Reading:
Luke 2: 41-52
from Pope St. John Paul II:
Rosarium Virginis Mariae, 14, 20
Reflection:
I remember when I was kid, I would tag along with my parents and grandparents to the mall most weekends. One of my favorite places to "hang out" would be the video game section of a store because I'm such a gamer, even from a young age. I remember being pretty good about asking permission from my parents to stay occupied at the video games counter trying to collect the next star on Super Mario 64, and they'd often leave me there while they go do their shopping. Sometimes when I'd had enough or didn't feeling like hogging the controller so the next kid could play, I'd go out and about trying to find my parents. These were the days before cell phones and pagers, mind you. And I think one time I went off trying to find them about the same time they came to fetch me at the video games section, but didn't find me. Eventually, we ran into each other and my mom would stop freaking out and be grateful I wasn't like, lost or something.
In today's reading, I can only imagine how incredibly stressed out Mary and Joseph must've have been having traveled already for one day and realizing Jesus wasn't with them. When they returned back to Jerusalem, they searched for three days before finding Him in the temple. How joyous that occasion must've been! If only that they were reunited once more as a family. But what was He doing? He was teaching the scribes and rabbis about the faith and having intense conversations that I bet most 12-year olds don't have. He asks them that seemingly rebellious question, "did you not know that I must be in my Father's house?" This totally points to the acknowledgement that Jesus is really God's Son and Jesus is just doin' His thang teachin' and preachin'.
But, even then, He obediently went back with them to Nazareth, and Mary kept all these things in her heart. That joy, especially, in finding Him.
Hmm. The joy in finding Jesus. I think this little episode in Jesus' life, He teaches Mary and Joseph that He's really God's Son and what His mission is. There's great joy to be had in encountering or finding Jesus at a crucial time. Would they have been as joyful had He taught them via another way?
It's a wonder how God can teach us things even in the most desperate of situations. But just as Mary and Joseph were faithful in seeking Christ and the joy resulting from actually finding and encountering Him, so it must be also for my life. Even in my feelings of being lost and desperation, actively seeking Christ is the solution.
Response:
From Pope St. John Paul II, he writes
From the divine standpoint, the Spirit is the interior teacher who leads us to the full truth of Christ. But among creatures no one knows Christ better than Mary; no one can introduce us to a profound knowledge of his mystery better than his Mother. (RVM, 14)
Mary leads us to discover the secret of Christian joy, reminding us that Christianity is, first and foremost, evangelion, "good news", which has as its heart and its whole content the person of Jesus Christ, the Word made flesh, the one Savior of the world. (RVM, 20)A theme with Mary is that she keeps all in her heart, most especially her son. I shall seek to further contemplate with Mary and her heart the wonders and love of Christ, because she knows Him best out of all of us humans.
Totus tuus,
- JD
