june 9

June 9

[media presentation below]

GospelThink

Monday, June 9, Mary, Mother of the Church

John 19:25-34

Mary was present at Jesus’s death.

Prayerthoughts

a. One of the ways of deeper spirituality is to picture myself with Mary and the two other Mary’s beneath the cross of Jesus, trying to think what I would think in that circumstance.

b. Some Christians, including Catholics, have a devotion to Mary, the Mother of Jesus, as we should. Have I tried to include the example of Mary in my spiritual thinking enough?

c. Someone showed an act of kindness even as Jesus died. Do I show kindness in my actions and words?

d. When the soldier thrust the lance into Jesus, blood and water flowed out. In John the evangelist’s theology, “blood” stood for the Eucharist, and “water” stood for Baptism, that is my redemption came from Jesus. Am I thankful enough for what Jesus has accomplished for me?

e. John the evangelist speaks of telling the “truth.” Do I live as if I truly believe?

f. John the evangelist wants his audience to “believe” in Jesus. Do I show the “belief” enough in my life?

g. My prayerthoughts…

Today, I will make a prayer asking Mary to intercede for our Church here on earth.

Some Thoughts on the Liturgy

MARY, MOTHER OF THE CHURCH

+ In establishing the feast in 2018, the Church said this, quoting Pope Paul VI:

“Venerable Brothers, this concerns a title by no means new to Christian piety; indeed, the Christian faithful and the universal Church choose to invoke Mary principally by the name of Mother. In truth, this name belongs to the genuine nature of devotion to Mary, since it rests firmly on that very dignity with which Mary is endowed as the Mother of the Incarnate Word of God.”

+ The liturgy uses two very familiar references to the Blessed Virgin

- Genesis 3:15, saying that God will put enmity between the devil and the woman, always interpreted in the Church to be speaking of Mary

- Jesus giving Mary to John as Mother, again interpreted by the Church as Jesus giving Mary to all of us as Mother

+ Quite naturally, we are drawn into what in the Church is called “Mariology” or the “Theology of Mary”

- which is based, as Pope Paul VI said on the fact that Mary is the Mother of the Incarnate Word of God

+ What should it mean for us?

- a mother will be someone who both helps a child and acts as a perfect example for the child

- two things for us to consider there

+ First, Mary helps us

- the Church has believed from early on that Mary will intercede for us, much the same way that Mary interceded for the wedding couple at Cana in John’s Gospel

- on behalf of the couple, asking her Son to relieve their distress, and then one of the ten most important lines in Scripture, I believe: saying to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you”

- Mary will help us

- saying to us to follow the directives that Jesus gives us

- we don’t know how, but our faith tells us that what we ask of God will have Mary’s endorsement

+ Secondly, Mary serves as a perfect example for us as we live our Christian lives on earth

- she recognizes what God wants of her, and in her famous words at the Annunciation, understands that she is called by God —“Let it be done according to God’s word,” – yes, I will do it

- and she followed through with her “yes”

- once she had said that she would follow what God wanted of her

- without knowing what that meant, she followed through being present for her Son in everything

- a lesson for all of us when we say “yes” to our faith, no matter what happens

+ Mary is truly our Mother as well as the Mother of Jesus.

MEDIA PRESENTATION

Movie: "Gravity" -- final session

NEVER GIVE UP ON LIFE

The Gospel

MARK 2:1-5

MARK 2:1-5

When Jesus returned to Capernaum after some days, it became known that he was at home. Many gathered together so that there was no longer room for them, not even around the door, and he preached the word to them. They came bringing to him a paralytic carried by four men. Unable to get near Jesus because of the crowd, they opened up the roof above him. After they had broken through, they let down the mat on which the paralytic was lying. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Child, your sins are forgiven.”

Gospelthink: I desire you to have faith in what I can do. Am I showing enough faith in my actions throughout the day?

At one particular moment as she tried to stay alive, Dr. Ryan Stone in the movie "Gravity" realized that what she thought would save her life, did not work. Even though she had determined that she would not give up, she saw no way out of her predicament. Deliberately turning down her oxygen supply, she knew that she would die by falling into a deep sleep. At the last minute, she had a vision of her fellow astronaut, Matt Kowalski who had died earlier. Asking her the vital question of whether she wanted to live or die, she began to understand that she could indeed find a way to help herself, and as she would say through the final crises that she faced, she would not quit.

Like the houses themselves, the porches to the houses in Jesus' time were nothing elaborate. Those porches were more or less bunches of branches loosely laced together that could protect from the weather in some way. At one time, Jesus was preaching on the porch of one of his listeners. Not able to reach him, the bearers of a stretcher on whom was a paralyzed person refused to give up their task of helping the paralytic. They removed the branches and allowed Jesus to attend to the needs of the person. Jesus rewarded their persistence.

Being persistent about getting close to Jesus is a relatively common thought in the Gospels. The more people thought that Jesus was close to God, the more they were determined to know him. Their cause was good, and they were committed to follow through in every way they could.

Finally understanding that her life was important and that she still had the possibility of saving herself, Dr. Ryan Stone in the movie "Gravity" became committed to the life that she still possessed. As the vision of her fellow astronaut challenged her to choose either life or death, she chose to be persistent in her pursuit of life, no matter what the circumstances.

When the cause is good, the Christian is called to be persistent in carrying it out. The foundation of all morality is the importance of the human person, beginning with ourselves, and extending to all people. Consequently, sustaining our lives is certainly a good cause. It calls for us to truly love the "self" we possess not in a selfish way, but with the conviction that our lives are worth our efforts.

PRAYER

Good and gracious God, there are times when we want to give up on life, maybe not in a physical way, but simply refuse to keep trying to be better than we are. Give us the grace to understand how important life is, and help us always to be committed to living it as best we can. Be with us, we pray.

+++++

GUIDE FOR CLASSROOM PRESENTATION AND PERSONAL ENRICHMENT

Theme: Committed people will never stop trying to sustain their own lives.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
(session: approximately 43 minutes)
1. What scene during this session of the movie is most striking? Why?
2. In the Gospel, the bearers were persistent in carrying out their task. Name another place in the Gospels in which we see the virtue of "persistence."
3.. In the spiritual life today, how do we get "close" to Jesus?
4. What can you do to help someone who threatens suicide?
5. What is the difference between true love of self and selfish love?
6. Analysis: Dr. Stone says that she never prayed in her life, but she did when she thought that her life was ended. In your opinion, do most people believe in the power of prayer? Yes or no and why?
7. Dialogue analysis: Stone says that "she's ready." What is the best way to prepare for our deaths?
8. Dialogue analysis: Stone says "Thank you" at the end of the movie, presumably thanking God. Do you think that she would choose to have God back in her life after the ordeal? Yes or no and why?
9. What does the movie "Gravity" teach young people?