The Glorious Mysteries - Meditations by Fr. Dolindo Ruotolo
The Resurrection
It was a moment of the triumph of life, which defeated the forces of death over the very edge of the great abyss. The transfiguration of the body occurred in a single moment; from then on, His body was no longer mortal, but glorious, penetrated by brilliance, light, fragrance, and the purifying warmth of Divine grace. Now nothing was able to hold Him back-neither the bandages in which He was wrapped, nor the tomb, nor the sealed stone.
He did not rise from the dead as a spirit or a ghost, for a moment later He would allow the disciples to touch His Body full of power and glory. Behold, life has conquered death! He rose from the dead and passed through the bandages binding Him in such a way that they-though remaining untorn-no longer restricted Him. He opened His eyes full of love once again, but not to gaze at the dark walls of the tomb-His eyes were fixed upon the Father.
The Ascension
Jesus left His disciples during His earthly life when He died and was buried, but He also left them after the resurrection when He ascended into heaven. From then on, the disciples would no longer see Him as Master in a visible form and would no longer perceive His presence with their senses.
And therefore He promises them the Holy Spirit, who will be the Interior Master, will guide them into all truth, and will be their Counselor during their earthly journey. This is a promise given to them, but also to the entire Church. To them He promises that He will return to them after the resurrection, and to the Church-that He will return at the end of time, when the day of the final judgment arrives. It will be a day of a new outpouring of grace and mercy, a day of great triumph, when we shall experience His presence, be convinced of His greatness, and we shall live in Him, and He in us.
His second coming will be prepared in the spirit of truth, and not in the spirit of this world, because a great light of truth will shine forth in the Church.
The Descent of the Holy Spirit
“And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Paraclete, to be with you forever. But the Paraclete, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.”
Paraclete means defender, mediator, comforter, intercessor, advocate, the one who gives the impulse to act. Until now, Jesus had been a defender for the apostles and for all souls-for He delivered them from the snares of Satan; an advocate-because He was the mediator between men and God the Father; a comforter-because He poured upon them the balm of His love; a mediator-because He did not cease to pray for them; an intercessor-as the Divine Master; the one who gives the impulse to act-as our help, our model, and our life. And so, as the first Counselor who must depart from this world and leave the apostles, He leaves the promise of another Counselor, another Person of the Most Holy Trinity, that is, the Holy Spirit.
He dwells in the Church and in the depths of the heart of every believer. He is the new defender, mediator, comforter, intercessor, advocate, the one who gives the impulse to act and implants new life where hitherto the weaknesses of human nature had been victorious.
The Assumption of Mary
Mary stood before God and saw Him in the light of glory, and did not merely know Him by a simple understanding of the intellect illuminated by the light of faith-and then she found herself entirely immersed, as it were, in an ocean of greatness, wisdom, and love. She was completely surrendered to God, who in His infinite greatness remains a simple God. Therefore Mary, to ascend toward God, did not need all that is necessary in contemplation-analogies, analyses, syntheses of the intellect-but she saw Him in His simplicity, like someone who sees a beloved person face to face.
Then from her soul flowed a song of love: Magnificat anima mea Dominum (My soul magnifies the Lord). Mary was taken up into heaven with her soul and body. Her entire soul and her entire heart vibrated to the rhythm of infinite impulses of love. Her intellect was filled with the light of truth, her will was boundlessly surrendered to the will of God, the entire soul of Mary became a song of praise: Magnificat anima mea Dominum.
The Coronation of Mary as Queen of Heaven and Earth
The only-begotten Son of God the Father, through whom all things were created, comes to earth as a man and lives obedient to a poor Mother. In the heavens He is the joy and happiness of the angels, and on earth-as a poor infant-He suffers hunger and thirst. In the heavens He Himself governs all things, and on earth He is subject to His Mother. In heaven His throne towers above all that is created, and on earth He Himself is wrapped in swaddling clothes and laid in a manger.
Remember, O man, and consider how great are the works of Divine grace. Seeing such an immense and wondrous love, do not lose hope of forgiveness, even if you have committed many sins. Seek refuge with Mary! Seek forgiveness, for into her womb descended the true Source of mercy. Greet her often, falling to your knees and saying with trusting hope: Hail, Mary, full of grace!
How many times, O Mary, did you soothe the crying of your Divine Son, pressing Him to your breast! Today also, stay His wrath caused by our sins with your prayer. O Jesus, look upon those who have fallen into sin, and through the intercession of Your Mother, make them pure and worthy of the eternal homeland. Amen.