Joyful Mysteries

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Annunciation: And Mary said: Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it done to Me according to thy word. And the angel departed from Her. (Lk 1:38)

The angel had given God’s word. Mary responded and gave Her word. The agreement was made, both parties having complete faith in each other. Mary would never go back on Her word, Her complete abandonment to God, come what may. And She merited to receive the Word of God in Her womb.

When we freely give our word, may we always be true to it, come what may.

Visitation: And Mary abode with her about three months; and She returned to Her own house. (Lk 1:56)

Elizabeth, being old and with child, probably needed help. She relied on Mary. Mary stayed with her for three months, ensuring that the delivery was okay. Mary had probably given Her word that She would be there for as long as necessary, and had probably given Her word to Her other relatives back home that She would return to Nazareth after three months – in the days of no telecomms people certainly had to plan in advance and make sure their loved ones would know where they would be and when to expect them – giving one’s word and keeping to it was necessary in the day-to-day activities. Being careless could cause undue worry and inconvenience to one’s relatives in a time of more labour-intensive existence.

May we be generous in giving our word so that people can rely on us, and may God help us always to keep faithful to it.

Jesus’ Birth: And they came with haste; and they found Mary and Joseph, and the Infant lying in the manger. And seeing, they understood of the word that had been spoken to them concerning this Child. (Lk 2:16-17)

The angels had given God’s word to the shepherds and they responded in complete faith. Their faith was not disappointed and they saw the fulfilment of the hopes of generations of people.

May we hold onto our faith and hope, so that even if we are not favoured with extraordinary graces, at least some of our descendants will reap what we have helped to sow.

Jesus’ Presentation in the temple: And the Child grew, and waxed strong, full of wisdom; and the grace of God was in Him. (Lk 2:40)

Mary remained faithful to Her word, and faithful to the word of Her people, who for generations had kept faith in their religious observance of consecrating their fist-born males to God. With this gesture of giving up their first-born, they gave no doubt as to the place that the worship and trust of God should have in their lives.

Mary offered up Her only Son; She would be faithful to Her and Her people’s promise, come what may – and Simeon had revealed what would come: that Her Child would be contradicted and that a sword would pierce Her heart. And in this exercise of Her faith, “the Child grew and became stronger” – the Word grew and She was able to witness this.

May we so believe and exercise our faith that God’s Word becomes ever stronger in our lives, becoming more and more real, with all the demands that that may entail.

Finding Jesus in the temple: And His Mother kept all these words in Her heart. And Jesus advanced in wisdom, and age, and grace with God and men.(Lk 2:51-52)

Mary had come through a major trial having lost Her Son for three days, and She kept the memory of this event in Her heart. Keeping faith is a battle, and sometimes the cost is very great – who knows how much Mary suffered in this trial? Mary strove and fought to hold onto Her faith, to seek out God’s will. God could have allowed an easier path for Her, with fewer difficulties, with fewer psychological disturbances, and dare I say less real wounds? Was Mary actually scarred in some way by Her sufferings? She had the memory always in Her heart – did this memory ever cause Her to awake in the night in tears or bathed in sweat? “Thou art beautiful, O my love, sweet and comely as Jerusalem: terrible as an army set in array.” (Song of Solomon 6:3) – Is Mary so like an army that She also bears real wounds from battle? Do our beautiful statues of Her belie Her victorious humanity – Her humanity Whose victories were won through hard fighting?

As this blog was started with a view to encourage people fighting addiction to pray, it seems relevant to mention the sad passing of the famous singer, Amy Winehouse. The Daily Mail reported “reports emerge suggesting she died because she quit alcohol” (Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2019645/Amy-Winehouse-dead-Family-believe-died-quit-alcohol.html#ixzz1TdTHosns  ) If this is true, then she could indeed have died a martyrs death, fighting for a better life, but sadly sustaining wounds that killed her. Some may say that her wounds were self-inflicted due to her lifestyle etc., but this criticism could be levelled at many civilisations that eventually fell. What is more interesting to me though, is not how the enemies managed to infiltrate the city etc., but on how desperately the defenders tried to fight when they realised that fighting was their only option – and it is this, fighting to the death, throughout whatever remains of our lives, that really counts.

May we be like Mary, ready to bear arms, ready to sustain wounds, ready to die, if only to hold onto our faith and hope – and if we die, may our faith and hope, united to Mary’s, be an inspiration to others who come after us.