Mary and the Evangelical Counsel: Poverty, Chastity, and Obedience
Most Catholic institutes of consecrated life around the world embrace Mary as a prototype of life, spirituality, and a model of service. Throughout the centuries, there have been numerous testimonies, and the Magisterium has encouraged consecrated persons to live more intensely this dimension, which becomes indispensable to their spirituality in all aspects of their mission.In the post-conciliar society, especially in contemporary times, there is a need to re-examine all the immutable traditions of the past. While it challenges the multi-centennial stability of the Church, it also presents an opportunity, as it places mariology in a line of re-thinking, discussing Marian references that should correspond to real images of the Virgin, not merely within the realm of disillusionment.
In the communities in spiritual progress, it is a shared heritage that the bond with Mary is a fundamental presence. This panorama of Mary in the lives of those who live the evangelical counsels has been the focus of the Magisterium in recent decades. A living out of Mary’s mystery is not merely a mystical experience of which we have few historical records, but it is a presence that expresses, communicates, and performs maternal functions, introducing into the mystery of God that accompanies mystical life, as well as a temporal dimension throughout history.In the life of the evangelical counsels, we find an existential mariology. It is common to find Marian events in the foundations of various forms of Christian life. This presence of Mary leads to the conclusion that the Mother is contemporary to us in all the religious choices of the consecrated.To understand the meaning of this fact, we must turn to mariology, as contemporary existential theology of consecrated life has offered new insights into Mary’s identity. The first observation is that Mary is not merely a historical or archaeological Christian figure, but a mysterious presence in the contemporary Church. Mary offers a feminine perspective on the contemplation of God’s mystery in consecrated life, helping us understand a unique form of vocation in community life, mission, consecration, and spirituality.Our postmodern and globalized era is rediscovering this Marian presence, which begins to be renewed, especially through liturgy. The Mystery of Salvation is deconstructing and reconstructing the foundational mariological substratum, grounded in the sources of revelation and Church tradition, linking it to developments in Christology, pneumatology, ecclesiology, and anthropology.Today, the evangelical counsels are capable of assimilating the Christian into the type of virgin and poor life embraced by the Mother of Jesus. Mary’s life is a teaching for all, and her intercession will foster this way of life. Pope Paul VI, in *Evangelica Testificatio*, proposes Mary as our example and intercessor, presenting Mary’s life, united to Jesus’ coming, as the foundation for life in consecrated celibacy. Pope John Paul II, in *Redemptionis Donum*, presents Mary as the first and most fully consecrated to God. She is virgin, and her espousal-virgin love is fertilized by divine motherhood through the work of the Holy Spirit. She is stripped both in Bethlehem and on the Cross, always obeying with steadfast fidelity as Mother of the evangelical life. This is the Marian paradigm of consecrated life.The instruction from the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life since the Council to the present has been to present Mary as the woman who receives the Word of God within herself, who conceives him in full fidelity, first in her spirit and then in her womb. She was, for her faith and charity, the example of a contemplative and venerable ancient tradition that applied to her in sacred liturgy these words from the Gospel: Mary chose the better part. Of course, the contemplative and ecclesial aspect of Mary’s action and presence was also a strong element to consider.Regarding the devotional dimension towards the Mother of God, we find this aspect as an integral part of a need for deeper understanding. Many consecrated persons have never received solid formation regarding the charism in which they live, much less mariology, leading to a life where heart and intellect are not united. In this sense, Saint John Paul II, in 1999, in his Apostolic Exhortation *Vita Consecrata*, summarized the relationship between Mary and the life of evangelical consecrated persons thus: Mary in the Cenacle is a living image of the Church Bride, without spot or wrinkle, attentive to the signs of the Spouse and ready to receive the gift of the Spirit. Mary is the virgin who listens, prays, contemplates the Passion, standing at the foot of the Cross. In her, religious and religious sisters will find the sure way that guides and strengthens the contemplative dimension of their lives. Mary is the perfect consecrated one from her Immaculate Conception. She reflects God’s beauty, is the closest to Jesus, together with Joseph. She responds to God with a full and unconditional dedication. Mary teaches that every mission begins with the same attitude she had in the Annunciation: “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be done to me according to your word” (Lk 1:38).In reality, the consecrated life follows her example and places itself at the service of the divine plan in the total donation of themselves. Mary’s example meets human needs and leads to the divinization of Jesus present among us.
