The One Who Points The Way
MORNING
Psalm 113, 115 • 1 Sam. 2:1-10 • John 2:1-12
EVENING
Psalm 45 or 138; 149 • Jer. 31:1-14 or Zech. 2:10-13 • John 19:23-27 or Acts 1:6-14
I think it’s a shame to forget about Mary, the mother of God. I mean, of course I would; I was a Roman Catholic in my teens for just long enough to take away with me praying the rosary, saying the Angelus in the morning, noon, and evening, and praying the Marian antiphons after Compline.
There might be many reasons why people gravitate towards this meditation on the life of Mary within the mystery of God’s revelation of love to us. For me, it’s centered on embodiment. In the Roman Catholic and Orthodox traditions, this feast day is specifically about what is called the “assumption” or “dormition” of Mary, meaning that she fell into repose in death, and was taken bodily, or assumed, into heaven.
Many will not believe that such a thing happened. In short, Mary’s assumption is one of those pieces of the Church that are negotiable in belief. But there’s something in this, and other moments of Mary’s life, that are made clear: the way she points us to Christ. In the Orthodox iconographic tradition, there is a style of image that is very common, in Greek called hodegetria, “the one who points the way.” In these icons, Mary is shown cradling Christ as an infant, but your eyes are also drawn to the placement of Mary’s hand pointing to Christ. Sometimes her face is joyful; sometimes it’s stern and sorrowful, indicating that she knew how her heart would be pierced.
Everything in Mary’s life points to the sacred love and profound nature of salvation in the Son of God—the embodiment of life, light, hope, and joyful resurrection. Whether or not Mary was taken into heaven in that manner is of no consequence. She still draws our gaze deeper and deeper into her Son, telling us as she told the servants at the wedding at Cana, “do whatever he tells you” (John 2:5).
Written by Nathan John Haydon
Nathan earned his PhD studying medieval literature, especially Old English literature and theology. He’s a Benedictine oblate, a candidate for Holy Orders, and he loves coffee, beer, and cats, and sometimes enjoys drinking coffee and beer at the same time while playing with a cat.