m “All to Jesus through Mary, all to Mary for Jesus” 

This is an interesting message conveyed by my favorite statue of Mary called The Good Mother. Not many people know of this beautiful image. Maybe because it does not speak about any of Mary’s mysterious apparitions, it is not used for a specific day of celebration, and there is no country that claims it as its patron. This image represents a beautiful woman royally dressed as a queen. But at the same time, it does not have many sparkles, a crown, or other adornments, because it also speaks about The Woman in Nazareth and The Mother!

Today, we pause in the green of Ordinary Time, not to celebrate my 40^th Birthday, as some of you asked me earlier; but to venerate Mary as Our Good Mother and our first Christian model, the One who teaches us how to follow Her Son. Look around you! Note the white, the blue, the fancy vestments, and the flowers everywhere. Listen carefully to all the prayers and sing with joy to Her. Pay honor and respect to The Virgin, greater than any other woman, not only in Nazareth, but in the entire universe. She is “The queen who stands at the right hand of God, arrayed in gold.”

But what really makes this image special for me among the many others, is the Child in Her arms, with His finger in His mouth, calm and confident, in an attitude of total abandonment in His mother’s lap, while she keeps her eyes on Him at every moment. That is just amazing! It’s important to be clear that the privilege of Mary does not come from herself, but from that child who came to save each one of us. Jesus, begotten with perfect humanity and divinity in Mary’s womb, is the only One we adore as Catholics every time we gather around the altar. We worship God -Father, Son, and Holy Spirit- because we exalt His perfection. We thank Him for creating each one of us as intrinsically good human beings, and for becoming the baby who gives us eternal redemption. And Mary is essential in this plan. That is the reason of why She is elevated to Heaven in body and soul, pure without sin, with “a chorus of angels exulting [Her].”

My friends, that is the solemnity we are celebrating today: The Assumption of Mary to Heaven! This beautiful mystery expresses the greatness of God’s love for us since the beginning of our creation, and his abundance of charity expressed in the forgiveness of all our sins. Listen to St. Paul who reminds us of the transgression of Adam and Eve, and their rejection of God which makes us experience fear, and helplessness. Created in the image and likeness of God, they suffered a wound of incalculable consequences, and caused the downfall of the entire human race for all generations. But the story does not end there! The Father had a better plan for us. Out of love, He wanted to send his Son to save us, and for that, He required a holy womb, a reflection of His divine perfection, and that mission was possible only because of Mary.

And yes, it is true that God could have chosen another young girl in Nazareth for that mission, but Mary is not like any other girl. She is special and unique, The Queen of Heaven virgin and immaculate, more beautiful than any flower in our garden, or any star in the sky. Mary is The New Eve, The Woman prepared by God in the womb of St. Ann to be at the center of the war between the devil and the lineage of the Children of God. Then, She becomes The Good Mother and the Ark of the New Covenant. She said YES to giving birth to the Messiah, who appeared in the last battle as the dawn that announced the definitive victory of light over darkness. And thanks to Mary, God wins the war! We win the war because Mary gives birth to a covenant of love, - an explosion of mercy who brings Her to Heaven later, giving us also the hope to be with Her and her Son in eternal happiness someday.

But, before we get there, we Catholics have a lot to do here in our world. Remember that we are different from everyone else. Why? Because we know that Our Mother, - the First Christian - is there to guide us to Her Son. “All to Jesus through Mary…” This is an invitation to cultivate an attitude of total abandonment on our Mother’s lap, and keep our eyes on Her Baby, our Savior. It’s ok to be preoccupied about Delta,  but be more focused on encountering “The One who is the Alpha and the Omega.” Strengthen your prayer life -as Fr. Michael invited you to do last weekend. Pray the rosary and meditate deeply on every mystery of the life of Christ. Leave all your preoccupations and problems by Mary’s feet, and she will intercede for you in front of Her son, “the fruit of her womb.”

…All to Mary for Jesus.” This is an invitation to imitate the virtues of The Good Mother who will help you to be in configuration with Her Son. Bring light in the middle of all darkness in our society today. Protect yourself from all viruses, but do not stop laughing! Vent your emotions with prudence, but do not lose your peace! Respect the social distance, but do not get away from your neighbor. There are a lot of people waiting for hope and mercy, and Jesus is the only one who can offer that through all of you.

