My dear children of Mother Mary

I am pleased to welcome you to the Basilica-Shrine of Our Lady of Graces, Sardhana, a lively parish of the Catholic Diocese of Meerut. Many worshippers, pilgrims and visitors find the Basilica a place of great comfort and peace as they come to pray for themselves or for their loved ones. Many others come to take in the beauty of the Basilica itself. All are welcome! I am privileged to be the parish priest of this parish dedicated to our beloved Mother. I strongly believe that the Basilica-Shrine of Our Lady of Graces exists to bring everyone in our community to an encounter with Christ, to grow in His love, and to go forth sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ to all.

Jesus is the sole mediator between God and man (1 Tim 2:5), but all are called to participate in the one mediation of Jesus Christ. We all participate in Christ’s mediation by our prayers for one another. In our works of charity and evangelization, we mediate Christ to others. The Blessed Virgin Mary was asked by God to take her part in her divine Son’s mediation in a unique and privileged way. The title “Mediatrix of all Graces” is appropriate for Mary simply by the fact that she gave Jesus His human nature. In accepting the invitation to be His Mother, she becomes the God-bearer and thereby mediates to us Jesus Christ, the author of all graces. Therefore, the Annunciation (Lk 1:26-38) is an event of mediation on the part of Our Lady, as she finds herself in the middle, that is, between God and us.

“Mediatrix of all graces” is also a fitting title for the Blessed Virgin in light of Luke 1:41, where the physical presence of Mary mediates grace to the unborn John the Baptist, by bringing to John the presence of the unborn Redeemer. At the Wedding of Cana (Jn 2:1-11), again we see Mary’s mediation, and most significantly, we see the effects of her mediation: “Jesus did this, the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee, and revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him” (Jn 2:11). As our Lord was dying on the Cross, He gives to His Mother the new role of Mother of all: “Woman, here is your son” (Jn 19:26). At the Lord’s command the Blessed Virgin becomes Mother of all people; this surely means that she will have the task of nourishing her children, and she does this by mediating the graces of the Redemption from Christ to mankind. Therefore, she is “Mediatrix of all Graces.”

St Bernard says that all graces pass through the hands of Mary, and that this is the will of God. This does not mean that God cannot dispense graces without Mary; it means that He wills for Mary, whom Jesus gave to us as our Mother, to be a channel of grace for our salvation. St. Bonaventure says, “As the moon, standing between the sun and the earth, transmits to the earth whatever light it receives from the sun, so Mary stands between God and human beings and pours His grace upon us.”

I wish all the pilgrims who seek the divine blessings through the powerful intercession of our beloved Mother, may find solace and happiness.

May God bless you All.