Apocalypse 11:19; 12:1-6, 10 / 1 Cor 15:20-26 / Luke 1:39-56
Between the Catholic Church and the other Christian churches, there are many similarities as well as quite a few differences.
At least in terms of identification, we call ourselves the Catholic Church, and maybe more specifically, the Roman Catholic Church.
In the Chinese language, the Roman Catholic Church is called 天主教, whereas the other Christian churches are called 基督教.
But for the ordinary people who may not be that familiar with such terms, they have their own way of identifying Catholic and Christian churches.
One day, I was at the Mandai Crematorium to do a funeral service. I was early, and so I sat on the bench.
A cleaner came along, and we greeted each other, and he sat down and we had a short chit-chat.
He asked me which church am I from, because I was wearing a cassock.
So, I told him that I was from the church in Ang Mo Kio Avenue 8, the church next to the petrol station.
We were speaking in Chinese, and before I could tell him that it is a Roman Catholic Church, (天主教), he said in Chinese, "啊, 耶稣妈妈的教堂," meaning “Jesus' mother's church”.
For a moment, I was somewhere between amazed and astounded, and then I said, “Ahh …, correct, correct."
So, for some people, they know the Catholic Church as “Jesus' mother's church”, maybe because we have a deep devotion to Mary.
Whatever it may be, we should not be too amazed or astounded by that term, “Jesus' mother's church”.
Because in the Gospel passage, Elizabeth, who was filled with the Holy Spirit, exclaimed this:
"Of all women, you are the most blessed, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. Why should I be honored with a visit from the mother of my Lord?"
That term, that phrase, "the mother of my Lord," already says who Mary is, that she is the mother of Jesus and that she is also the Mother of God.
But we are also clear that Mary is not a goddess or deity.
Mary is the mother of Jesus, and she is also our mother because on the Cross, Jesus said this: "Behold, your mother."
Jesus said that in the imperative, meaning that it is a command and not an option or suggestion.
And we would also gladly call Mary our mother.
We have experienced her powerful intercession for us, which says much about her motherly love and care for us.
And we also honour and venerate her with the prayer of the Rosary, which is by far, the most recognizable form of prayer in the Catholic Church.
It is a simple and humble prayer, and it also expresses the spirituality of Mary.
In her praise of God, she acknowledged that God has looked upon her in her lowly state, and hence all generations will call her blessed.
And Mary is using the Rosary prayer and also the Rosary beads to show how God is doing a great thing for her and through her.
Well, at least from the Hail Mary prayer, there is this unofficial but often prayed car-park prayer, and it goes like this: "Hail Mary, full of grace, help me find a parking space."
We will be amazed at how quickly we will find a parking lot.
And if there are non-Catholic friends in the car, they will be amazed too. This is called evangelization on wheels.
A friend was sharing with me that on National Day, as she was watching the parade, her niece came over to join her.
After a while, the niece asked her, "What is the Hail Mary?" because her classmate, who is a Catholic, prayed the Hail Mary while preparing for exams.
So, my friend brought out the Rosary beads and told her about Mary's intercessory role and that she prays for all of us.
A few days later, her niece called her to say that she was in a taxi, and she saw the driver wearing a rosary bracelet.
When she asked him what it was, he simply told her, in Chinese, that it was “耶 稣 妈 妈 的 念 珠”, meaning “Jesus' mother's prayer beads”, which is, the Rosary.
So, whether it is “Jesus' mother's church” or “Jesus' mother's prayer beads”, as we celebrate the Feast of the Assumption, we thank God for Mary, our mother.
And from heaven, Mary continues to pray for us as we continue our earthly journey.
Mary believed that God will fulfil His promises to her, and indeed He did.
God will also fulfil His promises to us.
May Mary pray for us that we will continue to be faithful to God and believe in His promises, whether we are having a chit-chat with someone, or looking for a parking lot, or preparing exams, or sitting in taxi.
God is fulfilling His promises during these moments and at every moment of our lives.