September 12, 2009

Holy Name of Mary

Today is the now restored (as of the 2002 Missale Romanum) feast of the Most Holy Name of Mary. Names are always important on the spiritual level, and especially in the Sacred Scripture. This morning I was reflecting on Mary through her Old Testament namesake, Miriam the sister of Moses.

Miriam and the Israelites sing of God's salvation:

I will sing to to the Lord, for He has triumphed gloriously.
Horse and rider He has hurled into the sea.
The Lord is my strength and my might;
He is become my deliverance.
This is my God and I will enshrine Him;
The God of my father, and I will exalt Him.
(Exodus 15: 1-2)


That is Mary's vocation as well, to exalt the Lord and to enshrine the Word of God in this world so fully and literally that she becomes the first home of the Word made flesh. The virgo facta ecclesia, the "Virgin made Church," as St. Francis puts it so beautifully.

1 comment:

Adoro said...

I just realized that today is the perfect day for me to be writing my Mariology paper. The more I read about her, the more I see and the more I recognize what I am called to be, too. Although I can't explain this last very well.

And you just reminded me of something I missed in my paper. Thanks!