Contemplation in the Heart of Mary for Mission

By Prof. Dr. Daniel C. Afonso · Updated 19 October 2026

The missionary context of Mary’s contemplation

The proclamation of the “Gospel” to the poor: “Be not afraid, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people: today, in the city of David, a Savior has been born for you, who is Christ the Lord” (Lk 2:10-11). “So they went in haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the infant lying in the manger” (Lk 2:16).

The proclamation of the Gospel to all peoples: “We saw his star in the East and have come to worship him” (Mt 2:2). “And on entering the house they saw the child with Mary his mother” (Mt 2:11).

The proclamation of the Gospel in the synagogue of Nazareth: “He came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom, and stood up to read. The book of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Opening it, he found the place where it was written: ‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives’” (Lk 4:16-18). “Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary?” (Mk 6:3).

Mary’s contemplative and missionary attitude

“But Mary kept all these things, pondering them in her heart” (Lk 2:19). “He went down with them to Nazareth and was obedient to them. His mother kept all these things in her heart” (Lk 2:51).

At the Annunciation, Mary adopts an attitude of meditative silence and of openness to God’s plans (Lk 1:29), expressed in fidelity to the divine Word (Lk 1:38). The attitudes expressed in the Magnificat can be summed up in biblical poverty manifested in the form of praise, thanksgiving, and hope (Lk 1:46ff.). Faced with Simeon’s prophetic words, Mary, together with Saint Joseph, proclaims her wonder at God’s designs (Lk 2:33-34). Mary’s contemplative silence (in Bethlehem and in the temple) indicates an attitude of adoration and offering (Lk 2:19; 2:51). Mary’s question upon finding Jesus in the temple will be an occasion for Jesus to refer to the redemptive mystery (the paschal mystery) (Lk 2:48). At Cana, Mary manifests an attitude of supplicating charity or intercession, attuned to the needs of her brothers and sisters, always within the perspective of God’s saving plans (Jn 2:3ff.).

“Before the prayerful reader of the Word of God there ideally rises the figure of Mary, the mother of the Lord, who ‘kept all these things, pondering them in her heart’ (Lk 2:19; cf. 2:51), that is, as the Greek original says, finding the deep bond that unites events, acts, and things, apparently disconnected, in the great divine design” (Final Message of the Synod on the Word, no. 9).

“Dialogue, when it refers to Revelation, implies the primacy of the Word of God addressed to man. Man responds to God in full freedom with the obedience of faith (cf. Rom 1:5; 2 Cor 10:5-6; DV 5). Mary, Mother of Jesus, personifies this obedience of faith in an exemplary way, being also the archetype of the faith of the Church, which listens to and welcomes the Word of God” (Synod of Bishops, Proposition 4: Dialogical Dimension of Revelation).

“Mary, model of lived faith” (TMA 43). “We must imitate the contemplation of Mary, who, after her pilgrimage to the holy city of Jerusalem, returned to her home in Nazareth, pondering in her heart the mystery of her Son (cf. Lk 2:51)” (NMI 59).

An itinerary for unifying the heart: “lectio divina,” Marian dimension. A unified heart that transforms life into a hymn of love and peace (Magnificat: Lk 1:46-55). The joy of belonging to God’s saving designs (Lk 1:46-47). Mary lets herself be surprised by God (cf. Lk 1:29) and makes her life a “yes” (Lk 1:38). Putting nothing before God. Attuned to the needs of her brothers and sisters (Jn 2:3: “they have no more wine”). Attuned to Jesus (Jn 2:5: “do whatever he tells you”). The “woman” associated with Christ the Redeemer (Jn 2:4; Jn 19:26). Mary’s contemplative silence (in Bethlehem and in the temple) indicates an attitude of adoration and offering. An itinerary learned in the Scriptures: “Your word is the joy of my heart” (Jer 15:16). “My portion is to keep your words” (Ps 119:57).

The missionary contemplation of the Church in imitation of Mary

The Church, in her evangelizing mission, finds in Mary an exemplary model of contemplation that impels toward action. Just as Mary meditated on and kept in her heart the mysteries of Christ’s life, the Church is called to contemplate deeply the Word of God and the mysteries of the faith, so that, strengthened and enlightened by this reflection, she may proclaim the Gospel to the world with zeal and fidelity.

Mary’s contemplation did not isolate her, but prepared her for the mission of being Mother of the Redeemer and cooperator in the work of salvation. In the same way, the Church, in contemplating the mysteries of Christ, is called to go out of herself, in mission, bringing the message of salvation to all peoples. Prayer, meditation, and listening to the Word are fundamental so that the Church, like Mary, may discern the will of God and respond with generosity and courage.

