Sep 8 – Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
The birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary announced joy and the approaching salvation of a lost world. Mary was brought into the world not like other children of Adam, infected with the contagion of sin, but pure, holy, beautiful, and glorious, adorned with all the most precious graces fitting for the one predestined to be the Mother of the Saviour. Never did she have the slightest inclination towards anything other than the absolute and immediate Will of God.
She appeared indeed in the weak condition of all mortals, but in the eyes of Heaven she already transcended the highest seraphim in purity, humility, charity, and the richest ornaments of grace. God had created her in the original grace, as in the beginning Adam and Eve had enjoyed that ineffable privilege; after original sin, it was lost for all Adam’s posterity, until the time of the Redemption dawned in Mary. (Cf. I Cor. 15:21-23)
The nations celebrate, often too noisily, the birthdays of the great ones of this earth. How then ought we, Christians, to rejoice in that of the Virgin Mary, Mother of our Salvation, and to present publicly to God the homage of our best praises and thanksgiving for the great mercies He has shown in her, imploring her mediation with her Divine Son!
Jesus of Nazareth will not reject the supplications of His most holy Mother, through whom He chose to descend from Heaven; she, the Spouse of the Canticle, is all beautiful and is the one He was pleased to obey while on earth. Her love, care, and tenderness for Him, the title and qualities which she bears, the charity and graces with which she is adorned, and the crown of glory with which she is honoured, incline Him readily to receive her recommendations and petitions.
Mic 5:1-4
Mt 1:1-16,18-23
The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son and they will call him Emmanuel, a name which means ‘God-is-with-us’.
If a non-Catholic were to read today’s gospel, I wouldn’t be surprised if they ended up shaking their head and questioning the few ‘leaps of faith’ required to understand how a) a virgin could conceive a baby and b) how a mere infant could be identified as ‘God’. Since last year, I have been praying the rosary regularly and I have to admit that until I read about today’s feast, I had never paid much attention to the birth of Mother Mary.
So, pushing aside the two afore-mentioned leaps of faith, I would like to focus on how it all began…with the birth of a woman who was free from original sin and pure of heart – truly a vessel fit for bearing the ultimate gift to all – the Son of God.
My take on all this is that our God is truly all-knowing and divinely wise. Unlike us mere mortals who conceive ideas/thoughts/plans that eventually require fixes or even u-turns, the birth of Mary put in motion everything that led to Jesus’ eventual crucifixion and resurrection. Imagine that. Oops, sorry, it is beyond human imagining (and therefore comprehension). Which is why at many CERs (Conversion Experience Retreat), our beloved Cardinal exhorts, “Believe, only then can you try to understand.”
And over the past year, as I have prayed the mysteries and reflected on them, I have gradually begun to discern how much God truly loves us. Because ultimately, the existence of Mother Mary is predicated on one thing – His love for mankind. Knowing full well that we humans would question/doubt what we could never see or hear, He sent His only Son, born of Mary, to deliver His message of divine love. And yes, it is natural for us to furrow our eyebrows and question this every time we encounter ____________ <insert your own challenge here> but think about it – Mary became pregnant with Jesus out of wedlock…she endured hardship to deliver Jesus in a manger…she ‘lost’ him on the way back home…finally, she witnessed His horrific death first-hand.
Yet, she never gave up hope. She remained faithful to the very end. And just as she was created pure, upon her death, her body was assumed pure straight up to heaven. And while none of us would ever have the same ‘privilege’ as Mother Mary, it doesn’t mean that we should not try to live as she did – humble, faithful and always open to God’s promptings to just trust in Him and to have faith.
Brothers and sisters, all of us face all manner of challenges on a daily basis. It is part and parcel of being part of the ‘human race’. And yes, in many self-help books and videos we watch in order to improve ourselves, we are fed a variety of encouraging, feel-good, affirmingly positive statements that we plaster on fridges or stick on our computer screens. All well and good. But in my darkest moments, it has been a collection of beads, spaced evenly apart, with a crucifix and a small medallion that has helped save me from the depths of despair.
So today, as we celebrate a truly momentous day in the Catholic Church, let us say a rosary and be attentive to the present.
(Today’s OXYGEN by Desmond Soon)
Prayer: Hail Mary full of grace, the Lord is with Thee. Blessed art thou amongst women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen.
Thanksgiving: We thank you Father, for the gift of Mother Mary, who bore for us the hope and salvation of mankind.
OXYGEN 
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