Reassurance in Un-reassuring Times

To those who frequent Catholic Stand, it should come as no surprise that, once again, I find myself traveling for the Christmas season. This trip took me far outside Italy, into the Middle East.

Given the tense situation in that corner of the world, I had expected a fair amount of security, a sense of reassurance in a very un-reassuring time. However, much to my disappointment, security at the international airport was anything but secure and reassuring.

Plenty of eyes, but no one watching

As I approached the counter, I could see seven or eight security officers. One looked straight at me and muttered something about putting my backpack on the conveyor so the X-ray tech could scan it.

Since individual security practices vary from country to country, I asked if my laptop should be in the bag, out of the bag but in its case, or out of the bag and out of the case. Looking helpless, she shouted out her question to her companion who, without looking up from his cell phone, probably replied “in the bag.” I say probably, because he was the x-ray technician but he never looked up from his phone when my bag went through anyways. He might have simply told her, “It doesn’t matter.” Indeed, for him it didn’t matter.

I had hoped at least that the metal detector security persons would stop me when I set it off, but that cluster of four or five simply stood around talking amongst themselves. When my bag failed to reach the end of the belt, and that security officer was also staring at her phone, I told her, “No worries; I’ve got it.” I grabbed it off the belt and continued my way.

Reassurance

This is not to criticize the security personnel. Indeed, I imagine theirs must be a rather boring job. The airlines also charged me very little to fly, so I can only imagine how little they pay their security. And there were six or seven security persons.

We also know that no security system is perfect. However, we hope for at least a little reassurance from security systems.

That word, “reassurance,” means to restore to confidence. This is perhaps the best word for describing what we often seek in our world. Many of us have faith in God. We trust that He knows and loves us and wants our good. Even so, bad things happen.  Violence, betrayal, suffering, or any number of challenges shake our confidence in God’s goodness and love.

In this corner of the world, there is a great deal of violence and suffering.  It makes us sometimes ask, where is God? We want reassurance and we want our confidence in Him restored. We want to trust again.

How other people reassure us

Almost everyone wants to know that things are okay. Since we are only human, and live in this world, our first source of reassurance comes from other people. Infants and children, for instance, first look to their parents, especially their mothers, for comfort.

Alas, even we priests are not exempt in seeking reassurance.

Years ago, as I was starting my studies for the priesthood, I had to sing the Psalm at the Sunday parish Mass. Now, at the time I had very little experience singing.  Because of my inexperience, my rendition bore little resemblance to the psalm as written and practiced. Even so, I took solace in the fact that, as I made my way back to the choir loft, one gentleman in the congregation would always look at me, give me a thumbs up, and mouth the words, “Great job!” He gave me the reassurance I needed.

However, there was a Sunday wherein the Psalm I sang was particularly unrecognizable. As I made my way back to the choir loft, I told myself, “Well, at least that one guy will think I did great!” This time, however, when I looked at him, he simply threw his hands up, shrugged his shoulders, and mouthed, “What can you do?” Imagine my devastation! There was no pretending: this time the Psalm really was that bad!

How God reassures us

This is, of course, the problem with all human reassurance: eventually, it fails. It is, after all, only human. Ultimately, true reassurance can only come from the One who never changes, the One who is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

Of course, this is much easier said than done. We cannot have the same interaction and connection with God that we can have with other people. So how can we have our confidence restored? This is indeed a challenge.

Mary as the Great ‘Reassurer’

There is a very special week in the month of December. Right as we prepare for the birth of Christ, the Church gives us a fantastic week full of Marian feasts.

We start the month with the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception on December 8. (In the past, we celebrated the whole octave. Now, however, but now we must be content with two other major feasts. )

We now celebrate Our Lady of Loretto on December 10. This feast recalls the moving of the Holy House of Nazareth to Loreto, Italy.  Next we celebrate Our Lady of Guadalupe on December 12. It is this mother who reassures us, as she reassured Saint Juan Diego:

Hear me and understand well, my little son, that nothing should frighten or grieve you. Let not your heart be disturbed. Do not fear that sickness, nor any other sickness or anguish. Am I not here, who is your Mother? Are you not under my protection? Am I not your health? Are you not happily within my fold? What else do you wish? Do not grieve nor be disturbed by anything. Do not be afflicted by the illness of your uncle, who will not die now of it. Be assured that he is now cured.

A Marian Insight

It would make sense that God, who knows that we need assurance and knows that we are only human, would give us His Mother to be Our Mother, to reassure us as our own mothers did. However, a few years ago, the thought occurred to me: if Mary is so important, and not just in the past but also in the present, why is it that we only have certain days for her?

There are, after all, saints for every day of the year! This is what the “Roman Martyrology”  is.  The text lists the saints, blesseds, and other holy figures (not necessarily martyrs in the strict sense, as the word martyr comes from the Greek word for witness) for each day of the year.  The book commemorates between 5 to 20 Saints every day.

The book is frequently updated.  For instance, Pope Francis added St. Isaac of Nineveh to the Roman Martyrology just last month.  So why not something similar for Mary?

Research and Discovery

There are so many records of Marian apparitions and miracles that each day could be a Marian feast.  These “feasts” are recalled in some books. Abbot Orsini’s book “Life of the Blessed Virgin Mary” is a classic.  It includes a Marian calendar and lists several websites in English and Italian. Two websites of note are here and here, for instance.

Putting all this information together, the thought occurred to me that this information could be made available in a calendar and in audio form so that it might be easily accessible. Hence, my “No Greater Delight” podcast was born on November 1, 2023.  It is available here, here, here, and here.

No Greater Delight

The title “No Greater Delight” comes from a sermon of Saint Bernard of Clairvaux.  He says he has no greater delight than to speak about the Blessed Virgin Mary. Each day gives an overview of the chief Marian feasts celebrated throughout the world, as well as a reading or meditation. In the past year, we have gone through books by Saint John Henry Newman, St. Ildefonsus of Toledo, Fulton Sheen, and many more. At present, we are working through “The Admirable Heart of Mary,” by Saint John Eudes, combined with a brief Marian meditation taken from the book “Marian Meditations” by Fr. Ildefonso Villar.

In giving us Mary as our mother, God has offered us the reassurance we need and a constant help to get to heaven. May this new year help us draw even closer to Jesus through Mary.