When I was on hospital call out a
couple of weeks ago, I was called to attend the neonatal unit. The first time
was to baptise a premature baby, and on the second occasion to pray with two
couples who had lost their children in childbirth. In the mixture of the
celebration of a new life and the loss of an innocent child, what do you say to
the families who experience this mixture of emotions? What stays with me is how
the nurses talked to the newborn in the humidicrib and how they gave a couple
the chance to remember and treasure the memories of a child they could name. In
the mixture of joy and sadness, we trust that God will lead us to a deeper
appreciation of how we go with others as people of prayer.
As we celebrate the Motherhood of
Mary, we listen to some of the titles that are given her in the Litany of
Loreto: Mother of Christ; Mother of the Church; Mother of Mercy; Mother of
Divine Grace; Mother of Hope; Mother most pure; Mother most chaste; Mother
inviolate; Mother undefiled; Mother most amiable; Mother most admirable; Mother
of good counsel; Mother of our Creator; Mother of our Saviour. In Australia, we
also add the title Our Lady, Help of Christians. As we honour our mothers, both
living and born to eternal glory, we acknowledge that Motherhood is not just a
physical bond but a spiritual and psychological bond that connects us with our
mothers throughout our lives. As we pray with Mary this month, may we see in
our community the importance of the women who walk with us on our journey of
faith.
The disciples also see this when they
send St Peter and St John to Samaria to meet new disciples who have just been
baptised. This brings memories of the woman at the well and wonder whether it
was that community at Jacob’s well that welcomed them. They had already met the
person of Jesus, but now they were called to enter a deeper communion with him
through the Holy Spirit and the laying on of hands. This is where we see the
first signs of the sacrament of confirmation that acknowledges that we are called
into a living relationship with God as a community of faith. This living
relationship recognises how, as a baptised people, we are called to enter a
deeper relationship with God and with each other.
St Peter reflects on this in his
first letter, where he says, “reverence the Lord Christ in your hearts and
always have your answer ready for people who ask the reason for the hope that
you all have.” This is not just about having the ability to think about Jesus,
but about allowing it to enter more deeply into our being. We are called to be
people in prayer who think, feel, and digest the Good News into our own bodies.
This is the most profound part of Easter, as we are called to become people who
open our hearts to God, not by concentrating on our sins but by discovering how
we are called into a living relationship with Jesus through the Holy Spirit.
He died once for sins, died for the guilty to lead us to God. In the body,
he was put to death; in the spirit, he was raised to life.
This is where Jesus leaves us with
the two commandments: love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your
soul, with all your mind and with all your strength and love your neighbour as
yourself. We do not achieve this relationship through our own efforts but
through an active engagement with the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. He
is with you; he is in you. We echo the proclamation of the Kingdom where Jesus
says that you are in me as I am in you. As we enter prayer, we begin to
recognise what feeds and guides our thinking and feelings, and what provides
true nourishment for our souls. We see that our faith is a living encounter
with the person of Jesus Christ, who guides us, walks with us, and enters a
deeper communion with us. In this, we sing with the psalmist, “Let all the
Earth cry out to God with joy!
