Mary Mother of the Church
Today's Memorial is right and fitting to be celebrated today because a church being born yesterday on Pentecost not only needs the Holy Spirit to fulfill its mission but also needs to lie in the hands of the loving mother who will always intercede for her to her Son and God the Father. On March 3, 2018, Pope Francis announced that a new memorial would be celebrated on the Monday after Pentecost Sunday, entitled “The Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church.” Henceforth, this memorial is added to the General Roman Calendar and is to be universally celebrated throughout the Church. In instituting this memorial, Cardinal Robert Sarah, Prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship, said:
This celebration will help us to remember that growth in the Christian life must be anchored to the Mystery of the Cross, to the oblation of Christ in the Eucharistic Banquet and to the Mother of the Redeemer and Mother of the Redeemed, the Virgin who makes her offering to God. This is what exactly we see in today's Gospel reading which is suitably chosen for today. Jesus at the cross tells His mother: “Woman behold your son”, and to the beloved disciple, “behold your mother.” These words of Jesus have a deep meaning for the church. We may ask ourselves why sometimes Jesus used to call His Mother Woman for instance in today's Gospel and in John 2:4.
Firstly, Jesus may be alluding to the beginning of creation in Genesis when Adam addressed Eve first as Woman, "This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh. She shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man" (Genesis 2:23). Adam later called her "Eve" because she became the "mother of all living" (Genesis 3:20). Mary is therefore a new Eve, the mother of all the living, a new Eve who brings salvation to the world, not sin, as we see in the first Reading.
Secondly, in today's Gospel Jesus calls Mary "Woman" with the future in mind. Jesus didn't want to confine Mary to be His mother alone but the mother of all. This is why even He doesn't mention the name of the beloved disciple. As we saw in Saturday's reflection that the name of the disciple is not mentioned to mean that anybody including you and me can be that disciple. Therefore, Jesus gives Mary as a mother to every who will believe in Him and becomes His disciple. Jesus joins the two together to form the first Christian community and over them breathes forth His Spirit. The beloved disciple represents the whole church and since Mary was given to the disciple as his mother, she is the mother of the whole Church.
Let us therefore surrender all Christian Communities and the whole church to the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary who cares for her with the love of the mother. It's through her that we were redeemed, saved from sin which the first man did by disobeying God. Let us thank her for her unqualified Yes to the promises of God and ask for the same humility to stand worthy in the eyes of God. Mary is not only the mother of the universal church but also a heavenly mother of each one of us and so reflect today on your love and relationship between you and your heavenly Mother. Do you seek her intercession daily? What about her protection? Pray for her maternal care for you and for the whole church and for the courage to stand with her near the cross of Jesus as you hear Jesus telling you "Behold your mother"
Let us Pray
We fly to thy patronage, O holy Mother of God; despise not our petitions in our necessities, but deliver us always from all dangers, O glorious and blessed Virgin. Amen
Be blessed
No comments:
Post a Comment