On September 8th, we celebrate the birth of Mary, when it all began and when it all begins again. On her birthday we announce the theme for the coming year. To help us understand the theme, we will look at three images:
1) Earth – The church fathers say that as in the beginning God created the world, he took earth and formed man and breathed spirit into his nostrils so that he became a living being. That earth was immaculate, virgin without any stain. As in the beginning our Lord created with virgin earth, so with the new creation through Christ, he again uses virgin earth in our Lady: Immaculate, without stain, perfect. On this day of her birth, the new creation begins.
2) A Heart– The promise is that thanks to the birth of our lady, she carried our Lord and a human heart of God began to beat. If God has a human heart then our sorrows, joys, troubles, hopes and difficulties affect God, if we have hope that we have someone who can understand us we can be joyful because the one who created our heart has a heart similar to ours.
3) The Pierced Heart– That heart that began to beat gave completely itself for us. This heart was pierced and through the blood and water we have become clean. This then transforms us into a new being according to his heart.
Are we going to answer this generosity of our Lord? In this year of Jubilee we are being called to make a gift back to Him! Below are some examples of how we can respond to him:
- To volunteer at a parish event or ministry. We offer so many different programs and ministries at our parish and we can always use an extra hand! Please make sure to check our Parish Calendar and bulletin for all upcoming events!
- To sign up as an Adorer. The Magnificat Adoration Chapel with perpetual adoration offers an opportunity for you to watch and wait with Jesus. Sign-up here.
- Attend the Candlelight Adoration evenings. These evenings are offered on the first Thursday of the month from October to March starting at 6:30pm in the sanctuary. All are welcome!
- During this Jubilee Year to gain plenary indulgences. St Mary will offer special opportunities. More information to come.
There are so many different ways to give back to God’s great generosity in this Jubilee year! How will you answer this call? Listen to Fr. Andrej’s homily below or on the NEW St Mary app!