posted October 06, 2010 10:37 AM         

If we believe astrotheme.com (and, under the circumstances, I am easily inclined to do so), then St. Alphonsus Liguori has a stellium of six planets/points in the first house, in Libra, including an exact conjunction from his Sun to the Ascendant, and a one degree conjunction from both of these to Jupiter. The other planets involved are Venus, Moon, and Mercury. To be fair, The Sun is given, not technically in the first, but on the 12th house side, though in the same degree as the Ascendant. This stellium in the first greatly helps to explain -- or, at least, to corroborate, -- what I am seeing before me.

Namely, a book with a tone so disarmingly frank and unpretentious, that it is almost a shock to reflect that I've never encountered such simplicity in an author before. Even the clear, parsed-down styles of Leo Tolstoy and Andre Gide do not stand comparison, and seem clouded with literary mannerisms and conceits beside this plain peculiarity of a book, which I have only just begun to penetrate.

The Glories Of Mary is perhaps the best known and most beloved of the many, many works written on devotion to the Holy Queen Mother, and I am quickly learning why. I've heard it said of other authors, "One feels as if he is present in the room, speaking directly to the reader," but I've never experienced a very convincing example of this sensation until now. There is something unique about this book, and this man, Liguori.

To give an idea of the work, it is enough to say that it is a work of devotion to Mary, filled with numerous quotes from other saints and religious thinkers (along with the author's own purest reflections), that it characterizes Mary as an embodiment of Mercy (as opposed to Christ, who is associated with Justice), and that it places her, practically, on a level with The Son. I may have more to share about this book in the coming weeks, but the above description should be sufficient to attract anyone with an interest and a calling in this direction.