Within the mariological sense of evangelical consecrated persons, how is poverty, chastity, and obedience contemplated in Mary? And in what part of her life can we see the living out of these counsels?To deepen the relationship of Mary with the evangelical counsels, consult Saint John Paul II’s Encyclical *Redemptoris Mater* on Mary as a model of evangelical life and discipleship.
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In the communities in spiritual progress, it is a shared heritage that the bond with Mary is a fundamental presence. This panorama of Mary in the lives of those who live the evangelical counsels has been the focus of the Magisterium in recent decades. A living out of Mary’s mystery is not merely a mystical experience of which we have few historical records, but it is a presence that expresses, communicates, and performs maternal functions, introducing into the mystery of God that accompanies mystical life, as well as a temporal dimension throughout history.In the life of the evangelical counsels, we find an existential mariology. It is common to find Marian events in the foundations of various forms of Christian life. This presence of Mary leads to the conclusion that the Mother is contemporary to us in all the religious choices of the consecrated.To understand the meaning of this fact, we must turn to mariology, as contemporary existential theology of consecrated life has offered new insights into Mary’s identity. The first observation is that Mary is not merely a historical or archaeological Christian figure, but a mysterious presence in the contemporary Church. Mary offers a feminine perspective on the contemplation of God’s mystery in consecrated life, helping us understand a unique form of vocation in community life, mission, consecration, and spirituality.Our postmodern and globalized era is rediscovering this Marian presence, which begins to be renewed, especially through liturgy. The Mystery of Salvation is deconstructing and reconstructing the foundational mariological substratum, grounded in the sources of revelation and Church tradition, linking it to developments in Christology, pneumatology, ecclesiology, and anthropology.Today, the evangelical counsels are capable of assimilating the Christian into the type of virgin and poor life embraced by the Mother of Jesus. Mary’s life is a teaching for all, and her intercession will foster this way of life. Pope Paul VI, in *Evangelica Testificatio*, proposes Mary as our example and intercessor, presenting Mary’s life, united to Jesus’ coming, as the foundation for life in consecrated celibacy. Pope John Paul II, in *Redemptionis Donum*, presents Mary as the first and most fully consecrated to God. She is virgin, and her espousal-virgin love is fertilized by divine motherhood through the work of the Holy Spirit. She is stripped both in Bethlehem and on the Cross, always obeying with steadfast fidelity as Mother of the evangelical life. This is the Marian paradigm of consecrated life.The instruction from the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life since the Council to the present has been to present Mary as the woman who receives the Word of God within herself, who conceives him in full fidelity, first in her spirit and then in her womb. She was, for her faith and charity, the example of a contemplative and venerable ancient tradition that applied to her in sacred liturgy these words from the Gospel: Mary chose the better part. Of course, the contemplative and ecclesial aspect of Mary’s action and presence was also a strong element to consider.Regarding the devotional dimension towards the Mother of God, we find this aspect as an integral part of a need for deeper understanding. Many consecrated persons have never received solid formation regarding the charism in which they live, much less mariology, leading to a life where heart and intellect are not united. In this sense, Saint John Paul II, in 1999, in his Apostolic Exhortation *Vita Consecrata*, summarized the relationship between Mary and the life of evangelical consecrated persons thus: Mary in the Cenacle is a living image of the Church Bride, without spot or wrinkle, attentive to the signs of the Spouse and ready to receive the gift of the Spirit. Mary is the virgin who listens, prays, contemplates the Passion, standing at the foot of the Cross. In her, religious and religious sisters will find the sure way that guides and strengthens the contemplative dimension of their lives. Mary is the perfect consecrated one from her Immaculate Conception. She reflects God’s beauty, is the closest to Jesus, together with Joseph. She responds to God with a full and unconditional dedication. Mary teaches that every mission begins with the same attitude she had in the Annunciation: “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be done to me according to your word” (Lk 1:38).In reality, the consecrated life follows her example and places itself at the service of the divine plan in the total donation of themselves. Mary’s example meets human needs and leads to the divinization of Jesus present among us.Within the mariological sense of evangelical consecrated persons, how is poverty, chastity, and obedience contemplated in Mary? And in what part of her life can we see the living out of these counsels?To deepen the relationship of Mary with the evangelical counsels, consult Saint John Paul II’s Encyclical *Redemptoris Mater* on Mary as a model of evangelical life and discipleship.Deepen your studies: explore Mariology, Marian Theology, Marian Apparitions, and a Postgraduate Degree in Mariology.
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