As this post goes out, we celebrate the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. I have to admit, coming from protestant tradition, I have been surprised by how many Marian feast days there are. Protestants of course range in their reverence towards Mary, from “she was just a woman” to a nicely formed Mariology, you will find all form of Mariology in Protestantism.
We should look at why we revere Mary.
Mary was born without original sin, she was made specifically to give birth to the son of God. This alone should warrant celebration. That God would create such a woman, that He would bless the human race with someone worthy to carry God’s son. But we tend to be selfish; “why her?” “Why don’t I get that special treatment?”
My answer to this is we did all get special treatment. We all have ministries here in this life. We were all specially made for our ministry. The problem is, we all seem to want our neighbors ministry, not the one God gave us. We look at our life and we think it is not that special. If only I had my neighbor’s job, or if only I could have more prestige or money.
As the old saying goes, “the grass is always greener”.
But the truth is, life is always better when we all do our job. When we let those called to lead, lead, those called to manage manage, and those called to work, work; this is when we have our best results.
Mary was called to carry Jesus, she accepted this honor from her own free will. As we look at Mary and ask “why her”, we should also look at what she gave up to complete this task. She kept herself pure. This certainly should be seen as a gain instead of a loss, but we should know that keeping pure requires giving up many of the things we find enjoyable in this life. The venial sins that lead to mortal, the idleness that leads to sin, it is a sacrifice to get back to productive work and not take that extra break. It is work keeping pure in this world, and she performed that work without fail. It has been told and told again, but Mary’s betrothal and pregnancy was dangerous. She could have been stoned, or at least shunned. We all know that through the message of an angel to Joseph she would be saved, but she did not know that when she said “yes”. The trip to Egypt while pregnant, the birth in a stable, what hardships she endured! Raising her son only to see Him executed as an innocent.
The grass is not always greener. We should celebrate the birth of this great woman, we should marvel at what she accomplished in her life. We should rejoice that she still comes to us through apparitions. We should make every attempt to model our life after hers.
God made us all for a reason, we should always ask ourselves; “are we living up to God’s call”? Pick up your cross, just as Mary did, and further the kingdom of God here in the Church militant.
Fr Scott
Seeking the Truth 