Mary, a poor woman of Yahweh, haunted by the salvation of the world...
/image%2F4602496%2F20210223%2Fob_67562e_florinjoue-rec1.jpg)
Mary led an ordinary life. And, it is in this ordinary existence that, with the influence of the spirit, she was able to access the extraordinary of this same ordinary existence; we could simply say that Mary did not miss the true sense of what was given to her to experience.
The fact that Mary was present during the days of the Passion is not told with great detail or precision in the Gospels, except for the Gospel of Saint John, where we understand that Mary was present for the duration of Jesus’ time on the Cross. She could not have arrived to meet Saint John at the ordeal on the evening of Good Friday out of nowhere on some kind of helicopter or airbus. We know from the Synoptic Gospels that there was a whole group of women, authentic disciples who walked with Jesus, and it is highly likely that Mary was with them, as we know that after Cana she did not return to Nazareth but followed in Jesus’ footsteps to Capernaum, and the plural form used in this famous verse (John 2, 12) tells us the same. “They stayed there only a few days.” This means that Mary left Capernaum with Jesus, to travel further, for evangelism...There is no doubt that Mary was an attentive companion to the events of Jesus’ life. These are some of the things which form the basis of our relationship with Mary. We are asking someone who was a first-hand witness, to help us understand the meaning of words and events.
From Jesus’ childhood, some things are absolutely fundamental: like the moment of the “Presentation of Jesus at the temple,” in the 2nd chapter of the Gospel of Saint Luke (Luke 2, 22-40), the famous meeting with Simeon, the old man, where he tells us three times that he was, “Moved by the Holy Spirit, filled with the Holy Spirit, talking in the Holy Spirit.”
So, what does he say to the Virgin Mary?
"This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel. And to be a sign that will be spoken against - And a sword will pierce your own soul too so that the thoughts from wihtin the hearts will be revealed."
These prophetic words are worth examining. What does it mean? The first thing to note is that Mary - her “Magnificat” is its living proof that the secret she shares is authentic – belongs to this religious and social category which we call the “Poor of Yahweh.” The Poor of Yahweh are people who, from their background of true, authentic ‘poverty’, become attached to God, knowing that God will never fail them.
Here you have, in the temple of Jerusalem, a singular confluence, which shows you Mary and Joseph, these Poor of Yahweh, meeting with the prophet Simeon, a Poor man of Yahweh and the prophet Anne who arrives just after. All four of them are there and, according to the prophet Anne, there were many others too who, “were waiting for the deliverance of Jerusalem.” For the Poor of Yahweh, the dream which grips them is the heart of mankind and all of mankind... That’s the meaning of the words, “The many.” In biblical speech, it’s a way of saying, “Everyone.” “Many” is all of mankind!
The poor of Yahweh, are the people whose hearts are inhabited, haunted by the Salvation of the world. It moulds them! How will God do it? How will he manage to lead all of mankind to know him as he is? How will he manage to give all of mankind an act of liberty of love that takes them all the way to a love marriage between him and them?
/image%2F4602496%2F20210223%2Fob_9a4b6a_turin-la-consolata-dans-texte.jpg)
“Behold,” Says Simeon after having blessed Mary, Joseph and the child, “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many “
The prophet Simeon says that those who fall are the same as those who will rise. This means that the Revelation which will be brought about by the Son of God is something terribly important. When we are plunged into the desire for power, when we are plunged into the pleasure-seeking minset, when we are plunged into greed, when we are plunged into a feeling of supremacy, of domination and pride, how do we prevent ourselves from falling? But, with what Jesus shows us of God, full of gentleness and humility, we only fall in order to rise.
The Virgin Mary was told at the beginning of her child’s life: he is the one who will do “God’s housekeeping.” God’s housekeeping implies a big clean up, it implies drastic questioning and then the liberating raising of conversion.
Mary knows that she is committed to God’s great combat for the Salvation of all mankind, that is all men and women become her children. So, it will be hard: “And a sword will pierce your soul too.' This is why the prophet Simeon, Poor man of Yahweh has to tell Mary; so that she is not surprised when the event occurs and so that she can be prepared. Mary had a grandiose life to live: its purpose to make her capable of forgiving her son’s assassins and so to cooperate with the revelation of who God is in his capacity to give, above and beyond all measures, the gift of for-given-ess. But it was good for her to understand this very early on and for Joseph too. What an adventure God started! What an adventure Mary and Joseph had with the Son of God, who had just joined them on their path!
And the final words of this passage: “So that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed,” “Many”, “The crowd,” the whole of mankind. So, what we are going to see in chapter 23 of Saint Luke, is that the crowds who attended Jesus being put to death, who heard his incredible words of impulse towards the Father and the universal ability to pardon his assassins, headed back to Jerusalem striking their chests. What converted humanity was discovering that God had such a capacity for love.
Florin Callerand
28th March 1997
French to English translation by Debbie Garrick and Cécile Simon
"Marana Tha, ô mon Seigneur, viens !", CD Tissage d'or 3 (Communauté de la Roche d'or)
To see the lyrics in French of the music "Marana Tha, ô mon Seigneur, viens !"