09
Oct
Oct
Reflection: Luke 11: 27 -28
When we hear the term “beatitude” we immediately think about the eight blessings or the eight occasions where you are blessed by God, as explained by Matthew from the sermon on the mount. The poor, those who mourn, the meek, those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, the merciful, the clean of heart, the peace-makers, those who are persecuted and insulted for the Kingdom – these are the blessed of the Beatitudes. But the list of beatitudes do not end there. Today’s gospel adds one more to the list of those who are blessed: blessed are those who listen to the word of God and observe it. The Blessedness of the Blessed Mother is first acknowledged in the Gospel even before the birth of Jesus. At the time of annunciation, we hear similar words from the mouth of the angel, who says, “Blessed are you among women.” And in this Month of the Rosary, as we pray the “Hail Mary,” we continue to acknowledge her blessedness. Jesus is giving a clarification: The true blessedness of his Mother – is because of her faithfulness to the word of God. She listened and observed it. Listening has been an important theme of Jesus in the Gospels. He invited his disciples to be attentive to the word, to take it to heart, to discover its beauty and truth, and to live it. Today he continues to invite us to enter into that blessedness and that relationship with Jesus, by listening to him and living by his word. A couple of days ago we meditated on the story of the two sisters of Mary and Martha. Mary stays at the feet of Jesus, listening to him. Jesus praised her attentiveness to the Word and affirmed – that Mary had chosen the best part and it would not be taken from her: Sitting with him, wasting our time with him to listen to him is something that the Lord values most. On another occasion, in Matthew 12: 50 we would listen to Jesus saying, “Whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother. The message is clear: “Listen to him” and Mary reminds us during the wedding at Cana: “Do what he tells you.” “Listen to him and do what he tells you.”