Blessed Mary

AM Psalm 113, 115; 1 Samuel 2:1-10, John 2:1-12
PM Psalm 45, or 138, 149; Jeremiah 31:1-14 or Zechariah 2:10-13; John 19:23-27 or Acts 1:6-14

Alas, I am a worrier. And although I know that worry is a fruitless obsession (see Matthew 6:27 and/or Luke 12:25), I continue to spend an inordinate amount of time and mental energy processing my projections for the future.

In the Anglican Cycle of Prayer, today we celebrate the Feast of St. Mary the Virgin. The reading from 1 Samuel is Hannah’s Prayer, which is very similar to Mary’s Song, found at Luke 1:46-55. I wonder if Mary had known the fate of her son, would she have sung such praises in her beautiful Magnificant? Could any mother consider herself “blessed” to lose a child in such a brutal way?

The story of Jesus’ first miracle—the Wedding at Cana—is told in John 2:1-12 and at John 19 we find Mary standing near the cross where her son is being crucified. We encounter Mary in other Gospel readings, but we do not find much insight into her thoughts as the mission of her beloved son is revealed to her. Was she a worrier, too?

I think she must have been. She frets about the wine running out at a wedding even though it doesn’t seem to have much bearing on her personal situation. And, surely, she was concerned about the well-being of her son as he traveled throughout the region, surrounded by a motley crew of disciples and throngs of followers. I suspect she may have been anxious about his personal safety when the mobs turned against him and he was brought before Pontius Pilate.

We revere Mary because of her great faith, but even the faithful can find something to worry about! I believe that Mary was a saint because her soul truly did “magnify the Lord.” She understood at a fundamental level God’s love for his own son and for the world—and she was transformed by her faith in that divine love.

Written by Shannon Dillard Mitchell

...who has great admiration for those who can put aside their worries through their faith.