J.M.J.
From The Glories of Mary by Saint Alphonsus Mary Liguori:
We read in the life of Sister Catherine, an Augustinian nun, that
in the place where that servant of God lived, there lived also a woman named
Mary, who, in her youth, was a sinner, who obstinately persevered in her evil
courses, even to extreme old age. For this she was banished by her
fellow-citizens, forced to live in a cave beyond the limits of the place, and
died in a state of loathsome corruption, abandoned by all, and without the Sacraments; and on this account was buried in a field, like a beast.
Now
Sister Catherine, who was accustomed to recommend very affectionately to God
the souls of those who had departed this life, after learning the miserable
death of this poor old woman, did not think of praying for her as she and
everyone else believed her already among the damned.
Four
years having past, a soul from Purgatory one day appeared to her, and said,
Sister Catherine, how unhappy is my fate! You commend to God the souls of all
those who die, and for my soul alone you have had no pity.
"And
who are you?" asked the servant of God.
She
answered: "That poor Mary who died in the cave."
"How?
Are you saved?!" exclaimed Sister Catherine.
“Yes, I
am saved,” she said, “by the mercy of the Virgin Mary. And how?... when I saw
death drawing near, finding myself laden with sins, and abandoned by all, I
turned to the Mother of God and said to her, ‘Lady, thou art the refuge of the
abandoned, behold me at this hour deserted by all; thou art my only hope, thou
alone canst help me; have pity on me.’”
“The
Holy Virgin obtained for me the grace of making an Act of Contrition; I died
and am saved, and my Queen has also obtained for me the grace that my pains
should be abridged, and that I should, by suffering intensely for a short time,
pass through that purification which otherwise would have lasted many years. A
few Masses only are needed to obtain my release from Purgatory. I pray thee
cause them to be offered for me, and I promise to pray to God and Mary for
thee.”
Sister
Catherine immediately caused those Masses to be said for her, and that soul,
after a few days, appeared to her again, more brilliant than the sun, and said
to her, "I thank thee, Sister Catherine. Behold, I am now going to
Paradise to sing the mercy of God and pray for thee."
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