Immaculate Conception Mary the Mother Of God treasured everything in her heart. She was a silent witness to the Word of God. The Word became flesh in her Womb and that is Jesus. We are celebrating the Immaculate Conception of Our Blessed Mother. From the moment of her conception God kept her sinless, Immaculate and Pure. Snow White =========== I remember driving along the Sierra Mountains in California, one winter time and the hills were clad in pure, white snow. The Pine tree branches were holding chunks of white snow. Everything was white. A very immaculate experience. I had some people with me and one of them said “ Immaculate White” I think that statement sunk into my heart. Since then every Immaculate Conception feast gave me a better idea about the immaculate nature of Our Blessed Mother. Every time I read Isaiah 1.18 and 19, I get a different impact in my life. There I see, sinless ness is white as snow. “You are stained red with sin, I will clean you as white as snow” Is. 1.18. God has made Our Blessed Mother sinless from the first moment of her conception, immaculate and clean as snow. Is she our Snow White. Perfect Jesus ============= Jesus was like any of us except in sin. I think the Immanuel made her ( Mary) sinless. We find some common grounds in the life of Jesus and Mary. When the Angel of the Lord announced to Mary, “You will be with child and that will be from the Holy Spirit” Mary said “ Behold the Handmaid of the Lord. Let your Holy Will be Done”. Jesus did the same thing. Jesus, said when he was confronted with awesome difficulties “father let your will be Done”. Even on the Cross Jesus said “I surrender my soul to you”. In a way Jesus was reiterating the same Spirit that gave Mary the courage to say “I surrender to the Holy Will of God”. We are trying to understand this mystery. Many a treatise and sermons are w! ritten every generation about the announcement of the Immanuel and Mary’s response. All the more it becomes difficult for us to comprehend. It is difficult for us to comprehend because we are trying to analyse he birth of God as human from the point of view of the sinful people. ========================================================================= Witnessing aspects of the Immaculate onception; ================================================ The Immaculate Conception gave a lot of witnessing aspects. When God decided to make His Mother Mary, immaculate from the first moment of her existence, God decided to make her witness many events, many Godly events. Mary saw the First Christmas. Mary was privileged to bear witness to the angels singing “Glory to God in the Highest and Peace to men of goodwill on earth”. Immaculate Conception and the First Miracle of Jesus. Mary witnessed many miracles of Jesus. Mary was instrumental in the first miracle of Jesus (turning water into wine). Mary walked with with Jesus, giving him, moral strength Jesus needed. Is there any mother who won’t give moral courage to a son whom she knows is the Son of God. Mary remembered with pleasure the Intervention of God in her own life bringing the life of God a reality on this Earth. Mary was with Jesus when he preached in the Temple. Mary and Joseph made a difference in the life of Jesus. They were the legal parents of Jesus, on the face of this earth. Jesus, God who walked on the earth made Mary, the Mother of God. The Immaculate Conception made her Mother of God and Mother to each and every one of us. Mary silent witness =================== The Immaculate Conception enabled Mary to be a silent witness to the Love of God. The Immaculate Conception made Mary to be a silent partner of God on the earth along the way of the Cross. Mary was with Jesus, when Jesus walked to Calvary. I am sure Mary had participation in the ministry of Jesus. Many other women supported Jesus in his ministry. I am sure they had connection with Mary. I don’t think there would be a mother who won’t be touched with her sons friends. Mary might have cooked food for the friends of Jesus. If Mary was instrumental in motivating him to change water into wine, I am sure Mary was also beside the friends of Jesus motivating them to effect a great change in their lives. I think my mother is happy to invite and to provide food hospitality for my friends who come home. . I have noticed that my friends have become the fri! ends of my mother and the rest of my family and vise versa. Holy War -------- I think the Immaculate Conception was a Holy War of God to change people into prayer partners with Jesus. Mary became friends with the friends and benefactors of Jesus. I remember every time when my friends come home my mother and the rest of my family is there to welcome and make them feel at home. Many of my friends felt at home when they visited with me and that is because of my parents and the rest of my family and their attitude to them. I am sure Mary knew Jesus. She had no doubt in Jesus. Mary was always beside Jesus. When Jesus bid farewell to Mary, that broke her heart. On his way to Calvary, Jesus stopped when he saw Mary. Jesus comforted his Mother. God comforting a human person and everything is because of this immaculate conception. Mary silent partner to our emancipation ======================================= Mary ascended the Mount Calvary and she also carried the burden of her son. She was a silent witness at the foot of the Cross. She saw Jesus suffer. She saw Jesus fulfill the plan of God. Mary Heard Jesus say to her “Woman I love you and I want John to take care of you” although that was said in a different language. Jesus said that in conventional language “Woman here is your son” and turning to John Jesus said “ take care of my Mother” and in conventional language John heard Jesus saying “Here is your Mother” and John took her into his care since then. I think this made the difference in the life of John the evangelist. John lived a long time. John took care of Mother Mary. Immaculate conception in the care of John the evangelist. Deliverance from sin ==================== The Immaculate Conception made Mary a different person in the experience of deliverance from sins. Mary heard Jesus say “ Father forgive them for they do not know what they do” and Mary treasured the meaning of this God act. God forgiving humanity even in pain. The Immaculate Conception was able to witness the pain and death of Jesus. That was no easy thing for a mother to see her son go through the pain of death. Most of the time, mothers die before children die. But in the case of Mary, then Immaculate Conception, she outlived her son. She saw the pain of her son and his death. She offered the pain; I am sure, for the healing of us, for our emancipation, she was able to experience what the prophet Isaiah said “ because of our sins he was wounded beaten because of the sins we did, we are healed by the punishments he suffered” Is 53.5. Mother Mary, the Immaculate Conception was able to witness this reality. She became a coheir to claim the humanity. She suffered with Jesus and offered herself for our own deliverance. Mary became the Immaculate Conception and she was able to hear Jesus say I thirst and Jesus did thirst for our souls and Mary became a silent partner in the thirst of God. She suffered every inch with Jesus and joined jesus in His Glory. At the end when everything was finished Jesus said “ Into your hands I commend my Spirit” and this reminds us of Mary’s submission to the will of God. Mary being the Immaculate Conception surrendered to the Holy will of God and surrendered the whole humanity being the Mother of God to the Holy Will of God. I think this makes the difference in our lives. Present at the resurrection =========================== The Immaculate Conception was present when Jesus resurrected from the dead. Jesus appeared to the people and I am sure Mary was one of the first persons to whom Jesus appeared post resurrection. Mary was with Jesus when he gave the Holy Spirit to the disciples. I think it impacts us that Mary was with the Holy Spirit when there was the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles. Culmination =========== This is the culmination of the whole Immaculate Conception. She conceived with the Power of the Holy Spirit and for the first time in the human history, someone was pregnant with the Holy Spirit. The spouse of the Holy Spirit was present at the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles and the rest of the Christendom. I am sure that Mary was present with the group. Mary the Mother of God was present at the Our Pouring of the Holy Spirit. I think this gives us the courage to pray to the Immaculate Conception for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. The Immaculate Conception was present at the ascension of our lord Jesus into heaven. The Immaculate Conception was assumed into Heaven and she is seated at the right hand of God. Happy Feast Fr. Thomas Mathew/December 8th 2001 California ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com **************************************************************** This mail is generated from JOYnet, a Jesus Youth mailing list. 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