The Queenship of Mary

 

Scripture readings for today can be found at Memorial of The Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary | USCCB

Today the church commemorates The Queenship of Mary. Pope Pius XII established this feast in 1954. This memorial was related to the Feast of the Assumption. The Feast of the Queenship of Mary was set a week after her Assumption, body and soul, into heaven.

It is entirely appropriate that Mary be made Queen of Heaven and Earth. Her entire life was that of doing the Holy Will of God. Her openness to doing God’s Will was evident from the start when the Angel Gabriel approached her to ask if she would be willing to be the mother of the Savior. After the angel explained how it would occur, Mary quickly said yes, “Let it be done to me according to your word.” (Luke 1:38) Mary listened to what the Angel had to say, and was courageous enough to say yes, even though she probably knew it would cause a lot of problems and difficulties for her in her life. But she trusted that God would be present for her to guide her throughout her life as Mother of the Savior. She had total trust that God would protect her throughout her life.

Following Mary saying “yes” to being the Mother of the Lord, she goes to serve and help her elderly cousin, Elizabeth, who was pregnant with John the Baptist. This trip for Mary, now pregnant with Jesus, would have been a difficult journey, but she made this journey out of love and concern for Elizabeth. Upon Mary’s arrival, Elizabeth says, “Why am I so greatly favored that the mother of my Lord should visit me?” (Luke 1:43) It was then that Mary gives us the Magnificat, “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord…” (Luke 1:46) This prayer, prayed daily at Evening Prayer, shows the humility Mary has towards all that has happened to her. She was always open to doing the Will of God no matter how difficult, but she accepted it out of love for the Lord.

Then all throughout the life of Jesus, from his birth until his death on the cross to his resurrection on Easter Sunday morning, Mary was always present to him in his needs. Looking lovingly from the Cross, the Lord saw Mary there, tears in her eyes. Jesus also saw the beloved disciple, John. At that point Jesus give Mary to John, and to us: “Woman, behold your son.” Then he said to the disciple, “Behold your mother.” (John 19:26-27)

So, with all we know of Mary from scripture, it’s no wonder that God, in his Wisdom, after Assuming Mary into heaven, would make her Queen of Heaven and Earth.

Mary, our Queen, is now in heaven at the side of Our King, Jesus Christ. Let us always feel free to turn to our loving mother with all our problems and concerns in order for her to bring them to her divine Son to respond in the way that’s best for us.

Holy Mary, Mother of God pray for us sinners, now and forever.

My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord; my spirit rejoices in God my Savior…

 

Scripture readings for this reflection can be found at Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary | USCCB

Today we commemorate the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary into Heaven. In the Eastern Church, they understand it as the dormition, or falling asleep, of Mary.

The Assumption of Blessed Virgin Mary is one of the four Marian dogmas of the Catholic Church. Pope Pius XII defined it on November 1^st, 1950 as the assumption of Mary, body and soul, into heaven. The four dogmas of Mary in Catholic theology are: Divine Motherhood (Theotokos), Perpetual Virginity, Immaculate Conception, and Assumption. These dogmas are considered to be divinely revealed truths that Catholics are obligated to believe. 

Because of the grace of her Immaculate Conception, Mary’s whole life was centered to be always open to the Holy Will of God. God was always center to who she was as a Jewish woman. She long awaited the coming of the Messiah. So she was very surprised to find out, through the Angel Gabriel, that she herself would be the mother of the Messiah. Her willingness to do God’s Will led her to say “Yes” to Gabriel, and as a result she conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit.

In our gospel for today we hear of her visiting her cousin, Elizabeth, who is six months pregnant with John the Baptist. Elizabeth recognized the importance of Mary and asked, “And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?” Further, John, in his mother’s womb, leaped for joy at the presence of his cousin, so close to him in Mary’s womb.

Mary responds with the Magnificat, “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord.” This prayer of Mary is prayed every Evening by the church during Evening Prayer. Mary in her humility realized that all generations will call her blessed.

It is through her life of service to her Son, and those around her, that God decided that her body would know no corruption of the grave. When it was time, God the Father brought her to heaven to be with her loving Son, Jesus Christ.

Mary is an example of how we, as followers of Jesus Christ, are to live out our lives while still here on earth. When Mary became pregnant with Jesus, she became a walking tabernacle, carrying Jesus everywhere she went until the day he was born. We, too, become walking tabernacles each time we receive Holy Communion at Mass. We say “yes” to Jesus as we receive Him in Holy Communion with our “Amen.”

With that in mind, let us remember that when we leave church, the Lord Jesus Christ is traveling with us as well. With His presence sacramentally in us, let us remember to bring His love to all we meet during the day.

