It is a great consolation to remember that she is our Mother, especially in these times in which we live. As members of a materially wealthy and spiritually impoverished society — in a world of so much confusion, so much danger, so much suffering — we find it increasingly difficult to distract ourselves from the desperate circumstances of the moment and the unknown future that looms before us. We are living on the edge of chaos, with war so much closer that we realize, and with political leadership that gives little evidence of wisdom (and all too much evidence of foolishness).
It is ultimately a blessing to be drawn up so close to the crisis, in that our hearts are shaken and we must recognize our need for Someone greater than our hearts, to whom we can turn and cry out for the wisdom we cannot give ourselves, the path forward we cannot see, the tasks and the endurance we are called to in these days, in the face of turmoil beyond our understanding (but not beyond the goodness and mercy of the One who sustains us and draws us to Himself). It is a special consolation to know in these times the closeness of Mother Mary and the tenderness of her maternal love that remembers everyone, and mysteriously accompanies us even in the darkest and most terrifying moments, when we feel most alone and defenseless. She carries us into the Heart of her Son, Jesus.
For some of our brothers and sisters, the particular nightmare of open war or other degrading forms of violence is already a dreadful daily experience. We pray especially for them today, and we fast — we freely make sacrifices that create space within our bodily persons to remember God, and to draw closer in solidarity to our suffering brothers and sisters.