St. Bernard, Aug 19th, Memorare

 

Saint Bernard, whose feast day we celebrate today, had a tremendous devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary.

He composed the famous prayer known as the Memorare, which holds immense beauty and significance. Due to his numerous commitments and travels, Saint Bernard spent little time in his monastery. However, on the occasions he was there, he would pass a statue of the Virgin Mary in the corridor and greet her with a simple "Good morning, Maria."

One morning, overwhelmed by his thoughts and responsibilities, Saint Bernard absentmindedly walked past the statue without offering his customary greeting. To his surprise, he heard a woman's voice saying, "Good morning, Bernard." Confused, Saint Bernard searched for the source of the voice through the monastery, but found no one. Convinced that he had imagined it, he continued on his way and once again passed the statue, forgetting to greet it for the second time. Yet, once again, he heard the woman's voice wishing him a good morning.

Deeply moved and understanding the significance of these moments, Saint Bernard fell to his knees and, with tears in his eyes, spontaneously recited a prayer that has endured through the centuries as the Memorare. The Memorare is a prayer that Catholics still pray today, invoking the intercession and mercy of the Virgin Mary.

Saint Mother Teresa of Calcutta had what she called an emergency novena. When she didn’t have 9 days to pray a novena and needed some help through Mary’s intercession, she would pray 9 Memorares in a row and said the Virgin Mary has never been known to not answer her prayer.