My dear friends,

The spoken word tends to be carried off by the wind; the written word, we are told, can be referred to when it has been forgotten. But how difficult it is for me to write about those things of which I have spoken so often! Here I am, mute and with pen in hand.

I do not doubt, I believe wholeheartedly: Mary has been forming us; and she will continue to do so, since we are the Church. She has shown us the mystery of her solitude: Mary from her solitude has captivated us. Solitude, yes, but not just any kind; it is her solitude, that of the Virgin Mother who received the message of the angel and visited her dear ones. Mary is God's link with us; her solitude is the inner face of her solidarity, her solitude is solidarity.

And with all this burning inside of us, we began to move, we continued moving until we called ourselves a Movement. You must forgive the foregoing ramblings, I could not avoid stammering.

Let's get down, then, to what concerns us in this letter: spirituality and especially Marian spirituality. Our concept of Christian spirituality is simple enough:

A filial and fraternal life in the Spirit, through Christ, to the Father; life accepted in faith, lived in love, and anticipated in hope.

Well, then, this life, by its very nature, is ecclesial and contemplative. The Church is, in effect, the community of faith, hope and charity united in virtue of the unity of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. And what is Christian contemplation if not a loving faith as the first fruits of hope which permits us to unite ourselves to the Father, through Christ, in the Spirit?

In the same way, Christian spirituality is in itself Marian. The Marian aspect is a constitutive dimension of Christian spirituality; this latter would not be what it is if the Marian aspect or dimension where lacking. Why? Because that's the way God wanted it! But what are the reasons that moved Him? In spite of our blindness, we can see at least the following:

First and foremost, because Mary is the Mother of Christ and Mother of his

Body, ourselves, the Church.

From this it follows that the divine life, grace, comes to us through Mary's intercession.

Also, that she is the perfect model of Christian life; she is so attractive that she invites us to imitation.

Let's not forget that the mission and action of Mary in the very heart of the Church is a most fruitful supernatural reality that makes us "other Christs." Our Virgin Mother is the environment, the climate, the surroundings, the womb in which the Spirit forever incarnates Jesus.

The Church has never hesitated in confessing this maternal function of Mary; quite the contrary, the Church experiences it continually! St Pius X, basing himself upon this faith and this age-old Christian experience, was able to say: "There is no surer and smoother path than Mary to come to Christ and unite oneself to Him and obtain through her mediation the perfect adoption of sons and daughters, so that we may be saintly and immaculate in the eyes of God". (Ad diem illum).

Marian spiritualities recognize and bring out the features of Mary in the face of Christ; they reveal the imprint, the shading, the Marian tint of Christian spirituality; they try to use all necessary means to make Mary more present in our life and her influence even more evident.

Those who live explicitly this Marian spirituality perceive the personal presence and feel the positive and forming influence of Mary in their lives. Mary, the Mother, awakens the filial heart that sleeps in them and creates the familiar climate in which they feel themselves to be and are, brothers and sisters. Mary, the Woman, helps them to spiritualize the flesh and incarnate the spirit.

Finally, any person who looks at us, not only should be able to recognize Christ, but also, by our attitude and the things we do, should be able to affirm without hesitation: you are a child of Mary!

But in our own particular and concrete case, in Soledad Mariana, how is Mary our model and whither is she drawing us? What does she invite us to imitate and what does she desire to give us?

I suppose it isn't necessary to look too far to find the answer. Of course, that's it: contemplation in her all-embracing solitude!

We have received the grace to be contemplative in Mary for the edification of the Church and the illumination of the world. Contemplatives in Mary; sharing her faith, hope and love; contemplating the life and the works of God with the eyes of Mary; contemplating the mystery of Christ with her loving faith, with her faith illumined by the fire of love, in her warm light which both illuminates and inflames with love. Really, in Mary's wisdom, her delightful wisdom, we have an idea of what it is to have a taste of God and we act accordingly.

This is what the Virgin of Guadalupe showed us and began to teach us from the very first day. It is in our very birth, in our roots, in our origin. Without this grace we wouldn't have any reason for existing, nor significance, nor even a name, we would lack identity. Everything else is in addition to this grace. Our contribution to the Church today is to contemplate with the light of Mary's faithful eyes, loving in the flames of her burning heart.

Mary taught us this and continues to teach it to us, and our bishops gathered together in Puebla confirm it: "She is completely Christ's and with Him, completely the servant of all..., contemplation and adoration which bring out the most generous response in those who are to be sent, the most fruitful evangelization of all peoples (294; cf. 251).

Well, I don't want to take up more of your time or bore you. Do you have a moment more? Then let us pray together:

Mary of Guadalupe,
with your contemplative eyes and your missionary womb,
with your hands joined in prayer
and your feet hastening to spread the Gospel:
teach us to live the unity of your mystery!

In God, for us,
and with us, for God.
Face to face with Him
even while shoulder to shoulder with them.

Virgin Mother of the Annunciation,
Mother Virgin of the Visitation,
hear our prayer,
through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord.

And I close, offering you a suggestion until the next letter: let us ask for the grace, and dispose ourselves for it, to continue growing in the mystery of Our Lady of Guadalupe: all in God and God in all.

I count on your prayers. You are always present in mine. May the shadows become transparent for you through the light and the love of the Immaculate.

Always in her, with a hug for each of you,
Bernardo