Human mother of a Divine Son

Tuesday,
September 24, 2019
25th Week in
Ordinary Time
1st Reading: Ezra 6: 7-8, 12, 14-20
Gospel: Luke 8:19-21
The mother and relatives of Jesus came to him, but they could not get to him because of the crowd. Someone told him, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside and wish to meet you.” Then Jesus answered, “My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and do it.”
D@iGITAL-EXPERIENCE
(Daily Gospel in the Assimilated Life Experience)
The Chiong sisters rape case in Cebu dubbed as the trial of the millennium highlighted the saga of two mothers, one seeking justice for the fate of her two daughters who were abducted, raped and killed, the other fighting for justice because she believed her son was wrongly convicted. Sympathy poured on the mother of the victim. But when the mother of one of the accused went public with her anguish, public attention shifted from the crime to the struggle of both mothers. Beyond the issue of guilt, this was established: mothers will always stand by their children.
This takes us back to the story of the Virgin Mary. Everyone deserted her son yet she stood by him till the end. Jesus also wanted us to have a mother standing by us until the end. Thus at the foot of the cross he bequeathed Mary to us when he told John, “Son behold thy mother”. Many people have not only refused to accept her but have also denounced her. It is now Jesus’ turn to stand by her mother.
People denounce Mary for the title “Mother of God” ascribed to her. But why deprive her of this title when God himself decided to be born into this word through her? “Mother of God” is not even Marian Propaganda! An admission that the son is God is not necessarily a claim that the mother is also a God.
Others are afraid that the title might give undue honors to her. Yet Jesus himself was so lavish with her. Jesus said, “My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and do it”. This shifted the attention of his listeners from Mary’s biological motherhood to her heroic discipleship. She was no passive recipient of honor from God, for while it was God’s decision to make her Mother of God, it was her decision to become keeper and doer of the Word.
Mary is the best partner in the exercise of one’s commitment to the Word. The slogan “To Jesus to Mary” succinctly describes how Marian devotees end up in God. As Jesus’ closest collaborator, saving souls is her primary concern. If you insist in denouncing her, rest assured that she will still be there in your worst crisis because as mother, she will stand by you more than the two mothers in the Chiong sisters rape case stood by their children! – (Atty.) Rev. Fr. Dan Domingo P. delos Angeles, Jr., D.M.