Mary, present at all the decisive moments of Christ’s life, from the Annunciation to Pentecost, teaches the Church that true mission is born of contemplation. It is in intimacy with God, in attentive listening, and in prayerful silence that one finds the strength to be a faithful witness to Christ in the world.

Therefore, in imitation of Mary, the Church is called to unite contemplation and action, ensuring that her mission is always rooted in prayer and in deep communion with God, so that she may thus bring salvation to every corner of the Earth.

The missionary contemplation of the Church in imitation of Mary

“The Church, contemplating Mary in the light of the Word made flesh, penetrates with reverence and more deeply into the most high mystery of the Incarnation and becomes ever more conformed to her Spouse” (LG 65). Mary is at the heart of the Church (RMa 27). “May the soul of Mary magnify the Lord in each one of us, may the spirit of Mary rejoice in God in each one of us” (Saint Ambrose). “The Church is the cradle in which Mary places Jesus and entrusts him to the adoration and contemplation of all peoples” (IM 11).

Mary, “Mother through the Church” (RMa 24, LG 65). “The Church learns her own motherhood from Mary” (RMa 43). The Marian apostolate is characterized by attitudes such as fidelity (to the Word, to the Holy Spirit), spousal association with Christ, oblation, and hope.

“Many times in these years I have presented and invoked her as the ‘Star of the new evangelization.’ I continue to point to her as the radiant dawn and sure guide of our journey” (NMI 58).

Therefore, “like the Apostles after Christ’s ascension, the Church must gather in the Upper Room ‘with Mary, the Mother of Jesus’ (Acts 1:14), to implore the Spirit and obtain strength and courage to fulfill the missionary mandate” (RMi 92).

Mary’s presence on the missionary journey of the Church is a continuation of the Gospel event narrated by John after the miracle at Cana: “Jesus performed this first miracle at Cana in Galilee, manifested his glory, and his disciples believed in him. After this, he went down to Capernaum with his mother, his brothers, and his disciples” (Jn 2:11-12). Gospel discipleship, which aims to share the same apostolic life as Christ, is a consequence of Mary’s invitation: “Do whatever he tells you” (Jn 2:5).

According to the conciliar teaching of Vatican II, Mary “precedes” the missionary journey of the Church and “thus, on earth, now shines forth before the pilgrim People of God as a sign of sure hope and of comfort” (LG 68). Therefore, “all the faithful should pour forth insistent prayers to the Mother of God and Mother of men, that she, who aided the beginnings of the Church by her prayers, may now, exalted in heaven, intercede with her Son, until all the families of peoples are happily gathered together into one People of God, for the glory of the most holy and undivided Trinity” (LG 69).

The evangelizing action of the Church possesses and manifests its Marian and maternal reality, for the Church imitates Mary, “who gave birth to Christ, conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin, so that he might be born and grow also in the hearts of the faithful through the Church” (LG 65).

“The Synod, which aims above all to renew the Church’s faith in the Word of God, looks to Mary, the Virgin Mother of the Incarnate Word, who with her ‘yes’ to the Word of the Covenant and to her mission, perfectly fulfills the divine vocation of humanity. The Synod Fathers suggest that the prayer of the Angelus be spread among the faithful as a daily remembrance of the Incarnate Word, as well as the Rosary.

The Church of the New Testament lives wherever the incarnate Word is welcomed, loved, and served in full availability to the Holy Spirit. Mary’s faith develops in the love with which she accompanies the growth and mission of the Incarnate Word. Beneath the cross of her Son, faith and love become the hope with which Mary agrees to become the Mother of the beloved disciple and of redeemed humanity.

Devout and loving attention to the figure of Mary as model and archetype of the faith of the Church is of capital importance for bringing about, also today, a concrete paradigm shift in the Church’s relationship with the Word, both in the attitude of prayerful listening and in the generosity of commitment to mission and proclamation. The Synod Fathers, united with the Holy Father in prayer that the Synod “may bear fruits of authentic renewal in every Christian community” (Benedict XVI, Angelus at Pompeii, October 19, 2008), invite pastors and the faithful to look to Mary and to ask the Holy Spirit for the grace of a living faith in the Word of God made flesh” (Synod of Bishops, Proposition 55: Maria Mater Dei et Mater fidei).

Deepen your studies: explore Mariology, Marian Theology, Marian apparitions, and the Postgraduate Program in Mariology.

Pope John Paul II deepens the contemplative and missionary role of Mary in the encyclical Redemptoris Mater, an essential reference for understanding Mary as a model of the Church.

Deepen your studies: explore Mariology, Marian Theology, Marian apparitions, and the Postgraduate Program in Mariology.