Mary and Mother’s Day - Fr. Steve Mondiek

I can remember in grade school how the Sister’s of Charity put a lot of effort in honoring the Blessed Virgin during the month of May. Every classroom had a ‘Mary altar.’ The statue of Mary on Her altar in church was adorned with so many flowers and garlands. It was like a festival for the whole month. There were May processions, May crowning’s and all of this usually fell during Eastertide.

We now patiently wait for the Church to celebrate Pentecost and how our Blessed Mother prayed with the Early Church in the Upper Room, waiting for the descent of the Holy Spirit.

In the month of May, the Church calls us to open our hearts in a special way to Mary. Her presence in our lives is a motherly presence. We call her Our Blessed Mother. Indeed, from the Cross, Jesus gave her to us as our Mother and entrusted us to her as her children. Jesus’ words to Saint John, the beloved disciple, were also addressed to all of us: Behold your mother! From the cross, Jesus gave us the beautiful gift of his Mother to be our mother too. He made his Mother the mother of all the members of his Mystical Body, the Church. Jesus invites us to accept Mary as our mother and to respond to her motherly love as true children.

Pope Saint John Paul II explained that “the words, Behold your Mother!, express Jesus’ intention to inspire in his disciples an attitude of love for and trust in Mary, leading them to recognize her as their mother, the mother of every believer. At the school of the Virgin, the disciples learn to know the Lord deeply, as John did, and to have an intimate and lasting relationship of love with him. They also discover the joy of entrusting themselves to the Mother’s maternal love, living like affectionate and docile children.”

Mary always leads us to her Son. When we go to her, we always meet the Lord. She helps us follow her Son more faithfully. May we all, like Saint John, take Mary into our home and make room for her in our daily lives. God has entrusted to her the role of maternal intercession for us. She sees our needs and is ready to come to our aid. She is especially close to those who are suffering. The most ancient Marian prayer expresses Mary’s role as our advocate: We fly to thy patronage, O holy Mother of God; despise not our petitions in our necessities but deliver us always from all dangers, O glorious and blessed Virgin.” Mary presents our needs to her Son and intercedes continually on our behalf.

This weekend we celebrate Mother’s Day and how fitting during the Marian month. As we honor the Mother of God, our spiritual Mother, we also honor our earthly mothers. On Mother’s Day, we remember with gratitude and affection our mothers, especially with our love and prayers. We thank God for the gift of our mothers and all that they do for us. We remember all our mothers, living and deceased. We thank them for their generosity and self-giving love.

Mary is a model for all mothers. Pope Benedict XVI said that “Mary is the image and model of all mothers, of their great mission to be guardians of life, of their mission to be teachers of the art of living and of the art of loving.”

Mary is a model for all of us on our earthly pilgrimage. She who was “full of grace” is a model of perfect holiness that is achieved through union with Christ. She is our model of faith who adhered to God’s word throughout her life. She is our model of hope who stood firm at the foot of the cross. She is our model of charity who went in haste to visit and help her cousin Elizabeth. Her maternal love for her Son extends to us, her spiritual children.

On Mother’s Day, let us pray for all our mothers. And let us remember that we have a Mother in heaven, the Blessed Virgin Mary. Remember, in this month of May especially take the time to pray the Rosary. “When the Holy Rosary is prayed well, it gives Jesus and Mary more glory and is more meritorious than any other prayer.” —St. Louis de Montfort

During May it is customary to set up an extra-special space in your home to honor Our Blessed Mother, like the Schoenstatt Home Shrine. And at this special place, gather with your family to pray to Mary and offer her your requests.

Bring flow'rs of the fairest, bring flow'rs of the rarest, From garden and woodland and hillside and vale; Our full hearts are swelling, our glad voices telling The praise of the loveliest rose of the vale. O Mary! we crown thee with blossoms today, Queen of the Angels, Queen of the May …

“What a joy to remember that she is our Mother! Since she loves us and knows our weakness, what have we to fear?” —St. Therese of Lisieux