Marist Association Daily Prayer

Let us always remember that

we are in the holy presence of God

May God continue to live in our hearts

In the name of the Father,

Son and Holy Spirit

Amen

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  • Intention of the Day
  • Today's Gospel
  • Breaking Open the Word
  • Marist Source
  • Reflection
  • Meditation
  • Call to Action
  • Closing Prayer

Intention of the Day

That we respond as Mary did.
That like Mary, we be open to the gift of grace in our lives.

That we respond as Mary did.
That like Mary, we be open to the gift of grace in our lives.

Today's Gospel. Mary Mother of the Church.

Jesus said to his mother, 'Woman, this is your son.' Then to the disciple he said, 'This is your mother.'

John 19: 26-27.
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John 19: 25-34.

25 Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother and his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary of Magdala.

26 Seeing his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing near her, Jesus said to his mother, 'Woman, this is your son.'

27 Then to the disciple he said, 'This is your mother.' And from that hour the disciple took her into his home.

28 After this, Jesus knew that everything had now been completed and, so that the scripture should be completely fulfilled, he said: I am thirsty.

29 A jar full of sour wine stood there; so, putting a sponge soaked in the wine on a hyssop stick, they held it up to his mouth.

30 After Jesus had taken the wine he said, 'It is fulfilled'; and bowing his head he gave up his spirit.

31 It was the Day of Preparation, and to avoid the bodies' remaining on the cross during the Sabbath -- since that Sabbath was a day of special solemnity -- the Jews asked Pilate to have the legs broken and the bodies taken away.

32 Consequently the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first man who had been crucified with him and then of the other.

33 When they came to Jesus, they saw he was already dead, and so instead of breaking his legs

34 one of the soldiers pierced his side with a lance; and immediately there came out blood and water.

Breaking Open The Word

But she was there at the end, at the foot of the cross.

Taken from: Give Us This Day
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Taken from: Give Us This Day

Our Mother’s Embrace.

Motherhood involves, I guess, a tension. A mother wishes the best for her child, that the child may flourish in every way, and yet she must let the child go and make his or her own life. And if all goes wrong, the child can come home and know that complete acceptance will be offered. That is the tension of parental love—unbounded hope and unconditional acceptance. Mary let her child follow his divine calling, even though it pierced her to her heart, even though it was surely not what she expected. But she was there at the end, at the foot of the cross.

It is hard to get the balance right. In the film Lady Bird, the mother loves her daughter, Lady Bird, but her love is crushing. Invariably she demands perfection. Lady Bird says, “I wish that you liked me.”
“Of course I love you.”
“But do you like me?”
Her mother’s answer—“I want you to be the very best version of yourself that you can be”—expresses a love that has not learned to embrace her daughter in her edgy awkwardness.
“What if,” Lady Bird asks, “this is the best version?”

Mary’s motherhood of the Church embodies God’s unconditional acceptance of this fragile community, wracked by failure and scandal. God will not walk away from the Church, even if many do. But Mary also represents the summons to holiness, which is still always offered however far the Church or we fall. Let us begin again.

Fr. Timothy Radcliffe. Taken from Give Us This Day.

Fr. Timothy Radcliffe, OP, is former master general of the Order of Preachers and author of Stations of the Cross (with art by Martin Erspamer, OSB) as well as Take the Plunge: Living Baptism and Confirmation.

That we respond as Mary did.
That like Mary, we be open to the gift of grace in our lives.

Marist Source

God comes into the life of Mary, as it is at the moment.

# WFR 53.

That we respond as Mary did.
That like Mary, we be open to the gift of grace in our lives.

To Ponder

“Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother”. Have you ever reflected on the trauma Mary experienced watching her son be crucified?

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Where has the Spirit drawn you in today's prayer?

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Closing Prayer

All Loving God

Cultivate in us a spirituality that flows out of Marian simplicity, humility and modesty.

Release in us wellsprings of refreshment, inspiration and excitement for your work in which we share.

Help us set our gaze on those people and places most in need of Christlife,

Impel us to respond together,

And lead us to be in communion with one another, and with you.

Like Mary, we listen for your invitation,

Like Mary, we set out joyfully and in haste to the hill country of the lives of young people,

Like Mary, we build communities in ways that are Christ-centred.

All Loving God, come and live in our hearts.

 

 Amen