I Believe in Mothers

I believe “he came down from heaven, and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary, and became man.”

 “I am the mother of fair love, and fear, and knowledge, and holy hope: I therefore, being eternal, am given to all my children who are named by Him.” (Sirach 24:18) 

On my first trip to visit my Abuela’s native homeland of Puerto Rico, I noticed a particular image of the Virgin Mary that seemed to be featured all over the island. This, of course, was the image of Our Lady of Divine Providence. This is the aspect of The Divine Mother which has been crowned as patroness of the island for centuries. The image show the Child Jesus lying in a deep sleep upon the knees of the Divine Mother. 

Every muscle in His body is completely relaxed as though the Divine Child is melting into the lap of His Mother. He is sleeping and calm because His Mother takes care of Him, as She takes care of all living beings, so we can also be at peace in the hands of our Mother.

This trip was also my first time traveling on my own without my own earthly mother who couldn’t make the trip, a big feat for me as a person with an anxious brain. Yet no matter where I went on the island, the Heavenly Mother seemed to meet me in Her form of Our Lady of Divine Providence. It was as though She  was saying to me, “believe in Me, have faith in Me and imitate your Divine Teacher who rests in My lap without a care in the world.” 

The Puerto Rican people have looked to this aspect of Our Lady as their patroness in time of trials. Through hurricanes and the earthquakes and the difficult moments Puerto Ricans have turned to Her for refuge, accepting with enthusiasm Her call to imitate Her Son and repose upon Her lap of love. This lent, as we are going through our own turbulent times here in the states, I invite us all to believe in the message of Our Lady of Divine Providence, to rest in Her Motherly embrace and trust that somehow She and Her Son will work it all out.