Mary provides feminine example

After the Angel Gabriel announces to Mary that she has been chosen as the Mother of God, said Sister Kay Ryan, CSJ, "When Mary says `yes,' the world is never the same again. That's my image for many women: When they say `yes' to a spouse, a lifestyle choice, children, the world is never the same again."

Sister Kay, director of the Albany Diocese's Family Life Office, explained that "women say `yes' to a lot of things in life. Mary had the freedom to say `no;' we all have [that freedom]. But we don't often celebrate the freedom of our yesses."

Open to God

"As a celibate saying `yes,' there are experiences I never would have had if I wasn't in a religious community," she explained.

For women who are single, either by choice or because they haven't yet met the right person, Sister Kay pointed to Mary's example of "patient waiting, the expectation of saying, `This is my life, and I need to be open to what comes.'"

Free will

"That reflects that she was aware that if she said yes, she would be pregnant immediately or soon afterward," said the professor. "That was an intelligent question. Mary was testing the angel to see if he was from God."

Mary actually demonstrates the priesthood of all the baptized, according to Rev. David Knight, director of His Way House, a spiritual growth center in Memphis, Tennessee, who recently spoke on the Blessed Mother at a Schenectady parish.

"`Be it done to me according to your will,'" he quoted Mary's response to God's plan for her. "That's total surrender to God, as opposed to, `Well, I'll keep your laws.' She is a clear prototype of human cooperation in the work of redemption. Do we accept our role as having a mission to the human race?"

Father Jelly believes that women can learn docility from Mary. He explained that on such issues as inclusive language, women can go too far in their pursuit of fairness. Mary, he said, demonstrates that women need to look at "what issues really count."

However, he added that the Blessed Mother is also an example of how women should speak up for themselves: At the wedding at Cana, for example, she informed her Son, "They have no more wine," and urged Him to perform His first miracle.

Ordinary faith

The director called that "the richest piece of Scripture in terms of the hidden life," because that one line indicates a wealth of time the Holy Family simply went about their daily lives, as we all do.

"Most of us are called to celebrate the sacred and the ordinary," she said. "Most of us are not called to the extraordinary."

Example to all

* "The greatest act ever performed for the redemption of the human race was done by a teenager," Father Knight stated. In choosing Mary as His mother, the priest noted, Jesus was saying, "`My mother was an unwed pregnant teenager. Accept pregnant teenagers.'"

* "Any woman who's given birth...who's watched a child die...who's been widowed or bereaved. I think she could be a role model for any group," said Sister Kay.

* "I would first of all appeal to the Annunciation," Father Jelly said. Like all women faced with life's many choices, Mary "had an important role in making a decision. [Hers was] the most important decision of all mankind."

Life and death

Sister Kay offered a different way for women to experience Mary's example: through the Rosary. She stated that the mysteries of the Rosary provide opportunities to reflect on the mysteries of our lives.

(10-01-98) [[In-content Ad]]