Flower of Devotion

On the night of the Assumption of the Mother of God, when St. Mechtilde was in the choir, it seemed to her that she was again next to the Blessed Virgin Mary resting on her bed. And behold, as it was revealed to her, the height of the immense
Divine Majesty sank down into the holy abyss, that is, into the most humble Heart of the Blessed Virgin. And she filled them with the stream of her divine delight so excessively that her most holy soul was completely immersed and poured out in God. And so Mary’s most holy soul went out in inexpressible joy from her body, untouched by any pain, and flew very joyfully into the arms of her divine Son. She bowed lovingly to His Heart and was led to the throne of the Most Holy Trinity amid the solemn singing of all the saints.
But how God the Father, in all the tenderness of His fatherly love, received her soul into His Father’s Heart, no creature can express. Like the inscrutable Wisdom of God, God the Son perfectly honored His Mother as the Son; and how he has seated her to the throne at his right hand before all, is beyond all comprehension. And the Holy Spirit filled Mary with an abundance of love, goodness, sweetness, and all graces; so that all in Heaven were refreshed by the fullness of her riches. That is to say, the seraphic spirits, who from the beginning of their creation were filled with love, were multiplied in this love by the love of the Blessed Virgin. And the Cherubim, full of the wisdom of God, were enlightened as it were with a new light. All the hosts of angels and saints have gained more brightness, new joy, and an increase in their merits through the glorification of this great Queen. Moreover, the Most Holy Trinity permeated Her with the fullness of His whole Divinity, so that She was all filled with God. Whatever she seemed to do, God completed in her and through her. So that with her eyes he saw, with her ears he heard, and with her lips he proclaimed to himself the glorious and perfect glory, and all joy and delight in the Heart of the Blessed Virgin was the same and in His Heart.
The Queen of glory stood at the right hand of her Son, clothed in marvellous mirrors in which the merits of all the saints were wonderfully reflected. And when the saints had joyfully come before the throne, and each of them had seen his merits, they hastened to praise God with new praises and joyful songs. For when the patriarchs and prophets looked at their longing, and the apostles looked at their virtues and the intimacy in which they dwelt near the Saviour on earth, they nevertheless knew that the Blessed Virgin was superior to them in all these things. For she was more constant in virtue than they were, more zealous in the service of God, a greater friend of God than all of them. Thus was astonished every host of saints who came and saw their own merits in the Virgin Mary. And he rejoiced that Mary was so far superior to them. For among the apostles she was distinguished as the one who was most faithfully attached to Christ and most carefully preserved his words. Among the martyrs she was the most patient and the most constant. Among the followers the most enlightened, and even enlightening themselves by word and example. Among virgins, she was not only the purest and most holy, but also the most far-reaching in the observance of virginal life and consecrated to God. She was distinguished among the good as the best, among the merciful as the most merciful, among the humble as the humblest, among the perfect as the most perfect. And therefore, as it was due, it surpassed thein the privileges of all the saints.
And Mary, the Blessed Virgin, said: “Whoever wishes to be exalted in the highest honor above all must humble himself before all. And whoever wishes to be richer than all others should deprive himself entirely of his own will, and he who desires dignity and supreme adornment should diligently exercise his virtues.”