MISSIONARY PRAYER INTENTION - The Pope’s missionary intention for May, “That just as she accompanied the Apostles in the early stages of the Church, may the Blessed Virgin Mary, Star of Evangelization and Queen of Apostles, continue to guide missionaries throughout the world with maternal affection.” Commentary.

Thursday, 24 April 2008

Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) - The II Vatican Council presents us with Mary as the Mother and image of the Church. In contemplating Her, the Church finds in Mary, her model and the fullness of her perfection. There is a two-fold reality in Her: She is both “our sister” and “Our Mother”. She is “our sister,”as She is the most highly-exalted member of the Mystical Body of Christ, and she is “Our Mother,” because she is Mother of the Church. This two-fold reality finds its fulfillment in two key moments in Mary’s life: the Annunciation and Pentecost.
Because Mary was conceived without sin, the Holy Spirit dwelt in Her from the first moment of Her earthly existence. In the moment of the Incarnation, She pronounced Her “Yes” to God, to everything He would ask of Her and forever. By the power of the Holy Spirit, She conceived the Word in Her, maintaining Her perpetual virginity. And inspired by that same Spirit, the soul of all missionary activity, She went in haste to the mountain, sensing inside Her that urgent call of love - Love who had become Flesh in Her womb. Her desire was to bring Elizabeth the Lord’s Gospel: Jesus, who would make the child John leap for joy in his mother’s womb.
Following Jesus’ death Mary, in Her maternal love and tenderness, brought together the Apostles who had been dispersed by the scandal of the Cross. It was She who showed them how to open their hearts to receive the Spirit whom Jesus had promised before ascending into Heaven. On Pentecost, tongues of fire came to rest over their heads, and they were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to proclaim the Easter message without fear: “The God of our ancestors raised Jesus, though you had him killed by hanging him on a tree. God exalted him at his right hand as leader and savior to grant Israel repentance and forgiveness of sins. We are witnesses of these things, as is the holy Spirit that God has given to those who obey him.” (Acts 5:30)
As the Decree “Ad gentes” teaches, Mary is the one who teaches the Church to pray. There is no real mission without prayer, because the Kingdom of God cannot come if it is not by the grace of God Himself (cfr. AG, 42). Jesus taught us to pray: “Thy Kingdom come.” Mary made this prayer of the Son, Her own and passed it on to the early Church, so that she could continue the Lord’s mission.
Pope Benedict XVI, in his message for World Mission Sunday 2007, prayed that Mary “make us all aware of being missionaries, that is, those who have been sent out by the Lord to be his witnesses at every moment of our life.” That constant awareness of our “being missionaries” arises from Baptism and is continually renewed in love. If Saint Paul felt impelled by charity to preach the Gospel (2 Cor 5:14), what could be said of Mary, a person who was united by God’s will, in a unique manner, to the mystery of Her Son? She who had lived on this earth with the Son of God in such an exceptional manner, had a heart that yearned for the same desires as that of Her Son. Her love was universal and embraced all men, as a faithful Mother, at the foot of the Cross. This love without limits made manifest in Jesus, transmitted by the grace of the Holy Spirit, and received by Mary, should also dwell in the heart of every Baptized person. We should be “the aroma of Christ” wherever we are.
The missionary dimension is essential to the life of the Church. In the words of John Paul II, “The missionary thrust therefore belongs to the very nature of the Christian life” (RM, 1).
Let us pray, therefore, that this same missionary zeal that moved Mary, burn in the hearts of all the faithful in our Catholic communities. May She “who accompanied with motherly solicitude the development of the newborn Church, also guide our footsteps in our time and obtain for us a new Pentecost of love” (Benedict XVI, World Mission Sunday, May 27, 2007).
Let us pray so that all missionaries may take Mary as their life’s model. She dedicated Herself entirely to the work of Her Son and, in prayerful silence, the Word became Flesh within Her and with haste She brought Him to others. May Her maternal love and tenderness be a source of consolation, strength, and encouragement for our brothers who dedicate their lives to the Gospel in missionary lands. (Agenzia Fides 24/4/2008 righe 54, parole 770)


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