All Generations

Loving Mother Mary because she is absolutely lovable

12/8/2017

Luke 1:26-38 The angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin's name was Mary. And coming to her, he said, "Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you." But she was greatly troubled at what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. Then the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus.

         Today, I want to tell you why all Catholics love Mother Mary: why we pray the Rosary, why we walk in processions with her, why we name churches for her, why we name our daughters “Mary” and “Maria,” and why no Catholic church is without at least one statue or painting of her. Mary even predicted in Luke 1:48, that “all generations would call me blessed,” that is, from the age of the apostles to the aborigines in Australia, absolutely all Catholics love Mary. Why?

           Well, there are two basic reasons. The first is because Mary is our spiritual mother, and everyone loves their mother, right? Raise your hand if you love your mother; I’ll raise both my hands because I really love my mother. I recently came across two definitions of “mother,” the first a little silly and the second a little more serious. The first definition read: “A mother is a person who does the work of twenty. For free.” And then it said below: “See also, masochist, loony and saint,” meaning all moms feel that way at times, too: masochistic, loony and saintly. The more serious definition read: “A mother is a person who loves unconditionally; a character builder and heart healer; the maker and keeper of wonderful memories; a person much loved and greatly admired.” Raise your hand if that describes your mom. Mine, too. That’s the first reason Catholics love Mary: those two definitions fit Mary to a “T” because she loves us like that on a spiritual plane, as a spiritual mother.  Catholics love our Mother Mary.

             The second reason we love Mary is based on the feast we celebrate today, the Immaculate Conception. What does that mean? It means that Mary was “immaculate,” without stain of sin, from her conception in the womb of St. Anne, her mother. Now, let me be clear: this is not because of anything she did on her own, but rather because of what Jesus would do on the Cross. In other words, the Immaculate Conception was a sort of “retroactive grace” that saved Mary before Jesus was even born. When you’re God, living in eternity, you can do things outside the normal sequence of time and history.  It’s good to be God!

            You might be thinking: big deal! Who cares if you’re immaculately conceived? Well, here’s the big deal and why this matters: sin has a sort of double-whammy effect: sin makes it hard for you to love others and sin makes it hard for others to love you (you become less loving and less lovable). That’s why sin is so bad: it is the polar opposite of love. So, if you are sinless (like Mary), that means you are absolutely lovable: you can love others perfectly and others can love you perfectly. That’s why Mary said, “All generations will call me blessed.” I am immaculately conceived, and sinless, and therefore, I can love you and you can love me. That’s the second reason all Catholics love Mother Mary because we can love her and she can love us perfectly.

              Let me give you a taste of how “all generations will call Mary blessed,” by sharing how I pray the rosary. I pray each decade of the Rosary in a different language, and today, I would like you to hear the Hail Mary in five languages: Greek, Latin, Spanish, French and Malayalam.

            First Greek: “Χαίρε Μαρία, κεχαριτωμένη, ó Κύριος είναι μετά Σου, ευλογημένη Εσύ μεταξύ των γυναικών, και ευλογημένος ο καρπός της κοιλίας Σου, ó Ιησούς. Αγία Μαρία, Θεοτόκε, παρακαλει για μας τους αμαρτωλούς, τώρα και στην ώρα του θανάτου μας. Ααμήν.”  That’s how Greek Catholics love Mary.

             Second, Latin: “Ave Maria, gratia plena, Dominus tecum. Benedicta tu in mulieribus, et benedictus fructus ventris tui, Iesus. Sancta Maria, Mater Dei, ora pro nobis peccatoribus, nunc, et in hora mortis nostrae. Amen.”  That’s how Catholics in the Roman Empire loved Mary.

Third, Spanish: “Dios te salve, Maria. Llena eres de gracia: El Seńor es contigo. Bendita tú eres entre todas las mujeres. Y bendito es el fruto de tu vientre: Jesús. Santa María, Madre de Dios, ruega por nosotros pecadores, ahora y en la hora de nuestra muerte. Amén.”  That’s how Catholics in Mexico love Mary.

              Fourth, French: “Je vous salue, Marie, pleine de grâces, le Seigneur est avec vous; vous ętes bénie entre toutes les femmes, et Jésus le fruit de vos entrailles, est béni. Sainte Marie, Mere de Dieu, priez pour nous pécheurs, maintenant, et a l'heure de notre mort. Amen.”  That’s how Catholics in France love Mary.

                Fifth, Malayalam: “Nanma Niranja Mariyamme, Swasthi. Karthaavu Angayodu koode, Sthreekalil Angu Anugrahikka pettaval aakunu. Angayude Udharathin Bhalamaaya Eesho nugrahakkipettavan aakunu. Parishudha Mariyame, Thamburante Amme, Papikalaaya Njangalkku Vendi, Epozhum Njangalude Marana Samayathum Thamburanodu Apeshikaname. Amen.”  That’s how Catholics in India love Mary.

            Now you know what it sounds like when “all generations call Mary blessed,” she who is immaculately conceived and therefore absolutely lovable.  That’s why all Catholics love Mary.

Praised be Jesus Christ!