VI offer an interesting text by Thomas Griffin, who teaches in the religion department of a Catholic high school and lives on Long Island in New York State.
IMarch 25 marks the date on which the Catholic Church and many other Christians commemorate the Annunciation of Mary. This is when we recognize the momentous moment when Mary accepted the angel Gabriel’s invitation to become the mother of God. Through the “yes” of a teenage girl in the remote waters of Galilee 2,000 years ago, God became one of us and saved us from ourselves.
As we look around our broken world, even the non-religious can see that things are not as they should be. God used Mary to begin rebuilding his kingdom here on earth, and so we can confidently look to her example of how we can begin to mend the fractures that permeate our culture today.
1. God uses what is simple and seemingly insignificant
Some might say that a girl like Maria from long ago who lived in a place like Galilee is irrelevant. Some might think that to fix American society, we need more technological advances and people in power who know what they are doing. The solution, however, is much simpler.
What we need is to recover the original blueprint for the human person. This blueprint is found in Maria. Yes, the Middle Eastern teenager who lived two millennia ago is the model for the rebirth of the future. In fact, his apparent irrelevance today would not have been much different from his seemingly unimportant life in his day. This is how God works: he uses the seemingly insignificant to change the world. Rebuilds using the simple.
So, doing the simple things with intention, virtue, and perseverance (like Mary) means we must have a keen awareness of how we can do the simple things better. Mary’s testimony shows us that sacrificing ourselves for our families is the simplest but most powerful thing we can do.
2. The family unit is the most powerful human entity
In a 1986 homily, Pope St. John Paul II famously said, “As the family goes, so goes the nation, and so goes the whole world in which we live.” The Pope was aware that the most powerful and impactful social structure in any culture is not the government, it is the family.
How adults parent and love each other in marriage determines the kind of children they raise and how those children will one day love their own spouses and children. Sounds too simple, but taking care of family will fix our shattered culture.
3. Put God first in your marriage
All families begin with the love of a man and a woman. Unfortunately, more than 40% of marriages in the United States end in divorce. America has also changed the meaning of marriage, emphasizing that it is a legal contract in which two people share their possessions and feelings instead of a lifelong and faithful love relationship that reflects God’s unconditional and fruitful love. for us.
Generally, the love, or lack of love, between a husband and wife is seen in the way their children give and receive love. Mary and Joseph show us that nothing is more important to a successful marriage than putting God first. Despite the unknowns and public ridicule because of their relationship with God, they have remained true to each other.
Studies show that marriages of two people with strong faith are less likely to end in divorce. The reason is that they respond to a higher power outside of themselves and their imperfect hearts.
Mary conceived a son, who was not her husband’s (clearly, because they were not yet living together—Matthew 1:18) but Joseph could trust that she remained faithful, even though it took some time. What convinced him? He prayed, proving what Dr. Wendy Patrick wrote in Psychology Today: “Praying couples show more relationship satisfaction and less infidelity.” Faith makes marriages, and therefore families, stronger.
4. Take your kids to church
Mary and Joseph would take Jesus to the temple at least three times a year for the annual Jewish holidays (not counting the times they would go to synagogue). Faith not only strengthens marriages, but allows the whole family to witness how sacrificial love should govern one’s life.
Mary Rose Kulczak observed in another article in The Federalist: “If you think your children are unhappy, take them to church.” Keeping God in our children’s lives is the best thing we can do for their health and happiness.
Too many people today consider the topic of God and religion irrelevant. The irony is that focusing on his truth and his way is the simplest yet most powerful way to rebuild our culture. We see the answer in Mary’s life. Her entire attention was on God and family. Let us also make this commitment, so that our culture is filled with truly alive people.
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Thomas Griffin teaches in the religion department of a Catholic high school and lives on Long Island with his wife and son. He holds a master’s degree in theology and is currently a candidate for a master’s degree in philosophy. Follow his latest content at EmptyTombProject.org