On Monday, the 12th of December I participated in the Mass at our local Spanish parish for the Feast of our Lady of Guadalupe. Who is Our Lady of Guadalupe? “She is one of us” responded my Mexican-American friend. This really piqued my reflection on this Feastday of Mary. The features of Our Lady of Guadalupe reflect her identity with the Indigenous peoples of the Americas which for me is a visual reminder that we are all sisters and brothers not because of ethnic origins, but because we are rooted in the soil of our sister- countries.
Mary is our mother, our sister, our friend. Our Lady, the Mother of God, is one of us, walking with us on our journey, sharing our burdens and our joys, attending the births of our babies and of our hopes, rejoicing in our celebrations, sitting at the bedsides of the sick and elderly, weeping at graves of our loved ones and of our dreams. For me the relationship with Mary is personal. I see her as taking my concerns to God with an understanding beyond my limited words. She just “knows” and it is enough to just trust that she is holding my heart in her own. The Church guides us to see that we also have a communal relationship with Mary by praying that “all who invoke the Blessed Virgin of Guadalupe, may seek with ever more lively faith the progress of people in the ways of justice and peace.” Indeed, the Virgin of Guadalupe makes us one by being one of us. How can we fail to share each others’ sorrows and joys, to work for justice and seek peace and happiness for everyone in our family?
Sr. Dorothy Schuette, O.S.B.
Enjoyed your post. Interestingly and sort of sad...a large number of Mexican-Americans in the Pacific Northwest that I have met have joined the Jehovah Witnesses.
ReplyDeleteI also had the pleasure of meeting a gentleman named Luis ( still remained Catholic) who just returned to see his wife after 10 years of separation through deportation of his wife. His story ended up being featured in the diocesan paper a few weeks ago. He stayed in the US to raise their American born daughter who is now 16. The mother will also get to see the daughter... Who physically last saw her at the age of 6. As technology has developed they were able to skype and FB with pictures and conversation.