Obedience to God's Will

This year, among the many changes that have taken place in our parish, Fr. Andrzej asked me to take over RCIA.  When he first suggested this, I was a little uncomfortable with the idea.  I am a cradle Catholic.  What do I know about conversion?  Yes, I have a teaching background, but I mostly worked with lower grades, never adults.  Each age-level is its own beast and comes with its own challenges.  I spent a long time coming to terms with the idea of leading a group of adults through arguably one of the most transformative experiences of their lives, but eventually I accepted the task before me, even if it still makes me a little nervous.  This is what God’s plan for me is right now.  He wants to work through me and strengthen me in my faith through this experience.

This past Tuesday evening, the incoming RCIA participants had the opportunity to meet with Fr. Joshua, Deacon George, and Deacon John.  In the course of the conversation, the topic of Mary came up.  Fr. Joshua told those present that we can come to understand Jesus better through Mary.  Deacon John mentioned that the last recorded words we have from Mary in the Bible are at the Wedding at Cana when Jesus performed his first miracle, changing the water into wine.  Mary said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you” (John 2:5).

When Deacon John mentioned the last recorded words of Mary, it got me thinking about the other times we hear Mary’s words directly quoted in scripture.  Each of the four times illustrate Mary’s own journey toward total obedience to God’s will.

First, when the angel Gabriel tells Mary she is to be the mother of God, she says, “How can this be…?”  (Luke 1:34).  Even Mary had her moments of disbelief and doubt.  She comes to accept God’s will for her very quickly however because just four verses later, in Luke 1:38 she says, “May it be done to me according to your [the angel Gabriel’s] word.”  When Mary goes to visit Elizabeth, she proclaims the Magnificat in praise and thanksgiving for God’s care for her.  And finally, at the Wedding at Cana, Mary shows the utmost trust in God in the person of Jesus when she tells the servants to “Do whatever he tells you.” 

Mary’s journey is perhaps best summarized as going through four stages, which we see in her own words:  skepticism, acceptance, praise and thanksgiving, and obedience.  We can take comfort from the fact that even our Blessed Mother experienced these human emotions and showed us how to be perfectly obedient to God’s will.