“Call me Mother and tell them to call me Mother: I am the Mother of the pure clergy, Mother of the holy clergy, Mother of the faithful clergy, Mother of the united clergy, Mother of the living clergy.”
“When Jesus saw his mother 11 and the disciple there whom he loved, he said to his mother, “Woman, behold, your son.” Then he said to the disciple, “Behold, your mother.” And from that hour the disciple took her into his home.” (Jn 19:26-27)
Meditation
The Virgin of Revelation’s invite to “call me mother” is an expression of the close bond that she feels for each of us. It is an invite to have a close relationship with Our Blessed Mother. It is always possible to depend on a mother’s love and, should we go astray, our mother’s calls will indicate the right path to follow. Our Lady wants to indicate the way to follow her Son, which means the way to become truly configured to Him by living the Christian life. This maternity extends in a special way towards the Priests because, once in Our Lady’s care, they will find the way to become purer, holier, more faithful and more united to Christ and His bride, the Church.
Let us pray for all Priests that they have the courage to be pure, holy and faithful to the teachings of the Catholic Church and to transmit that faith to members of the Church.
Teaching of the Church
“Since Mary is completely imbued with the Word of God, she is able to become the Mother of the Word Incarnate. Finally, Mary is a woman who loves. How could it be otherwise? As a believer who in faith thinks with God’s thoughts and wills with God’s will, she cannot fail to be a woman who loves. We sense this in her quiet gestures, as recounted by the infancy narratives in the Gospel. We see it in the delicacy with which she recognizes the need of the spouses at Cana and makes it known to Jesus. We see it in the humility with which she recedes into the background during Jesus’ public life, knowing that the Son must establish a new family and that the Mother’s hour will come only with the Cross, which will be Jesus’ true hour (cf. Jn 2:4; 13:1). When the disciples flee, Mary will remain beneath the Cross (cf. Jn 19:25-27); later, at the hour of Pentecost, it will be they who gather around her as they wait for the Holy Spirit (cf. Acts 1:14).” (Deus Caritas Est n 41)