Liturgical Colour : White
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today the Church celebrates the Feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, on the day right after the Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus. That is why while Fridays and especially First Fridays are often associated with the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, Saturdays, and also especially First Saturdays are associated with the Blessed Mother of God, and when votive Masses of Our Lady, Mary, the Mother of God can be celebrated. On this day we remember the great love that Mary has for her Son, Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, reflecting that perfect love which His Son has shown us all through His Most Sacred Heart, ever filled with generous and overflowing, ever-patient love for each and every one of us, His beloved people in this world.
In Mary, the most holy and immaculate Mother of God, having been conceived without sin, as the Church believes in the Dogma of the Immaculate Conception, therefore is found a heart that is truly holy and immaculate, a reflection of the perfection and the perfect love that her own Son has for us. This is what the Immaculate Heart of Mary is all about, that is a Heart filled with great love for God, first and foremost, for her Son, Whom she loved above all else in this world, and lastly, a Heart most Immaculate that is also filled with love for each and every one of us as Christians, and all others whom the Lord has entrusted to her to be her own adopted children. Therefore, just as the Lord has loved us so much and so generously, thus, our most loving Mother has also lovingly cared for us and showed her compassionate nature, from her Immaculate Heart.
As we heard in our Gospel passage today, Mary liked to keep everything in her Immaculate Heart, a Heart that is centred and focused on God alone. In that passage, we heard of the moment when the Lord Jesus in His young age of twelve, was with His mother and foster father St. Joseph in the pilgrimage to Jerusalem, in which He stayed behind discreetly at the Temple of Jerusalem, the House of God, His Father’s House. We heard how Mary and St. Joseph came to look for the young Lord Jesus and found Him in great discussion with the teachers of the Law who were all astounded by His great wisdom and knowledge, the graces He had and the words of eloquence that He was speaking with. The Lord obeyed His mother and foster father when they brought Him back to their hometown of Nazareth, but as mentioned, Mary kept everything she experienced in her Immaculate Heart.
This is the same Heart that the prophet Simeon had prophesied at the moment when the Baby Jesus was brought to be presented at the Temple, as the Heart that would be pierced with swords of sorrow, a prefigurement and premonition of what would happen at the moment of the Lord’s Passion. For it was then that Mary herself had to witness the most grievous and painful sufferings endured by her Son, as He was betrayed, condemned to death, bearing His heavy Cross all the way to Calvary, as she was following and watching throughout the whole journey. This is the same Immaculate Heart that was indeed wounded at the sight of her persecuted Son, just as the Son’s Most Sacred Heart had also been pierced and wounded by our every sins and transgressions, our wickedness and evils.
That is why Mary has always set her sights upon us, her beloved children, ever showing us her care and compassion, in patiently guiding all of us towards her Son and to be saved in Him. That is why Mary has appeared many times to us throughout history, in her many Apparitions, both those that are well-known ones and the more obscure ones. That is because Mary in her Immaculate Heart loves her Son and through Him, she has also loved us much like she has loved her Son. Mary has never given up on us just as her own Son has not given up on us. She does not want any one of us to be forever lost to God because of our continued evil and wicked ways, our many sins and transgressions through which we have been made separated and sundered from God and His grace. Mary, His mother through her Immaculate Heart, has constantly reached out to us lovingly, in leading us back to her Son, Our Lord and Saviour.
Now, on this day as we reflect upon the most loving and Immaculate Heart of Mary, the Mother of God and Our Saviour, let us all reflect upon the love which Mary has constantly and tirelessly shown us all, and her love for God, obedience for His commands and ways, that all of us as Christians have been called to emulate in our own lives. Let us ask ourselves if we have truly been genuine in our faith and obedience to God, and if we have done what the Lord has called and commanded us to do, in doing God’s will and in walking the path that He has shown us. If we have not done all these in our lives, then let us all commit ourselves anew to His path, reflecting upon our way of life and discerning of what each and every one of us can do in order to fulfil the Law and commandments of the Lord.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore redirect our lives and focus, our attention and return towards the Lord with renewed zeal in life. All of us have been called and entrusted with the mission to proclaim the Good News, the Gospels of salvation, to call on the people all around us to come to the holy presence of God and to discover His truth, grace and love. All of us have been called to embrace the love of God which He has generously shown us, and which He has also shown us through His mother as well, as through Mary, many of our predecessors before us have been called and reminded to find our way to the Lord, and not few changed their hearts and way of life, abandoning the path of sin and evil thanks to the assistance and intercession from Mary, Our Lady of the Immaculate Heart.
May the Lord, through His blessed Mother Mary, the Lady of the Immaculate Heart, continue to show us His love and compassionate kindness. May He empower each one of us so that we may truly be ever committed and dedicated to His path. Holy Mary, Mother of God, who has loved us most dearly through your Immaculate Heart, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen.