Ave Maria Meditations
Some time ago a Hindu gentleman was asked, “What is a Christian?” He gave an answer that was both very simple and surprising, “A Christian is someone who gives of himself.” From the very start, we perceive that indeed to be a Christian is nothing other than to give of oneself for the sake of Christ. God so loved the world that He gave us His Son. That was the first act of self-giving. His Son was given to us because He wanted to be one with us, like us in everything except sin.
The Son’s coming is ushered in by a new act of self-giving. Christ is given into the care of a woman, the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Virgin Immaculate. Because of her deep humility and total openness to God, the first thing that occurs to Mary is to share her Son with others.
With the attitude of a servant of the Lord, Mary went with haste to share Jesus with others. We know what happened when Saint John the Baptist welcomed Jesus while he was still in the womb. Mary’s gift of Jesus filled Saint John and his parents with joy when the Virgin arrived pregnant with child to visit her cousin Elizabeth.
As if this self-giving, this first self-giving, were not enough, Christ made Himself the Bread of Life. He wanted to give Himself to us in a very special way, a simple, tangible way, because it is hard for human beings to love God whom they cannot see. He made Himself the Bread of Life to satisfy our love for God. We have been created for greater things. We have been created in God’s image and likeness. We have been created to love and to be loved.
Saint Teresa of Calcutta
