On the feast of Our Lady of Fatima, Pope Leo XIV reflected on the Blessed Virgin Mary as the perfect example of the Church’s identity and mission, urging Catholics to deepen their love for the Church through her example and intercession.
Speaking during his Wednesday General Audience in St. Peter’s Square, the Pope continued his catechesis on the documents of the Second Vatican Council, focusing on Lumen gentium, the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church. According to Vatican News, the Holy Father emphasized that the Church can look to Mary as “the representation of their origin, their model and their homeland.”
“The mystery of the Church is also reflected in the Virgin Mary,” Pope Leo said, according to Vatican News. He explained that in Mary, the Church sees “the model of virginal faith, maternal charity and the spousal covenant to which she is called.”
The Pope described Mary as the “perfect model of what the Church is called to be,” noting that her complete openness to God’s will and her faithful acceptance of Christ reveal the vocation of every Christian. According to Vatican News, he said Mary was shaped by grace and became “a creature of the Word of the Lord and mother of the children of God, begotten in docility to the action of the Holy Spirit.”
Pope Leo also challenged Catholics to examine their own relationship with the Church and with the Blessed Mother. He invited the faithful to ask themselves difficult spiritual questions, including: “Do I live my participation of the Church with humble and active faith?” and “Do I look to Mary as a model, an outstanding member and Mother of the Church, and ask Her to help me be a faithful disciple of her Son?”
The Holy Father stressed that devotion to Mary always leads believers closer to Jesus Christ. Referring again to Lumen gentium, he reminded the faithful that Christ alone is the mediator of salvation, while Mary lovingly helps draw souls into closer union with Him.
During the catechesis, Pope Leo summarized Mary’s role in three ways: model, member, and mother of the Church. According to Vatican News, he called her “the believer par excellence” because of her complete trust in God and her unwavering openness to the divine mystery.
The Pope also reflected on Mary as “a woman who is the icon of the Mystery.” He explained that the title “woman” points to her real historical life as a daughter of Israel chosen to become the Mother of God, while “icon” reveals how God’s saving plan shines through both His grace and Mary’s faithful response.
“Mary is therefore the woman who is the icon of the Mystery, that is, of the divine plan of salvation, once hidden and now revealed in its fullness in Jesus Christ,” Pope Leo said, according to Vatican News.
Concluding his audience, the Holy Father prayed that the Holy Spirit would increase love for the Church among all believers. “Having reflected deeply on the Constitution Lumen gentium, let us ask the Virgin to obtain this gift for us: that love for the Holy Mother Church may grow in all of us,” he said, according to Vatican News.
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