Lessons from St Mary
Adapted from a sermon by Fr Michael Fanous
St Mary is loved by the whole world for so many reasons. How can we imitate the life and virtue of St Mary? By analysis of her words and actions recorded in the Gospels, there is much for us to learn.
Asked questions of the Lord
How can this be since I do not know a man?
Luke 1:34
Archangel Gabriel came to her and this was the first question that she asked of him. It wasn’t that she was surprised that she had an angel before her, but the request he made of her. This shows us that she wanted to remain a virgin all her life, and thought this was most favourable in the eyes of God. God had other plans that came a surprise to St Mary.
We are all allowed to ask questions of the Lord for the purpose of understanding. We can tell Him what we wish as well.
Abraham asked questions of the Lord as well. When the Lord wanted to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah, Abraham asked, “Far be it from You to do such a thing as this, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous should be as the wicked; far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?” – Genesis 18:25.
It was the questions of Abraham that would have spared the nation of Sodom and Gomorrah if just one righteous man was dwelling there.
We see in Moses as well the question that Moses asked that prevented God from killing the nation of the Israelites when they turned to worship Baal. Moses says to God, “Lord, why does Your wrath burn hot against Your people whom You have brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? Why should the Egyptians speak, and say, ‘He brought them out to harm them, to kill them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth’? Turn from Your fierce wrath, and relent from this harm to Your people” (Exodus 32:11-12). The Lord listened to Moses and His wrath against the people was defused.
In Psalm 73, when Asaph, the prophet, was wondering how he could say to the people of Jerusalem that the Lord is good while the ungodly were prospering? One day he went into the sanctuary and he saw the Lord and he came out with great revelation.
I was so foolish and ignorant;
Psalm 37:22-25
I was like a beast before You.
Nevertheless I am continually with You;
You hold me by my right hand.
You will guide me with Your counsel,
And afterward receive me to glory.
In the end, we see that Asaph finds delight in the Lord above all ungodly pleasures that the world has to offer. The end result is our submission to the Lord. As St Mary says, “Behold! The maidservant of the Lord.” We can ask questions of the Lord but our end must remain the same; that we reach submission under the Providence of our Lord.
St Mary carried the joy of the Holy Spirit wherever she went
As soon as Mary greeted Elizabeth, the babe leapt within her womb for joy. The place became filled with joy, peace and of the Holy Spirit. Elizabeth asks, “But why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?”
We then read the prophecies of St Mary, being so full of the Holy Spirit. When we greet others, do we take Christ with us? Do we share our joy to that person? Does the Holy Spirit fill the place we are in? Wherever St Mary went, she took the Holy Spirit with her.
My soul magnifies the Lord, And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Saviour.
Every time we are blessed or receive grace from the Lord, this is what should come to mind. Moment by moment we receive grace from the Lord that we can’t help but give thanks for. We give glory to God, for He is the Provider of all good things.
Searched for the Lord until she found Him
When Christ was twelve years old, St Mary and St Joseph searched for Him for three days and eventually found Him in the temple. Do we search for the Lord? Do we keep searching until we find Him? We know that we will only find Him in His home; His church. We are joined with Him in the altar. We find Him in the small churches of our homes and in our hearts. The Holy Spirit resides within us. We need to search for Him and His Word. Keep searching until you find Him, and then never let Him go.
St Mary did not demand action from the Lord, but trusted in His response
At the wedding of Cana of Galilee, St Mary only needed to say, “they have no wine,” and knew the Lord would take care of it. St Mary shared her feeling with the Lord and then left the solution up to Him.
It could almost be assumed that Mary and Martha learnt from St Mary. They say to the Lord, “the one whom You love is sick,” (John 11:3) and nothing more. They didn’t say come immediately or just say a word and he will be healed. They knew the Lord would do the best. Do we do the same? Do we put our problems before the Lord and allow Him to do as wishes?
Are we open to hearing no from the Lord? Our Mother Mary showed us how to live the way of holiness, to be godly, through submission and acceptance of all that comes from the Lord. Sharing our lives with Him, whether it is joy, a request or our needs. We are always in communication with the Lord, then truly we will be sons and daughters of the Lord and be able to have joy with Him in all until the very last days where, “there shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away” (Revelation 21:4).
Glory be to God forever, Amen.