"Mother of the whole Church,"

Mary is not only the mother of Jesus, but also a mother to all Christians, the Mystical Body of Christ.

 When Jesus therefore saw His mother and the disciple standing by whom He loved, He said unto His mother, “Woman, behold thy son!”

Jesus is also doing is giving us Mary as the mother of the whole Church, of each and every one of the disciples of Jesus.

 

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊     

Genesis 3:9-15, 20 (or Acts 1:12-14)

The Lord God called

The man saying to him, "Where are you?" He said,

"I heard your voice in the garden and I was afraid because I was naked,

so I hid."God said, "Who told you that you were naked?

Have you eaten of the tree I ordered you not to eat?"The man answered,

"The woman you put with me gave me fruit from the tree and I ate it."

 

God said to the woman, "What have you done?"The woman said, "The serpent deceived me and I ate."

The Lord God said to the serpent, "Since you have done that,

be cursed among all the cattle and wild beasts! You will crawl on your belly and eat dust all the days of your life.

I will make you enemies, you and the woman, your offspring and her offspring. He will crush your head and you will strike his heel."

The man called his wife by the name of Eve because she was the mother of all the living.

 

Ps 87, 1-2. 3. at 5, 6-7 Glorious things are told of you, O city of God.

 

＊＊＊ Gospel ＊＊＊     

John 19:25-34

Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother's sister, Mary who was the wife of Cleophas,

and Mary of Magdala. When Jesus saw the mother and the disciple whom he loved,

he said to the mother, "Woman, this is your son." Then he said to the disciple,

"This is your mother." And from that moment the disciple took her to his own home.

 

Jesus knew all was now finished and, in order to fulfill what was written in Scripture,

he said, "I am thirsty." A jar full of bitter wine stood there;

so putting a sponge soaked in the wine on a twig of hyssop,

they raised it to his lips. Jesus took the wine and said, "It is accomplished."

Then he bowed his head and gave up the spirit.

 

As it was Preparation Day, the Jews did not want the bodies to remain on the cross during the Sabbath,

for this Sabbath was a very solemn day. They asked Pilate to have the legs of the condemned men broken

so that the bodies might be taken away. The soldiers came and broke the legs of the first man and of the other man,

who had been crucified with Jesus. When they came to Jesus, they saw that he was already dead,

so they did not break his legs. One of the soldiers, however,

pierced his side with a lance and immediately there came out blood and water.

 

Gospel Reflection ：

"Mother of the whole Church"

Various titles have been used to describe the role of Mary in God's plan of salvation.

Mary is Mother of our Redeemer and Mother of the Word Incarnate. She is the "new Eve" through her yes to God and,

to affirm that Jesus is both fully human and fully divine, Mary was declared Mother of God at the Council of Ephesus in 431 AD.

Scripture also points to another role for Mary, which is Mother of the Church, and Pope Francis has declared that this title

should be celebrated on the Monday after Pentecost. The day of Pentecost is often regarded as the birth of the Church.

 

Placing Mary's feast beside Pentecost helps us to remember Mary's maternal role for all disciples,

but she had already begun this role at the foot of the cross, when Jesus entrusted all disciples into her loving care.

Thus, when talking of Mary as "Mother of the whole Church," Saint Alphonsus supports the idea

that the birth of the Church began on Calvary. The Beloved Disciple made a place for Mary in his home.

May we too give a place of honor to Mary our Mother in our lives, and constantly seek her help.