Love's Pure Light

I love icons. They are works of great beauty, drawing the one gazing upon them into the mysteries they contain. Icons remind us that the holy one written into them is a reality encountered during our prayer. We have many icons in our house, a constant reminder of being surrounded by Jesus, Mary, angels, and “a great cloud of witnesses” who are looking upon us, as we look upon them. (Hebrews 12:1) There is a saying that the eyes are the window of the soul, so it is feasible to say that as we look into the eyes of the holy one written upon the icon, we are entering into deeper relationship with them. It was in praying with one of my icons that the following questions arose: What would it have been like for Mary (and Joseph) to be with, and therefore gaze upon, Jesus during their lives together? * What was it like to experience His loving gaze every day? What would it have been like to know that every time they looked into Jesus’ eyes, they were looking into the eyes of the Almighty, the Living God? And the most important question of all: Do we ever think of looking into the eyes of God or that we could experience something like what Mary and Jesus did as they looked upon one another? 

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An excellent way to enter into these questions is to reflect upon Mary while meeting her in prayer. That is, ask her to tell you what her experience of living with Jesus was like. A great place to begin is with the Gospels. Though he does not use the term, Luke gives witness in his Gospel to the Immaculate Conception of Mary: at the time of the Annunciation the archangel Gabriel proclaimed in his greeting that Mary was full of grace, something which in her humility, seemed to have surprised her. The angel had also told her that this child was the Son of God. That is, Mary knew who Jesus was His entire life. We can rightly say, then, that every time she looked into her Son’s eyes, Mary knew she was looking into the eyes of God. While she did not understand everything about Him, in her humility and purity she would have recognized the Love that returned her gaze. Put spiritually, daily the purest mother gazed into pure Love’s eyes. **

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The beauty of Love also emanated from Mary, the Immaculate Mother. (Luke 1: 26-38) The moment she was overshadowed by the Holy Spirit she was ‘infused’ with Love’s pure light within her womb and as she gazed outward, it must have radiated. Luke infers this through his description of the Visitation: Mary’s cousin Elizabeth recognized and responded to the light within Mary, exclaiming, “Most blessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?” And then, “…the moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy.” (Luke 1:42-44) Therefore, we can look at Mary as a prism who refracted the light of the One she carried within. 

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Accordingly, it is reasonable to say that when we go to prayer, we, too, enter into this gaze. In pondering who Mary is and how she refracted the Light and Love of God as a mother, a wife, a friend, and a ‘mentor’ to the apostles during her life on earth and in her continuing role as Queen of Heaven, we can enter into it. In every reported apparition since she was assumed into Heaven, Mary is seen bathed in light or emanating the light of holiness and purity, which of course, is the light of Heaven. When artists and iconographers depict Mary and all the holy ones with a halo it is because they reflect the light of God. And therefore, as we spend time with Mary and with the Lord, as we enter into their gaze, we can begin to take that light within our hearts so we might refract the light of God as well. That is, we will grow in holiness. Love’s light cannot be contained, especially when it originates in the Light of the Eternal One in Heaven. 

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As we prepare for Lent, perhaps we can consider the last question posed at the start of this reflection: do we think of entering into God’s gaze or that we can enter into the same gaze as that between Mary and Jesus? One way to do this is to put our reflection into the context of Lent by praying with the Gospel readings from daily and weekend Masses, or when praying the Rosary or Stations of the Cross, and most especially while meditating on the mysteries of Holy Week. With Mary we can look into the eyes of Jesus and invite Him to look into our eyes as He rides into Jerusalem on a donkey, at the Last Supper as He washes the feet of the apostles (and ours!), as He hears the crowd yell, “crucify Him,” as He carries the cross, and as He is dying upon it. We can observe Jesus and His mother as they gaze upon one another, and we can be as Mary and John the apostle, gazing into one another’s eyes after Jesus says, “Behold, your son” and again, “Behold, your mother.” (John 19:26-27) *** But let’s do more than simply observe: let’s enter into His eyes, the eyes that are filled with compassion, mercy, forgiveness, and healing. In a word, let us be immersed in love.  

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May we begin to discern the ways we will enter into so great a mystery in accompanying Jesus and Mary this Lent! May we respond to God’s invitation to enter into His loving gaze! And may we refract the Light of Love, the gift of grace! Let us meet in the Light of Jesus and Mary! Peace!

                          ©Michele L. Catanese

* First, I am speaking spiritually here; this is not meant to forget that Jesus was fully human and fully God. Understand that in all the instances in which I say “looking into the eyes of God” it is always being implied that Jesus is fully human as well as fully God. Second, here is much that can be said of Joseph, but I am limiting my comments to Mary for this entry.
** The beginning of the life of Jesus was anything but ordinary for the Holy Parents. Magi, a star, rejoicing angels, shepherds, the prophets Simeon and Anna, running for their lives from Herod, living in exile, and angels indicating what they were to do in leaving Bethlehem and returning to Israel by settling back in Nazareth: hardly an ordinary beginning at all. But after those first few years, their lives were ordinary in every way until Jesus began His public ministry. 

Finally, a note on prayer: we don’t often pray “between the lines” of Scripture. That is, we know it is important to pray with the Scripture passages as they were written, since every word does have significance. But occasionally it is also good to prayerfully consider what it may have been like in ordinary, daily experiences beyond the Gospel scenes. That is, in allowing the Holy Spirit to lead, we can (and should) use our imagination in the context of prayerful reflection. For example, I have suggested imagining what it was like for Mary to look into the eyes of her Son: you could imagine their eyes meeting as she looks at Jesus while He makes a chair with Joseph, or as they eat a meal, or in whatever context you think would have been ordinary in their lives.

Images:
1. Icon; Christ All Merciful, by Fr. William Hart McNichols. If you wish to purchase a copy of this icon (or any of Fr. Bill's other icons of Jesus, Mary, or a saint), you can find it at https://fineartamerica.com/featured/christ-all-merciful-022-william-hart-mcnichols.html. You can access his personal website here: https://frbillmcnichols-sacredimages.com/
2. Fresco painting; The Annunciation by Blessed Fra Angelico. There are many paintings and artists I love, but this is my all-time, #1 favorite.
3. My photo; Moon over Lago (Lake) Maggiore, taken in Baveno, Italy. 
4. Painting; The Sower, by Vincent van Gogh. The light makes this painting come to life. Everything depicted is made more beautiful and vibrant because of his usage of light.
5. My photo; Rosary and Bible.
6. My photo; Sunset on water, taken in Ortigia, Siracusa, Sicily.

Note: In compliance with GDPR rules, I wish to make it clear that I do not gather any information on any of my readers at any time. 

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