Throughout the world, the Catholic Liturgy venerates Our Lady as Mother of the Church. First among the foundations for this devotion is the episode in which Christ himself declared to St. John, from the height of the Cross: “Behold your Mother!” (Jn 19:27). Symbolically, the sole Apostle to be in attendance at this sorrowful hour represented alone the nascent Church – made up of weak but dearly beloved children – whose salvation Jesus purchased with His Death.
Although the words of the Redeemer consecrated this title of Mary’s motherhood, it was not only on Calvary that She earned it. In fact, the role of a Mother is to give her children life; thus, in giving birth to the Founder of the Church, the Blessed Virgin also became Mother of the work that He would found.
What is more, while Jesus was lying in the sepulchre, where was the faith of the Church? Where was its hope safeguarded? Where were its perseverance and fidelity to be found? In the Heart of Mary alone, burning with zeal like a torch in the darkness of unbelief, while those who had accompanied Our Lord languished in doubt, discouragement and cowardice. During these three days Our Lady preserved, protected and nourished the nascent Church…
And She holds this office until today, as the Mediatrix of Divine Grace, lifeblood of the Church. Obtaining everything from God, She is the channel of life that flows from Christ to each of the faithful.
Being Queen, Mary rules history in its entirety, governing the destiny of nations, the application of rewards and punishments, the flourishing of civilizations; and She rules each individual soul, in all its particularities, its joys and difficulties, its triumphs and failures. In a certain sense, She “governs” God Himself, for She has conquered His Heart and has also been constituted as its Queen.
Now, the queenly state corresponds closely to the role of mother: if the mother is the queen of the home, the queen is the mother of the people. Thus, Our Lady is Queen of the Church, that is, its Mother, and She cares for it – both collectively, as an institution, and individually, in each of its members – with all the affection of the best of mothers and the strength of the most powerful of queens.
On the highest and most magnificent pinnacles, virtues are intertwined. Mary supports, protects, stimulates, corrects, forgives, repairs and advises… She appears at the same time as Lady, Teacher, Guide, Pillar and Star. However, the titles that most suit Her are those of Queen and Mother, because they define Her most perfectly. In fact, when we consider Her as Queen, we venerate the power that the Most Holy Trinity has bestowed on Her: this power is the almighty sceptre of God! When we invoke Her as our Mother, we celebrate the joy of having Her close to us, and we are filled with hope to see the goodness and love with which She exercises all her power to our benefit.
How many reasons we have to turn to Her with confidence, certain that we will be heard! ◊
