Monday, September 2, 2013

Monday mornings with Mary - offering of beauty


Flowers on the altar,



an offering of gratitude and joy,
in our modern day Temple of Mary,
sanctuary for seekers of the  Holy Grail
on the Path of Divine Love


I have missed a few Monday mornings with Mary
as I was preparing for the regular retreat weekend
of The Temple of Mary of which I am the Founder
and Guardian.  These photographs were taken of the main
altar to the Blessed Mother and Son.

And here are some photographs of the beautiful
surroundings in which the Temple community gathers and meet
at Tulbagh, a rural village in the Western Cape.






As you can see it is cold here.

Have a blessed week

blessings



Monday, August 12, 2013

Monday mornings with Mary - Reflection


When the world reflects Love at us



it is easier and natural for us to know ourselves as love
and as being loving hearts


but mostly we have to remind ourselves and others
that
Love 
is 
a
verb;
an act of revealing the self and the most intimate heart



Thank you to you for reminding me that our hearts are capable of infinite love.


A love-ly Monday with Mary to you

(pictures taken in my studio)

for more sharings from the heart every Monday

blessings


Wednesday, July 24, 2013

What a lovely surprise!!



I just loooove getting parcels, don't you?
Mr Postman knows me very well by now
and he has taken to hand deliver my parcels.
I suppose the occasional homemade Christmas cake
or bottle of homemade jam does help,
but he took up this kind habit long before I started
to reward him.

Yesterday the doorbell rang and it was Postie
with a huge parcel for me.

All the way from Muncie, Indiana (I think that is what IN stands for)
in the US of A!


It was filled with oodles of bubble wrap and squiggly foam pieces
and the cutest little card, but still I could not see what
was in the box.

And then, as I took it out, 
my heart jumped into my throat 
and my jaw dropped!

Such a beautiful gesture and gift,
straight to me heart.
And here it is 
on my blue altar
Now how did she know??




Thank you dear Nonnie
Today you stole my heart

And soon you will see a copy of this beautiful sacred heart
and your message on it, in one of my Sacred Rosary Oracle Shrines
(soon to be cards)



love and blessings


Monday, July 1, 2013

Monday mornings with Mary - Inner Sanctuary

Perhaps nature senses the longing that is in us, the restlessness that never let us settle.  She takes us into the tranquility of her stillness if we visit her. We slip into her quiet contemplation and inhabit for a while the depth of ancient belonging. Somehow we seem to become one with the rhythm of the universe.  Our longing is purified and we gain strength to come back to life refreshed, and refine our ways of belonging in the world.

John O'Donohue - Eternal Echoes

Please join in Mornings with Mary with
Rebecca at Recuerda mi Corazon - links are available on my blog.

A blessed week to you!

Monday, June 24, 2013

Monday Mornings with Mary





Blessed are they that mourn for they shall be comforted.

Blessed are those in emotional turmoil;
they shall be united inside by love.
Healthy are those weak and overextended for their
purpose;
they shall feel their inner flow of strength return.
Healed are those who weep for their frustrated desire.
they shall see the face of fulfillment in a new form.
Aligned with the One are the mourners;
they shall be comforted.
Tuned to the Source are those feeling deeply
comforted by life;
they shall be returned from their wandering.

- Prayers of the Cosmos, Reflections on the
Original Meaning of Jesus' Words
translated by Neil Douglas-Klotz


Please join in with Monday mornings with Mary
at 

Thank you for visiting and leaving your thoughts!
They brighten my Monday as well.

blessings


Monday, June 17, 2013

Monday Mornings with Mary - the East Gate


Out of the silence Light is spoken.
We do not hear it or see it until it is spoken.


Now, the Wisdom of God, Sophia, comes forth, 
reaching from 'end to end'mightily.'


She wills to be also the unseen
pivot of all nature,
the center and significance
of all the light that is 
IN all and FOR all.



That which is poorest and humblest ,
that which is most hidden in all things
is nevertheless most obvious in them,
and quite manifest, for it is their own self
that stands before us, naked and without care.




These words are once again from the essay 'Sophia' by Thomas Merton.
I was first introduced to Thomas Merton by Fran Redondowriter's blog
http://redondowriter.typepad.com/sacredordinary/
and ever since I have been reading his writings and poetry non-stop.
His words carry so many layers and he was a man with a vision
of the feminine principle of the Divine and Her peace, mercy
and compassion which this world so lacks.

This shrine is the latest addition to my garden, and as you can
see I could nor stop taking pictures of Mary in the early morning light.
You can also see there is still lots of work to be done
around it.



First thing in the morning I sit outside in my garden, 
looking East and one morning as the light shimmered and danced,
I clearly saw the Light of Mary emanating from that shimmering light.
Instinctively my heart listened and my heart heard :
I Am the Light;
I am the Eastern Gate;
I Am the Dawn;
I am that hidden Love that transforms night into day.

I there and then decided to put up a shrine  in that corner
so that I can fill my eyes' gaze with her in the light
and remember the eternal promise of Love changes all.

It is autumn here and I have the most beautiful hawthorn in my
garden which just appeared one day.  Someone sent me the link
of the symbolic meaning of the hawthorn bush
and I was not surprised to read that this plant
has through the ages always been associated with
the presence and energy of the Blessed Mary.

A wonderful Monday Morning with Mary to you
and please visit Rebecca's offering
and other Mornings with Mary sharings
for inspiration with your first cup of the morning.

blessings

Monday, June 10, 2013

Monday mornings with Mary, the Sun



III High Morning : The Hour of Tierce

The sun burns in the blue sky like the face of God,
but we do not know
his countenance as terrible.
His light is diffused in the air and the 
light of God is
diffused by Hagia Sophia.


All the perfection of created things are also in God, and therefore He is
at once Father and Mother.
As Father He stands in solitary might
surrounded by darkness.

As Mother His shining is diffused, embracing all
His creatures with
merciful tenderness and light. 




The Diffuse Shining of God is Hagia Sophia. 
We call Her His 'glory'.
In Sophia
His power is experienced only as
mercy and love.

The feminine principle in the world is the
inexhaustible source of creative
realisations of the Father's glory.
She is His manifestation in radiant splendour!
But she remains unseen,
glimpsed only by a few.

Sometimes there are none who know Her at all.


IV Sunset. The Hour of Compline. Salve Regina

Now the Blessed Virgin Mary is the one created being
who enacts and shows forth in her life
all that is hidden in Sophia.
Because of this she can be said to be a personal
manifestation of Sophia,
Who in God is Ousia
rather than Person.


Extracted from Sophia by Thomas Merton (Maria Lodewicus)

Join in with Mornings with Mary
hosted by Rebecca at 
visit other posts
and share in thoughts inspired by Mary.

Have a blessed week.