
Honoring Mary in Your Garden
Devotion to the Blessed Virgin can be on full display in our backyard oases.
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Devotion to the Blessed Virgin can be on full display in our backyard oases.

The story of Martha and Mary is one that has always spoken to me as a woman, a wife, a mom and a sister.

Victory is for those who continually arise without being discouraged. If we imitate Mary, we cannot keep our arms folded, only complaining, or perhaps dodging the hard work that others do and which is our responsibility. This is not about doing great things, but about doing everything with tenderness and mercy. Mary was always with her people supporting the least.

I’ve never understood Eve. Whenever I think of her apple, my mind is drawn to another woman with an “ordinary” object who led me to Mary. I am hesitating to tell this story because it’s precious to me. Four years ago, through a series of serendipitous events, I found myself spending the month of June at a writer’s retreat in the mountains of Assisi, Italy. On a blistering, hot afternoon, I descended the steps into the cool underground of the Basilica of St. Clare of Assisi.

Many people look to Mary for spiritual guidance and nourishment. She’s also a source of inspiration for this artist.

Sister Rosemary Nyirumbe’s been featured in Time magazine and on CNN for her humanitarian work, but her faith, not fame, is what fuels her efforts to rescue abducted girls in South Sudan and Uganda.

Why do Catholics pray to the Blessed Virgin Mary and to various saints? Is there anything in the Bible to back this up? Can’t this be considered idol worship? Why not pray directly to God?
The mother of Jesus Christ and the other saints have no meaning or power independent of God. Catholics and many other Christians venerate the saints as ongoing examples of what a life generously open to God’s grace can look like in a great variety of circumstances.

What does it mean to age with grace, to let go without losing hope, and to face life’s deepest losses with open hands? What does it mean to move toward spiritual maturity as life unfolds, and how can a spirituality of letting go help take us there? In this conversation, Fr. Ronald Rolheiser joins Off the Page to explore themes from his powerful new book, “Insane for the Light…”

To be a truly present listener, we must open both our ears and hearts.

“Get in good trouble, necessary trouble, and help redeem the soul of America,” Senator John Lewis famously said.