Dear Brothers and Sisters,
The first reading on the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God, is a blessing not of human words but directly from the Father. He is instructing Moses on how Aaron and his sons should do the blessing: May the Lord bless you and keep you; may his face shine upon you; may he look kindly upon you and give you peace! They are words directly from God so they have power and contain a promise that when these words are said they will be fulfilled. They are not magical, but by giving us this prayer God promises to answer it. It is like the words of the Our Father. They have power when said with faith.
God doesn’t say what he will do but when we believe it is like giving him a blank check. We can trust in him, and he will figure out the details. Whatever it is will be a gift for us. A gift or a grace is always unmerited, undeserved. He gives it nor because we are good or hard-working; he gives only out of love for us. All things work for the good for those who love God. Why should we believe this? We can trust in this promise because of his great love for us that he shows by sending his Son to be a baby for us!
God does things perfectly. He doesn’t make mistakes and uses even our sins or the sins of those around us to do good for us. He draws good out of evil, always. How can we have this trusting relationship with Jesus Christ? Speak to him. Spend time with him. How do we grow in a relationship with anyone? We can do the same with the Lord. Show him your love by saying it. Adore him when you receive him in the Eucharist. Serve him in the parish or among your family and friends. He came here to serve us, not to be served by us. We can get to know him in this way.
I am moved by how Mary ponders the events of these mysteries of her virgin birth, of the shepherds coming to be with them in the manger, how Joseph responds to the mission of being the father of Jesus, and many other things. To ponder is more than to only think about what has happened. The Greek word means ‘to tie the things together.’ Mary starts to see the connections of what God is doing for her, for her family, for the mission that she has been given. She sees the truth and is enlightened by these events. She will discern how Jesus is her savior and the savior of the world. All of this takes time and patience. Especially with people we need patience. It is not like being with a computer or figuring out a math problem. The truth, the light comes gradually, like the tides or the sunrise. It doesn’t happen with the flip of a switch.
Mary also obeys. A circumcision has a deep religious meaning for the Jews. It is more than for health reasons. Even if she does not fully understand it, she obeys. Also, naming her son may not have made sense to her; no one else in her family had that name. How this baby will be a savior will not be manifested for many years later, but she obeys.
We all need to ponder, and to obey the will of God even when we do not understand it. This is the secret of being a saint. They all went through a dark night, but they all trusted in the promise God made to them. Let us ask the help of Mary, Mother of God, that we may trust as she did even when what was asked of her did not make any sense. She was ever-faithful!