Motherly support from on high: Weekly Message for 06-07-2022

Dear Friends in Christ,

The Church recently celebrated the memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church.

The liturgical feast, inserted into the Roman Calendar by Pope Francis in 2018, is based on an ancient tradition that honored Our Lady in her maternal relationship to the Church. 

The Holy See’s decree on the institution of the feast noted that St. Augustine “says that Mary is the mother of the members of Christ, because with charity she cooperated in the rebirth of the faithful into the Church, while … [St. Leo the Great] says that the birth of the Head is also the birth of the body, thus indicating that Mary is at once Mother of Christ, the Son of God, and mother of the members of his Mystical Body, which is the Church.”

Having such a great Mother gives us reason for hope and joy at a time when the Church faces increasing pressure from the secular world.

On many fronts, the powers-that-be challenge the Church for its defense of unborn life and marriage and its insistence that God has a right to first place in our lives.

This opposition shouldn’t surprise us. “If they persecuted me,” Jesus said, “they will also persecute you” (John 15:2). 

This was Our Lord’s way of saying that we would share his cross … if we want to be faithful. 

Mary was faithful. And just as Our Lady was there to support her Jesus at his difficult moments, so she is here to support us in ours. 

To go deeper into appreciating Mary’s role in the life of Christ, you might want to turn to The River of Mercy: A Retreat Guide on the Rosary.

The Mother who helped sustain her Son in his mission will help sustain us in ours.

In Christ,

Father Edward McIlmail, LC
Ask a Priest contributor