A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke
When Jesus’ parents saw him, they were astonished, and his mother said to him, “Son, why have you done this to us? Your father and I have been looking for you with great anxiety.” And he said to them, “Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” But they did not understand what he said to them.
The readings from today’s Memorial of the Immaculate Heart of Mary point to reconciliation with God, his kindness and mercy, and the unity of Jesus with his parents and with God the Father. In the Gospel, Mary and Joseph go with Jesus to Jerusalem for the feast of the Passover. Drawn to the temple, his Father’s house, Jesus stays behind after the festival is over. Not finding him in the caravan, they return to Jerusalem and three days later find Jesus in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking questions. Luke tells us that Jesus returned with his parents, obedient to them, and his mother kept all these things in her heart.
God, what great anxiety Mary and Joseph must have felt in losing Jesus. After their return home to Nazareth, Mary must have grown deeper in her faith as she pondered the depth of her son’s understanding of you, his Father. Knowing who Jesus was and how he would accomplish your will, what is natural is that he would desire to be with you in the temple. Yet, on losing their young son, Mary and Joseph doubtless must have looked back on his infancy and childhood, wishing to draw him close to them at home in Nazareth. Give me the grace, God, to seek your Son; help me have the same love for your Son as Mary and Joseph did, reconciled to you through him, and anxious always to make a place for him in my home.
From the Gospel acclamation: “Blessed is the Virgin Mary who kept the word of God and pondered it in her heart.” Immaculate Heart of Mary, pray for us!
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.