Keynote Address at the Legion of Mary 70th Anniversary Celebration St. Joseph – Del Rio, Texas May 6, 2017
St. Joseph – Del Rio, Texas
May 6, 2017
Last year, Pope Francis made an apostolic visit to Poland for
the celebration of World Youth Day, with millions of young men and women of
faith from every corner of the world. It was a beautiful opportunity for him to
gather in a country with such a strong devotion to our Blessed Mother – under
her title of Our Lady of Czestochowa. Near the Shrine of Divine Mercy, the Holy
Father preached about the plan of salvation carried out by our God, and how he
carried it out in humility and simplicity.
The Holy Father said: “It is particularly striking how the
coming of God into history came about: he was ‘born of a woman.’ There was no
triumphal entrance or striking epiphany of the Almighty. He did not reveal
himself as a brilliantly rising sun, but entered the world in the simplest of
ways, as a child from his mother, with that ‘style’ that Scripture tells us is
like a rainfall upon the land (cf. Is 55:10), like the smallest of seeds which
sprouts and grows (cf. Mk 4:31-32). Thus, contrary to our expectations and
perhaps even our desires, the kingdom of God, now as then, ‘does not come in a
way that attracts attention’ (Lk 17:20), but rather in littleness, in humility.”
This is the nature of the action of God. He definitely worked
miracles and great signs, but this is not where his most glorious work resides.
His greatest triumphs are hidden in the hearts of the faithful who turn to him
in love and conversion, the joy of a heart on fire with the Holy Spirit, or the
comfort given to a heart that grieves. Simplicity and humility are the nature
of God’s great work.
Pope Francis continues: “It is to Mary, then that we, who
have gathered here, now look. In her, we find complete conformity to the Lord.
Throughout history, interwoven with the divine thread, is also a ‘Marian
thread.’ If there is any human glory, any merit of our own in the fullness of
time, it is she. Mary is that space, preserved free from sin, where God chose
to mirror himself. She is the stairway God took to descend and draw near to us.
She is the clearest sign of the fullness of time. In the life of Mary we admire
that littleness that God loves, for he ‘looked upon the humility of his
servant,’ and ‘lifted up the lowly’ (Lk 1:48, 52). He was so pleased with her
that he let his flesh be woven from hers, so that the Virgin became the Mother
of God, as [her] ancient hymn, sung for centuries, proclaims.”
The challenge comes to you today. You are the Legion of Mary,
and you have taken on the task of singing that ancient hymn in this part of the
world today. Your chapter has been about this work for seventy years! What a
beautiful witness to the love our God has lavished upon us in our Blessed
Mother.
I ask you to renew your commitment and fidelity to being
witnesses in that “style” the Holy Father has spoken of, “the divine ‘style’
incarnated by Mary.” The style of a faithful missionary disciple is that of
humility and simplicity. How many different ways do we see this style in the
witness of our beautiful Mother Mary?
Our Lady of Czestochowa’s image was subjected to violence.
She bears the scars on her face of the sinfulness of humanity, but she still
steadfastly, simply, and humbly presents her Son to the world with faith. Our
Lady of Fatima sent out her very powerful message of conversion and humility
through three tiny child shepherds, who touched the hearts of the world in
their simple way one century ago. Our Lady of Guadalupe chose not the great
leaders of the community to bear her message, but a simple man of the people.
She called San Juan Diego to let his simplicity and humility speak louder than
any words could ever hope to speak. Her miracle was the simple beauty of
flowers and faith.
This is the witness of our Mother Mary. She walks in
simplicity and humility, and through that humble virtue, she carries out her
great work of evangelization. She carries out her part of the very work of God.
As Pope Francis puts it: “God saves us, by making himself little, near and
real.” My brothers and sisters, you who have devoted yourself to following
Christ through Mary, “May she help you to weave in your own lives the humble
and simple thread of the Gospel… May we do everything in littleness, and accompany
others at close hand, with a simple and open heart.”