Model of Discipleship!

Monday, May 20, 2024

Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church

Gn 3:9-15,20 or Acts 1:12-14; Jn 19:25-34

We celebrate the Mother of God as also the Mother of the Church. 

How can we understand Mary as the Mother of the Church? 

The title of Mother of the Church has been bestowed on the Blessed Virgin Mary because she gave birth to Christ, the Head of the Church, and became Mother of the Redeemed before her Son gave up his spirit on the Cross. Pope Saint Paul VI solemnly confirmed the same title in an address given to the Fathers of the Second Vatican Council on November 21, 1964, and established that ‘by this sweetest of names the whole Christian people should henceforth give still greater honor to the Mother of God.’

Moreover, the presence of Mother Mary in the Gospels explains how she is the Mother of the Church. 

1.Mary never left Jesus: As we read in the Gospel today, Mary was present at the foot of the cross, and she never left Jesus till he breathed his last. The Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God, was entrusted to the Church in the person of Saint John the Apostle at the foot of the Cross. 

2. Mary never left the Apostles: Mother Mary was present with the Apostles and disciples who were gathered at the Pentecost. Being present at Pentecost with the first members of the Church, she became the model of the Church at prayer. For this reason, Pope Leo XIII wrote, ‘She is invoked as Mother of the Church and The teacher and Queen of the Apostles.’

3. Mary never left the disciples: The wedding at Cana gives us an example of how Mother Mary becomes the person most sought after in need. Having represented the plight of the family by saying to Jesus, ‘They have no wine’ (Jn 2:3), the Mother of God has given us the confidence that she would never desert the disciples of Jesus and would always intercede on our behalf. 

In short, the Mother of God is the Mother of the Church because of her inalienable presence with the Founder, the Pillars, and the Members of the Church. 

We look up to the Mother of the Church as the model of faithful discipleship. 

Fr. Dhinakaran Savariyar