By: Sister Laetitia Therese, O.C.D.
JM+JT
During the beautiful season of Advent, I am often drawn to ponder the gift of the nine months in which Jesus dwelt within the womb of our Blessed Mother Mary. What must that time have been like for both of them? What must her prayer have been like recognizing her God dwelling within her in unfathomable vulnerability and humility? How did she carry herself?
Sacred Scripture gives us some clues. In the account of the Visitation, we hear how Mary went with haste to be of service to her relative Elizabeth during the time of her pregnancy. There is also the account of how Mary rejoiced in the Lord’s goodness and mercy in the hymn of her Magnificat. We hear of her obedience to the governing law of the day traveling with St. Joseph to Bethlehem. For the most part, she went around in a rather unextraordinary way embracing common daily life. And yet, all the while she was united in the greatest of love to the One growing within.
What a gift and a privilege! And yet, we have that very same gift! Every time we receive Our Lord Jesus in Holy Communion, He dwells Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity within our very beings! He is as close to us as He was to Mary over 2,000 years ago. Our Lady is a mirror to us for how we can live in intimacy with Him- contemplating His breath-taking humility, going about our daily duty with the greatest of love in our hearts. As we continue the Eucharistic revival in the United States, may this particular Advent be a special journey alongside our Blessed Mother as we grow in ever greater reverence for the mystery of our God who humbles Himself so greatly as to dwell within us.