Holy Name of Mary

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Patronal Feast of the Society of Mary and Daughters of Mary, Sept. 12, 2011: The Holy Name of Mary

Scripture: Sirach 24:17-21. Luke 1:46-48.49-50.53-54. Luke 1:26-38:

Brothers and Sisters, and Members of the Marianist Family:

We are fortunate to have as our patronal feast the Holy Name of Mary. The most recent collection of Masses on the Blessed Virgin Mary has included this Feast in honor of Mary’s Name and have taken it from the Proper of the Masses that we as Marianists officially celebrate in our Congregations. The texts are centered on the Person of Mary and the collect is especially appropriate for our reflection on the meaning of the Feast for us as Marianists both vowed and lay members.

Blessed Chaminade chose this as our patronal feast without taking anything away from the celebration of the Feast of the Immaculate Conception which is the patronal feast of the Sodalities founded by Blessed Chaminade. One of the remarkable discoveries that we can learn from recent studies is that the dogmas of our Catholic faith complement each other. The four dogmas in honor of the person of Mary are easily seen as supporting one another and helping us to understand the fullness of her role in the mysteries of our salvation. They all are meant to help us understand who Christ is, therefore, the Christological meaning should never be left out of the bigger picture of who Mary is in relationship to us through her Son. It all began with the Annunciation (Luke 1:26-38), the Gospel chosen for today’s celebration of the Holy Name of Mary.

Blessed Chaminade has told us, “We have enrolled under the name and standard of Mary to go wherever she may send us.” (Letter of Aug. 24, 1839). We see in that expression of being sent by her a cooperation in her mission of bringing Jesus into the lives of others and those we minister to through our apostolic involvement. It contains the thought of Blessed Chaminade, “You are all missionaries.”

Mary’s Name, we are told, has many meanings. Perhaps, the one chosen by Blessed John Paul II, a great marian pope, is best for what we are about in our calling, namely, to be creative agents of the Good News that is Jesus in his words and deeds and his being the Son of Mary. Blessed John Paul II calls Mary the Star of Evangelization. As such she points to the Person of Christ and to the preaching of his Gospel or Good News to all. This was the theme of the five hundred anniversary of the discovery of America for this Pope. The 11^th International Mariological Congress met in Huelva, Spain close to where Columbus left for the new world. The Congress was held Sept.18-27, 1992).

Often the Prefaces chosen for these feasts of Mary (there are 46 of them in the Collection of Masses of the Blessed Virgin Mary) are the liturgical faith reflections and proclamations of the Church for each of these feasts. The Preface contains Scriptural references that are understood but not listed and the one for the Holy Name has a remarkable collect or opening prayer that is special to the Society of Mary. This prayer is echoed in the Preface together with an inference of two great New Testament hymns, the Kenosis Hymn or Carmen Christ of Philippians 2:5-11 and Mary’s won Magnificat (Luke 1:46-56). Both hymns contain a kenosis emphasis and a remarkable praise of God’s plan or work among us in salvation history. We see again the complementarity of a Christological hymn and that of a Marian hymn. This is a sound marian spirit in that Mary is associated in the redemptive mission of her son.

Thus the Preface contains the Christology of Paul shared with the Churches of the Gentiles while Mary’s Magnificat is more the Church of Jerusalem at prayer through her. Both Old and New Testaments then are joined in our celebration.

From the Book of Sirach, a work that we call deuteron-canonical, we discover the wisdom theme that is applied in the liturgy to Mary.She as the Seat of Wisdom offers us her fruits of wisdom. They would include many if not all of the virtues that are characteristic to the Society of Mary. Who better would be a model for these virtues than the mother of Jesus? We are thereby remembering Mary as our legacy for future generations and we are encouraged to be filled with all the fruits of wisdom as Mary did.

We are summoned to call upon her as our mother in time of danger and need. This is expressed clearly in the opening prayer or the collect: “Lord our God, when your Son was dying on the cross, he gave us as our mother, the Blessed Virgin Mary; grant that we who call upon the holy name of Mary, our mother, with confidence in her protection may receive strength and comfort in all our needs. We make our prayer through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

As disciples, after the example of Mary’s discipleship, we cooperate in the saving mission of Jesus. This theme is also present in the liturgical readings and the prayers. The Trinity is mentioned in the Gospel as we hear of God sending Gabriel on a mission to Mary to announce to her the request to give birth to the Son of God through the power and overshadowing of the Holy Spirit. She cooperates with the Trinity in saying “YES” and accepts the new name and call that Gabriel brings to her from God. She is the one completely filled with grace ( kecharitomene) the name given her by Gabriel which implies gracefulness, graciousness, conferred with grace or grace as the free gift of God. Since the verse lacks a proper name, this is the new name Mary receives.). It is thereby a text which helps us to ponder over the mystery of Mary’s Immaculate Conception. Translated literally it means, You who have been graced or gifted by God.

Besides the reading of Sirach and Luke we have the antiphon that tells us Mary will be like Judith blessed by all ages. She is blessed among all women. (Judith 13:18 and 20).The Magnificat is our Response and our Psalm for this Eucharist, We see in her hymn both the praise of God and the wisdom of her speech;; we are encouraged to be filled with the fruit of wisdom as she was.

Luke’s account of the Annunciation is the earliest reflection on her vocation and the first insight into the meaning of her holy name Mary showing us through the dialogue she has her depth of mind, heart, and spirit. We are directly told by Gabriel what this feast is all about…”And the Virgin’s name was Mary.” After calmly listening, pondering, and deciding with full assent , Mary says “May it be done to me according to your word.” She will later translate this expression into a command to the servants at Cana and to us “Do whatever (my Son Jesus) tells you.”

We end with another insight from our Blessed Founder, William Joseph Chaminade, “ Our two orders have taken for distinctive name, the name of the august Mary.May they propagate knowledge, praise, and love for her throughout the world!” (Spirit of Our Foundation, 138).