I recently listened to an audio series upon the recommendation of Simple Sinner that has caused me to reflect on the Blessed Mother and her witness to all of us. The talks are by a very old school Franciscan priest who condemns a lot of things as evil that most of us wouldn’t have a problem with. My first reaction? This guy is way too legalistic.
BUT…then I think about the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God.
I imagine a scenario where Our Lady needs a ride in my car. I open up the back door of my sporty Mazda and help her in get in. I assist with buckling up her seatbelt, careful not to mess with her Fatima fashions (you know, blue robe, white head covering). I climb in the front seat, turn on the car, and pull out my 80G iPod to find some music for the drive.
What shall I play? What would you play? I scroll through the tunes, rejecting one after another of the secular stuff. Then I move over to the Christian “rock.” No, nothing suitable there either. I don’t know why not. It just doesn’t seem fitting for this spotless rose. I settle on Rachmaninov’s Vespers, followed by Tomas Luis de Victoria’s O Magnum Mysterium, then maybe Elizabeth Poston’s Jesus Christ the Apple Tree. Each piece of music would be carefully selected, so as not to taint Mary’s holiness in any way.
So, the question becomes, why do I put her in this category, and not you? Not me? If I do this out of love for her, shouldn’t I show the same love to everyone? Shouldn’t I have the same supreme desire that none should fall into sin because of me or my actions? Shouldn’t what we present to our fellow brothers and sisters, in our dress, in our words, in our music choices, in our acts of charity, always strive to be virtous? Why are certain things “okay” for me and not for Our Lady? Why do I think “I” can handle it, but she can’t?
On this day, when we celebrate Mary as the Mother of God, I pray that we may remember she is the Mother of us too. May we treat her children, whom she dearly loves, as we would treat her, as holy unto the Lord. She would want nothing less from us.
David Bennett
Jennifer
asimplesinner
Fr. J.
Chad Toney
Jorge Flores
Jonathan B
carmelbennett
nicenehobbit
Jason S
jaybird68
papaz
January 2, 2008 at 7:43 am
brava, well said!
Father I. is a lot to digest…
But some of those things when you consider them have some decent reasoning…
January 3, 2008 at 6:08 am
very well said
January 3, 2008 at 12:20 pm
I couldn’t agree more. Yet, why do I succomb to ‘feeling’ this way when I read this, and then so quickly become ‘hardened’ again? I mean, reading this now, on my lap top, in bed, cup of coffee near to sip, reading a few blogs, offering up a quick prayer here and there for someone…feeling so cozy and religious. THEN, I hit the ground, get dressed, out the door and before you know it, I’ve grumbled to someone (my husband no doubt is the first) then about something and say “forgive me” to the Lord or to Mary, and then it’s all day. I blow it so much when I want to be so holy and kind. Will I ever finally become who I long to be for Him, for Her? I pray that I will. I go to daily Mass and know that receiving Jesus in the Eucharist is the best thing I can do, and Adoration but I still seem so far away from being ‘like unto her.’ Mary, spotless one, have mercy and take pity on this prodigal daughter, who’s so prone to say or pray one way and act another in the blink of an eye. Don’t ever let me go, keep me safe under your mantle, and pray for me.
January 4, 2008 at 6:43 pm
Amen JC! I hear you loud and clear.