 

We greet you, Holy Cross, our only hope!

 

Today on the Church calendar we commemorate Blessed Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, better known as Edith Stein. 

Edith Stein was born to a Jewish family in Beslau on October 12th, 1891. She studied philosophy and was a college professor. For a while she had turned away from believe in God and became agnostic. But she was always seeking the truth and understanding as to our human existence.  Then she read the Autobiography of St. Theresa of Avila. She read this in one night and realized that she had discovered the truth and came to faith in Jesus Christ. 

She was baptized a Catholic in 1922 and then, influenced by her reading of St. Theresa of Avila, entered the Carmelite Monastery of Cologne in 1933. It was there that she took the religious name Teresa Benedicta of the Cross. Through her influence, her biological sister, Rosa, also converted to the Catholic Faith and would be an extern for the needs of the Carmelite Community that Edith was a member of.

It was during this time that the Nazi's were spreading their hatred by rounding up the Jews and all they considered undesirable. It was during this time that the Nazis rounded up Edith and her sister Rose. Both were murdered in the gas chamber at Auschwitz. 

In her spiritual writings, Edith would always focus on the sufferings of Jesus on the Cross. She once wrote, "Contemplate the Lord who hangs before you on the wood, because he was obedient even to the death of the cross." It was through the strength of her faith in Jesus that she was able to face her death at Auschwitz.

Let us pray today, through the intersession of Edith Stein, that the hatred and war that is going on between Israel and Hamas be resolved in a way that is pleasing to God. Let us pray that all hatred, which is the cause of all war, be removed from our world and that we may grow to love and respect all people, even with those people we may not find easy to get along with. 

“Lord, save me!”

 

Scripture readings for today's reflection can be found at Tuesday of the Eighteenth Week in Ordinary Time | USCCB

There's a lot to unpack in today's gospel from St. Matthew. The first thing that touches my heart is at the beginning. After dismissing the crowds and sending the disciples into the boat to precede him to the other side of the sea, the Lord went up the mountain to pray. All throughout the gospels the Lord teaches us the importance of being alone with God in prayer and meditation. We can do that in many different ways. The Lord chose to go up the mountain to be with God and to pray and meditate. For myself, I often pray and meditate alone in the morning just after rising. I take my breviary and bible, and I take time to pray and focus on what God is trying to tell me in the Divine Office and the readings assigned for mass that day. It is during this time alone that helps me get closer to the Lord and to try to be open to what God is trying to teach me for that day. It's important for me to have scripture as part of my daily meditation so that I can allow God to speak to me through the Holy Bible. I encourage this routine for anyone trying to get closer to God. Find a time of day, whether in the morning or the evening, to be quiet with God and to meditate on the Word of God in your life.

The other part of today's Gospel that touches me is the storm that breaks out and there's the Lord walking towards them. They failed to recognize him at first, but he reassures them that it is truly him that is coming towards them on the water. He invites Peter to walk on the waters towards him. At first, Peter is walking on the water towards Jesus. But as soon as he takes his eyes off of the Lord he starts to sink. He then prays, "Lord, save me!" The Lord extends his hand and Peter is saved.

How many times during our lives do we take our spiritual eyes off of Jesus and then to start having problems in our lives (which are pretty much the storms of our lives)? It is during these "storms" in our lives that we need to pray to Jesus, "Lord, save me!" Jesus will always extend his hands towards us and brings us the peace and comfort that we need to deal with whatever issues we are facing. It's always important to keep reaching out to Jesus in good times and bad times so that we can have the peace and comfort that can only come from Him.

"A prophet is not without honor except in his native place and in his own house."

 

Scripture readings for this reflection can be found at Memorial of Saint Alphonsus Liguori, Bishop and Doctor of the Church | USCCB

In our gospel for today we hear of how the people that knew Jesus growing up had a problem with who he was and the wisdom he was exhibiting as the Messiah. They even had problems accepting the miracles that were attributed to him. They were saying, "Where did this man get such wisdom and mighty deeds?” (Matthews 13:14) It reminds me of that old saying, “Familiarity breeds contempt.” They had trouble wrapping their minds around the fact that someone they knew from childhood could be so special. They just considered him as someone ordinary.

These people of His hometown thought they knew who he was. They were thinking that Jesus was just a “nobody” from Nazareth. They thought he was just the carpenter’s son. They thought they knew him and as a result looked down on him. They were thinking that he wasn’t special. But as it turns out they didn’t really know him. And because they did not have faith in him, Jesus could not perform any miracles there.

