From the cross, Jesus gave His mother to the world, as represented by the apostle John. “Woman, behold your son,” He told Mary. Then He turned to John: “Behold your mother.”
We Catholics accept and love Mary as our mother and our queen, knowing that she loves each of us as her child and that she intercedes for us with her powerful prayers and distributes to us the graces she receives from her Son. We honor Mary in many ways, including by reciting the following everyday prayer:
Hail, holy Queen, Mother of mercy, our life, our sweetness, and our hope. To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve: to thee do we send up our sighs, mourning, and weeping in this vale of tears. Turn then, most gracious Advocate, thine eyes of mercy toward us, and after this our exile, show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus, O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary! Pray for us, O holy Mother of God, that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ. Amen.
Let's take a close look at this little gem of a prayer.
1. Hail – This word indicates a special greeting for a special person. We are not merely saying hello but addressing Mary in a more formal way that recognizes her special status as the Mother of God and as our mother and queen.
2. Holy – By a special, anticipatory application of the salvation merited by Jesus on the cross, Mary was conceived without original sin. This process is called preventative redemption. Jesus is still Mary's savior, but the Blessed Trinity chose to enact her salvation ahead of time. Because of that divine choice, Mary was conceived and born in a state of grace, with the divine presence secure in her soul. Further, she was preserved from all personal sin. Mary always acted out of love. She never once offended God. She never once missed the mark and messed up. But she didn't do this on her own. Just as God placed sanctifying grace in her soul at the very moment of her conception, He gave her actual graces at every moment to sustain her sinlessness. Mary has always been, therefore, completely holy, set apart for God and following God's will in every aspect of her life.
3. Queen – In the Old Testament, the queen was not the wife of the king. She was the king's mother. The Queen Mother played an important role in the kingdom, serving as a mediator between the king and his people and as an advocate for the needs and desires of the people. She interceded on behalf of the king's subjects, placing their requests before the king. The king, in turn, treated his mother with the greatest of respect, and while he did not always grant every request she brought before him, people understood that they had a much better chance of obtaining favor if they approached the king through his mother. Mary is the Queen Mother, the mother of the King of Kings. She places our prayers before her Son and advocates on our behalf, and her Son answers her every request even though, in His divine wisdom, He may not always grant us everything we want.
4. Mother of mercy – Mary is the mother of mercy in more ways than one. First, she is the most merciful of mothers. Because she is sinless, she loves her children perfectly. She does not always agree with their decisions and actions, but she always wants to help them turn to God with repentant hearts to receive His forgiveness. Her mercy toward us is an extension of God's mercy toward us and is meant to draw us toward God. Second, Mary is the mother of Mercy with a capital M because she is the mother of Jesus Christ, Who is mercy incarnate. As God, Jesus doesn't just exhibit characteristics like love, truth, beauty, goodness, and mercy, He actually is love, truth, beauty, goodness, and mercy in His very being. In other words, mercy isn't just something God does or gives; mercy is something He is in Himself. Mary is the mother of Mercy in person.
We'll continue our reflection on the Hail, Holy Queen in the next post, but now let's pray once again:
Hail, holy Queen, Mother of mercy, our life, our sweetness, and our hope. To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve: to thee do we send up our sighs, mourning, and weeping in this vale of tears. Turn then, most gracious Advocate, thine eyes of mercy toward us, and after this our exile, show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus, O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary! Pray for us, O holy Mother of God, that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ. Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment