Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe
When I read scripture, I often wonder how much of the deeper meaning of the readings are lost to me because I do not live when these stories were written. Our world and culture are so far removed from these stories that at times I stop and wonder what truth is really trying to be shared.
In today’s gospel reading, Mary hears the angel Gabriel announce to her that she will bear a son whose “kingdom will have no end.” Mary responds telling the angel, “I am the handmaid of the Lord.” What exactly is a handmaid? The definition is “personal maid or female servant.” For those of us living today, the idea of living as a servant is something we find unacceptable. We have this strong sense in our culture that we are free and should not be under the ownership of any person.
As I reflect on Mary and her culture, I believe that the concept of handmaid had a different interpretation than what we might suspect. The handmaid was a close personal servant. This was probably the individual that helped her “master” with the intimate details of daily living. Her “master” placed great trust in this person, and the handmaid willingly provided the care and service that was asked. Over time, I suspect that a respect and love for her “master” developed because of their many shared experiences. The “owner” also took care and provided for the needs of her handmaid, which made the servant even more committed to her service.
So when Mary responds that she is the Lord’s handmaid, what does she imply? Mary shows her humility as she accepts her service to God. But even more than that, Mary indicates a particular closeness to the Lord as she indicates she will be His personal servant even in the small details of daily living. Mary recognizes God’s ability to care for her, and she therefore trusts that He will do all that He says.
So how are we called to be “handmaids for the Lord?” Just as Mary was invited to be a part of God’s redemptive love, we are also called to bring Christ into the world. In the first reading, Zechariah says, “I am coming to dwell among you.” As handmaids, we are called to personal service with God. For us to accomplish God’s wishes, we must be close to Him through our encounters with Him in prayer, sacrament, scripture and daily living.
Unlike the master/ servant relationship, we know and believe that we have a God who loves us and cares for us not because we serve Him, but because we are His beloved children. Being a handmaid for our God is unlike any other relationship, since it is love which binds us together. God cares for us because of love, and as His handmaid I am called to serve because of love for Him. Through the love of His Spirit in our lives, we bring this love to others in our service to the people around us. As a “handmaid of the Lord” I best live out my service to Him through my willingness to invite Him into my life, so that I can share Him with the world.
Today we celebrate the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Mary appeared to Juan Diego and assured Him that Jesus (Her Son) was with him and the people of Mexico. Her appearance on the tilma of Juan Diego was a source of encouragement for many Mexican people, as they turned to Christ and turned away from the Aztec traditions of the past. Mary is pictured as a brown skinned pregnant young woman thus illustrating that Mary was the Christ bearer to all people and all times. She shows that she is the perfect “handmaid of the Lord,” since it is through her humility and “yes” to God that the Word became flesh.
“O Virgin of Guadalupe, Mother of the Americas, grant to our homes the grace of loving and respecting life in its beginnings, with the same love with which you conceived in your womb the life of the Son of God. Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of Fair love, protect our families so that they may always be united and bless the upbringing of our children.
Our hope, look upon us with pity, teach us to go continually to Jesus, and if we fall help us to rise again and return to him through the confession of our faults and our sins in the sacrament of penance, which gives peace to the soul.
We beg you to grant us a great love of all the holy sacraments, which are, as it were, the signs that your Son left us on earth. Thus, Most Holy Mother, with the peace of God in our consciences, with our hearts free from evil and hatred, we will be able to bring to all others true joy and true peace, which come to us from your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, who with the Father and the Holy Spirit, lives and reigns forever and ever. Amen (Our Lady of Guadalupe Prayer-St. John Paul II)
- Marylynn Herchline