Like the Mother, Like the Child

By Fr. Adaikala Raja John, SDB

When we learn something, we are taught to look at it from the master’s or teacher’s point of view. Like the focus of an archer and the look of an artist to the details, the angle of a builder or a carpenter or an engineer is taught to students by their teacher or to the disciples by their master.

Mary Help of Christians is given to us as our teacher and guide, and we need to look at the way She viewed things. In his dream at the age of nine, little Johnny Bosco received Mary as his teacher by Jesus Himself. “She will teach you everything that you need to do,” he was told. Don Bosco learned everything from Mary, and that is why Don Bosco wept at the altar of Mary Help of Christians at the Basilica of Sacred Heart at Rome and said, “She did it all.” Thus, like a humble student, Don Bosco acknowledged and attributed all his endeavors to Mary, his teacher. Article eight of our constitutions tells us that the Virgin Mary constantly guided and supported Don Bosco’s work. Article 20 begins with the statement, “Under the guidance of Mary, his teacher…” Thus, the Virgin Mother Mary is given to us as our own teacher and guide and, above all, as Our Mother.

How did Mary look at God?

Mary saw God not as One who is all fearful and takes vengeance on His people, but as the God of justice, mercy, and love. She believed not in a God taught to Her by the Pharisees or rabbis of Her time, but in the God preached by the prophets of the Old Testament. This is clearly manifested in the “Magnificat” sung by Mary in Luke 1:50-54. Justice, coupled with love and mercy, is the true characteristic of the God of Mary. So, how do I look at my God? How do I, in and through my life, witness to the God I believe?

How did Mary look at others?

Although She knew She was the mother of God as announced by St. Gabriel the Archangel, Mary never had it upmost in Her mind. She never sought any exceptions or privileges on account of being the mother of God’s only Son. Unlike us, She never looked down on others but looked with awe, wonder, compassion, and motherly love.

When told by St. Gabriel the Archangel that her cousin Elizabeth had conceived a child in her old age, Mary went with haste to the hill country of Judea to assist her. This Mary did it on Her own, taking the initiative as She was not told by the angel to help, nor did Her cousin request Her assistance. Thus, Mary looked at Elizabeth with compassion and pity.

Moreover, when the shepherds came to visit the little babe at the manger, Mary would have looked at those outcastes with wonder. When the three wise men came to adore Jesus and presented him the kingly gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh, Mary would have looked at them with disbelief and awe.

At the wedding feast at Cana, St. John the Evangelist was an eyewitness to all that had happened there, as it is only narrated in the Gospel of John. John tells us that it was Mary who took that initial step to come to Jesus to report that there was no wine. When there was a commotion and the bridegroom and the manager of the feast discussed the problem, Mary would have overheard it and looked with pity on the newly married couple and not to put them to shame. As a result, She came forward with the courage to ask a favor of Her Son. She was not sure that Her Son would be able to do something there at that moment to alleviate the sufferings of that poor couple, as this was the first sign worked by Jesus in His public ministry.

When the deserted disciples came back to be together at the upper room as they awaited the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, Mary, too, was present. There, She gazed at them with Her maternal love and prayed with and for them to receive the Holy Spirit.

So, how do I look at others? Instead of looking down on others because of my pride, arrogance, or superiority, I must look at others with wonder and awe. Every human person is a beautiful creation of God, and thus a true shadow of His glory and intellect. I need to look with sympathy at those who suffer. I must gaze at others with transcendent love. Thus, I will become a true child of Mary, Our Mother.