Theological Foundations new file

161 Marian Character and souls. What truly matters is real virtue rather than famous deeds. What truly matters is not the gifts and talents that we possess or the offices we hold, but how we use the gifts that were given to us. What we admire in Mary is not her knowledge, riches, or a gift of eloquence, but her love of God and fidelity in both her exterior and spiritual life. She obeyed God’s law, prayed, accepted and fulfilled any tasks associated with the service of the Lord, took great care to preserve the purity of her soul, united her external and her spiritual life and thus elevated it to pre- eminence. Even though she tried to be the smallest here on earth, she became the greatest in the Kingdom of God. 76 In order to encourage us to imitate Mary, especially in her ordinary life and the plain day-to-day routine, Father Matulaitis-Matulewicz leads us to Nazareth. The house in Nazareth is clean and filled with an air of work. It is poor, but tidy. Jesus is at the center of everything. Mary and Joseph work for Him. On the outside, they are not different than other families, but there is a difference in the way they do everything. Everything takes place in an atmosphere of love, purity and modesty. Mary is occupied with housework, Joseph works in his workshop, and Jesus helps both of them. There are no harsh words there, no quarrels, no slander. There is no idleness, wasting time, or conversations about tri- fling matters. The house is filled with the spirit of prayer, with the Spirit of God and His matters. We must transport this atmosphere to our reli- gious houses and make each one of them like the house in Nazareth. 77 As we studied the particular elements of Father Stanislaus’s and Father George’s teachings on the Mother of God, we could easily see how precious to their hearts the figure of the Blessed Virgin Mary was. Father Papczynski called Mary “the Mother of God,” “the Immaculately Conceived One,” “the Virgin Most Chosen” and contemplated her in the entire depth of her unique mystery. It was also his desire that we would all imitate her in what was the song of her life, her delights and sacri- fices. Father Matulaitis-Matulewicz, too, exhibited great veneration for Mary. He showed ardent love and great honor for her Immaculate Conception. He made Mary a special patroness of the renovated con-