Great take on Mary

Y'all, this isn't original material but my dear friend Natalie sent this blog to me. This past Saturday, we celebrated the Feast of the Immaculate Conception which celebrates that Mary, who bore Jesus, was born without sin. I love team whitaker's take on this and can hear her words (opinionated, headstrong, southern gal?? ya think??) coming from my mouth.  Even if you don't agree with the theology, you have to think the picture is stunning.

Theology

"I think, aside from artificial contraception, the most misunderstood teaching of the Catholic church is our take on Mary. Look, I’m an opinionated, headstrong, stubborn southern gal. I usually tell it like it is. The church’s reverence of Mary, the mother of God, has always intrigued me. As a woman, and now a mom, I always admired that the church gave Jesus’ mom – you know, the one who rode on a donkey while nine months pregnant, labored and gave birth to him in a stable and endured endless ridicule – her due credit. She was a total rockstar, y’all. Today, we celebrate that HER conception was immaculate. In order for Jesus to enter this world without stain, he had to grow in a holy womb. As Fr. Ron said yesterday, “Jesus and sin don’t mix.”
Indeed.

I love that, as a mom, I have a role model in which to hold myself accountable. No, I’ll never be as holy as her, but in my moments of weakness as a wife and mother, she really does get it. It’s true, I’ve asked for her intercession. I’ve asked her to take my prayers to God, much the same way that I ask a good friend to pray for me. Same-same. When I lament my lack of patience, my frustrations, my fears and my worries, I know she understands. Yesterday, it was an honor to celebrate her conception, her joy, her sacrifice and her role as the mother of Jesus.