Memorial of the Queenship

of the Blessed Virgin Mary

We boast of you in the churches of God regarding your endurance and faith in all your persecutions and the afflictions you endure. – 2 Thessalonians 1:3-4

       We Bicolanos are blessed to have two titles with which we honor our Ina (Mother), whom we run to in times of joy and sorrow. One is the more widely known Virgin of Peñafrancia which is enshrined in Naga City. Her feast day is on the third Sunday of September celebrated region-wide.

       Recently, I rediscovered another title of our Mother, exclusively for the Albayanos. She is “Our Lady of Salvation” in Joroan, Tiwi, a well-known pilgrimage site in Albay.

       Mama Mary is a towering example of a Mother whose fiat (“Let it be done”) made salvation history possible. Her yes allowed the birth of our Savior and Lord. It was not a picnic for a teenage mother to be pregnant out of wedlock in a society that would stone her to death for this supposed crime. Yet, in all the persecutions and sufferings she went through, her faith grew. God honored her by making her the Queen of Heaven.

       Mothers, let us do our mission as ina in the best way we can, by holding on to faith as our best example of motherhood. Then, for sure, we are “queens” in our earthly families. Grace Princesa (grprincesa @yahoo.com)

Reflection: We all have a mother who loves us — Ina, our Mama Mary.

We spend a lot of time and effort on things that do not really matter. The problem is we neglect the things that do matter. We must discern our choices well so that we do not waste our time, energy and resources doing useless things.

Ecclesiastes 1:2-11

2 Vanity of vanities, says Qoheleth, vanity of vanities! All things are vanity! 3 What profit has man from all the labor which he toils at under the sun? 4 One generation passes and another comes, but the world forever stays. 5 The sun rises and the sun goes down; then it presses on to the place where it rises. 6 Blowing now toward the south, then toward the north, the wind turns again and again, resuming its rounds. 7 All rivers go to the sea, yet never does the sea become full. To the place where they go, the rivers keep on going. 8 All speech is labored; there is nothing one can say. The eye is not satisfied with seeing nor is the ear filled with hearing. 9 What has been, that will be; what has been done, that will be done. Nothing is new under the sun. 10 Even the thing of which we say, “See, this is new!” has already existed in the ages that preced ed us. 11 There is no remembrance of the men of old; nor of those to come will there be any remembrance among those who come after them.

Psalm 90:3-4, 5-6, 12-13, 14, 17

R: In every age, O Lord, you have been our refuge.

3 You turn man back to dust, saying, “Return, O children of men.” 4 For a thousand years in your sight are as yesterday, now that it is past, or as a watch of the night. (R) 5 You make an end of them in their sleep; the next morning they are like the changing grass, 6 which at dawn springs up anew, but by evening wilts and fades. (R) 12 Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain wisdom of heart. 13 Return, O Lord! How long? Have pity on your servants! (R) 14 Fill us at daybreak with your kindness, that we may shout for joy and gladness all our days. 17 Prosper the work of our hands for us! Prosper the work of our hands! (R)

The preaching of Jesus is effective, and news has reached Herod who is troubled by it. It reminded Herod about John the Baptist. However, there is something in it that is difficult to pin down. This was my experience of the Gospel in action when I joined a parish youth group more than 30 years ago. There was something there that was different. It turned out to be the lived proclamation of the Gospel.

GOSPEL ACCLAMATION

I am the way and the truth and the life, says the Lord; no one comes to the Father except through me.

Luke 9:7-9

7 Herod the tetrarch heard about all that was happening, and he was greatly perplexed because some were saying, “John has been raised from the dead”; 8 others were saying, “Elijah has appeared”; still others, “One of the ancient prophets has arisen.” 9 But Herod said, “John I beheaded. Who then is this about whom I hear such things?” And he kept trying to see him.

think: We must discern our choices well so that we do not waste our time, energy and resources doing useless things.

Thank You Lord for: __________________

READ THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR  Ezekiel 17-20

MARY: A HUMBLE QUEEN WHO SERVES

I have been asked quite often whether the Queenship of Mary or the title of Queen given to the Blessed Virgin, has a biblical basis. Most people think that there is no biblical basis at all. But there is.

       The Bible is completely silent about Mary’s last years on earth, about her death and her Assumption. We do not find anything about Mary being crowned as Queen. The only biblical basis we find is what Elizabeth said when she greeted her cousin Mary as “the mother of my Lord” (Luke 1:43).

       Ancient Israel had no queens. In the Kingdom of Judah, however, there was an official female rank at the royal court, the “gebira” or Great Lady or “the mother of my lord.” In England, we find an equivalent title, “Queen Mother.” The gebira was second only to the king in power and authority. She even sat at the right hand of the king and the king would stand up when she entered a room (2 Kings 2:19).

       How did a woman become gebira? When the king chose from the many sons of his many wives who would succeed him, the mother of the new crown prince became the Great Lady, or the gebira (2 Chronicles 11:21-22). And as soon as the crown prince ascended the throne and became king, the Great Lady could be called “the mother of my lord.” If she outlived her son, she would remain the Great Lady until her death.

       Elizabeth was aware that Mary is pregnant with the future Messiah-king, and quite logically, she gives Mary the royal title which, as Queen Mother, she is entitled to — that of gebira or “Mother of my Lord.” And indeed, Mary is more truly a queen than any other woman in human history, but a queen who humbly serves, who had called herself the “handmaid of the Lord.”

      And she, the gebira, the Great Lady, the mother of the Lord, continues to serve us day after day with her maternal intercession. Fr. Rudy Horst, SVD

REFLECTION QUESTION: Do you ask Mother Mary for help when you are in need or do you also thank her for continuously serving you?

Lord, thank You for giving me Your beloved Mother as my heavenly Mother to whom I can run to whenever I am in need. Help me to learn from her how to serve others faithfully. Amen.