"On that day they will say to Jerusalem, "Do not fear, Zion; do not let your hands hang limp. The Lord your God is in your midst. He will exult with joy over you. He will renew you by His love."
Zephaniah
I recall working on a Cursillo weekend back in the mid nineteen eighties. A priest and I were the spiritual directors for this weekend retreat. The priest, Father Paul, was giving a talk on faith, and he began his talk by saying:
"If you tell a joke to a horse, even though it may be a very funny joke, you will not get the horse to laugh. In fact, he said, it is unlikely you will even get a whinnie. Why? Because a horse does not have the faculties to understand what you are talking about. It does not have gift to understand the twist in meaning of the words which gives rise to the humor. Human beings have this faculty, this gift.
They also have the faculties for the gift of faith, that is to comprehend, to believe, to experience God, and to be guided by faith which goes beyond an intellectual understanding. The gift of faith is shrouded in mystery. Our attempts at solving this mystery are just our minds working overtime."
From Zephaniah we hear the prophet's words:
"On that day they will say to Jerusalem, "Do not fear, Zion; do not let your hands hang limp. The Lord your God is in your midst. He will exult with joy over you. He will renew you by His love."
Do you experience being renewed by God's love? If so, that is faith. Nothing to solve. Nothing really to intellectually understand. We are touched by God's presence. Just let it be what it is.
For me, what distinguishes Mary, mother of Jesus, from myself, and perhaps from all of us, is the depth to which she experienced this mystery of God, present and active in her life. She was not a theologian. She was not what you would call a professional. She was not a writer or painter or talented in a particular way. In the ways of the world, I don't believe she would be considered brilliant or famous. But the depth of her faith, the depth of her surrender to this mystery we call God, was the tapestry of her life; and to God, that's what mattered most. From Mary, we can learn and discover our own depth of faith, or at least our potential for it.
In the scripture from Matthew, we read about Mary visited her cousin Elizabeth during her time of pregnancy. Upon Mary's arrival, Elizabeth discovered this mysterious gift that Mary exhibited which brought alive the mystery contained within herself. Elizabeth gave a loud cry: "Of all women, you are the most blessed, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. Why should I be honored with a visit from the mother of my Lord?"
Do we not bring alive within ourselves the mystery of our own faith as we ponder Mary, and allow her to visit that place in our hearts where faith dwells?
When I look out at the world and its needs, whether it be during the times I am listening to the news on TV or reading the newspaper, it seems to me that we are a culture so distracted, so busy running after things of so little importance. Maybe what we need to do is to stop, step back, and spend some time pondering Mary's depth of faith, and discover within ourselves that which truly matters. And what we may discover that truly matters is faith that turns our hearts to God.
"Do not fear; do not let your hands hang limp. The Lord your God is in your midst. He will exult with joy over you. He will renew you by His love."
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