Mary, Mother of God
Fr. Albert
St. Peter Catholic Church, New Iberia
On the first day of the year, the first reading from scripture that we hear is God commanding his priest to bless his people. But what does a that even mean? “Blessing” is one of those words we use so much that we aren’t actually sure how to define it. We see three petitions in this blessing that point us to its deepest meaning. Blessing is a broad theme deeply embedded in Scripture, but we can focus on one key aspect: relationship.
“The Lord bless you and keep you.” This line and the whole blessing are connected to God’s covenant with his people. And what is a covenant? It is not like a contract, it’s more like a marriage. Especially for the culture of the ancient near-east, a covenant established a kind of family bond between two parties. And that family bond, that relationship has profound implications in our life for how we interact with God, for our relationship with Mary, and for how we treat one another and even our own possessions.
“The LORD let his face shine upon you, and be gracious to you.” God’s relationship with Israel was part of his plan save us from our sins, but he didn’t stop there. No, God took this family bond all the way, even to the point that the eternal, uncreated son of God literally allowed his face to shine on humanity when he was “born of a woman;” a woman he called “mother.” And that is today’s feast: Mary, the Mother of God. And this is an exceptional gift and a profound blessing.
Of course we don’t meant that Mary is above God, or that she existed before him. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit have always existed in a perfect union of Love. But, the Son took on a human nature to redeem mankind. Without ceasing to be God, he became human, he is Jesus Christ. The real reason we call Mary the “Mother of God” is because we want to insist on the fact that Jesus is God and Man and that Mary really is the mother of Jesus. Everything the Church teaches about Mary always connects back to a truth about Jesus. The fact that Mary is the mother of God says more about God’s humility than it does about Mary herself.
And the truth about our God-Man Jesus is that he came “so that we might receive adoption as sons” to God himself. And if we are adopted in Jesus Christ, raised up to be his brothers, to share his “abba,” his father, then we also share his mother, Mary. So Mary is not just one historical example, but is an ongoing support for us. So, invoke her intercession and learn from her example. Especially in the Gospel we see that she “kept all these things, reflecting on them in her heart.”
And that is a valuable way to make your new year blessed. Allow yourself to ponder the mystery of Christ’s incarnation over and over. Allow yourself to ponder the mystery of Mary’s role in our salvation. Allow yourself to ponder the mystery of God’s humility and his love for his people. What better New Year’s resolution than to pray the rosary daily, which cycles through 20 key moments in salvation history? The rosary is not about the repetition of the words, but about allowing that repetition to draw us deeper into Mary’s own reflection on God’s goodness. It’s like we are invited to open the treasure chest that is Mary’s heart, as if we can go back to draw on the fruit of what Mary kept there and what she reflected upon.
“The Lord look upon you kindly and give you peace!” What besides the rosary can bring us peace in the new year? Read the very next line: “So shall they invoke my name upon the Israelites, and I will bless them.” And how is God’s name invoked upon us now? Think first about what we call ourselves: Christians. We bear the name of Jesus Christ, who is God and man. The best way to find peace in this life is to live up to the name of Christian by imitating Christ himself. But you already knew that.
But what about the Trinitarian name, the one we use so often we almost don’t even notice. Every time you enter a Church, every time you start a prayer, and every time you stay to the end of Mass. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. That Trinitarian, Divine name is given to us so that we can call upon him. We bless ourselves with it, the church blesses you with it, and we even bless our rosaries, homes, and cars with it. But do we really understand what that means? Do we take it seriously?
Remember, blessing is about our covenant relationship with God. When you start a prayer using the sign of the Cross, it ought to remind you of the special connection we have with God through his Son and through the Church. This is truly a marvelous privilege. For a long time, the Jews were afraid to speak God’s name aloud. In the early Church, people could be killed if they were seen making the sign of the cross. And in a time when demonic activity was more obvious, the sign of the cross was an essential part of our spiritual defense. It still is. This New Year, resolve to take seriously the name of God, to not take it in vain and to treat it as the particular blessing that it is.
One way to do this is to take advantage of the ways that the Church invokes God’s name upon us. Yes, I bless everyone at the end of mass, but the Church has an entire repertoire of blessings for every part of your life. We are spiritual and physical beings. The Church uses water, salt, oil, medals, statues, and a thousand other things to help us grow in holiness. Christ our brother conquered death, sin, and Satan – and that includes the material world. The Church works to extend that victory, to extend the Kingdom of Heaven, throughout the world primarily by winning souls for Christ, but also by claiming things for him.
What does that look like? When the Church, through a priest, blesses an object, it’s kind of like claiming territory for the Kingdom of Heaven. When I bless a person, it is the Church praying for God to draw that person closer to him and to show them his favor, to grant them peace. When I bless rosary or medal, it is the Church using that thing like an anchor. The Church continually prays for whoever uses that rosary or medal. When I bless your house, your car, or your business, it means that the Church is praying for that thing to serve you better so that you can serve the Kingdom of God. And you don’t always need a priest. Parents should bless their own children often. You can use holy water to bring God’s blessings with you. You can bless your home on epiphany. Blessings are not magic, but they are real. They are yet another way to make God’s presence real to us; one more way to extend the Kingdom of Heaven into every part of our lives.
As you begin your year with resolutions and hopes for peace, love, and joy, do not forget who is the source of those things. God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit designed all of history in order to bring us into a closer relationship with him. He wants to be our Father. He gave us Jesus as our Brother and Mary as our mother. He gave us the Church’s supply of blessings as a way of bringing everything back to him. Resolve to draw closer to Christ. Resolve to take advantage of the great gift or Mary’s prayers. Resolve to call upon God’s blessing for everything important in your life. May you truly have a Happy New Year and may God bless you all!