The Birth of Mary

 

Matthew 1: 16-21 

Joseph Accepts Jesus as His Son

¹⁸ This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. ¹⁹ Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.

²⁰ But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. ²¹ She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”

Little, if anything, is known about the birth of Mary. Nothing about it appears in the Gospels, but we know she did exist from passages such as the one above, so we are not celebrating the birth of a make-believe person. In typical fashion, the spotlight is on Jesus, not on her, but we do take the opportunity to honor her birth and all the implications that flow from it. If there were no Mary, there would be no Jesus, and then where would we be? And over the centuries her motherly presence has evoked widespread devotion as she continues to bring forth her Son through her many apparitions and calls to turn our hearts over to him. If she turns the spotlight away from herself to him, so rightly should we. We love her as our Mother and model of devotion and service to her Son.  Today's Feast is more than just "Happy birthday to you" but more of a thank you for cooperating with God's plan to bring us salvation through and in Jesus,

Bro, Rene