This
last Friday, August 22nd, we celebrated the Feast of the Queenship
of Mary. Our Lady, according to the teaching of the Church, was assumed – that
is, brought up, body and soul – into heaven and then crowned Queen of Heaven.
On the fringes of the Church, there are those who question why the Church would
declare such dogmas, especially when they seem to push farther away those who
cannot yet accept these points of faith. Or rather, they may ask why these doctrines
are necessary for the Christian life. Mary, though, is essential to the plan of
salvation and essential to the Kingdom of God by the will of God himself. Her
queenship and motherhood is vital to our Christian hearts and our lives,
whether we realize it or not.
Ultimately,
Mary herself is the work of God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. From the first
moment of her immaculate conception – no, from the foundations of the world, by
God’s own ordained plans (Genesis 3:15) – throughout her pure and perfectly
obedient life as a virgin, to her holy death, assumption to heaven and
coronation, God had wrought this miracle, called the Blessed Virgin Mary, by
his grace. To deny this miraculous work of God would be the same as to deny the
creation of the world, the covenant made with Abraham, the commandments given
to Moses, the people of Israel or the Ark of the Covenant. We cannot deny the
work of God, or else we call him a liar.
The
Church recognizes in Our Lady the work of God himself and the cooperation of God-created
freewill, existing not only for herself, but also for all of humankind. “My
soul magnifies the Lord,” she sung at the blessing of the St. Elizabeth, both inspired
by the Holy Spirit (Luke 1:46). In her hymn, we hear what God desired for her
and for all – a love that gives all and does all for the love of God, who has
given himself completely to us without partiality, condition or reservation.
She took nothing for herself, but gave way to the vision of God. Like her, we
are all called to such a humility in truth, so as to be icons of God, images of
God, so as to be able to say with her and St. Paul, “I have been crucified with
Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. (Gal. 2:19,20)”
St. John the Baptist’s own words apply equally well: “He must increase, but I
must decrease. (John 1:22)”
In
the Assumption of Mary, we have hope in the Resurrection of Christ being
applied to us at the end of time. In Our Lady, we have been given extra
evidence of the graces of God to be applied not to the Son of God only, but to
all who believe. In the Coronation of the Blessed Virgin, we have hope in our
glorification. Thus, St. Paul wrote, “For all who are led by the Spirit of God
are children of God, […] and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint
heirs with Christ—if, in fact, we suffer with him so that we may also be
glorified with him. (Rom. 8:14-17 NRSVCE)” We are heirs of the Kingdom and will
receive glory, if we endure with Christ like Mary did.
Paragraph
966 of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, quoting Lumen Gentium, tells us that:
‘No creature could ever be counted
along with the Incarnate Word and Redeemer; but just as the priesthood of
Christ is shared in various ways both by his ministers and the faithful, and as
the one goodness of God is radiated in different ways among his creatures, so
also the unique mediation of the Redeemer does not exclude but rather gives
rise to a manifold cooperation which is but a sharing in this one source.’
In this statement, the Church specifically is writing about
Mary’s role within the life of grace, but the truth of the statement can be
applied to all other Christians as well. It is clear from the Scriptures that
God shares his glory, his honor and his authority with men and women on earth.
Rather, it is clear from the order of nature that God shares a shimmer of his
glory with the kings and queens of the earth. How much more do we believe that
he will share with those heirs of his own kingdom, in the order of grace?
The
Queenship of Mary is a facet of our Catholic faith that is a great joy to the
faithful, because in her we find a superabundance of the glory and honor that God
desires to share with us. She was the humblest of women, and the most blessed.
In her was the hope of the Messiah, her “Fiat” (Let it be done) bringing that hope to fulfillment. And, yet, she
lived a simple life of love for her family and friends. She contemplated the
word of the Lord continually. She sought the Lord in all ways, even to the foot
of the Cross itself. After the Resurrection and Ascension of the Lord, she
remained to continue the Lord’s simple call to love. In return for her
completely perfect, faithful stewardship, God rewarded her with the position of
the right hand of the Son that Sts. James and John so eagerly sought out of
pride and vanity. (Matt. 20:21)
In
another passage of Scripture, Jesus tells his disciples that they, too, will
have thrones from which they judge all twelve tribes of Israel. (Matt. 19:28)
In Revelation 3:9, Jesus tells those in the church at Philadelphia that their
enemies will bow down to them and learn that they are loved. Later, he says to
the church in Laodicea, “To the one who conquers I will give a place with me on
my throne, just as I myself conquered and sat down with my Father on his
throne. (Rev. 3:21 NRSVCE)”
If this is a sharing of the power, authority, glory and honor
of God, how much more do we believe for Mary, whom St. Elizabeth proclaimed as
the “Mother of my Lord”? (Luke 1:43) For, she is the “Queen Mother,” just as
the Davidic Kingdom calls for. King Solomon himself bowed to his own mother and
had a thrown set up for her beside his own. (1 Kings 2) Jesus, as the Son of
David, King of Israel forever, has set up a throne for his own mother. Now, she
is our own Queen Mother, because Jesus is our King. Let us give her the honor
and glory that God has already himself bestowed on her. As St. Maximilian Kolbe
once said, “No one can love Mary more than Jesus has.” So, let us not be afraid
to love and honor our living Queen, who is the work of God, a clear reflective
glass and image of God himself, Our Lord.
Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for
us.
Queen of Angels, pray for us.
Queen of Patriarchs, pray for us.
Queen of Prophets, pray for us.
Queen of Apostles, pray for us.
Queen of Martyrs, pray for us.
Queen of Confessors, pray for us.
Queen of Virgins, pray for us.
Queen of all Saints, pray for us.
Queen conceived without original sin,
pray for us.
Queen assumed into heaven, pray for
us.
Queen of the most holy Rosary, pray
for us.
Queen of families, pray for us.
Queen of peace, pray for us.
Amen. +
--
Taken from the Litany of Loreto
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