Offer your May flowers to Mary

Welcome to the graceful month of May, a month dedicated to grow in love and devotion to Blessed Virgin Mary. Surely, we are excited to welcome the spring, not only because it is the end of the cold, chilly winter, but also a sign of hope and new life. The buds are sprouting, and the green is out. At the same time, it is also a time for pruning the trees for better shape and safety, and for the growth of the tree itself so that it can produce more flowers and fruits. The Scripture readings for the fifth Sunday of Easter emphasize the need for Christians to abide in Christ as a condition for producing fruits of kindness, mercy, charity, and holiness. The first reading, taken from the Acts of the Apostles, testifies to the abundance of spiritual fruits yielded by the apostles because of their close bond with the risen Lord. The reading tells us how the Lord pruned the former Pharisee, Saul of Tarsus, a fanatic who had persecuted the Church, to produce a fruit- bearing branch called Paul, the zealous Apostle to the Gentiles, entirely dedicated to the proclamation of the Gospel. In the Gospel, Jesus uses his favorite image of the vine and branches to help his disciples understand the closeness of their relationship with him and the necessity of their maintaining it. Their lives are mutually dependent - as close as a vine and its branches.

We need pruning in our Christian life. Cutting out of our lives everything that is contrary to the spirit of Jesus and renewing our commitment to Christian ideals in our lives every day is the first type of self-imposed pruning expected of us. A second means of pruning is to practice self-control over our evil inclinations, sinful addictions, and aberrations. Jesus prunes, purifies, and strengthens us by allowing us to face pain and suffering, contradictions, and difficulties with the courage of our Christian convictions. We need to abide in Christ and let Christ abide in us: The four Gospels teach us how to become true disciples of Jesus and how to abide in him as branches abide in the main trunk of the vine, drawing their life from it. Personal and liturgical prayers, frequenting of the sacraments of the Holy Eucharist and Reconciliation, daily and meditative reading of the Bible and selfless, loving acts of kindness, mercy and forgiveness enable us to abide in Jesus, the true vine, as fruit-bearing branches.

In the whole Church, the month of May is dedicated in honor of Blessed Virgin Mary. We begin this joyful month with the May crowning of Mary. It is a symbolic expression enthroning Mary as the queen of our hearts and our lives. Unfortunately, for some of us, the devotion to Mary is an old fashion. Cardinal Carlo Maria Martini of Milan writes in his book, ‘The Gospel way of Mary’ “from the second Vatican Council until now, the ecclesial elite, - priests, male and female religious, laypeople employed by the church, experience a kind of detachment, almost a block toward any sharing of affection for Mary, because they think something like that is mostly suitable for simpler people.” Therefore, she is kept aside in many communities.

Recitation of the rosary is outdated or so boring for many of us. We easily forget our Catholic tradition and identity. The mysteries of the holy rosary, the Lord’s prayer (Our Father), and hail Mary, all of those prayers are from the scripture. They are so scripture based. While visiting the homebound parishioners, one of the ladies gave me a wonderful idea about the beautiful way she recites the rosary. I have been doing it partially before. She has a special rosary. Each decade of the rosary is in different colors. Each decade is offered for different people in her life. Let us enter into this month of holy rosary with a strong desire to grow deeper in our love and devotion to Blessed Virgin Mary and try to participate in the recitation of the holy rosary in the church, before the Mass every day. I also encourage you to consider joining in the ministry of 24/7 rosary chain. Sign up for a 30-minute time slot to pray the rosary and be part of this beautiful prayer chain.

May the Immaculate Mother keep us all under the providence and protection of our Heavenly Father during this challenging time of pandemic.

Fr. Benny Mekkatt CFIC