The Mother’s Love | May 1

Our Lady of Grace, Kreupasanam

Nothing can replace it. A few days ago, the mother of one of my colleagues passed away. This colleague of mine is also a good friend. I couldn’t visit him that day. I wish I could. There were too many classes to attend, and much work there was to be done. So I missed the day, when I should have been with him, as a shoulder for him and his family. Mother’s love can’t be replaced. When a mother leaves, it is also a withdrawal of a good life on earth for the children who survive. Nothing can pacify this tragedy.

In Calvary, when Christ was hung on the Holy Cross, one of the many people who witnessed it was his mother, Mary, along with another Mary and Mary Magdalene. Each drop of Christ dripped out from the pores on his body, made by the lashes of the whip of the torturers, in front of Mother Mary. The Blessed Mother did not protest. She witnessed it with a Holy resignation that only she had mastered ever since the Annunciation, which is when the Angel Gabriel announced the arrival of the Messiah as her son.

Unable to fully grasp the gravity of the situation, Mother Mary accepted it. Then Mary said, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.” (Luke 1: 38) Mary became a mother, a virgin mother when she said “yes” to God’s will. The son that God gave her, was now willingly laying down his life according to his Heavenly Father’s will, a quality the Blessed Virgin Mary showed so profoundly without fear or anxiety when the angel appeared.

There was Jesus on the cross, the wooden cross which had already turned slippery and glistening with blood flowing down from the body of Jesus. His colour was red. Every inch of his body was beaten up and scourged. His skin was falling off in some places, from the lashes where flesh was cut off from the metal hooks hidden in the whips. The more one loved Him, the harder it was to watch Him like that. Yet, to understand that Jesus was fulfilling what was written about him by prophets in the sacred writings was liberating. And then with a loud cry, Jesus died.

Before his death, Jesus told his beloved disciple John to take care of Mary. To Mary, He said, “Woman, This is your son.” I do believe that Jesus was giving us, the whole of humanity, a Mother, His Mother. Mary is the mother of the world, and not just the Mother of Christ, the Mother of God. It is not just a figure of speech. For me, it is a reality, such as any other reality, like the existence of this page and you reading it.

Whenever I find myself in dire situations, I always beg for the intercession of the Blessed Mother. And she always comes to my aid. I don’t say this as a way of promoting my selfworth. No, but I say this to praise God, in whose infinite mercy He sent the Blessed Mother to help me. I’m awestruck at the number of people finding Mary as a refuge in the current era. With Marian apparitions consistently increasing in number in all parts of the world, it is only logical to assume the powerful intercessory presence of the Blessed Mother. One of my recent experiences is with Kreupasanam, Marian Shrine, situated in Kalavoor, Alappuzha, in the Indian state of Kerala. My experience will only be completely narrated in the form of a testimony and it is long, which I will, firstly narrate at the Marian Shrine itself. For the time being, I would just suggest to you the best way to honour Mar- to follow Christ; that is, to love one another, just as He loved us.

The month of May is the best time in the year to honour Mary. Today, on the first of May, let us reflect on our Blessed Mother’s love, which is the light of our life. While our mother is still with us, let us give her all the love and respect we can as Her children.


Night or Day,

For the Blessed Virgin Mary,

Let us dedicate,

The month of May.