OUR LADY, MOTHER OF GOD

On the eighth and final day of the Octave of Christmas, the Gospel commemorates the Circumcision and naming of Our Lord on the eighth day after His birth. Nevertheless, from the earliest times in the Roman Church, this day has been kept as a special feast of Our Lady, focusing particularly on her divine motherhood.

     Since Our Lady is the Mother not ‘of a nature’ but ‘of a Person’, and that person is Almighty God made man, we can put the truth simply but absolutely truthfully, by saying that she is the Mother of God, nothing less.

     It is arguable that the most disturbing aspect of these troubled times is not the economic crisis so much as the crisis of humanity itself. This is a subject many sound thinkers have discussed recently, saying that as well as rightly worrying about many worldly affairs, mankind needs a complete change of heart about what it really means to be human.

      Here in the West, so many have all but lost respect for each individual person’s inalienable dignity and intrinsic freedom, regardless of age, condition or talents. We have also forgotten the role of love in bringing new life into the world.

     Our Lady shows us the fullness of humanity in bringing her Son to birth in accordance with God’s plan for us.  Why not consecrate the New Year to her by coming to Mass on her feast.

Together with Fr Anish, Deacon George and all the staff, I wish you and your loved ones a blessed Christmastide.                                    

~      Fr. Paul Dobson