Tuesday, November 08, 2005

Mary Mother for All Eternity



Mary was chosen by our Heavenly Father from the beginning of time to be the Mother of His beloved Son our Lord Jesus Christ. And even though Mary was chosen for this most august and singular mission, she still could have through her own free will, declined God's invitation to bear the Son of God, in human flesh.

And though Mary through God's Grace was Immaculate in her mother’s womb, God did not deprive Mary of her free will to choose her own course. But Mary through her own will and beauty of soul chose to give her 'fiat', so that through her Son all men may be saved.

But more than this is the obedient and docile nature of Mary, who obeyed God with uncommon courage and humility, even though at times she was not always knowing about the course of her Son's life, still she trusted God her Heavenly Father.

Mary is a beacon to all of us on how to live the Divine Will in our daily lives and how we accomplish this amalgamation of our will forged to the Divine Will. This is what sets Mary apart from all others and through her obedience and confidence in God's Promise we too gain a glimpse of God's most Perfect Nature.

If God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit chose Mary as their most perfect woman, who are we to question the Wisdom of God? For by choosing this most noble of souls, God shows each of us through Mary how to achieve this most perfect state of a soul united as one with the Divine Being.

For though Mary lived the Divine Will in her daily life, this did not make her a robot, and she lost none of her own individual uniqueness. God was simply able to work within her soul without any interruption, like a flowing river of pure water, there were no ripples of discontent nor pride to impede God's action in Mary's soul.

This teaches all of us that if we follow Mary's example, then God will also be able to incorporate and fuse our will with His Divine Will, which would make us children of the Living God. We would be light bearers of eternal Love, spreading peace and joy to all we meet. For this is how Mary lived, and why she is irreplaceable in God's plan of Salvation.

We like Mary, would become Co-redeemers, as we seek with all our hearts to pray to our Heavenly Father for the salvation of others and to also offer our sufferings to God in expiation of those who willingly refuse God's Love.

Through Mary we learn how to be obedient and how to live our lives in perfect unison with the Divine. For like her Son, Mary too is the perfect example of one who loved till it cost.

Peace of Christ to ALL

Copyright © 2005 Marie Smith. All rights reserved.

Saturday, October 29, 2005

Mary a Woman of Substance



Even though not much is written in Scripture about Mary what is revealed is very telling, in that like her Son Jesus, she too lived to do the Will of the Father, and Mary did so with perfection.

It is the very silence of Mary that grabs one's attention, for if Mary had been quoted more often by the Apostles, would it have differed from what Jesus himself was teaching those around him?

When Mary says, "Do whatever he tells you", does this not express the entire concept and Messianic meaning of Jesus entire Salvific Mission? For upon hearing these words, what did the people gathered at the wedding do? They did exactly as Jesus told them to, and also exactly as Mary had instructed.

For the relationship between this Mother and Son was unique unto itself, never to be repeated, as God took human flesh in Mary's womb. This sealed the relationship between both Mother and Son, to undo the sin of our first parents, Adam and Eve.

Through Mary's Fiat we have eternal life in her Son our Lord, and through Mary's obedience to God, we have the example of perfect conformity to the Will of the Father.

Mary's entire life was one of profound mystery through the Annunciation and of complete trust in God, even though at times the meaning of Jesus words remained hidden as Mary pondered them in her heart.

It is through Mary that we gain a greater insight in how to conform to the Will of God as she did, with total perfection. This would not have been easy for Mary, for like all Mothers she loved her Son dearly, and there must have been times when her heart would have been perturbed at the reception her Son received by others.

Mary's silence is a silence of substance, for why would Mary repeat her Son's every word, in that both Mother and Son were united and incorporated into the Divine Will. Mary in herself was not Divine, though God filled her spirit with Grace, but her Son Jesus, had both Divine and human nature.

It is Mary's silence that truly speaks volumes, in that she had no need to neither question her son nor query his actions, once his Mission had begun. For Mary knew her Son spoke the Word of eternal life, and she obeyed his every word not blindly but with complete filial trust and confidence in God, her Son.

Mary's entire life was spent in pointing and directing all attention to her Son, who had the words of eternal life. Her example to all who shared their life was to listen and obey with complete humility and docility the words her Son spoke.

The silence of Mary in Scripture is not because she had little to say, her silence lay in the fact that though Jesus was her Son, he was also God. Mary may have pondered many things in her heart but she never questioned God's love nor His Power to overcome evil.

And as Mary pondered in her heart in silence it was a silence of substance in the mystery of mysteries.

Peace of Christ to ALL

Copyright © 2005 Marie Smith. All rights reserved.

Monday, September 26, 2005

Mary Her Daily Life and Prayer



Mary's life would have been much like anyone else’s, in that she did not draw attention to herself, but simply got on with the job at hand. It would have been Mary and the women friends of Jesus who at times may have travelled ahead of Jesus and the disciples in order to provide a resting place for the tired men.

