IMMACULATE MARY MOTHER OF INFINITE BEAUTY
Mary’s beauty is absolute and unique. It includes all the beauties of the universe and elevates them beyond all human conception. However, it is a maternal beauty. Mary’s face, which more than any other reflects the beauty of God, is the face of a mother. Human beauties are limited and fleeting. Mary’s beauty is divine and immortal. When Our Lady appears, she enraptures with the splendor of her face. Now Mary participates in the glory of the resurrection of her Son, but what would her beauty have been like when she was here on earth? It is certainly not arbitrary to say that the little girl from Nazareth was the most beautiful person who ever appeared on earth. We have no description of her, nor of the Son whose face reflected the likeness of his mother. It would not have been possible for anyone to describe the sublime beauty of Mary and Jesus.
Mary’s beauty is not only that of the body, as we are accustomed to representing it. It concerns her entire person. It is a beauty that flows from the interior depths and that releases its light like an inexhaustible source. Mary’s beauty is first of all spiritual. It is the splendor of her immaculate soul. When the archangel Gabriel greets Mary, he calls her by the mysterious name of “Full of Grace”. What is grace if not the divine beauty with which the immortal soul is clothed? Mary is clothed in the beauty of God. It is a beauty that is the radiation of holiness. It is a beauty without blemish, without sin, without deceit, without seduction. How could men, immersed in the mud, but nevertheless thirsting for infinite beauty, not be fascinated by the splendor of Mary?
Mary is the “Full of Grace” from the moment she appeared on earth. What must have been her beauty as a young woman? The splendor of the soul is poured out on her face, in the light of her eyes, in the kindness of her smile. The human body, animated by the soul, reflects its natural luminosity. What splendor must the soul of Mary, free from every stain of original sin and surrounded by the holiness of God, have not poured out on her entire person? Only Heaven could admire the sublime beauty of Mary at the moment she opened herself to receive the Word in her womb. From that moment, Mary’s divine beauty is that of the Mother. Her maternal face, which Jesus contemplated, the very sweet eyes that He met, the smile that comforted him, are a gift for all men of all times.
Mary’s beauty is a maternal beauty. It is a beauty that by its nature is called to generate. Mary is the “All Beautiful” and Heaven has given us this mother so that she could generate children who resemble her. Men are predestined to become children of Mary and to reflect in themselves the likeness to their mother. Mary wants each of her children to reflect her splendor of grace. The beauties that men pursue are like those of spring flowers, which today are wonderful, but of them tomorrow there is no trace. The beauties that enchant men are those without a soul, illusory and destined to corruption. They are the beauties of whitewashed tombs.
Looking at the face of the Mother we understand what true beauty is. It is the beauty of grace, of holiness, of purity, of goodness. Pure and unconditional love is reflected in Mary’s face. Mary is infinitely beautiful because she loves infinitely. Her Mother’s Heart is filled with the love of God. Mary’s beauty is the superabundance of love.
