In my first year of marriage, Mary’s motherhood has become something far less unrelatable than it once was for me. Today’s feast, which particularly celebrates her maternal role, is a quiet reminder to me, and to many of my friends who are waiting to step into that role, that motherhood is a vocation to be received as a gift. It reminds us that our waiting can be an active, faithful, and costly journey, and that this time is not something empty or wasted.
There has been much news about the quiet revival that has been taking place. Young people are coming back to Church, and in turn choosing a way of life that looks different from the one the world promises will bring happiness. This quiet revival does not just mean that people are going to Church; it means they are also getting married and accepting God’s plan for family life, and perhaps “accepting” is an understatement. It is a desire being awakened that we did not even know we had, buried deep within our hearts, long encouraged to take second place to self fulfilment and success.