This meant a great deal of preparation; perhaps they also would have had a mule in order to carry some of their supplies. It meant a daily round of duties from sun rise to sun set, as they prepared meals, mended clothes and prepared a place of rest for her weary son and his disciples.

And upon reaching the place where they would spend the next few days Mary and the women most probably spent time at the nearest markets to buy such food as lentils, wheat, dates, olives, grapes, pomegranate's, onions etc as well as chickens, eggs, goats milk.

They then would have returned to make local unleavened bread by slapping the dough against a circular oven, in which they would then place the onions, lentils, pieces of meat perhaps with some goat cheese. Along with this after the main meal maybe some dates, almonds, honey, or watermelon would also have been served. Whatever was grown in season at that time.

The difference with Mary is that despite this workload, which was heavy indeed, in that there were no convenience as we enjoy today, Mary would have done all this without one single complaint, in that she had learnt to turn everything she did into a prayer. This provided a marvellous example to the women, whom journeyed with her and also the men in her spirit of gentleness, serenity and tranquillity. For like most things there would have been things that did not go right, days where accidents happened, all of this left Mary unflustered, as she simply took all these things the good and the bad equally from a Loving God.

Through all this activity and work Mary ennobles the most mundane tasks, and grants it the respect it deserves in that, everything we do must be done in a spirit of love and service to others, for that is the way Mary shows us.

Upon finishing the meals the women would have joined together in communal washing up. And I am sure with gentle humour and an equally gentle spirit, the women would have enjoyed this moment shared with Mary as they each worked uncomplaining in an environment of love and companionship.

After the evening meal and clean up was completed Mary and the rest of Jesus friends would have gathered around her son to listen to his stories, to learn from him, but also to enjoy moments of pleasant humour, before they retired for the night to pray to their Heavenly Father.

For both Mary and Jesus, lived lives of deep prayer, of a relationship with the Heavenly Father which went beyond the mere rituals of the Pharisees. And it is their example combined, which would be a great lesson for both disciples and female companions to emulate in their own lives.

But I am sure even in prayer, Mary's heart was not without its worries as she pondered in her heart the meaning of these precious words from her son and the prophecy of Simeon.

Peace of Christ to you ALL

Copyright © 2005 Marie Smith. All rights reserved.

Sunday, September 18, 2005

Mary The Heart of A Mother



The life of Mary provides for us all the opportunity to understand women’s role within the family and community. For Mary had a Mothers heart and a Mothers love not just for her Son but also for his friends and followers.

It is through Mary's example that many of the women followers would have tried to emulate. They would have witnessed first hand how Mary incorporated prayer into every activity and that nothing was too small or too big for Mary who did all things with the utmost meekness and humility.

I am sure that Martha upon observing Mary and her motherly heart which was always available to any of her Sons friends, and the way she conducted her many chores and duties into a service of love based upon a combination of prayer and activity.

For Mary understood from the beginning that in all we do and in every activity we must remember to whom we serve and that is our Heavenly Father. Mary knew that true love is a life of service for the benefit of others and not oneself.

Though Mary had an exalted position as the Mother of Jesus, she never drew attention away from her son, but instead mediated between Jesus and his many friends, as she did at the wedding of Cana. This would have provided a wonderful example to the many women who followed Jesus in what is pleasing to our Heavenly Father, a life of service and meekness.

Even though there would have been moments of great discomfort, days of heat and dusty weather. This may have seemed never ending in a cycle of traveling between towns whilst following Jesus and his disciples. Mary was not one to complain, she simply did what needed to be done in a spirit of humble service irrespective of her own tiredness, for Mary placed others before herself.

Mary would also have provided a Mothers heart for the disciples to confide in and also to learn from, she would have provided not only physical comforts but also emotional comfort. For their must have been many times when the disciples were confused by the teachings of their teacher, Jesus, as he taught them that one had to become like little children to enter the Kingdom of Heaven.

For whilst the Jews were under terrible persecutions, many had expected the Promised Messiah to rain thunderbolts upon their Persecutors the Roman occupiers! So to many of the disciples what Jesus was teaching them would have been a shock to all their preconceived idea's.

Mary would have understood this confusion and I am sure in her gentle and motherly way she would have provided much needed wisdom to the disciples who were struggling with their inner conflicts and their doubts.

So even in the day of Jesus Ministry Mary’s role of Mediator was already begun, it began upon her Fiat. This would give Mary much to ponder on as she joined her Son in his Mission to save all man from the sting of death. For Mary was to become Mother of all for Eternity, but for now, Mary listened and encouraged her Sons disciples and followers to live lives of service and of deep prayer, as their journey continued.

Peace of Christ to you ALL
Copyright © 2005 Marie Smith. All rights reserved.

Fundraiser for Cataract Surgery