Keep me, O God, for in you I take refuge;
I say to the LORD, My Lord
O LORD, my allotted portion
you it is who hold
Today’s first reading and responsorial psalm are from the Saturday
of the tenth week in ordinary time, and the gospel is chosen for the Memorial
of Mary. But the psalm also befits the girl who abandoned her family and
neighbors to be the Mother of God.
While that might sound like an easy choice, it was in fact a
decision to be pregnant, poor, homeless and reliant upon a poor tradesman. She would
become an alien in Egypt ,
driven from her homeland by the political turmoil around her infant son.
Like the poor of every country and every age, she had to
wait on the mercy of God; this world, engorged in excess, had no expendable
funds that might trickle down to her.
During the awful centuries of rivalry between Catholics and
Protestants, Mary became a symbol of division. Recently,
however, as secularity and sports have become the religions of the world, pious
imagination has reclaimed Mary as a champion of
women. Because the wars of the last century were directed especially against
non-combatants – the elderly, women, children, Jews, Roma, homosexuals and
others deemed expendable – the Holy Spirit has directed our attention to the
obscure woman of Galilee . Because we have heard the cry
of the poor, we want to more about the “little people” whose stories are often
forgotten.
Historians, scripture scholars and novelists have attempted
to re-imagine Mary ’s biography. At least one famous
Jewish author, Sholem Asch Mary ;
and Marjorie Holmes Holmes on the Internet.) Elizabeth
Johnson Mary ’s life
and times in Truly
Our Sister: A Theology of Mary in the Communion of Saints (2003). It is a harrowing tale
of struggle and survival.
Although we can say with “historical certainty” only that Jesus
was born of a woman, it is not hard to imagine the difficulties of her life. From there the scriptures reveal a woman of faith, and our hearts assure us of
her compassion, courage and dedication to us. Indeed we can even suppose she consecrated
her life to the care of Jesus ’ disciples when
the dying Messiah commanded her to “Behold your son.”
What could a woman do for a burgeoning movement that spread
like wildfire first through the Jewish Diaspora and then to gentile cities? She
could offer her Immaculate Heart.
A little known poet (myself) has written of her final years:
Enflaming all the earth with God’s
desire
his mother spent her life in Galilee
receiving those who wanted to
retire
in quiet for awhile. They had to be
alone with her whose early
willingness
to hear the word of God and keep it
safe
had borne such fruit. In Mary
came to rest
a spirit wild, whose searing often
chafed
the human heart. She made him one
of us,
and in her house the wildest
spirits turned
to gentleness. The sacred woman’s
just
reward would not await her son’s
return;
for by the Lord’s command and
saints’ advice
the angels raptured her to paradise.
(Don't forget June 16, Bloomsday!)
(Don't forget June 16, Bloomsday!)
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I love to write. This blog helps me to meditate on the Word of God, and I hope to make some contribution to our contemplations of God's Mighty Works.
Ordinarily, I write these reflections two or three weeks in advance of their publication. I do not intend to comment on current events.
I understand many people prefer gender-neutral references to "God." I don't disagree with them but find that language impersonal, unappealing and tasteless. When I refer to "God" I think of the One whom Jesus called "Abba" and "Father", and I would not attempt to improve on Jesus' language.
You're welcome to add a thought or raise a question.