Imagine a beautiful, quiet chapel. The soft light passing through the multicoloured stained-glass window, warm and welcoming, seems to be enriched by the sublime Gregorian melody being sung, the hymn Alleluia Virga Iesse. It is only natural that two wonders that spring from the same source should harmonize so perfectly: the Holy Church!
As if these means for grace to act on our souls were not enough, enraptured by the melody and inundated by the atmosphere of contemplation in the chapel, we also notice a muted beam of light falling upon an image of the Blessed Virgin Mary, while our ears and intellect are profoundly delighted by the hymn-prayer.
At that moment, we have the impression that we have been lifted up from ordinary life, and are soaring into a sphere where the heavenly and the earthly touch. In fact, this is an extraordinary characteristic of Mary: as a mere creature – a perfect one, let us remember – She embraces the created so as to elevate it to the Creator. In the words of Dr. Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira, the Blessed Virgin “is the golden clasp that unites all creation, of which She is the apex and supreme beauty, to Our Lord Jesus Christ.”1
This is what the Gregorian chant Alleluia Virga Iesse so clearly says. Though enveloped in a disconcerting simplicity, it presents us with a rich spiritual horizon, which is revealed in both the melodic line and the sacred text, laden with theological density and moving piety: “Alleluia, the Rod of Jesse has blossomed (cf. Is 11:1), the Virgin gave birth to Him who is God and Man. God has restored peace, reconciling the smallest with the supreme.”
The fulfilment of the poetic prophecy unfolds in the great theological mystery, which encloses a divine paradox: out of love, the Infinite and Uncreated prepared a dwelling for himself, a paradise adorned with virtues, imprisoning himself within the womb of an immaculate Mother, as in a “garden locked” (cf. Sgs 4:12), in order to redeem us!
How great Mary is! Even in the first centuries of Christianity, her devotees wholeheartedly recognized her incomparable superiority, singing: “How can I find words to praise your beauty? The highest heavens cannot contain God, whom you carried in your womb. (cf. 1 Kgs 8:27).”
It was through Our Lady that Immensity became small, so that the small might become immense! This blessed and unequalled “golden clasp” is the necessary channel, established by the omnipotent Trinity, for Heaven to descend to us and earth to ascend to beatitude.
* * *
The melodious timbre of the Gregorian canticle has given way to silence in the welcoming chapel, the passing hours have withdrawn the rays of the king star from the stained-glass windows, and the image of the Blessed Virgin has resumed its natural tone. But the grace continues to resound within us, instilling in us the certainty that the Mother of God is also our Mother, our perennial and maternal refuge in every situation: “Alleluia! The Rod of Jesse has blossomed, the Virgin has given birth to Him who is God and Man. God has restored peace, reconciling the smallest with the supreme.” ◊
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Notes
1 CORRÊA DE OLIVEIRA, Plinio. O grampo de ouro [The Golden Clasp]. In: Dr. Plinio. São Paulo. Year XXI. N.242 (May, 2018), p.36.
