from Saint Bernard
Rejoice, O Father Adam! but do thou exult still more, O Mother Eve! - you who were the first parents of us all, and the ruin of us all, and, what is still worse, our ruin before you gave us life. Be comforted (I say), both of you, in your daughter, and such a daughter, but chiefly thou from whom at first the evil came, and whose reproach has passed upon all women. For now the time is nigh in which the reproach shall be taken away, and the man no longer have any cause of complaint; for he, indeed, when unwisely he was trying to excuse himself, did not hesitate cruelly to accuse her, saying, 'The woman, whom Thou gavest me, gave me of the tree, and I did eat' (Genesis 3:12). Therefore, O Eve! have recourse to Mary; Mother! have recourse to thy Daughter; let the Daughter answer for the mother; let her take away her mother's reproach; let her make satisfaction to her father in her mother's stead; for, lo! if man fell through a woman, it is only through a woman that he is raised up again. What didst thou say, O Adam? 'The woman, whom Thou gavest me, gave me of the tree, and I did eat.' These are wicked words, and by them thou dost aggravate thy fault rather than diminish it. Nevertheless,, Wisdom overcame thy malice, for, in questioning thee, God endeavoured to elicit from thee some occasion for forgiveness, but in vain; so He found it in the treasure of His own unfailing mercy. For, a woman answers for a woman, a prudent one for a foolish one, a humble one for a proud one - one who, instead of the tree of death, gives thee to taste of life, and, instead of that poisonous fruit of bitterness, brings forth the sweetness of everlasting fruit. Change, then, those iniquitous words of excuse into a word of thanksgiving, and say: 'Lord! the woman, whom Thou gavest me, gave me of the tree of life, and I did eat; and it became sweeter than honey to my mouth, for by it Thou hast given me life.'
For, behold, it was for this that the Angel was sent to the Virgin. O admirable Virgin! and most worthy of all honour; O Woman! deserving of especial veneration, more wonderful than all women, repairing thy first parents' fault, and giving life to them that come after thee. If it is not she, who is it that seems to you to be foretold of God when He says to the serpent: 'I will put enmities between thee and the woman' (Gensis 3:15)? And if you are still in doubt whether He spake of Mary, listen to what follows: 'She shall crush thy head.' To whom but to Mary was this victory reserved? She, beyond all doubt, crushed his venomous head; for she brought to nought every suggestion of the Evil One, whether the allurement of the flesh or the pride of the spirit. Whom else did Solomon seek after when he said: 'Who shall find a valiant woman' (Proverbs 31:10)? For the Wise Man knew well the weakness of woman - how weak she is in body and how unstable in mind. Yet, because he had read that God promised that he who had prevailed by a woman by a woman also should be overcome (and he himself saw that this was meet), in great admiration he said: 'Who shall find a valiant woman?' - which is as though one should say: If the salvation of us all, the restitution of our innocence, and our victory over the enemy, lies thus in the hands of a woman, we must needs find a woman of such great virtue as will fit her for so great a work.
Let us pray
O Lord Jesus Christ! who hast willed that the most Blessed Virgin Mary, Thy Mother - who was from the first Immaculate - should shine forth in innumerable miracles, grant that, always imploring her patronage, we may attain to everlasting joy. Who livest and reignest, with God the Father, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen.
Magnificat
My soul doth magnify the Lord. And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour. Because He hath regarded the humility of His handmaid; for, behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed. Because He that is mighty hath done great things to me; and holy is His name. And His mercy is, from generation unto generations, to them that fear Him. He hath showed might in His arm: He hath scattered the proud in the conceit of their heart. He hath put down the mighty from their seat, and hath exalted the humble. He hath filled the hungry with good things, and the rich He hath sent empty away. He hath received Israel, His servant, being mindful of His mercy. As He spoke to our fathers - to Abraham and to His seed, for ever. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.
Salve Regina!
Hail, holy Queen, Mother of Mercy! Hail, our life, our sweetness, and our hope! To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve; to thee do we send up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this vale of tears. Turn, then, most gracious Advocate! thine eyes of mercy towards us, and, after this our exile, show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus. O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary!
Pray for us, O holy Mother of God! That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.
Petition
We fly to thy patronage, O holy Mother of God! despise not our petitions in our necessities, but deliver us always from all dangers, O glorious and blessed Virgin!
- from The May-Book of the Breviary, by Father John Fitzpatrick