time you have benefited from books reflecting different aspects of learning; today review a new, fresh, and unseen Book—the Most Holy Mother of God, a Book—conceived, written, and embellished by God Himself. Could you pos- sibly find anywhere else something that is not found in Mary? Could anyone possibly give you more than what Mary has?” This poetic passage expresses the foundations of our Founder’s mariology: Mary is the archetype of God and the most perfect reflec- tion of His beauty and goodness. On this very axiom Fr. Stanislaus will base his con- viction of Mary’s Immaculate Conception as a singular grace granted to the Mother of God, the first of the redeemed. By granting Mary this unique grace, God wanted to show that He could save the world without any sort of human participation! For this reason Mary should rejoice with a particular admiration and veneration. In his Inspectio cordis Fr. Papczy<ski states that she must be more greatly honored by love than by word . Love is the necessary key to interpreting his public oblation of self to Mary as well as his vow of blood, namely, his willingness to lay down his life in the defense of the truth of her Immaculate Conception ( Oblatio ), as well as every other work that promotes devotion to the Mother of God. Although Fr. Stanislaus admitted that giving honor to Mary in speech was not enough, he himself took every opportunity to sing the praises of the Mother of God. His preserved sermon entitled “In Praise of the Virgin Mary Mother of God” was preached to members of a Marian Sodality. A beautiful discourse interweaves there- in together with a love for Mary, referring to the Fathers of the Church, with fruits of his own meditations on the mysteries of life of the Mother of God. He praises her holiness with a clear entreaty to imitate her faith and life. “Let no one expect to gaze on Mary in the heavenly home, who does not imitate her in this earthly exile, who did not always serve her with utmost zeal” ( Prodromus reginae artium ). Our Founder manifested his Marian spirit in this concise manner, establishing to some extent the L EST Y OU R EMAIN W ITHOUT W ORK IN THE V INEYARD OF THE L ORD 82