# Mary, virgin and mother: novena for the immaculate conception
*2015-12-01*

> Bill Young reflects on the life of Blessed Charles de Foucauld and leads the third day of a novena honoring the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

## The Example of Blessed Charles de Foucauld

Today is December 1st, the feast day of Blessed Charles de Foucauld. Born in France in 1858, Charles was orphaned at age six and raised by his devout Christian grandfather. Although he rebelled as a teenager and lost his faith, his journey eventually led him to the military and then to Algeria. It was there, among Jews and Muslims, that he rediscovered his faith and became a Christian again. After returning to France to join the missionaries, he eventually returned to Algiers, where he was shot and martyred for his faith during World War I.

As Pope Francis returns from his trip to Africa this week, we pray for him in his journeys. We also pray for our fellow Christians and all people in Africa, including Jews and Muslims, just as Blessed Charles did.

## The Word of God

As we continue with the novena in honor of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary, we reflect on the Gospel according to Matthew. The scripture recounts how Mary was betrothed to Joseph and found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. Joseph, being an upright man, initially sought to divorce her informally to spare her disgrace. However, an angel appeared to him in a dream, instructing him not to be afraid to take Mary as his wife, for the child conceived in her was of the Holy Spirit. This child, to be named Jesus, would save His people from their sins, fulfilling the prophecy: 'Look, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son for whom will be called Emmanuel, a name which means God is with us.' Joseph obeyed the angel, took Mary into his home, and named the child Jesus.

## Meditation on the Heart of Mary

In meditating on the Immaculate Heart of the Virgin Mary, we see a heart so full of God's sublime love that she could dedicate herself fully to virginity, maternity, and married life simultaneously. Mary's virginity is an expression of her total gift of self to God and a prophetic sign of a new era. It is a state of serenity and passivity that is, in fact, a manifestation of the highest activity: allowing God Himself to work through her to enter the story of humankind.

Her maternity is the fruit of this total surrender. This motherhood extends beyond one person to all humanity, stretching from Bethlehem to Nazareth and from Gethsemane to the foot of the Cross. In this way, her maternity is mirrored in the Church, which lasts for all time.

## The Sanctification of Marriage

Mary's married life, as the spouse of St. Joseph, sanctified the state of marriage. Simultaneously, she is the spouse of the Holy Spirit, who operated through her in the Church. As an image of the Church—the spouse of Christ—Mary's willingness to cooperate with God shows the path that the Church, and especially Christian married couples, should take. She invites couples to be united to one another and to open their lives to love and the action of God.

*By welcoming the Word into her womb and cooperating with God's will, Mary serves as the ultimate model of faith and love for the Church and all married couples.*