Oh what, Great Virgin, would it be to thee
To move among the multitude? to be
Amidst a crowd alone? Thy place would be
Before the Father's Throne. There, verily,
Art thou, O Woman, Heaven's choicest Hierarchy.
Twas not maternity that prompted thee
To leave thy sheltered home in Galilee
The Footsteps of thy Son to follow; see,
Thou His Disciple wert - thy God was He:
And God Incarnate whispered: * Follow Me.'
Thy Soul was steeped in His Divinity,
As His was formed in thy humanity:
Thou couldst not choose but follow, had not He
At times repressed the impulse, leaving thee
In body lonely, but in spirit free.
All-brightness of the Father's Glory, He,
Himself reflected would be found in thee:
The Beatific Vision ceaselessly
Before His Sacred Soul - then sure, for thee
The Vision clear of His Humanity.
Nor yet for consolation would this be
Thy sweet prerogative: but, verily,
Since Nature two-fold perfected must be
By two-fold work in sovereign unity,
Such would the law of that great union be
In all, 'Immaculate Conception' see.
And naught can fail of that great dignity
Belonging to the bond which welded thee,
O Virgin Mother, in His Destiny.
That made thee One with Him- Him One with thee.
One single Purpose reigned for Him and thee.
And for this purpose thou wouldst wilfully
With Him a perfect full Oblation be:
With Him wouldst bear all suffering stedfastly,
Ne'er looking back 'till life's extremity.
- text taken from Mary: The Perfect Woman, by Emily Mary Shapcote