Pondering like Mary; Waiting in Hope

Homily: Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God

1 January 2021

Luke 2:16-21

Fr. Ricky Canet Montanez

On Christmas day, less than a week ago, in this very church, we experienced an earthquake. I was in the choir loft watching the sanctuary lamp swinging and must admit I was scared. I thought to myself… “Oh no, isn’t 2020 through with its surprises yet?”  It turns out it was a 6.3 quake that originated from Batangas. All of us present, heaved a sigh of relief when the shaking lasted but a few seconds. This morning December 31, I read in the news that Croatia just suffered an earthquake of similar magnitude last Tuesday but it was more devastating for them. (Lord, have mercy. “Nagpahabol pa si 2020.”) 

From beginning to end, 2020 was hardly the year we all planned it to be. Just a few days after we welcomed the new year, thousands of Filipino families were displaced and millions worth of properties damaged by the eruption of Taal volcano. Just when Batangas and Cavite provinces were starting to get back on their feet, the whole nation was placed under lockdown to contain the Covid 19 pandemic. And as if to establish itself in the world, this monstrosity just kept eating away into every aspect of our lives. Disaster followed disaster. No wonder 2020 is the year we would rather forget and cancel from calendars and history books. We have indeed taken a painful beating all year round. Although it was a tragic year for most of us, 2020 has not been a complete loss. As a matter of fact, it will be a year that none of us living in these days should ever forget. The Year 2020 has taught us to re-order our priorities correctly and to value what is right in front of us — the little things, the often-overlooked details that actually make life worth living. There is so much to be thankful for! We just need to take a step back and look a little bit closer to see the many blessings in disguise that we all have received in abundance this year. 

Here we are on the cusp of 2021, some deeply traumatized and fearful to welcome another 365 days of surprises, others struggling to be optimistic and hopeful for better days ahead.  The world promises that a vaccine made available will restore us to a society we have been used to.  The Church however, proposes to us another perspective. On the first day of the new calendar year we are asked to look to the Blessed Virgin Mary as an example of faith and contemplation, guiding us and protecting us, her children, throughout this new year. In the gospel passage from Luke, the shepherds gain considerable insight into the wonder of God being born into a human family that He may be present among His people. It says “they made known what had been told to them about this child… and all were amazed.” (Luke 2:17-18) If you recall, whatever they knew, was made known to them by an angel who said, in earlier passages “Today in the town of David, a saviour has been born to you, He is the messiah, the Lord ” (Luke 2:11) and a great more angels appear and sing praises “Glory to God in the highest and peace to those on whom His favour rests”(Luke 2:14).  Mary, is described as “reflecting in these things and keeping them in her heart.” (Luke 2:19) I find it a little unnatural, don’t you? Any mother can tell you that if they had undergone such difficult circumstances for the birth of their child and then be told by absolute strangers that their new-born is the Messiah, the Saviour of the world, they may be ecstatic, but more confused, and skeptical more than anything. Mother Mary on the hand, is different, being the perfect picture of calm. She was reflective, not overly emotional, and she kept everything in her heart.  

What does it mean to keep things in one’s heart?  Recall that Mary cooperated with God’s plan of salvation, without fully understanding how everything would unfold. The gospel accounts even tell us how the events leading up to the birth of Christ were not easy.  They were dangerous and even bordering on scandalous. Still, everything came to be, quietly, by the grace of God. It is pretty clear that Mary did not understand all that was happening to her. How could she? When the Angel Gabriel spoke to her, she listened intently, and pondered, before she responded. Yet to be told she would be with child by unnatural means, and that the child would be God’s Son must have been a strange and frightening message for a young girl to receive. Yet she trusted the angel. She was calm despite what we imagine to be rumours about her virtue and an impending divorce from Joseph.  In the Presentation of the Baby Jesus in the Temple, she also gets two strange messages… the prophetess Anna is overjoyed at the promise of salvation in Jesus while Simeon tells her “that a sword will pierce her heart” (Luke 2:35). Once again, she does not freak out or challenge these declarations that come with such grave consequences.

I’d like to believe that it was because Mary always chose to ponder on these events that she was able to respond in faith and fulfill her role as mother to God’s Son, keeping her true to her word right to the very end, as she stood by Jesus at the foot of the cross. The experience of God’s providence, guidance and faithfulness in Mary’s journey is a continuous lesson in trusting God completely, even without being privy to all the details of His plan. In her heart she was confident that things would unfold as God intends, when He intends, and all would be the better for it. 

Similarly, so many things have happened to us in the last few months. Did we really take the time to sit and think about them or were our fingers much quicker in grabbing our gadgets to complain and criticize on social media? Perhaps, we should take a moment to look into the faces of our loved ones and see how we have come to know each other better living in quarantine, how we appreciate life more since we have been consistently taunted by death, how we have learned to value what we have instead of sulking over what we have lost.  I know of a family who lost a loved one in May. He had fallen ill over Christmas and had needed special care. His condition began to deteriorate by April and he passed away in May. His family realized that if not for the lockdown, the children might not have been able to take time off work to care for him meticulously, personally attend to his medical needs and make him feel comfortable and loved in his final weeks. Looking back, the situation was providential for them and it allowed them to expand their heart’s capacity for love, care and forgiveness.

To be honest, who is to say, what awaits us in the new year? We cannot prevent untoward things from happening in 2021. We can only pray and hope in God. The 19th century British preacher Oswald Chambers once said, “Faith never knows where it is being led, but it loves and knows the One who is leading.” 

Mary is an inspiration of contemplation and reflection for all of us.  She is there to comfort and console us as we make sense of all our painful experiences last year.  She promises us her guidance and protection as we prepare ourselves to be open to the possibilities of the new year. This is not to say we are going blindly through life without any clear direction, expecting life to look kindly on us. It is foolish and naive to think life will always be easy. The idea is to follow Mary’s example, calmly welcome the surprises of life, trust that God is in control and be confident that God loves us so much that He does not desire our destruction. Jeremiah 29:11 says, “For I know the plans I have for you”, declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future”. Mary’s example encourages us to have pondering hearts like hers, patiently waiting, confident that in time the meaning and the value of all these events will be revealed. As we welcome 2021, we pray that Mary, the Mother of Jesus (The Mother of God, and our Mother) may inspire us to have pondering hearts so as to receive the fullness of God’s promises and the blessings of new beginnings. May God smile upon us this year, be gracious to us and grant us peace!

Illustration by Blair Paulus Nuyda, AA