In the year 352, during the pontificate of Pope Liberius, a Roman
couple, known for their deep faith and generosity to the poor, suffered the
sorrow of having no children. With no descendants to inherit their considerable
estate, they decided to place their goods in the hands of the Virgin Mary and
asked her to show them how to use them for the greater glory of God.
During the night of August 4–5, both the couple and Pope
Liberius are said to have received the same message: the Virgin desired a
church to be built for her in the place she herself would indicate.
That morning, in the middle of the Roman summer, the
Esquiline Hill appeared covered with snow. The Pope went in solemn procession
with the couple and following the outline the snow traced on the ground marked
the perimeter for the church to be built there in honor of Our Lady. For this
reason, the basilica built there was called Our Lady of the Snows. To this day,
the legend is commemorated with a shower of white rose petals which are showered
from the basilica’s ceiling.
Following the Council of Ephesus, at which Our Lady was
honored with the title Theotokos—the Gos bearer—Mother of God— the Basilica was
rededicated under the title Santa Maria Maggiore, Saint Mary Major.
No pilgrimage to Rome is complete without a visit to Our
Lady’s Basilica. It is breathtakingly beautiful, containing some of the oldest Christian
mosaics, relics of the crib of Bethlehem, the relics of St. Jerome who gave us
the latin translation of the scriptures which have been used for over 1500
years. It contains one of the most venerated Marian icons of Christendom: the
Salus Populi Romani, the Protectress of the Roman People.
Generations of the faithful and practically all the popes of
the modern era have prayed before this image. Benedict XIV went every Saturday
to sing the Marian litanies, while Saint Paul V asked to be taken before the
Virgin only hours before he died. Pope Francis would visit the image before and
after his apostolic visits to the various nations of the world, and is now
buried in the basilica near the image.
"Blessed is the womb that carried you and the breasts
at which you nursed." He replied, "Rather, blessed are those who hear
the word of God and observe it." Well, Our Lady did all these things, didn’t
she. She carried the Word made Flesh in her womb, she nursed Him, and also
heard and observed that Word.
The miracle of snows reminds us of Our Lady’s powerful
intercession, and to entrust our needs and our treasures to her. The dedication
of the basilica reminds us to honor her with beauty and devotion, to make
pilgrimage to her shrines, to seek to be near to her in life and in death, to be
nurtured and reared by her who nurtured and reared the Word made flesh, and
with her to hear the Word of God and observe it, for the glory of God and the
salvation of souls.
- - - - -
For the Church, our Holy Mother: That she may continue to
nurture and guide the faithful through her teachings and sacraments, bearing
Christ to the world in word and deed. Let us pray to the Lord.
For those who feel distant from the Church: That they may
experience anew the maternal love of Mary and the Church, finding their way
back to the family of faith. Let us pray to the Lord.
For vocations to the priesthood and religious life: That
many may respond generously to God's call to serve as instruments of His love
and mercy within Mother Church. Let us pray to the Lord.
That all government leaders may be awakened to the supreme
dignity of every human life, and that all people of our nation may work
together for an end to the culture of death.
That members of the Church may be attentive to the needs of
those who suffer, and that sick and the poor may be open to the merciful grace
of God.
For the deceased members of our families and parishes, for
all of the poor souls in purgatory, and for N., for whom this Mass is offered.
We pray, O Lord our God, that the Virgin Mary, who merited
to bear God and man in her chaste womb, may commend the prayers of your
faithful in your sight. Through Christ our Lord.
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