Wednesday, June 24, 2009 : Mary Mary...
This post was meant to be written for May, Mary's Month. And it's now almost the end of June. I do not know how the time slips me by. I think of something I want...no NEED...to express, and then forget it, let it slip through my mind -- forgetting things that really matter so easily distracted by other less important, more frivolous things.
And what did I do in May or for that matter, in June? Not as much as I would have liked.
I have been steadfastly continuing with my Rosary chain...but not always with the concentration it deserves. :( So today I will write this post, which will help me concentrate I believe...
I've meant to write this for a while now. Many people wonder about the role of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the Church. She has always been a great part of my life -- from rosaries prayed daily in childhood, to the Our lady of Fatima statue that stands in my room today.
But who is Mary? What does she actually mean to us? Why do we Catholics hold her in such high regard?
I have been toying around with this idea for a while, and here it is finally. As I remember that I forgot to finish this post in May. As I remember that I often forget about Mary. To remind me, and all of us, why our veneration of the Blessed Virgin is important. Because there REALLY is "Something About Mary"
As for me, I'm trying to devote myself more fully to my own part in the rosary chain that we WYDers took on ... and from time to time I sit and devote myself to contemplating the full rosary. But praying it alone is difficult, and I long for the semester to start so I can find some friends to pray with.
In the meantime,
Here's my list ...
7 Things I Learned from the Blessed Virgin Mary
( Mary said to the angel, "How can this be since I am a virgin?"Luke 1:34)- Show care and concern for those around you, put others before self
(In those days Mary set out and went with haste to a Judean town in the hill country. Luke 1:39) ( And Mary said, "My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked with favor on the lowliness (tapeinosen) of his servant. Surely from now on all generations will call me blessed; for the Mighty One has done great things for me and holy is his name.His mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation. He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts. He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly (tapeinous); he has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty. He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, according to the promise he made to our ancestors, to Abraham and to his descendants forever." Luke 1:46-55)- Contemplate the words and deeds of Jesus in your heart
(But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. Luke 2:19 Then he went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them. His mother treasured all these things in her heart. Luke 2:51)- Bear witness, even when it seems dangerous, and few remain faithful
(Meanwhile, standing near the cross of Jesus were his mother, and his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. John 19:25)(Then Mary said, "Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word. Luke 1:38 ) And the last (and possibly most important) thing that I learned about Mary in the Gospels and through my own life?...
- Mary is Our Mother, and Mary's intercession is powerful
(When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing beside her, he said to his mother, "Woman, here is your son." then he said to the disciple, "Here is your mother." And from that hour the disciple took her into his own home. John 19:26-27 On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. When the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to him, "They have no wine." And Jesus said to her, "Woman, what concern is that to you and me? My hour has not yet come." His mother said to the servants, "Do whatever he tells you." Now standing there were six stone water jars for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. Jesus said to them, "Fill the jars with water." And they filled them to the brim. He said to them, "Now draw some out, and take it to the chief steward." So they took it. When the steward tasted the water that had become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the steward called the bridegroom and said to him, "Everyone serves the good wine first, and then the inferior wine after the guests have become drunk. But you have kept the good wine until now." Jesus did this, the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee, and revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him. John 2:1-12)All bible verses from: http://campus.udayton.edu/mary/resources/bible.html
