By Sean DeWitt
Tired, groggy, and a bit confused after the dream like visit from an angel, Mary picked up her things and went off to visit her cousin, Elizabeth. Doubts, concerns and questions swarmed through Mary’s young mind, yet she set them aside, and devoted the next few months of her life to serving and bringing joy to Elizabeth, who had conceived in her old age.
Though not the first time in her young life, the Visitation is the first story we get of Mary’s devotion to service. Though we often think of Mary as a strong young beautiful women exemplifying Mother Church, and that she is. However at the time of the visitation, Mary would have been a pregnant young teenage girl between the ages of 13 and 15 years old. The thought of such a burden is no less daunting today, but Mary’s faith was strong. Mary set aside the confusion and the fear, and said ‘yes’ to the Lord, giving herself completely to His service and bringing joy to the one’s she served. This was manifest in Elizabeth’s child leaping for joy in the womb at the presence of Christ in Mary.
And though this seems like a miracle (and certainly it is), this miracle is no less present today, as teenagers spend their weekends and evenings working at food pantries and soup kitchens all over the world. An example of such is the wonderful young volunteers that work at Angels of Hope Food Pantry here at Catholic Charities. Around the same age as Mary was during her service to Elizabeth, the youth come out every Friday to serve the poor and the vulnerable. The youth continue Mary’s ‘yes’ to Christ through their service of the poor, carrying on Mary’s legacy of service by bringing a child like joy to those in need. Through their Love of God, the youth carry Christ Jesus with them as Mary did, causing the hopes and dreams of those they serve to leap with joy at the presence of Christ.
However, Mary’s legacy is not limited to the youth. Mary continued her service of Christ throughout her life. In Jesus’ passion, death and resurrection, Mary stayed true to her son, never abandoning Him. Mary, providing the ultimate service to our Lord, visited Him on the cross venerating her son and savior, our Lord Jesus Christ. It is in this moment that Christ bestows on Mary the motherhood of the whole human race, giving her to the service of His people. As the mother of mankind, Mary continues her service to Christ by bringing the love of God to everyone, causing all of our hopes and dreams for a better life to leap for joy in the presence of His love.
And now we are called to carry on Mary’s legacy of service. We are to join Mary in her ‘yes’ to God’s call, serving His people. Catholic Charities of Central Texas answers that call on a daily basis, serving the poor and the vulnerable, giving them the joy and hope for a better life. Through our service, we hope to carry on Mary’s legacy and bring the presence of God in our Love to those we serve. We believe that by our love filled actions, those we serve will come to know God. Like Mary, we hope to put aside our doubts and questions, and give ourselves completely to God’s call to service.
Tired, groggy, and a bit confused after the dream like visit from an angel, Mary picked up her things and went off to visit her cousin, Elizabeth. Doubts, concerns and questions swarmed through Mary’s young mind, yet she set them aside, and devoted the next few months of her life to serving and bringing joy to Elizabeth, who had conceived in her old age.
Though not the first time in her young life, the Visitation is the first story we get of Mary’s devotion to service. Though we often think of Mary as a strong young beautiful women exemplifying Mother Church, and that she is. However at the time of the visitation, Mary would have been a pregnant young teenage girl between the ages of 13 and 15 years old. The thought of such a burden is no less daunting today, but Mary’s faith was strong. Mary set aside the confusion and the fear, and said ‘yes’ to the Lord, giving herself completely to His service and bringing joy to the one’s she served. This was manifest in Elizabeth’s child leaping for joy in the womb at the presence of Christ in Mary.
And though this seems like a miracle (and certainly it is), this miracle is no less present today, as teenagers spend their weekends and evenings working at food pantries and soup kitchens all over the world. An example of such is the wonderful young volunteers that work at Angels of Hope Food Pantry here at Catholic Charities. Around the same age as Mary was during her service to Elizabeth, the youth come out every Friday to serve the poor and the vulnerable. The youth continue Mary’s ‘yes’ to Christ through their service of the poor, carrying on Mary’s legacy of service by bringing a child like joy to those in need. Through their Love of God, the youth carry Christ Jesus with them as Mary did, causing the hopes and dreams of those they serve to leap with joy at the presence of Christ.
However, Mary’s legacy is not limited to the youth. Mary continued her service of Christ throughout her life. In Jesus’ passion, death and resurrection, Mary stayed true to her son, never abandoning Him. Mary, providing the ultimate service to our Lord, visited Him on the cross venerating her son and savior, our Lord Jesus Christ. It is in this moment that Christ bestows on Mary the motherhood of the whole human race, giving her to the service of His people. As the mother of mankind, Mary continues her service to Christ by bringing the love of God to everyone, causing all of our hopes and dreams for a better life to leap for joy in the presence of His love.
And now we are called to carry on Mary’s legacy of service. We are to join Mary in her ‘yes’ to God’s call, serving His people. Catholic Charities of Central Texas answers that call on a daily basis, serving the poor and the vulnerable, giving them the joy and hope for a better life. Through our service, we hope to carry on Mary’s legacy and bring the presence of God in our Love to those we serve. We believe that by our love filled actions, those we serve will come to know God. Like Mary, we hope to put aside our doubts and questions, and give ourselves completely to God’s call to service.
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1 comment:
This is so true. We always see Mary are the strong one with no doubts or fears, but she was young and she got through it with flying colors. Her service is remarkable and I only hope we can all strive to be like her. Thanks for the post!
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