Praise to be Jesus and Mary.
I'd like to wish you, on behalf of the friars in the retreat center, a very blessed New Year.
In this year, Mary's Divine Motherhood, which we contemplate these days, the crowning jewel in the Christmas octave.
She has the vital role to play in the incarnation of the second person of the Blessed Trinity.
She...
Consents to God's invitation given by the angel.
St. Elizabeth proclaims,
Most blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb.
And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come unto me?
Now, Mary's role as...
Mother of God, places her in a unique position in God's redemptive plan.
Now, without naming Mary, St. Paul asserts that God sent his son, born of a woman, the woman, born under the law.
Now, St. Paul's further statement that, you know,
He sent his spirit, the spirit of his son, into our hearts, crying out,
Abba, Father.
Now, this helps us realize that Mary is mother to all the brothers and sisters of Jesus.
Some theologians also insist that Mary's motherhood of Jesus is an important element.
But in God's creative plan,
God's first thought in creating was Jesus.
Jesus, the incarnate word, is the one who could give God perfect love and worship on behalf of all creation.
And as Jesus was...
First in God's mind, Mary was second, insofar as she was chosen from all eternity to be his mother.
The precise title, Mother of God, goes back at least to the 3rd or 4th century in the Greek form, Theotokos.
So, Mary is a God, God-bearer.
It became the criterion of the Church's teaching about the incarnation.
The Council of Ephesus in 431 insisted that the Holy Fathers were right in calling the Holy Virgin, Theotokos.
And at the end of this particular session of the Council, Mary was called the Mother of God.
And at the end of this particular session of the Council, Mary was called the Mother of God.
the crowds of people marched through the streets shouting,
praised be the Theotokos.
You know, the tradition reaches to our own day
in its chapter on Mary's role in the church,
the Second Vatican Council,
the decree or the dogmatic constitution on the church
calls Mary Mother of God 12 times.
That was in section 61.
We read, the Blessed Virgin was eternally predestined
in conjunction with the incarnation of the Divine Word
to be the Mother of God.
By decree of divine providence,
she served on earth as the loving mother of the Divine Redeemer,
an associate of unique nobility and the Lord's humble handmaid.
She conceived, brought forth, and nourished Christ.
The other themes come together in today's celebration.
I mentioned, you know, it's the octave of Christmas.
And our remembrance of Mary's divine motherhood
instills a further note of Christmas joy.
And it is a day of prayer for world peace.
And Mary is the mother.
Of the Prince of Peace.
It's the first day of the year.
And Mary continues to bring new life to her children,
who are also God's children.
So let us, therefore, pray that we may remain faithful,
loving children throughout this year.
And for the rest of our lives,
and for the rest of our lives.