That is exactly what Mary does when she knows that Elizabeth needs help. Instead of being paralyzed by fears or the danger, “She travels to the hill country in haste [to meet her cousin in need].” And in that encounter of service, everyone experiences “The Greatness of The Lord” in their journey. My friends, let’s be prepared to celebrate Mary today, the Queen and the Good Mother, not because of Her, but because of Jesus, The Bread of Life who came to save each one of us.

“All to Jesus through Mary, all to Mary for Jesus”

Deacon Andy Gonzalez

FATHER’S DAY REFLECTION
Dcn. Andy Gonzalez

We all know that we need to live a holy life on earth to get to Heaven. One of the commandments that helps us to reach that goal is “Honor your father and your mother, so  that  you  may  live  long  in  the  land  the Lord  your  God  is  giving you.” (Exodus 20:12, NIV) Today we have the opportunity to reflect on how we fulfill this commandment with our fathers. Let’s be honest, when we are children, we  see  our  fathers  as  our heroes.  When  we  grow  up,  the  image  of the  hero  is distorted, turning our fathers into an old-fashioned figure who is trying to impose many  laws  that  we  do  not understand.  Then  we  start  rejecting  them, walking away from their guidance. It isn’t until we are in front of the death of our fathers, that  we  can  recognize  how  special they  were.  That  is  the  sad  experience  that many of you had during the COVID-19 epidemic, losing your fathers without the opportunity of saying goodbye to them.

If there were a job announcement looking for fathers, it might be described something like this: 

• Job Description: This job is a lifetime commitment. Looking for men who can work  full  time  24  hours  for  seven  days  a  week  and  able  to  work  extra  hours, including nights. The candidate must be able to work under a lot of stress and in a chaotic  environment.  He  must  face  many  challenges  with  unending  fortitude, repair electronics, fix children’s cars and motorcycles, receive unexpected calls that will make him upset, and be willing to be ignored or become indispensable in less than an hour.
• Requirements: Men  who can  withstand  being hated  for their children’s sake, at least temporarily; who can give  money  to  them  every  time  they  are  in  need;  can  give  advice  when  their  children  are  in  trouble;  and  close  their mouths when they want to express how much they are worried for them. They should possess excellent communication skills and great organizational abilities. A Drivers License is required because they must be able to take children to Sunday Masses, religious education classes, camping, long sports tournaments or performance presentations, and especially to St. Ann School every morning, fighting with the “happy” traffic of New Orleans.
• Possibilities of promotion: None! You will be in the same position forever, without complaining,  constantly updating your skills’ and be willing to be outdone by those you serve.
• Previous Experience: None required.
• Salaries and Compensation: No pay and no possibility of a pay raise, since you will have to invest everything you receive in the same company.  You will need another job to support yourself.
• Benefits: No health insurance, no pension, no tuition reimbursement, and no paid vacations are offered. This job has the right of recognition only once a year on Father’s Day, and usually you will have to cover the expenses incurred on that day as well. The best benefit you might have for this great job is Heaven!

This week we remember and recognize our fathers. There are no perfect fathers, because only “the Father which is in heaven is perfect.” (Matthew 5:48) But despite not being perfect, they accepted this hard “job” and assumed all the sacrifice. The Lord asks each one of us to show respect for our fathers, not only when we are children, but also as adults. As  children,  we  must  obey  our  fathers because  they are  like  the captains  of  the ships  of  our  life,  guiding  us  until   we become not only good men and women, but also holy Christians who lead our society to the Kingdom of God. As adults, we must respect and take care of our fathers, especially when they cannot take care of themselves anymore. It is in those moments of weakness when they can teach us how to face suffering and those difficult moments that we find on our journey.

But  above  all,  we  must  love  our  fathers because  they were  called  to  love  us  first.  They  were called  to  be the image of the love of God who is always waiting for us, to bring the best robe, the ring, and the sandals to put on us after a long and difficult journey. They were called to cook the fattened calf, and prepare to celebrate with a big feast every time we decide to return home, just as the father did in the parable of the prodigal son (Luke 15:11/NIV). We give honor to our fathers today because they gave part of themselves to us, so we can have the opportunity to breathe, cry, walk, speak, smile,  think,  work, create,  and  return  that  love  to  others.  It  is  because  of  our  fathers  that  we  are  able  to  accept the sacrifices of such a hard job one day too. It is because of them that we can become heroes to our children, giving them the same opportunity of living a holy life on earth to one day reach our eternal happiness in Heaven.

HAPPY FATHER’S DAY!