All generations will call me blessed, for the Almighty has done great things for me.
According to an ancient and venerated tradition, while she was still alive, the Virgin Mary appeared in mortal flesh to the Apostle James the Greater in Zaragoza, accompanied by angels who brought a column or pillar as a sign of her presence.
In the apparition, Our Lady consoled and comforted the Apostle James, promising him her maternal assistance in the evangelization he was carrying out in Spain. Since then, the Pillar has been considered “the symbol of firmness of faith”; at the same time, it shows us the sure path of every apostolate: Ad Iesum per Mariam, to Jesus, through Mary. The Virgin is the firm pillar, the secure foundation, where faith is established and where this faith is kept. “Through her, through many different forms of piety, faith in Christ, Son of God and of Mary, has reached many Christians.” They are sustained “by devotion to Mary, who has thus become the pillar of that faith and a sure guide to salvation.”
Seeing so many different nations and peoples celebrating this feast today and contemplating their love for the Virgin, we can see the words of Sacred Scripture fulfilled: I took root among the people, in the portion of the Lord, in his inheritance. I grew like a cedar of Lebanon, of Mount Hermon; I stood like a palm tree of Engedi, like a rose tree of Jericho, like a choice olive tree in the plain, like a plane tree by the waters. I exhaled fragrance like cinnamon and broom, and gave off aroma like exquisite myrrh, like perfumed resin, like amber and balm, like a cloud of incense in the sanctuary. Her devotion has spread everywhere.
Today's feast is an excellent occasion to ask, through her intercession, that the faith she encouraged from the beginning may be strengthened more and more, that we Christians may be all the more steadfast witnesses the greater the difficulties we may encounter in our work environment, in our daily interactions with others, or within ourselves. This comforts us: if we have to face greater obstacles, Our Lady will obtain more grace for us so that we may always emerge victorious.
We ask her today to be a sure pillar, a firm foundation, on which our family and friends can rely. Almighty and eternal God, we pray to you in the Mass proper to this feast that in the glorious Mother of your Son you have granted heavenly protection to all who invoke her under the centuries-old title of Pilar; grant us, through her intercession, strength in faith, security in hope, and constancy in love.
Hablar con Dios