| CONTENTS Preface Prologue |
ANTIOCH WEEKEND LEADERS MANUAL |
|||||
|
|
...X |
MEDITATION ON VIRGIN MARY |
||||
| Introduction
to the Antioch Weekend
|
All generation will call me blessed, for the Almighty has done great things for me The Annunciation-from St. Luke's Gospel. When the sixth month came, God sent the angel Gabriel to a city of Galilee called Nazareth, where a virgin lived, bethrothed to a man of Davis's lineage. His name was Joseph and the vir-gin's name was Mary. Into her presence the angel came and said, Hail, you are highly favored; the Lord is with you. Fortunate you among women. She was very confused at hearing him speak in such a way and cast about in her mind what she was to make of such a greeting. Then the angel said to her, Mary do not be afraid. You have found favor in the sight of God, And behold, you shall conceive in your womb and shall bear a son and shall call Him Jesus. He shall be great, and men will know Him for the Son of the most High. The Lord God will give Him the throne of His Father David, and He shall reign over the house of Jacob eternally. His kingdom shall never have an end. But Mary said to the angel, How can that be since I have no, knowledge of man? And the angel answered her, The Holy Spirit will come upon you and the power of the most High will over-shadow you. Thus this holy offering of yours will be known for the Son of God. And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord, let it be done to me according to your word. And with that the angel left her.(Lk.1:26) While all of Israel waited for the Messiah and waited for the prophets to speak once more to God's people, the Lord sent His messenger to Mary. She was full of grace, favored by God. She lived with the Lord. She was already holy, kept so by God. But she was still a human being, as Eve (who had also been fa-vored) had been. To Mary, God announced His plan through the angel Gabriel. She would be the mother of the Messiah, the King of God's people, even though she was still a virgin. This son of hers would be the Son of the Most High. It was clear that Mary was confused and afraid. She did not know the full implication of what the angel had said. But she accepted. Like Abraham, she was perfectly willing to follow God where He would lead. She could have refused to cooperate with God. But she did not, and so she became the representative of all men in the work of redemption. God would not force salvation upon the human race, just as he will not force it upon any of us. Mary said yes which made possible the beginning of the work of redemption for all of us and so represented all of those who later would also say yes. She is the model of complete acceptance and trust for those who want to have the Lord with them. (Pause for meditation) Hail Mary, etc. The birth of Christ-from St. Luke's Gospel It happened that a decree went out at this time from the emperor Augustus, enjoining that the whole world should be regis-tered. All must go and give in their names, each in his own city. And Joseph, being of David's clan and family, came up from the town of Nazareth, in Galilee, to David's city in Judea, the city called bethlehem, to give in his name there. With him was his spoused wife, Mary, who was then in her pregnancy. And it was while they were still there that the time came for her deliv-ery. She brought forth a son, her first-born, whom she wrapped in His swadding clothes and laid in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. (Lk. 2:3) The king was born to the people, to the whole world, by the virgin in a stable. God entered the workd to save it, and Mary was his mother. She contained within her womb Him whom the whole universe could not contain. She provided the life for Him with-out which He could not have been a priest from among men and without which he could not have suffered and died on the cross. She is the mother of Christ and so she is the mother of all those who are part of Christ. She was the mother of salvation and so the mother of all who are saved by Christ. (Pause for medita-tion) Hail Mary, etc. The Wedding Cana-from St. John's Gospel Two days afterwards, there was a wedding feast at Cana, in Galilee; and Jesus' mother was there. Jesus himself and His desciples had also been invited to the wedding. Here the supply of wine had failed; whereupon Jesus' mother said to Him. They have no wine left. Jesus answered her, Nay, Woman, why do you trouble me with that? My time has not yet come. And His mother said to the servants, Do whatever He tells you. There were six waterpots standing there, as the Jewish custom of ceremonial washing demanded; they were of stone and helf two or three meas-ures apiece. And when Jesus said, fill the waterpots with water, they filled these up to the brim. Then He said to them, Now draw and give a draught to the master of the feast. So they gave it to him, and the master of the feast tasted this water which had been turned into wine. He did not know where it came from. Only the servants who had drawn the water knew that. The master of the feast then called to the bridegroom and said to him. It is always the good wine that men set out first, and the worst kind only when all have drunk deep. You have kept the good wine until now. (John 