In our Catholic faith, we have many titles for our Mother Mary. Some of these titles describe the different attributes that Mary has: Morning Star, Queen of the Prophets, Vessel of Honor, Queen of the Angels, and Mirror of Justice. Some of these titles are related to different devotions and apparitions of the Blessed Mother: Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Our Lady of Guadalupe, Our Lady of the Rosary, and Our Lady of Lourdes. On her feast day of January 1, we celebrate and honor Mary in a special way as the Mother of God. This is the first and most important title that we ascribe to Mary. This title describes the place Mary has in our lives and describes the loving and genuine devotion we have to our Mother.
Christian historian Jaroslav Pelikan states that Mary has inspired more people than any other woman who has ever lived. Rose Kennedy, the matriarch of the Kennedy family and a very devout Catholic, reflected upon all the tragedies she endured throughout her lifetime, stating that she constantly found inspiration and consolation in our Blessed Mother, who never lost her faith in God or her faith in her Son even when she saw Jesus crucified and reviled. One of the most essential lessons that Mary teaches us is her willingness to accept her suffering and to learn from it. From the very beginning, when Mary was told about Jesus’ upcoming birth by the Angel, she opened herself up to God with the response of “yes” and she prepared herself for whatever was to come according to God’s will, even if she did not always understand. It is easy to agree to something like this, but difficult to live this out faithfully throughout one’s life. Yet, Mary went through her sufferings and agony, remaining faithful to God. Mary’s strength and courage help her move through the struggles and challenges of her life by relying on God’s mercy and on the help and support of her family and loved ones. Through the pain of seeing her son suffer, through the agony of not understanding how her life and the life of her son unfolded, Mary took all those experiences into her heart and pondered them.
On the feast of the Holy Family that we celebrated at Mass yesterday, with the child Jesus being presented at the Temple, with the message from the Angel conveyed by the shepherds to Mary in today’s Gospel, Mary took all these things into her heart and reflected on them. Sometimes, our lives and struggles can seem overwhelming. When this happens, we are to be like Mary and reflect on them in our hearts. I remember when I had a parishioner who had gone through the tragic death of her son, Sister Paulinus, a Sister of Mercy and a very good friend of this lady, told her that her experiences mirrored those of Mary, of how Mary grieved for her son and pondered her sorrows in her heart, maintaining her faith and her love for God. May Mary, the Mother of God, always accompany us on our journey of faith.
On January 1 of each year, the Pope issues a prayer for peace, a tradition that started with Pope Paul VI in 1968. Last year, in the context of the pandemic that the world had a experience, the title of his message was, “No one can be saved alone. Combatting Covid-19 together, embarking together on paths of peace.” As always, the Popes reflect the reality of the world in their prayer for peace each January 1. This year, the Pope addresses a reality that we are increasingly having to address in the reality of our modern world: artificial intelligence. The pope states that all forms of artificial intelligence should be used to alleviate human suffering, promote integral development and help end wars and conflicts, not increase inequality and injustice in the world. The Pope asserts that “Artificial intelligence ought to serve our best human potential and our highest aspirations, not compete with them.” In a world where there is a lot of violence and crime in our communities, where places like the Holy Land and Ukraine are locked into war and bloodshed, there are many ways in which we need to unite as a Church to pray for peace today. We unite our prayers with the Pope and with the Blessed Mother.
No comments:
Post a Comment