Adult / Couple
May is a time during the liturgical year when our thoughts turn to Mary and her place in our life of faith. Enjoy these resources which will help us reflect on her faithfulness as the model disciple.
Pray!
David Haas has a beautiful musical arrangement of Mary's Magnificat:
Learn!
Reflections upon The Annunciation by Henry Ossawa Tanner
April 26, 2016 vmcastaldi
Of all places, in Blaenau Ffestiniog in North Wales, I was introduced to a beautiful depiction of the Annunciation. It was there that I saw for the first time Henry Ossawa Tanner’s painting The Annunciation, a striking rendition of the angel Gabriel’s appearance to a virgin named Mary. I find it fascinating that Mary is not presented ostentatiously, and Gabriel is not shown in the traditional style of having a halo and glorious wings extending from his body (For a more traditional portrayal of the Annunciation, check out The Virgin of the Annunciation by Fra Giovanni da Fiesole.) From my perspective, Tanner’s picture captures the moment when a young, ordinary woman in a shabby room encounters the sacred. Mary’s face expresses sheer awe, awe in the sense of both trepidation and wonder. In a reasonable fashion, it seems, for anyone who has ever encountered God, bliss resonates within the soul. From viewing this picture, I do believe that Mary experienced a series of emotions—trepidation, wonder, and bliss—when the Almighty revealed a message to her via Gabriel: “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favour with God. You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.” (Luke 1:30-33, NIV)
It seems to me that the focal point of this picture is the right-hand side: Mary sitting on her bed with her hands clasped. My eye was immediately drawn to her, and then the centre of interest took me further than what simply meets the eye. I was intrigued by her facial expression, which captures awe. After seeing her face, I was then drawn to where Mary is looking. Mary sees a luminous figure in front of her. Her emotional response brilliantly illuminates for me the event that has come to pass: a young, poor woman receives the angel for what he is, without having preconceived notions like the following: How can a super-human being appear to me? Instead, she asks the question: “How will this be since I am a virgin?” (Luke 1:34, NIV) Only a woman of profound faith could ask such a question in light of the phenomena just presented to her from the divine. She sought to make sense of a faith-inspired event; her inquiring was the attempt to bring her reason and faith together, a kind of rationale for believing in her vocation from the Lord. Although she is wonder-filled, Mary appears to be at ease, ready to say: “I am the Lord’s servant. May your word to me be fulfilled.” (Luke 1:38, NIV)
Though we might not receive a message from an angel, there are glimpses of the divine everywhere in life. God is in all things, and we have to take each moment, every event as part of Divine Providence, and then respond accordingly. For me, Mary is the exemplar in this respect; she took her encounter with Gabriel as it was, without preconceived notions. Regarding observation, what mere sense data had shown here is that a virgin cannot conceive a son, more, the Son of God. Mary placed observation alone to the side, and trusted the Lord. The Lord is able to shatter our preconceptions and the smokescreens, which so often blind us from seeing reality clearly. God is at work in our lives. This shattering is exemplified when Gabriel exclaims: “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month. For no word from God will ever fail.” (Luke 1:35-37, NIV) At first glance, it seems that Mary would be dumbfounded to accept the angel’s words. God surprised her. Instead, Mary received a special revelation from the exterior, as it were, a God-send in the literal sense of the word in which human reason would find difficult to justify without the appearance of an angel. And what a wonderful revelation it was! Mary said yes to bringing the Son of God into the world.
Each experience is God seeping into our reality; He constantly surprises us. Like Mary, each moment we are awakened from our slumber and called to respond gratuitously: let it be done to me according your word, O Lord.
Do!
During this month when we celebrate Mother's Day, reflect on the gift of your own birth mother but also all those in your life who have been life-givers, nurtured your spirit, believed in you, stood with and for you, challenged you to be your best and lifted you to the Lord in faithful prayer.
If these individuals are still living, write them a note or send them a card expressing what they mean/have meant in your life. If they have gone home to God, give thanks for their presence in your life and count on their continued support.
God calls all of us to be "a mother figure". So be a giver of life, nurture the spirit of others, support and encourage and call forth the best in each other. Be a steadfast and faithful presence to those God places in our lives.
Here is a prayer that you can pray during these days of remembering:
"Prayer for all who mother"
By Victoria Weinstein
The life-giving ones
Who heal with their presence
Who listen in sympathy
Who give wise advice . . . but only when asked for it.
We are grateful for all those who have mothered us
Who have held us gently in times of sorrow
Who celebrated with us our triumphs--no matter how small
Who noticed when we changed and grew,
who praised us for taking risks
who took genuine pride in our success,
and who expressed genuine compassion when we did not succeed.
On this day that honors Mothers
let us honor all mothers
men and women alike
who from somewhere in their being
have freely and wholeheartedly given life, and sustenance, and vision to us.
Dear God, Mother and Father of us all,
grant us life-giving ways
strength for birthing,
and a nurturing spirit
that we may take attentive care of our world,
our communities, and those precious beings
entrusted to us by biology, or by destiny, or by friendship, fellowship, or fate.
Give us the heart of a mother today.
Amen
If these individuals are still living, write them a note or send them a card expressing what they mean/have meant in your life. If they have gone home to God, give thanks for their presence in your life and count on their continued support.
God calls all of us to be "a mother figure". So be a giver of life, nurture the spirit of others, support and encourage and call forth the best in each other. Be a steadfast and faithful presence to those God places in our lives.
Here is a prayer that you can pray during these days of remembering:
"Prayer for all who mother"
By Victoria Weinstein
The life-giving ones
Who heal with their presence
Who listen in sympathy
Who give wise advice . . . but only when asked for it.
We are grateful for all those who have mothered us
Who have held us gently in times of sorrow
Who celebrated with us our triumphs--no matter how small
Who noticed when we changed and grew,
who praised us for taking risks
who took genuine pride in our success,
and who expressed genuine compassion when we did not succeed.
On this day that honors Mothers
let us honor all mothers
men and women alike
who from somewhere in their being
have freely and wholeheartedly given life, and sustenance, and vision to us.
Dear God, Mother and Father of us all,
grant us life-giving ways
strength for birthing,
and a nurturing spirit
that we may take attentive care of our world,
our communities, and those precious beings
entrusted to us by biology, or by destiny, or by friendship, fellowship, or fate.
Give us the heart of a mother today.
Amen
