God bless you

M. Teresa, M.C.

(Inset image is a scan of her petition to Pope John Paul II.)

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St. Francis Xavier Cabrini († 1917) Foundress, and ardent missionary among the immigrants, has left a patrimony of pure and profound faith both by her example and her teachings. In an anthology on the words of Mother Cabrini treated by the wise theologian Giuseppe De Luca, (1) we find a harvest of simple but essential doctrine, animated by a "theological faith," writes Miotto, "lived ad intra in that most intimate dynamic of the love of the Holy Spirit, manifested and radiated ad extra in the dynamic of that labor of love translated into works of charity, into the active apostolate, into that unwearied missionary passion even to the end." (2)

After the inspired Word of Sacred Scripture and the doctrinal grace of the Catholic Catechism, I believe the third book that every Fatima devotee should have close at hand is the book of Sister Lucia, "Calls" From the Message of Fatima, which was released in English in 2002. A work truly directed by the Holy Spirit through the Immaculate Heart of Mary, "Calls" From the Message of Fatima constitutes a veritable Marian catechism of faith and life, written in a down to earth mode, which can be grasped by all members of the Faith and all people of good will. I have no personal doubt that Sister Lucia's recent masterpiece will eventually become a spiritual classic, rightfully identified as the fruits of a mystic and of a saint.

This veritable Fatima catechism which includes inspired treatments on "In the Presence of God" (Chapter 1); "Calls From the Message of Fatima" (Chapter 2); "The Ten Commandments" (Part III) and "The Rosary" (Part IV), provides so many spiritual insights that the only true danger is that one might overlook some of the individual pearls amidst the overall treasure.

It is for this reason that I would like to isolate one of the foundational pearls of Sister Lucia's great work for its deserved appreciation, namely her predominant mariological theme of Our Lady as the "Co-redemptrix of the human race." Second only to the Marian title of "The Immaculate Heart of Mary," Mary Co-redemptrix is the most often cited and principal Marian theme presented by Sister Lucia throughout the book. Our Lady's coredemptive role with and under Jesus Christ in the accomplishment of Redemption is explained and expounded upon throughout the text, and always in ways which bring new appreciation to the unique role of the Mother of Jesus, as the New Eve with and under the New Adam, in the accomplishment of our Redemption.

In this way, John Paul II indicates a new path for the theology of the third millennium, a path of reflection and of contemplation uniting inseparably the understanding of the Mystery of the faith (fides et ratio) and the loving experience of this same Mystery (fides et amor). (1)

From Francis of Assisi to Thérèse of Lisieux, the mystics are the great representatives of this lived theology of the saints. They transmit to the whole Church their profound knowledge of the Mystery of God the Trinity, of the God known and loved in Jesus Christ by means of the great work of his Love which is the Redemption of man. Immersed in the Infinite Love of Jesus, they are the best "knowers" (connaisseurs) they are authentically "theologians," that is to say "knowers (connaisseurs) of God." In fact, according to the words of the Apostle John, "he who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is Love" (cf. I Jn. 4:7-8).

This theology of the saints is like a beacon which sheds light on the whole Mystery of Jesus, from the first moment of the Incarnation in the virginal womb of Mary until his exaltation in the glory of the Resurrection, through all of the mysteries of his earthly life, and especially his Redemptive Passion. In this same light it is also possible to contemplate the countenance of Mary and to understand better her place in the Mystery of Christ and of the Church (cf. Lumen Gentium, VIII).

In the course of this brief article, we are going to utilize the "lived theology" of Thérèse of Lisieux in order to shed light on a delicate and important question, that of the cooperation of Mary and of the Church in the Mystery of the Redemption, which could also be called "coredemption."