Mama Mary, My Patroness Of Purity

The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary
15 August 2009



Come, let us worship the King of kings, for today his Virgin Mother was taken up to heaven.

First reading Apocalypse 11:19,12:1-6,10
The sanctuary of God in heaven opened and the ark of the covenant could be seen inside it. Then came flashes of lightning, peals of thunder and an earthquake, and violent hail.

Now a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman, adorned with the sun, standing on the moon, and with the twelve stars on her head for a crown. She was pregnant, and in labour, crying aloud in the pangs of childbirth. Then a second sign appeared in the sky, a huge red dragon which had seven heads and ten horns, and each of the seven heads crowned with a coronet. Its tail dragged a third of the stars from the sky and dropped them to the earth, and the dragon stopped in front of the woman as she was having the child, so that he could eat it as soon as it was born from its mother. The woman brought a male child into the world, the son who was to rule all the nations with an iron sceptre, and the child was taken straight up to God and to his throne, while the woman escaped into the desert, where God had made a place of safety ready, for her to be looked after in the twelve hundred and sixty days.

Then I heard a voice shout from heaven, ‘Victory and power and empire for ever have been won by our God, and all authority for his Christ, now that the persecutor, who accused our brothers day and night before our God, has been brought down.’

Psalm or canticle: Psalm 44:10-12,16

Second reading 1 Corinthians 15:20-26
Christ has been raised from the dead, the first-fruits of all who have fallen asleep. Death came through one man and in the same way the resurrection of the dead has come through one man. Just as all men die in Adam, so all men will be brought to life in Christ; but all of them in their proper order: Christ as the first-fruits and then, after the coming of Christ, those who belong to him. After that will come the end, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father, having done away with every sovereignty, authority and power. For he must be king until he has put all his enemies under his feet and the last of the enemies to be destroyed is death, for everything is to be put under his feet.

Gospel Luke 1:39-56
Mary set out at that time and went as quickly as she could to a town in the hill country of Judah. She went into Zechariah’s house and greeted Elizabeth. Now as soon as Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leapt in her womb and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. She gave a loud cry and said, ‘Of all women you are the most blessed, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. Why should I be honoured with a visit from the mother of my Lord? For the moment your greeting reached my ears, the child in my womb leapt for joy. Yes, blessed is she who believed that the promise made her by the Lord would be fulfilled.’

And Mary said:
‘My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord
and my spirit exults in God my saviour;
because he has looked upon his lowly handmaid.
Yes, from this day forward all generations will call me blessed,
for the Almighty has done great things for me.
Holy is his name,
and his mercy reaches from age to age for those who fear him.
He has shown the power of his arm,
he has routed the proud of heart.
He has pulled down princes from their thrones and exalted the lowly.
The hungry he has filled with good things, the rich sent empty away.
He has come to the help of Israel his servant, mindful of his mercy
– according to the promise he made to our ancestors –
of his mercy to Abraham and to his descendants for ever.’
Mary stayed with Elizabeth about three months and then went back home.


Reflection
By Gharri Tulabut

In November last year, I attended a two day conference sponsored by my Catholic charismatic community. During one of the talks, the main speaker segued from what his topic was supposed to be and discussed the subject of Purity. Before he ended his talk, we were made to make a vow and committed ourselves to a life of purity in thoughts, words and deeds. The speaker, the priests, and the married members prayed over us, the singles, for us to live a pure life specifically focusing on not doing acts that only married couples do until we received the Sacrament of Matrimony. The singles likewise prayed over the married couples present for them to be true to their marriage vows.

The feeling was overwhelming! Tears kept pouring down my cheeks as I felt the Holy Spirit coming down on me.

The subject of purity has always been an issue, not just for me, but for most young people today. The presence of pornography in multimedia has contributed to worsening the problem. As we see these things everyday everywhere they become as if normal part of our lives. It has been my issue since my teen years. Thank God that I was able to attend this conference.

But why was it only then? Why did it take so long for me to realize this shortcoming and be serious in finally taking care and finally getting rid of it?

Last month, I was asked to write about today’s celebration – the Solemnity of the Assumption of The Blessed Virgin Mary. I almost declined to write. I know it is a shame but I could hardly think of anything to impart about our Blessed Mother or share any experiences about my encounter of her just like I always do in my articles. Then, after giving much thought, I realized she is exactly who I have been missing all my life -- Mama Mary, The perfect model of purity! I always honor Mary being the Mother of our Lord, the Mother of the whole Church. I even pray the rosary often (it’s in my iPod, what about that, huh?). But I never really opened my self to her, that is, for her to influence my life in many aspects especially on the values of humility, obedience and, most especially, purity. I always admired many saints and have them as my personal patrons. Now it’s about time to have Mama Mary as my patroness of purity.

Last Sunday, I talked about being a Jesus fan. Today I am inviting you to become Marians (or am I already the last one to join?). Let her be a model to all of us on how God wants us to live a pure life just like Mama Mary did and make our bodies as living temples of the Spirit. Look how God rewarded her! She became the vessel that bore the King of heaven and earth and was later assumed to heaven body and soul!

Father, we thank You for giving us Mama Mary as our own mother. May she always be an inspiration to us on how You want us to live a life of obedience, humility, and purity. Amen!