Holding Jesus—Reflections on Mary, the Mother of God

In faith we love to think of Mary as our Blessed Mother. We see Mary depicted again and again holding the infant Jesus in her arms. The most popular image of Mary in paintings, icons, stained glass, and statuary is her role as the Madonna, the mother of the Word made flesh. The imagination and genius of artists supply us with images of the maternal wonder, innocence, and affection that our faith discerns in this holy Mother of God. But the story of Mary’s relationship with Jesus goes beyond her nurturing him as a child. She also accompanies him throughout his life stages from childhood to the teen years, from young adult to his maturity, from his thirtieth year to his passion and death, and from his resurrection to his ascension. Throughout his life, Mary continues to hold her son in her love and in her outstanding prayer and contemplation. In 42 scriptural reflections, Fr. Alfred McBride invites us to consider Mary as a young wife and new mother who holds her infant, as the Mother of Sorrows who holds her son when he is taken down from the cross, and as a witness to the infant Church when the Holy Spirit descends in the Upper Room at Pentecost.

ALFRED MCBRIDE, o. praem., holds a diploma in catechetics from Lumen Vitae, Brussels, and a doctorate in religious education from the Catholic University of America, Washington, D.C. He has written many books, including The Challenge of the Cross: Praying the Stations; Staying Faithful Today: To God, Ourselves, One Another; A Short History of the Mass; The Story of the Church; and A Priest Forever: Nine Signs of Renewal and Hope. He resides in a Norbertine priory in DePere, Wisconsin. In 2011 he received the catechetical award from the National Conference for Catechetical Leadership.