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From: John 19:25-27

The Crucifixion and Death of Jesus (Continuation)

[25] So the soldiers did this. But standing by the cross of Jesus were His mo-
ther, and His mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. [26]
When Jesus saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing near, He
said to His mother, “Woman, behold your son!” [27] Then He said to the disciple,
“Behold, your mother!” And from that hour the disciple took her to his own home.

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Commentary:

25. Whereas the Apostles, with the exception of St. John, abandon Jesus in the
hour of His humiliation, these pious women, who had followed Him during His pu-
blic life (cf. Lk 8:2-3) now stay with their Master as He dies on the cross (cf. note
on Mt 27:55-56).

Bl. John Paul II explained that our Lady’s faithfulness was shown in four ways:
first, in her generous desire to do all that God wanted of her (cf. Lk 1:34); second,
in her total acceptance of God’s will (cf. Lk 1:38); third, in the consistency be-
tween her life and the commitment of faith which she made; and, finally, in her
withstanding this test. “And only a consistency that lasts throughout the whole of
life can be called faithfulness. Mary’s ‘fiat’ in the Annunciation finds its fullness in
the silent ‘fiat’ that she repeats at the foot of the Cross” (”Homily in Mexico Cathe-
dral”, 26 January 1979).

The Church has always recognized the dignity of women and their important role
in salvation history. It is enough to recall the veneration which from the earliest
times the Christian people have had for the Mother of Christ, the Woman “par ex-
cellence” and the most sublime and most privileged creature ever to come from
the hands of God. Addressing a special message to women, the Second Vatican
Council said, among other things: “Women in trial, who stand upright at the foot
of the cross like Mary, you who so often in history have given to men the strength
to battle unto the very end and to give witness to the point of martyrdom, aid
them now still once more to retain courage in their great undertakings, while at
the same time maintaining patience and an esteem for humble beginnings” (Va-
tican II, “Message To Women”, 8 December 1965).

26-27. “The spotless purity of John’s whole life makes him strong before the Cross.
The other apostles fly from Golgotha: he, with the Mother of Christ, remains. Don’t
forget that purity strengthens and invigorates the character” (St. J. Escriva, “The
Way”, 144).

Our Lord’s gesture in entrusting His Blessed Mother to the disciple’s care, has a
dual meaning (see p. 19 above and pp. 35ff). For one thing it expresses His filial
love for the Virgin Mary. St Augustine sees it as a lesson Jesus gives us on how
to keep the fourth commandment: “Here is a lesson in morals. He is doing what
He tells us to do and, like a good Teacher, He instructs His own by example,
that it is the duty of good children to take care of their parents; as though the
wood on which His dying members were fixed were also the chair of the teaching
Master” (St Augustine, “In Ioann. Evang.”, 119, 2).

Our Lord’s words also declare that Mary is our Mother: “The Blessed Virgin also
advanced in her pilgrimage of faith, and faithfully persevered in her union with her
Son unto the cross, where she stood, in keeping with the divine plan, enduring
with her only begotten Son the intensity of His suffering, associating herself with
His sacrifice in her mother’s heart, and lovingly consenting to the immolation of
this victim who was born of her. Finally, she was given by the same Christ Jesus
dying on the cross as a mother to His disciple” (Vatican II, “Lumen Gentium”,
58).

All Christians, who are represented in the person of John, are children of Mary.
By giving us His Mother to be our Mother, Christ demonstrates His love for His
own to the end (cf. Jn 13:1). Our Lady’s acceptance of John as her son show her
motherly care for us: “the Son of God, and your Son, from the Cross indicated a
man to you, Mary, and said: ‘Behold, your son’ (Jn 19:26). And in that man He
entrusted to you every person, He entrusted everyone to you. And you, who at
the moment of the Annunciation, concentrated the whole program of your life in
those simple words: ‘Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be to me ac-
cording to your word’ (Lk 1:38): embrace everyone, draw close to everyone, seek
everyone out with motherly care. Thus is accomplished what the last Council
said about your presence in the mystery of Christ and the Church. In a wonderful
way you are always found in the mystery of Christ, your only Son, because you
are present wherever men and women, His brothers and sisters, are present,
wherever the Church is present” (Bl. John Paul II, “Homily in the Basilica of Gua-
dalupe”, 27 January 1979).

“John, the disciple whom Jesus loved, brought Mary into his home, into his life.
Spiritual writers have seen these words of the Gospel as an invitation to all Chris-
tians to bring Mary into their lives. Mary certainly wants us to invoke her, to ap-
proach her confidently, to appeal to her as our mother, asking her to ‘show that
you are our mother’” (St. J. Escriva, “Christ Is Passing By”, 140).

Bl. John Paul II constantly treats our Lady as his Mother. In bidding farewell to
the Virgin of Czestochowa he prayed in this way: “Our Lady of the Bright Moun-
tain, Mother of the Church! Once more I consecrate myself to you ‘in your mater-
nal slavery of love’. ‘Totus tuus!’ I am yours! I consecrate to you the whole Church
— everyone to the ends of the earth! I consecrate to you humanity; I consecrate
to you all men and women, my brothers and sisters. All peoples and all nations.
I consecrate to you Europe and all the continents. I consecrate to you Rome and
Poland, united, through your servant, by a fresh bond of love. Mother, accept us!
Mother, do not abandon us! Mother, be our guide!” (”Farewell Address” at Jasna
Gora Shrine, 6 June 1979).

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Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.

From: Luke 2:33-35

Simeon’s Prophecy

[33] And His father and His mother marvelled at what was said about Him; [34]
and Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, His mother, “Behold this child is
set for the fall the rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is spoken against
[35] (and a sword will pierce through your own soul also), that thoughts out of
many hearts may be revealed.”

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Commentary:

33. The Blessed Virgin and St. Joseph marvelled not because they did not know
who Christ was; they were in awe at the way God was revealing Him. Once again
they teach us to contemplate the mysteries involved in the birth of Christ.

34-35. After Simeon blesses them, the Holy Spirit moves him to further prophecy
about the Child’s future and His Mother’s. His words become clearer in the light
of our Lord’s life and death.

Jesus came to bring salvation to all men, yet He will be a sign of contradiction
because some people will obstinately reject Him—and for this reason He will be
their ruin. But for those who accept Him with faith Jesus will be their salvation,
freeing them from sin in this life and raising them up to eternal life.

The words Simeon addresses to Mary announce that she will be intimately
linked with her Son’s redemptive work. The sword indicates that Mary will have
a share in her Son’s sufferings; hers will be an unspeakable pain which pierces
her soul. Our Lord suffered on the cross for our sins, and it is those sins which
forge the sword of Mary’s pain. Therefore, we have a duty to atone not only to
God but also to His Mother, who is our Mother too.

The last words of the prophecy, “that out of many hearts thoughts may be re-
vealed”, link up with verse 34: uprightness or perversity will be demonstrated by
whether one accepts or rejects Christ.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.