Mary is also our mother, given to us by Jesus as He was dying upon the cross.
“When Jesus saw His mother and the disciple there whom He loved, He said to His mother, ‘Woman, behold, your son.’ Then He said to the disciple, ‘Behold, your mother.’ And from that hour the disciple took her into his home” (John 19:26, 27). This tender scene speaks to us of the depth of the Love which inspires, informs and transforms all human love – the Love Incarnate who gives us His Mother.
“Madonna with the Sleeping Christ Child,” by Giovanni Battista Salvi da Sassoferrato (c. 1650)
Mary’s obedience and unwavering faith in God also exemplify the perfect Christian disciple.
She embraced God’s will and freely chose to cooperate with God’s grace – thereby fulfilling a crucial role in God’s plan of salvation. She did not understand the whole picture, but she trusted God every step of the way – from the moment the Angel Gabriel visited her until she saw her Son crucified.
As Pope Francis wrote in “Gaudete et Exsultate”: “She is that woman who rejoiced in the presence of God, who treasured everything in her heart, and who let herself be pierced by the sword. Mary is the saint among the saints, blessed above all others. She teaches us the way of holiness and she walks ever at our side. She does not let us remain fallen and at times she takes us into her arms without judging us” (176).
Mary is also our greatest intercessor. As we pray in the “Hail Mary”: “Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now, and at the hour of our death.”
Her role has always been to bring us closer to Christ, as first illustrated in her admonition at the wedding feast of Cana: “Do whatever He tells you” (John 2:5).
She is also Mother of the Church, present with the apostles when the Holy Spirit descended upon them at Pentecost.
Throughout the centuries, the Church has turned to Mary to grow closer to Jesus.
‘If you put all the love of mothers into one heart, it still would not equal the love of the heart of Mary for her children.’
— St. Louis de Montfort
Many forms of piety toward the Mother of God help deepen our relationship with Jesus – the rosary chief among them. In these devotions to Mary, “while the Mother is honored, the Son, through whom all things have their being and in whom it has pleased the Father that all fullness should dwell, is rightly known, loved and glorified and ... all His commands are observed.”
While Mother’s Day on Sunday, May 14, is not a liturgical holiday, it is a wonderful opportunity to meditate on Mary’s special role in the Church and in our lives, and to give thanks to all mothers.
— www.catholic.org, USCCB
Marian feast days In May
May 13 – Our Lady of Fatima
May 24 – Mary Help of Christians
May 31 – The Visitation
Learn more
At www.catholic.org/mary: Learn more about the importance of the Blessed Virgin Mary – as mother, model and disciple, as well as her appearances and messages for us today