Mary of Nazareth – Sign of the New and Definitive Era
Beginning with the Anunciation (Luke 1, 26), we can see the similarities between Mary and Abraham (Genesis 15), the “Father of the Faith.” God calls Mary through the mouth of the Angel Gabriel, who knowing of her fear, assures her of the divine origin of his message. Abraham also recieves a divine calling and they are both promised a great prize, for Abraham an infinite desendence and to Mary the Messiah as her son. Neither Mary or Abraham can believe that they’ve been chosen by God, but later they both humbly accept their vocation without knowing assuredly what it will cost. For this reason Mary herself is the “Mother of the Faith.”
Mary is the ideal disciple, always willing to do God’s will. Firstly, accepting the call as we have already seen. It is Mary who gives birth to the Messiah and it’s her that accompanies him during his humilation and death. She never doubts him or questions his methods of teaching, but rather she supports him in everything. Even though Jesus himself doesn’t recognize “his hour,” it is Mary that helps him to initiate his ministry, resulting in the first sign at the Wedding at Cana (John 2).
The willingness of Mary to serve, as well as her humility and simpleness, are the qualities and characteristics that make her a model, not only for women, but for all Christians. It is for this reason that she should be respected and venerated like the saint she is. Mary is the mother of God, the symbol of the Church, the perfect disciple, and the sign of the hope for the new era, the era of the universal Church of her son Jesus Christ.