Word to the Wise
Saturday, June 8, 2013 - Sat. after 2nd Sunday after Pentecost - The Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary
[Is 61:9-11 and Luke 2:41-51]"Son, why have you done this to us? Your father and I have been looking for you with great anxiety."
Yesterday we celebrated the feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Today we celebrate the Immaculate Heart of Mary! I think these celebrations are designed to make Jesus and Mary more emotionally "accessible" to the humans in the pew! Certainly the gospel passage from Luke today about Mary and Joseph's anxiety in searching for their "lost" son sends a message to any parent. And early on in my Catholic religious education (1950's) I was taught to consider Mary my "mother." The title, "Immaculate Heart," seems to borrow from another aspect of Mary's identity, but I'm not sure that theological consistency is the goal here!
These "heart" feasts appeal to relationship rather than intellectual depth. They are more "visceral" than cerebral! If the bio-spirituality of it seems quaint to some, it is very appealing to others. The church offers many different ways to relate to the most important spiritual figures in our faith. The feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary is one of those ways! AMEN