Mary

Dearest Ones,

I can't remember a time when Mary was not a part of my life.  I talk to her throughout the day.  I give her my problems and the needs of others.  Our family prayed the rosary together in the evenings.  I remember my Mother praying Hail Mary's before making any important decisions.  We prayed to Jesus through Mary.  Mary never took the place of Jesus -that is the last thing she would ever want.  

Let's consider Mary as she really is.  Because she's the Mother of God, many think she is too high and mighty that nobody can touch her.  And this isn't true.  It is true that she's high up, but she's also very ordinary.  She washed and scrubbed and cleaned.  She didn't have a bunch of servants waiting on her.  She even did her own laundry.

 

Mary was married to a carpenter.  She wasn't a big shot in Nazareth and this was a small town.  Her husband, Joseph, wasn't a big shot either.  She tended to the garden.   Our Lord chose a working woman for His mother, so we wouldn't be afraid of her! 

 

At the end of His life, Jesus gave her to all of us as our very own Mother, when He said to John, the Apostle, "Son, behold thy Mother.  Mother, this is your son."   Jesus wanted to make sure weknew she was our mother, too, before He died.  We don't have to wonder if we belong to her. 

 

Why is Mary so important to us?  It is through her that Christ came to us.  Without Mary there would be no Christmas.  When she became pregnant, she couldn't run around and tell everybody.  She had to keep it a secret because she wasn't married to Joseph yet.  People were condemning her, but never once did she open her mouth to tell them she was to be God's mother.  Doesn't that give us courage to be silent before unjust accusations?  She also stood silently, heart-broken, under the cross of her Son. 

 

All across the world, Our Lord is allowing His Mother to appear to many persons.  Her message is always the same:  "Tell everyone to obey my Son.  Keep the commandments and you will join us in heaven some day."  The message is so simple. 500 hundred years ago, at a time when Mexico was under the control of pagans, Mary appeared to a poor man named Juan Diego.  "My little son,"she said to him, "Do not be afraid.  I am your Mother and I want to help you."  She told him to ask the Bishop to build a church in God's honor.  The Bishop didn't believe Juan, so Juan asked Our Blessed Mother to give a sign to the Bishop, which she did.  The next time Juan went to the Bishop, he took off his cloak, and there in beautiful colors was a painting of Mary on the inside of his cloak, just as she looked when she appeared to Juan.  That wasn't all - beautiful fresh roses fell to the floor from his cloak, too.  It was in the middle of winter, so roses could not be found growing anywhere.  This was a miracle, too.

This was enough for the Bishop.  Now, he knew Juan was telling the truth.  The Bishop had the church built.  Right now, after 500 years, that same cloak worn by Juan with the beautiful painting on it hangs in a church in Mexico City.  The colors are as bright as ever, which has to be a miracle.  Thousands visit Our Lady of Guadalupe church each year.  The painting is kept under a glass for protection.  Countless miracles have happened to those who pray to Our Lady of Guadalupe.  The greatest miracle is that within a short time, millions of Mexicans became Christians!  We celebrate Our Lady of Guadalupe Feast on December 12.

On Thursday, December 8, Mary's Immaculate Conception is celebrated.  The Church teaches us that Mary was conceived without original sin, that is why we celebrate her Immaculate Conception.  She is our friend and she will lead you to Jesus.  How can we not go to her with our troubles?

To Jesus through Mary,
Sister Francelle
sisterfrancelle.blogspot.com