This shows that faith is essential in our relationship with Jesus. All throughout his ministry while on earth, he would often tell someone that their faith in him was the cause of their healing. For example, the woman with the issue of the blood disease in Mark 5:34 and Luke 8:48, we hear Jesus tell the woman that her faith has healed her and to go in peace.

As with individuals described in scripture who experienced healing through Jesus, we need to approach Him in prayer concerning the various challenges present in our lives.  We need to ask ourselves, “Do I really believe that Jesus can perform this miracle for me?” In Mark 5:28 we hear the woman in need of being cured say to herself: “If I but touch his clothes, I shall be cured.” We need that same faith in Jesus in the issues that we bring before him, whether it’s health issues, problems with family or financial problems. We need to reach out to Jesus in prayer and believe that he will help us in the way we need.

As we pray and bring our problems to the Lord at Mass, let’s bring all our needs to him as we approach him in Holy Communion and believe that he will bring us the healing and peace we long for in our lives.

 

I desire mercy, not sacrifice,

 

Scripture readings for today can be found at Friday of the Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time | USCCB

In our gospel from St. Matthew for today we see another confrontation between the Pharisees and the Lord Jesus Christ. The Pharisees see that the apostles were doing something that went against the laws of the Sabbath. The law in this instance was doing what was considered work on the Sabbath when the apostles, because of their hunger, started picking the heads of grain to satisfy their hunger. To the Pharisees this was a great sin. Instead of looking at the fact that the apostles were hungry and deserved to be fed the Pharisees looked at it from the perspective that they were breaking the sabbath.

But Jesus defends his disciples' actions of plucking grain on the Sabbath, arguing that mercy and human need take precedence over strict Sabbath observance. The Lord further reminded them of the time when David and his men ate the Sacred Bread in the temple which only the priests were allowed to eat. This act of mercy towards those who are hungry is something pleasing to God.

In our own time we are called by Jesus to be merciful towards those in our lives that may not be doing things according to our understanding of God and of His laws. Everything in God’s laws and commandments flow from loving God and loving those around us.

We are to look at everyone with the eyes of mercy. We are to see people that are loved by God.  We are to look beyond what is in the law and look towards the needs of those around us. By being merciful towards everyone and showing them the love that God has for them we are helping them come closer to God and to grow in relationship with the God who loves them. Instead of pointing our fingers towards people and telling them they are breaking God’s commandments, we are to have open arms to welcome them into our Christian community letting them know that God loves them unconditionally.

It is by showing them the love of God that they will be drawn to following the God of love and mercy.

I did not come to call the righteous but sinners

 

Scripture for this reflection can be found at Friday of the Thirteenth Week in Ordinary Time | USCCB

In our gospel for today we see the usual judgementalism of the Pharisees towards Jesus and those who Jesus was ministering to. Jesus’ mission was to come and help people return to relationship with God.

Tax collectors during the time of Jesus were considered outcasts by the Jewish people because they worked for the Roman government and were extorting money from the Jews in order to turn it over to the Romans, while keeping some of the money for themselves. As a result, they were considered the worsts of sinners for betraying God and the Jewish people in order to make a profit. Further, there were others who just simply turned away from their faith in God and were living lives not compatible with Jewish law.

To the Pharisees these people were beyond redemption and were already condemned by God. Jesus, knowing the hearts of all people, reached out to these tax collectors and sinners and showed them the love that God has for each one of them. All they needed to do was to turn back to God, repent for their sinfulness, and develop that loving relationship with God, who is all loving and forgiving.

Matthew is a prime example of someone turning his life over to God. Through Jesus Christ, he saw his sinfulness, repented, and would go on to proclaim that Jesus Christ is Lord and Savior. We are to be like St. Matthew in helping others to come and know the love and forgiveness of Jesus Christ.

In our day and age, Jesus is still calling people away from their sinful ways to turn back to Him and to seek forgiveness for their sins through his church. All of us are called to be Christ-like towards those who may be living a life not appropriate to the Christian way of life that we know and love. We are called to be welcoming to all people and invite them to share our faith in the loving God, as taught by Jesus Christ. We may see people whose lifestyles we may not approve of, but we need to look beyond their sinfulness and see people loved by God and made in His likeness. We are called to pray for them and make them welcome in our Christian community. As Jesus responds to the Pharisees, when they question about why he was with tax collectors and sinners, he says, "Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do.” (Matthew 9:12) Those who have left the church and relationship with God for any reason are being called by the Lord to return to a relationship with Him and to seek forgiveness.

So let us show the love of God to all people and make all welcomed into our church. Pray for them that they may turn away from sin and embrace a life in relationship with God through Jesus Christ.