Treasures of the Heart

Think for a moment about all of the technological inventions that have shaped our modern world. There are the obvious ones, like the Internet and the automobile. There are also ones that we may not remember quite as quickly, like the light bulb and the printing press. Another one that does not jump out immediately to me is the invention of photography. So much of our society is now built around photos, moving pictures, selfies – our ability to capture the world in a frame is something that we just take for granted.

Of course, it wasn’t always that way. Even in relatively recent times, it was the duty of artists to depict the world around us, or else people relied upon their own memories to seize the important moments of life. In the Gospel today, we hear how Mary kept in her heart and reflected upon all the events surrounding the birth of Jesus. Mary didn’t have a camera to capture the moment; rather, it was the eye of her mind that recorded what happened. 

Ignacio Chacon, Madonna and Child with Bird (c. 1765)

Today, on the Octave Day of Christmas, the Church celebrates the Solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God. This feast gives us the chance to consider anew the birth of Christ which we celebrated a week ago and which we will continue to celebrate for the next few weeks. But today, we do contemplate that birth particularly from the viewpoint of Mary, she who knew more than any other what it meant. The birth of Jesus was surely exciting and moving for Mary, as is the birth of any child for its mother. But unlike every other mother in history, Mary truly understood just Who had been born from her. You know, there is that popular song that sometimes is sung around this time of year which asks whether Mary really knew who Jesus was. As Catholics, we think that song is kind of silly, because it can be answered: “Yes!” Mary certainly did know that the baby boy born to her was God made Man, the image of the invisible God made visible in our world. It is for this reason, as the Gospel tells us, that Mary kept these things in her heart. The Greek word used actually means she “treasured” them – pondering upon them again and again. Much like we might cherish a particular picture, or a photo album, something that we return to again and again, Mary internalized the meaning of Christmas and treasured it.

Mary, of course, wasn’t the only one blessed by the birth of Jesus. If his coming makes her the Mother of God, then it also makes you and I his brothers and sisters. That’s why St. Paul says that through Christ we have received adoption as sons and daughters of God, such that we too can call upon God as “Abba, Father”, and think of Jesus as our Brother. In Christ, our identity is no longer defined just by whatever earthly stock we hail from – we also now belong to the family of Christ.

Friends, as we start a New Year, we would do well to keep these truths in our hearts, to treasure them and reflect upon them, so that we might internalize their meaning as thoroughly as Mary did. The birth of Jesus, when viewed with the eyes of faith, continues to reverberate through the centuries, generation by generation, continuously expanding the family that God is forming in Christ. Much like we might cherish a photo or picture that reminds us of who we are, of where we’ve come from, the birth of Jesus must be something that we grasp firmly so that we don’t let the inheritance we have in him be squandered because of human weakness or forgetfulness. May the Christmas mystery be alive in us again today and every day so that, like his mother Mary, Jesus may make us sharers in his eternal reign.