Flower of Devotion

On the most holy night of the sweet Nativity of Jesus, it seemed to St. Mechtilde that she was on a stony mountain on which the Virgin Mary sat before the imminent birth of the Son of God. And when the time came, the Blessed Virgin was filled with unspeakable delight, joy, and happiness. The light of God shone on her so that she arose frightened, fell down in deep humility and bowed down to the ground in thanksgiving. She was so frightened that she did not know what had become of her until she saw the Child in her bosom, “the fairest of the sons of men.” Then, filled with unspeakable joy and ardent love, she took the Child, kissed Him sweetly three times, and was thus united to the Most Holy Trinity as only man can unite himself to God without personal union. Through the stony mountain there is an image of the spiritual life which seems to the world to be sharp and hard, that life which Christ first showed with his Mother and in which he gave men an example of true spirituality.
St. Mechtilde was watching and was sitting next to the Blessed Virgin, and she was very anxious to kiss the lovely Child. When the virginal Mother embraced her Son and spoke to him, she gave him to the saint to embrace. She received the Child with inexpressible joy, pronouncing the following words: “Hail, you love of the Father’s Heart, dearest fullness and happy refreshment of my weak soul! I offer You the love of my heart and my soul for eternal glory and eternal praise!”
At that moment, four rays shone from the face of the Child, which filled the four corners of the world. They signified the holy life of Christ and His teaching, by which He enlightened the whole world.