Stand still
Podcast
Scripture references
Reflection
There are many in this church who learned their first lessons about faith from our parents, our grandparents and from other people of faith who were instrumental in making us the people we are. In today’s world, there are many who question the truths of our faith, among them, the place of Mary in the Church and in our lives.
We live in a world which questions everything. In many cases, our children are taught from earliest times to be sceptical about accepting truths until they have been proven, and even as adults, we sometimes find ourselves in situations where we don’t want to make commitments until all the possible scenarios have been examined … but these are the hallmarks of those who live by reason, not by faith.
In contrast, the Church presents for our consideration, the first of the apostles, a figure we know as Mary of Nazareth. An apostle is one who has been sent to proclaim good news. Mary’s answer, ‘Be it done unto me according to your word’ (Lk 1:38) is the proof of her acceptance of God’s invitation to accept a very special mission. In fact, from the moment of her conception, God protected her from the stain of sin, preparing her for the special role she would fulfill, but it wasn’t until she encountered the angel and spoke her acceptance that the truth of her unique place came to light.
Among the thousands of teenaged girls who would have been part of Mary’s world, she stood out in the mind of God, not because of any physical beauty, although she is customarily portrayed with the fresh innocence and beauty of one at the cusp of adulthood. The thing about Mary that earned her such an exalted place in history is her ability to stand still and to ponder the inner realities of life.
The gospel passage today tells us that she pondered all the happenings at the stable in her heart (Lk 2:19). I’m willing to bet that this was a characteristic of hers, her ability to treasure the significant moments of life, and to ponder their meaning and the lessons to be learned. The good news for us is that she can teach us too how to stand still, how to pay attention to the inner wonderings of our hearts, and not to let the significant moments in life pass us by.
Today, the Church celebrates the Solemnity of the Mother of God, but Mary is also our mother, because Jesus has given her to us. He did this so that she could teach the disciples and us as well, how to stand in wonder at the crèche, and at the foot of the cross, and at the empty tomb, pondering the truths of God’s great love for each of us. He gave her to us so that we could come to her in our time of need, to find in her a compassionate heart, able to sympathise with us in our pain, able to counsel us in the ways of justice, peace and holiness, able to understand our wayward hearts and to help us find our way back to the original beauty of knowing the fullness of grace.
May Mary intercede for us, for our families and friends, and for all our loved ones, and ask her son to bless us, to let his face shine upon us, to be gracious to us, to fill us with every good gift, and to give us peace (cf Num 6:24-26).
Happy New Year!
