Queenship of Mary

Lectionary: 422

Sacrifice or oblation you wished not,
but ears open to obedience you gave me.
Burnt offerings or sin-offerings you sought not;
then said I, “Behold I come.”
R. Here I am, Lord; I come to do your will.

I don’t like to indulge my own preferences when I write this blog but I am struck by the irony of these two readings falling upon the Gentle Mother’s feast day. I would ban the story of Jephthah from the Lectionary. Although the Bible is not unfamiliar with irrational violence, this story is particularly appalling. It describes the murder of a daughter by her overly devout father without explanation or apology. If he is not praised for his action, neither is he condemned. Nor is the victim's story a template for Mary's willing virginity. We should leave this story, along with the cursing psalms, out of the liturgy of the Church. 

Today’s gospel is also more violent than usual, as it threatens to “destroy those murderers and burn their cities.” Few Catholics of my acquaintance imagine Mary as the Divine Harridan of God’s Wrath.

With a sigh of relief I turn to the responsorial, Psalm 40: Here I am, Lord; I come to do your will. Mary is the "handmaid of the Lord" who willingly, joyfully gives her life to God. She hears the Word of God and believes it will be fulfilled. 

The long reign of Queen Elizabeth II of England has perhaps given Americans a friendlier feeling for royal women. I don’t remember a king of England; that seems odd to me. But a queen who is only a figurehead seems more natural. Elizabeth Tudor, a beautiful young woman crowned as queen shortly after World War II, has reigned with dignity and grace for more than sixty years. Despite the antics of her children and her own rare missteps, she seems to personify the office of queen. She has served her nation and her people well.

I would not describe the Queen of Heaven as a mere figurehead but her authority never overshadows the sovereignty of God. This day is a memorial, not a feast or solemnity.

To know her is to love her. The Angelus and the Rosary lead us directly to the Heart of Mary, that immaculate place where we claim her as our mother and queen. We celebrate her obedience daily with the Angelus:

The Angel of the Lord declared to Mary / And she conceived of the Holy Spirit. Hail Mary . . . 

Behold the handmaid of the Lord / Be it done unto me according to Thy word. Hail Mary . . . 

And the Word was made Flesh / And dwelt among us. Hail Mary . . . 

Pray for us, O Holy Mother of God, that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Let us pray: Pour forth, we beseech Thee, O Lord, Thy grace into our hearts; that we, to whom the incarnation of Christ, Thy Son, was made known by the message of an angel, May by His Passion and Cross be brought to the glory of His Resurrection, through the same Christ Our Lord. Amen.