Thinking, Judging, Feeling & Acting like Mary

Meeting: 11 May 2006

Topic: Thinking, Judging, Feeling & Acting like Mary

Presenter: Sr Lindsay Janes, smsm

At our May Meeting Sr Lindsay took us a step further on our journey with Mary. Our group responded with an animated discussion on thinking, judging, feeling and acting like Mary. Sister set the scene by examining Article 49 of the Marist Fathers Constitutions of 1872:

Article 49	Explanation
"If therefore they are and wish to be true children of this dear Mother	(by a grace-filled choice) (our response - yes!) (true to who we are - nature/grace)
let them continually strive to draw upon her spirit and breathe it in	(commitment, suffering, exhaustion) (subtle presence, hint, scent,) (prayer, relationship, being with real Mary)
a spirit of humility, self-denial, intimate union with God and the most ardent love neighbour	(honesty, simplicity, integrity) (patience, tolerance, acceptance) (prayer, pondering these things with Mary) (doing, being out there, compassionate)
and so they must think as Mary, judge as Mary, feel and act as Mary in all things…"	(caring, alert to need, merciful) (evaluate, excuse, forgive) (perplexed, afraid, concerned, astounded) (all-embracing)

Through the following profile of Mary in the New Testament stories Sr Lindsay enabled us to ponder how special Mary really was in the society of her day and how today it is possible for us to live her special spirit in our own society. In telling the story of the Annunciation we tried to experience Mary's shock at the words of God's messenger, her feelings, her fears, her questions, her final agreement when God's plan was explained.

We considered her place as a young girl being pregnant in such a society and all the ridicule that would bring as well as the punishment usually metered out for such happenings. We considered the goodness of that just man Joseph who in his own bewilderment was ready to protect and care for her. We considered also Mary going with haste to her cousin Elizabeth - no trains or buses - ready to help her and to learn from her all that she would need to know to help her through her pregnancy and for the birth of her child. Elizabeth too knew Mary had been chosen to be special and we can well imagine what these two women - one old and wise and the other young and vibrant - learnt from being with each other. There is so much that we can learn from "being with Mary" - thinking, judging, feeling and acting like Mary in our particular world each day.



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