The Marian mysteries are about Mary in her relationship with Jesus. They follow Jesus closely; they are about Mary's role in the salvation history of her Son. They are about Jesus from Mary's point of view or perspective. I have a sister who kept a diary for years of her experiences with her son, from conception to adulthood. The Marian mysteries are Mary's diary, they are what Mary silently and secretly kept in her heart. (Luke 2:16-21)
I do not pretend to say indirectly that Mary is a co-redeemer, a dogma that the Pope John Paul II thought of instituting. Mary is at the service of salvation history although her role is more important than any of the 12 apostles, for she was and is a mediator of all graces and therefore of the main grace which is the coming of Christ into the world. This, however, does not make her a co-redeemer next to her son. She herself was redeemed, only that her redemption began earlier at her Immaculate Conception. If she was redeemed, then she cannot be a redeemer.
Despite her very important role in the salvation history, Mary was not indispensable, not then and not now. If she had answered ‘no’ to the angel, God would have thought of another person or another way of incarnating into humanity, for nothing is impossible for Him, as the same angel said to Mary. Only one person was and is indispensable in the history of humanity: Jesus of Nazareth.
To those who laugh at me or question who am I to create these mysteries, "you are not the pope or even a bishop", I answer that the Holy Spirit is democratic, He does not respect ecclesiastical hierarchies, He blows where and on whom He wants (John 3:8). The copyright of the Holy Spirit belongs to no one. After all, there has been times when He has come very well into the Church through lay people, and not so well through popes and clerics.
The 12 Marian Mysteries
A great portent appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. She was pregnant and was crying out in birth pangs, in the agony of giving birth. Then another portent appeared in heaven: a great red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns, and seven diadems on his heads.
His tail swept down a third of the stars of heaven and threw them to the earth. Then the dragon stood before the woman who was about to bear a child, so that he might devour her child as soon as it was born who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron. But her child was snatched away and taken to God and to his throne… Revelation 12:1-5
We already have mysteries in the holy Rosary that are purely and technically Marian, the first three Joyful and the last two Glorious. In fact, the first time the Marian mysteries came to my mind, it was precisely these five, recited on Saturdays, the day especially consecrated to our heavenly Mother. Later, seven others came to my mind, seven being a perfect number in the Bible and then finally 12 in total, inspired by the woman in the book of Revelation.
The twelve stars on Mary’ crown represent the 12 tribes of Israel, the 12 apostles, the new Israel, the Church, the 12 contributions to the history of redemption of Jesus Christ, her son according to the flesh. Mary is crowned with these twelve stars, twelve attributes, twelve jewels of the redemption of mankind.
What are these twelve mysteries?
1. We contemplate the Immaculate Conception and the Birth of the Virgin Mary.
Mary is the new Eve, as Christ is the new Adam, that is, man and woman as God conceived them before sin. Sin is not part of the original nature of the human being. Therefore, when God the Father thought of sending his Son into the world, He could not be born from man’s altered sinful nature, but from the original nature in which He created him. The Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary is also the beginning of Mary's redemption, as it is for us at our baptism.
2. We contemplate the Angel's Annunciation to the Most Blessed Virgin Mary.
Common with the first Joyful mystery, but which, as we said, is purely Marian. The Angel Gabriel is the herald of the New Age that is about to begin. God is going to visit his people again, as he did in Egypt, but this time the deliverance is more spiritual than physical and more encompassing, that is, not only for his people, but for all peoples. The dream and prophecy of Isaiah become a reality.
3. We contemplate the Visitation of the Virgin Mary.
From being with God and with oneself, to being with one’s neighbour, this is the life of the Christian that Mary exemplifies very well throughout her life. As soon as she heard that her cousin needed her help, she got up and left her pleasant contemplation of the divine, her peace and quietude, to go and take care of the needs of others. From the time Mary visited her cousin, she has not stopped visiting us whenever we are in need: Guadalupe, Lourdes, Fatima and so many others, are all proofs that Mary knows about our lives and what we need in due time.
4. We contemplate Mary giving birth to Jesus.
The Joyful Mystery speaks of the birth of Jesus, forgetting who gave birth to him. Contemplating the birth of Jesus without contemplating the one who gave birth to him is, to me, a somewhat Protestant formulation of this mystery. Not least because the protagonist of Christmas is Mary, not Jesus, from a grammatical point of view: Jesus is given birth to, Mary gives birth.
5. We contemplate Simeon's Prophecy about Mary.
Except for "A virgin shall conceive and bear a son" (Isaiah 7:14), all the prophecies are about Jesus. The prophet Simeon prophesies about Jesus, but also about his mother. Jesus' coming into the world came at a price and part of that price was paid by his mother who suffered for Him, from the conception of her son until his death.
6. We consider the life of the Holy Family.
The second person of the Most Holy Trinity was already part of a family in Heaven; on earth he is also part of a family: Mary, Jesus himself and his adoptive father Joseph. The human being is a social being because he is a familiar being; outside the family, there is no human life. The divine family of the Holy Trinity is certainly a model for humanity, but it is far from us. In Jesus, the Most Holy Trinity establishes in the world a family to be a model of love and harmony for our families.
7. We contemplate Mary’s Mediation at the wedding in Cana of Galilee.
Mary launches her son into life, not holding him back for herself, as many mothers selfishly do. She initiates him into his public life when Jesus was thinking of starting later. Jesus gives in to his mother's request as he always gives in to any of her requests. In this mystery, Mary becomes the mediator of all the graces given by her son, she who was already the mediator of salvation, because the saviour of the world came to us through her.
8. We contemplate the Motherhood and Discipleship of Mary.
Mary is a mother because she is a disciple, she heard the word and put it into practice. According to the gospel, we too can be part of Jesus’ intimate family, his brothers and sisters, if like her when we hear the word and put it into practice.
9. We contemplate Mary who becomes our mother at the foot of the cross of her son.
Jesus always took care of his mother, and at the end of his life he made sure that she would not be like the widow of Nain, for not even the widow of Nain was left alone without her son. On the other hand, Christ who had already given us everything, also gave us his mother, so that she would also be ours forever on earth as well as in heaven.
10. We contemplate Mary who becomes the mother of the Church at Pentecost.
Already our mother, Mary as an expert in things of the Holy Spirit, for through him she conceived, she becomes the mother of the Church, mother of Jesus’ disciples, the instructor in things of the Holy Spirit, a catechist of the Holy Spirit, and prepares the Church for Pentecost and the disciples for their Confirmation.
11. We contemplate the Dormition and Assumption of Mary.
This is the second last glorious mystery that in itself is already Marian, because it is exclusively about Mary, even though it is through Jesus that she ascends to Heaven in body and soul, not by her own merits in any way.
12. We contemplate the Coronation of Mary as Queen of Heaven and Earth.
The Queen Mother is a beloved figure in all monarchies; Saint Helena was the queen mother who greatly influenced her son, Constantine. If Jesus is King of the Universe, then Mary is the Queen of Heaven and Earth.
Conclusion
As the Mysteries -- Joyful, Luminous, Sorrowful and Glorious -- are not only about Jesus, so the Marian Mysteries are not only about Mary. The lives of Jesus and Mary are interwoven together like the two backbone strands of DNA. The Marian Mysteries tell how the life of Jesus spills into the life of Mary.
Fr. Jorge Amaro, IMC
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