Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
The life of the Blessed Virgin Mary is a
sacred journey — a path marked by listening, believing, suffering,
and finally rejoicing in glory.
In every stage of her life, Mary shows us how a disciple of Christ must walk
with God through faith and love.
1.
Listening: The Beginning of Faith
Mary’s journey begins with listening.
When the angel Gabriel came to her with the message of God, she did not speak
first — she listened.
Her silence was not emptiness but openness; her heart was ready to receive the
Word.
In a world full of noise and haste, Mary
reminds us that true faith begins in attentive silence.
She listened not only to the angel’s message but to God speaking in the
ordinary events of life — in Joseph’s faith, in the shepherds’ song, in
Simeon’s prophecy, and even in the silence of Nazareth.
The Church, too, must learn from Mary to be a
listening Church — attentive to the Word of God, to the cry of the poor, and to
the voice of the Spirit.
2.
Believing: The Strength of Faith
Mary’s listening leads to believing.
At the Annunciation, she uttered her humble and courageous “Yes”:
“Be it done unto me according to your word.” (Luke 1:38)
She believed what seemed impossible — that
God’s promise would be fulfilled through her.
As Elizabeth declared, “Blessed is she who believed.” (Luke 1:45)
Mary believed when she carried the Son of God
in her womb.
She believed when she fled into Egypt and when she sought her lost child in the
Temple.
Her faith remained firm even when her heart was pierced by sorrow at the Cross.
Her faith was not blind; it was trust born of
love.
Through her, the Church learns to believe in God’s promises even in the face of
uncertainty and fear.
3.
Suffering: The Purification of Love
Every great faith must pass through the fire
of suffering.
For Mary, suffering was not a punishment but a participation in her Son’s
redemptive love.
From the moment she presented the Child Jesus
in the temple, hearing Simeon’s prophecy — “A sword will pierce your soul”
— she carried within her a silent cross.
She suffered as she watched her Son misunderstood, rejected, and finally
crucified.
Yet, she never turned away. Standing at the
foot of the Cross, she became the Mother of all believers — sharing in Christ’s
pain and offering her own heart to God.
In her suffering, Mary teaches us that love is
faithful even when it bleeds.
The Church, like Mary, is called to share in the sufferings of Christ so as to
share also in His resurrection.
4.
Rejoicing in Glory: The Fulfillment of Hope
After her earthly journey of faith and sorrow,
Mary was assumed body and soul into heaven — and crowned as Queen of
Heaven and Earth.
Her Assumption is not the end of her story, but the beginning of her eternal
joy in God’s presence.
Now she rejoices in glory, united perfectly
with her Son.
She lives forever as a sign of hope for the Church — the first among the
redeemed, the image of what the whole Church is called to become.
In Mary’s glorification, we see the promise of
our own destiny: to live forever in communion with the Father, Son, and Holy
Spirit.
As Pope John Paul II said, “In the glory of Mary, the Church already
contemplates what she herself is called to be.”
Conclusion:
Following Mary’s Journey
Dear friends,
Mary’s journey — listening, believing, suffering, and rejoicing — is the
pattern for every disciple and for the whole Church.
To listen as she listened, to believe as she believed, to suffer as she
suffered, and to rejoice as she rejoices — this is the path to holiness.
Let us walk with her, trusting that her maternal hand will guide us from the shadows of pain to the light of eternal joy
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