Page:O'Donnell - Hail Holy Queen 04 - Why the Madonna?.djvu/3

 was not disturbed, because within her beat the pulse of divine love. Her heart was filled with sweetness and joy, for the hour had come when the ancient prophecies of her people were about to be fulfilled. "And thou, Bethlehem art a little one among the thousands of Juda: out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be the ruler of Israel: and his going forth is from the beginning, from the days of eternity" (Micheas 5:2).

The Christ Child—the true God, made man—could have been born in regal splendor, surrounded by every luxury, had He so willed it. After all, the three kings who came to adore Him acted upon a rather human and reasonable assumption when they went to Herod's palace, asking, "Where is he that is born king of the Jews?" (Matthew 2:2) But the ways of God are not the ways of man, and the Savior chose to be born in an abandoned stable that was little more than a cave; to begin His life on earth even as the humblest of the sons of men, with only His foster father, St. Joseph, and the shepherds to do Him homage.

Picture Mary during the hidden life at Nazareth, radiant with sweetness and tenderness, the epitome of mother love, as she cared for the Child Jesus. She bathed Him, caressed Him, and held Him in her arms as He slept. With what pride she watched him advance in wisdom, and age, and grace. Meanwhile, as He grew older, and worked with St. Joseph, she made and kept a home for them both. And on one occasion at least, motherlike, she was concerned for her Son—when she and St. Joseph went seeking Him in Jerusalem. In her consecration to her daily tasks, she is a perfect example of leaving God for God, and a perfect example for the true Christian mother who, after Mary, manifests the sweetness that blossoms from a mother's love for her children. Always in the background, modest, completely unselfish, she was nevertheless the queen of her home.

Mother-like, perhaps, she could not bear the thought of our Lord's leavetaking in Nazareth, so we find her present at His first public appearance—the marriage feast of Cana. The Evangelist sweetly adds, after describing the scene, "and the mother of Jesus was there" (John 2:1). To me this is quite significant. She saw him inaugurate His career with a great miracle, and she was with Him on Calvary at the close of His career, whence was to follow the greatest of miracles.