Mary did you know ... Christmas reflection on a touching Chrismas Carol

For my Christmas message this year, I want to share my reflections on the touching Christmas Carol, Mary Did You Know…, which has become one of my favorites.

Visit https://youtu.be/C7gi8hb9yBQ  

This is a truly poignant cover of the Christmas Carol, Mary Did You Know…, by the Indian band <Sanam> made in 2014. 

The original carol lyrics were written by Mark Lowry in 1984, and the music was written by Buddy Greene in 1991. to read the lyrics and history visit this Source: https://www.godtube.com/popular-hymns/mary-did-you-know-/ 

The title, Mary did you know…, got me thinking. 

Could Mother Mary possibly have known?? 

The Catechism tells us that at different stages she got to see, hear and understand the mystery of her Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, God-made-man. 

Here are a few key events in Mary’s life that can help explain this … 

i) Mary was full of grace, born Immaculate without the stain of Original Sin and incapable of sin, making her the perfect mother to bear the Son of God and look after him until the very end. [Dec. 8, 1854, Pope Pius IX dogma titled Ineffabilis Deus]

ii) Mary, full of grace, had a strong faith and had no hesitation in accepting the Word of God brought by the Archangel Gabriel calling herself the handmaid of the Lord. This was the message given to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom, there will be no end." [Luke 1.26-38]

iii) Mary took on the burden of shame of being ostracized by society as an unwed mother, even as St Joseph, her betrothed, overcomes his doubts following a message from an Angel in a dream. [Matthew 1:20-25]

iv) Mary rushed to her elderly cousin Elizabeth’s side to help with the delivery of John the Baptist, even as Mary herself was pregnant. Elizabeth, inspired by the Holy Spirit exclaimed, "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And why has this happened to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me?  For as soon as I heard the sound of your greeting, the child in my womb leapt for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfilment of what was spoken to her by the Lord."  Mary's reply in witness to the greatness of God called the 'Canticle of Mary', or 'Magnificat', is the epitome of humble gratitude to God. [Luke 1:39-56]

v) Mary left the comfort of her home and family to undertake a perilous 10 to 14-day road trip to Bethlehem for the census and both she and Joseph suffered the ignominy of giving birth in a stable, where inspired shepherds repeated the words of the Angels to Mary, "Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord". Three wise men from the East come to pay homage to her Infant son, giving him gifts of Gold, Frankincense and Myhrr, gifts worthy of a king. [Matthew 1:18-23, 2:1-12] 

vi) Mary and Joseph then had to flee with the Infant Jesus as refugees to Egypt to save his life from the murderous plans of Herod. [Matthew 2:13–23]

vii) Later, Mary suffered unimaginable anguish and pain when her 12-year-old son was lost during the Feast of the Passover in Jerusalem for 3 long days and nights (a precursor to his ultimate death and resurrection). Jesus explains, "Why were you looking for me? Didn’t you know that I had to be here, dealing with the things of my Father?"  [Luke 2:41-52]

viii) At the wedding at Cana in Galilee, it was Mary who realized the wine was out and knew her son could remedy it, even if Jesus himself felt his hour had not come. [John 2:1-11]

ix) Mary watched Jesus grow in stature and leave home at age 30 to spread the Gospel to a largely unbelieving and later murderous audience. 

x) Mary watched helplessly as her son was arrested, tortured and publicly humiliated before being put to a shameful and excruciating death on the cross, knowing all along that he was innocent. [Luke 22:47-24:53]

xi) Even in her pain, Mary willingly accepted her dying Son’s wishes to take on her role as the Mother of the beloved disciple John and by extension of all humanity. [John 19:25-27]

xii) Mary tenderly held the limp body of her dead son before he was put in a tomb. [Matthew 27:59]

xiii) Once again Mary has to deal with the puzzling disappearance of Jesus’ body from the tomb until he rises from the dead and visits her and the Apostles empowering them to spread the Gospel. (She probably witnessed his Ascension into Heaven) [Matthew 28:5-6, [Acts 1:6-11]

xiv) Mary and the Apostles have to flee Jerusalem for the safety of Ephesus when bloodthirsty Romans come seeking early Christians to put them to death but she unwaveringly supports and nurtures the infant Church like she did the Infant Jesus 

xv) As a reward for her unflinching faith and fidelity, Mary is assumed up body and soul into Heaven and has many documented apparitions since then cautioning the faithful to prayer. [1950, Pius XII dogma titled Munificentissimus Deus]

 

xvi) Our Most Blessed Virgin Mother continues interceding with her Son on behalf of the faithful. 

So yes, if any human would know, it would have to be our Most Blessed Virgin Mother Mary! 

I humbly make the case that Mother Mary knew!!

Wishing you and your loved ones a Merry Christmas. Mary’s boy child Jesus Christ was born on Christmas Day, and man will live forever more because of Christmas Day. 

Sharing the joy of Christmas and the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ with his beloved Mother Mary steadfastly by his side,
Kieran Gonsalves

Postscript: Selection of comments received in response to this reflection

What an expressive and impressive Advent contemplation, dearest Kieran! May you and your family have a Holy and Blessed Christmas and may it usher in a whole scroll of New Years, each one more all-roundly prosperous than the one before! With my loving prayers and blessings, ~ Cyril Desbruslais sj, your close friend and brother!

Thank you for your reflections on Mary and the song Mary Did You Know.  That is a question I have often speculated on and you have put forth logical reasons why she did know.  A blessed Christmas to you and your family. ~ Sue Pierce

Lovely!  We talked about whether Mary knew all that wants to come yesterday at our small face sharing meeting. Thank you for your Christmas message. Blessings, ~ Jean Rousseau

Thank You very, very much for the beautiful and moving tribute to Mary, our most Blessed Mother! May you have a lovely Christmas🌟 ~ Barbara Naylor

Thank you for this beautiful share!  On the theme of talented Indians, here is a group of 6 siblings singing…. https://youtu.be/zlwBAgxrBds?si=bGhrJ0ABxl4-_-Xn I am one of three singing sisters, it has been a while since we last sang together but we enjoyed it while it lasted.  Wishing you and your family all the blessings of Christmas throughout the new year. ~ Teresa Mathia