2:1) Christ and His mother were at the wedding-feast in Cana, celebrating the wedding. Christ was not ready to be known as a miracle-worker. His time had not yet come. But they needed help, and at His mother's request, He turned the water into wine. She asked Him on behalf of those who needed Him, and she will ask when we need Him. What she tells us is: Do whatever He tells you. If you want His help, do what He asks you to do make it possible for Him to help. Unless we are willing to follow what she tells us to do, there is no point in asking her help. If we do, with Christ and in Christ we will be able to transform our lives and renew the face of the earth. (Pause for meditation.) Hail Mary, etc. The Crucifixion - from St. Luke's Gospel The father and mother of the child were wondering over all that was said of Him, when Simeon blessed them and said to His mother Mary, Behold this child is destined to bring about the fall of many and the rise of many in Israel; to be a sign which men will refuse to acknowledge; and so the thoughts of many hearts shall be made manifest. As for your own soul, it shall have a sword to pierce it. (Luke 2:33) The Crucifixion - from St. John's Gospel The soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus took up His garments, which they divided into four shares, one share for each soldier. They took up His cloak too which was without seam, woven from the top throughout. So they said to one another, Better not to tear it; let us cast lots to decide whose it shall be. So it was, then, that the soldiers occupied themselves, and meanwhile His mother and His mother's sister, Mary the wife of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene had taken their stand beside the cross of Jesus. John 19:23 When Christ died, Mary was there. She suffered with Him. It was through this cross that she too had been redeemed. She was kept from sin by His sacrifice. Now she followed Him in His suffer-ings, if we are to share in His glory. If, like her, we are fitted into the pattern of His resurrection. (Pause for meditation) Hail Mary, etc. Pentecost - from the Acts of the Apostles They saw Him lifted up, and a cloud caught Him away from their sight... Then from the mountain which is called Olivet, they went back to Jerusalem; the distance from Jerusalem is not great, a sabbath day's journey. Coming in, they went up to the upper room where they dwelt, Peter and John, James and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James the Son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot, and Judas the brother of James. All these, with one mind, gave themselves up to prayer together with Mary the mother of Jesus, and the rest of the women and His brethren.. When the day of Pentecost came around while they were all gath-ered together in unity of purpose, all at once a sound came from heaven like that of a strong wind blowing, and filled the whole house where they were sitting. Then appeared to them what seemed to be tongues of fire which parted and came to rest on each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak in strange languages, as the Spirit gave utterance to each. (Acts. 1:9, 12, 2:1) After the ascension, the followers of Christ gathered in prayer with Mary among them. They prayed together, with Mary for the gift of the Holy Spirit, the gift that would make them fully into the Church. At the birth of the Church, Mary was there with them, praying for them and for the work of Christ. (Pause for meditation.) Hail Mary, etc. The End of Time - From the Apocalypse And now, in heaven, a great portent appeared; a woman that wore the sun for her mantle with the moon under her feet, and a crown of twelve stars around her head. She had a child in her womb and was crying out as she travailed, in great pain of her delivery. Then a second portent appeared in heaven; a great dragon was there, fiery-red, with seven heads and ten horns, and on each of the seven heads a royal diadem. His tail dragged down a third part of the stars in heaven, and flung them to the earth. And he stood fronting the woman who was in childbirth ready to swallow up the child as soon as she bore it. She bore a son, the son who is to herd the nations like sheep with a crook of iron; and this child of hers was caught up to God, right up to His throne. (Apoc. 12:1) In the woman who appeard in the sky, in the Apocalypse, the fathers have seen Mary and the Church. Mary brought Christ into the world; the Church brings Christ into the world. Mary gave birth to Christ; the Church gives birth to those who are other Christ. Mary fought Satan, the dragon; the Church must still fight him. Mary is a figure of the Church. She was the repre-sentative of all men in accepting the work of redemption. In heaven, she still represents us before God. She is still our mother. (Pause for meditation) Holy Virgin Mary, remember that it has never been heard of, that anyone who ran to your protection, begged your help, or asked your intercession, was left unaided. Encouraged by this trust that others have placed in you, we run to you, Virgin of virgins, our Mother. To you we come. Before you we stand, sorry for our sins. Do not, Mother of the Word, overlook these our words. Through Christ our Lord. Amen. |
|||||
|
|
|
|||||