Motherhood and sacrifice

Thursday,
September 8, 2016
Birth of Mary
1st Reading: Mic 5:1-4 or Rom 8:28-30
Gospel: Matthew 1:1-16,18-23 or 1:18-23

This is how Jesus Christ was born. Mary his mother had been given to Joseph in marriage but before they lived together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit.

Then Joseph, her husband, made plans to divorce her in all secrecy. He was an upright man, and in no way did he want to discredit her.

While he was pondering over this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, descendant of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. She has conceived by the Holy Spirit, and now she will bear a son. You shall call him ‘Jesus’ for he will save his people from their sins.”
All this happened in order to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: The virgin will conceive and bear a son, and he will be called Emmanuel which means: God-with-us.

D@iGITAL-EXPERIENCE
(Daily Gospel in the Assimilated Life Experience)

The birth of Mary is a big lesson to a generation that considers motherhood an unnecessary burden. Motherhood may indeed be a burden, but it is worth carrying when borne for a mission. The Blessed Virgin Mary did. What would have happened to God’s plan of salvation if the parents of Mary, and the Blessed Virgin herself, saw motherhood otherwise?

Today many women see pregnancy and birth giving as a physical distortion and a scourge. Blame it on the loss of the spirit of sacrifice. Values derive life from the spirit of sacrifice. When this spirit dies, all values expire including the values of altruism and love. With altruism gone, who will want to be disfigured just to give life to a baby?

The loss of the spirit of sacrifice is often the handiwork of selfishness. There is a big chance that selfishness is the reason why a healthy woman refuses to give birth. The baby only needs nine months to stay in her womb. After birth the government can put the baby up for adoption. Nine months of carrying a baby in the womb is not really that long to a selfless woman who is mindful of the lifetime possibilities that birth can give to her baby. To a selfish woman, however, this is already too long a period of sacrifice.

Mary had reasons to decline pregnancy because her conception of Jesus was surrounded by questionable circumstances. The Holy Spirit was still unknown in those days and she was already asked to be the wife of the Holy Spirit! But she had a selfless heart. She was willing to undergo any sacrifice for a noble mission without even asking what was in it for her. May we learn the big lesson of her motherhood as we celebrate her birthday today! -(Atty.) Rev. Fr. Dan Domingo P. delos Angeles, Jr., DM, MMExM, MAPM, REB. Email: [email protected].
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