Solemnity of Mary

Last week, I was a bit surprised when I saw that Sunday was the Feast of the Holy Family. For some reason, I always thought that 01 January was it. I guess you're never too old to learn something!

I chose to attend 9:00 a.m. Mass this morning because I figured that there wouldn't be very many people in attendance. There were a lot of cars in the parking lot, so I was pleasantly surprised. I guess our church is bigger than I thought, because when I walked in there were a lot of empty seats. 

During the homily, Father told a story about Jesus walking around in heaven where people passing told him "Good Morning". Jesus is looking around, wondering why some of the people were there. He was sure that they weren't supposed to be there yet. He went to the Gates & asked St. Paul about it. St. Paul told him that when he told them they couldn't come in yet, they would walk to the back door & Jesus' mom would let them in. 

Many non-Catholics have the idea that we worship Mary and question why we hold her in such high esteem. I think it's a no-brainer. Obviously, Mary is not on the same "level" as God or Jesus, but she did say "yes" and was Jesus' mother. And, since Jesus is the Son of God and is "True God, true man", of course she is the Mother of God. This is not about Mary, but rather about Jesus. Mary is the sign and symbol of Mercy.

Like most mothers, she never stopped believing in her Son, even when she was at the foot of his cross, watching him die. I can't even imagine what that must have been like, or how it really "pierced her heart". There are times when my boys have hurt me deeply by the choices they made, but there just isn't any comparison to what Mary must have felt. I just can't even imagine knowing that your son was put on this earth to sacrifice himself for humans who aren't worthy.

We shouldn't get caught up in "who should & shouldn't be", but just give it all to God. This is something I struggle with daily. The injustices of the world, heck, of life in general, get to me sometimes. Why does someone get away with not following the rules when there are those of us who insist on being "rule-followers"? Why do some people at work do the minimal when others are busting their butts to be better educators?

One of my goals this year is to "let go & let God". I find myself in church, judging other people: Doesn't that woman know that she's not supposed to be chewing gum during Mass? Why did those parents let their teenage daughter wear spaghetti straps to Midnight Mass? I have to leave all of that to God & focus on what I'm doing; how I'm living my life. That is one of the major things I'll be working on this year.

What is something that you will work on changing this year?