Carmelites at the Foot of the Cross with Mary
The final showdown, so to speak, was on Calvary, between Christ and the evil one. Our Lady took her stand at the foot of the Cross. In the midst of what seemed like hopeless, most humiliating, scandalous defeat, she remained faithful. Could Our Lord have loved the Blessed Virgin any more than in those last moments when she stood faithful in love for Him Who loved mankind to such a bitter end?
Though Jesus saved everyone on the Cross, He will not force His salvation on anyone; it has to be wanted. Every person must choose to be saved – this is precisely where Our Lady comes in. Christ willed that she become Mother of Souls at the foot of the Cross; so He also wills that she – the New Eve, Mother of all the living – individually mother each soul in its unique struggle to secure salvation. She stands by each person as he battles the ancient enemy, just as she will stand with all mankind in the final battle it undergoes with the antichrist.
Carmel is Mary’s Order. Those who belong to her in her Order, necessarily stand beside her in her perennial battle against the serpent, announced in the “protoevangelium” (cf. Genesis 3:15). Can there be a greater call, a greater glory, a greater love than to join forces with the New Eve in winning souls for the New Adam? Carmelites, then, stand firm with Mary at the foot of the Cross, faithful in love for their Redeemer, for the salvation of souls, for the glory of His Church.
Next Month: The Rose of Carmel
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