Skip to main content

 Our Lady! So much to learn from!

If someone offers you something you have no clue about, do you say yes right away or “no thank you?”

Dialogue to me has been, not only talking to the other person; but most importantly, what is my position at that point in time? What’s going on inside of me, am I able to be present in the conversation, am I able to get curious, ask questions, rather than judge, or say no, immediately?

The thing about dialogue is it’s relational. It makes it very hard not to judge or look at (or look to) the other person; therefore, it innately possesses a challenge to look internally within oneself. Bishop Farrell and Monsignor Indunil made it clear that we need to know our own identity before we can start a dialogue with the other.

Many friends posted about their visits to Assisi. Similarly, this altar where St. Francis of Assisi prayed struck me the most. I felt a sense of peace entering this sanctuary.

In the centre of this sanctuary is a sculpture of St. Joseph protecting the Blessed Mother while Jesus in her womb is depicted as an image of a circle of eternity yet fully present in the centre. My increasing devotion to Our Lady and her fiat to God’s will is a clear demonstration of Our Lady’s fully present dialogue with angel Gabriel. After being greeted as “Hail, full of grace” (Luke 1:28), Gabriel requests of her to bear the “Son of the Most High” (1:31-32). Our Mother asked the question: “How can this be, since I have no husband?” It shows Our Mother “was curious and enters more deeply into the conversation, expressing a willingness to grasp something holy and mysterious” (Kun, wau.org).

As a woman, Our Mother has not only been my intercessor, but she has also become a role model to emulate with gentleness, humility, and grace. I might not do it perfectly but I’m confident that I’m in good company to help correct me in dialogue with each other. I just pray that I’m open enough to receive correction with grace and humility while staying true to my identity.

                         Our Blessed Mother with Young Jesus at the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity

                                        Pieta (Michelangelo) at St. Peter's Basilica shows the strength of Our Lady

                     Jesus touching Our Mother's Crown (as Our Queen to emulate) at St. Mary Major's Basilica 

Source:
https://wau.org/resources/article/marys_fiat_the_annunciation/

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Catacombs of Domitilla

The story of Christianity is awe-inspiring.  This is true whether you are a believer or not.  Within 50 years of the physical death of Christ, 12 believers had directly and indirectly converted thousands to the new faith.  Within 300 years, they had converted an empire. This tour begins at the walls of Rome within sight of St. John Lateran where we get our ride to the countryside of Rome.  Making our way outside the walls, the city changes to country quickly.  The Roman countryside is quite beautiful.  The hills begin to roll and the gated villas extend to farms of vegetables, rose hips, or barley.  The air cleaner and the sound clearer. Flavia Domitilla was the granddaughter of the emperor Vespasian.  As daughter of Domitilla "the Younger", Flavia was also the niece of the emperors Titus and Domitian.  These catacombs were founded on her property in about the year 120 A.D.  Flavia and her husband, Flavius Clemens, were likely ...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Villa Borghese: Tainted Beauty

In the 17 th  century it was common for the pope to place a nephew in a key administrative role, for self-preservation.  Thus in 1605, at the age of 28, Scipione Borghese was made cardinal and papal secretary, head of the Roman Curia, by his uncle Pope Paul V, making Scipione the second most powerful person in the country.  Cardinal Scipione purchased a property in the north of Rome and began acquiring ancient Roman and contemporary Italian art.  The villa and its beautiful grounds were never a residence, only ever a gallery and conservatory. Cardinal Scipione became the patron of Gian Lorenzo Bernini, providing Bernini with the opportunity to cement his legacy as perhaps the best sculptor to have ever lived.  Though several pieces of furniture and adornment were sold off by the Borghese family in the 19 th  century to address fiscal problems, those have been replaced with copies, and the most famous and significant pieces of the original collec...
Post a Comment
Read more

Our Lady of Mount Carmel - My "Onomastico"

  Santa Maria in Tranpontina My final day in Rome was made extra special as there was an event to celebrate the feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel. This is my “Saint Day” or in Italian “Onomastico”. Traditionally in the Italian culture a feast day is commemorated with a special meal and perhaps even a small gift, similar to a birthday. Each calendar day has multiple saints assigned, as the Church has far more than 365 saints. The feast day can be selected based on the death of the saint, when that is unknown a day is selected by the Church, as is the case with St. John Paul. His feast day is observed on October 22, which is the day of his Papal Inauguration, rather than the day of his death, April 2, which can fall during the season of Lent. Alter of Santa Maria in Tranpontina Some saints will have a novena prayed in the nine days leading up to their feast day. This is the case for Our Lady of Mount Carmel. In preparation for the observance petitions are made to the saint asking t...
Post a Comment
Read more