Saturday, June 16, 2012

Isaiah 61:9-11, 1 Samuel 2:1, 4-8, Luke 2:41-51


FEAST OF THE IMMACULATE HEART OF MARY - MOTHER OF GOD 



When the angel Gabriel revealed to our Mama Mary that she was chosen to be the Mother of the Messiah all the prophecies foretelling His coming in Scripture took on a more poignant significance and meaning for her. When her heart bursts forth in the Magnificat which is her glorious hymn of praise to God, we perceive how well versed she was in Scripture. They were written indelibly on her heart and soul. She knew with a conviction born of perfect goodness, holiness andh humility that she was indeed most highly favored by God.


The prophet Isaiah is aware that his nation has been specially chosen by God to be a light among the nations. It is from this people that He will choose the House of David and ultimately fashion for Himself and the world His Masterpiece - a daughter without peer, matchless in beautify and virtue, radiating the fire of God's love in her soul. Like a rare and priceless pearl hidden and silent she grew to perfection, she was His secret garden, tended only by Him. Hidden from the eyes of the world she grew in beauty and holiness. She is the magnificent masterpiece of the Father, fashioned by the Holy Spirit. She conceived God in her heart, mind and soul long before she conceived the Eternal Word in her womb. She knew that of herself she was nothing, she called herself the hand maiden of the Lord but she also knew what God had done for her in choosing her to be the Mother of His Son. She stands head and shoulders above all humankind and has been given a place of honor that is above the saints and the angels. When we look at Mama Mary our souls also exult in joy at the marvels God has wrought in and through her.





When we read these verses, we recognize how similar this song of praise is to that our Mother's magnificat.  We also become aware that she was not only familiar with Scripture but she also recognized how much more significant and meaningful these verses become in relation to what God has done in choosing as the Mother of the Messiah.  God's ways are in total contradiction to the ways of the world where men and women lust after power and riches and who glorify only the rich and the powerful.



"As for His Mother, she kept all these things in her heart."

The image of the Sacred Heart of Jesus is always depicted with a crown of thorns around it and the heart of Mary His Mother and ours is encircled with a crown of beautiful roses.  The thorns are hidden and unseen but they are there.  For every physical wound that was inflicted on the precious body of our blessed Lord during His passion His Mother suffered a similar wound spiritually unseen by the world but it was genuine suffering all the same as any earthly mother will testify.  
God was witness to her spiritual agony, her spiritual passion and crucifixion - is it any wonder then that the Church inspired by the Holy Spirit recognizes that she is co-redemptrix with her Son and the mediatrix of all grace through her perfect co-operation with God's plan of salvation? We are her spiritual children conceived at the foot of the Cross, will she not constantly plead with her Son for us as she did for the bridal couple at the wedding feast in Cana? And could the Son deny His Mother anything?

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