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The Lord often surprises us in his choice of messenger. He uses the humble, the weak, the small. Often, he chooses children to bear his message of hope and peace. In Fatima, he chose Lucia dos Santos, age ten, and her younger cousins, brother and sister Francisco, nine, and Jacinta Marto, seven. These three simple yet faithful children, all from Catholic farm families, were good children from humble backgrounds. Yet, by God’s grace, their lives—and ours—were forever changed. Because of heaven’s designs on their hearts, they all experienced deeper conversions of heart

Mary’s moments in the New Testament are few, precious, and significant. Sometimes, she teaches by her actions. Other times, she teaches us by her seeming inaction. Why would Mary, the mother of Jesus, born free of original sin, need to purify her heart? We venerate her Immaculate Heart to contemplate her love of God and the earthly journey on which he took her. What could we, normal, struggling children of God hope to learn from such a woman about purifying our own hearts? Ah, that’s the thing about Mary.

Mary is the hinge of doctrine because she is the hinge of history. God awaited her yes at the pivotal moment. Thus, St. Irenaeus in the second century called her the “cause of salvation, both to herself and the whole human race.”9 She was not the Savior, but she was indeed the “cause of salvation” and the first to be saved. Mary’s place in history, doctrine, and devotion is extraordinary, exceptional, unique. Her vocation was distinctive and singular, and she responded with unfailing fidelity.