“As a mother comforts her child, so I will comfort you…” – Isaiah 66:13
A few months ago my sister gave birth to her first child; my first niece, and the first grandchild for my parents. It has been neat to watch my sister and brother-in-law take on the task of parenting. There are many obvious joys and some definite challenges that come with caring for a newborn baby. All in all, it is a beautiful reflection of God’s love.
In fact, there are many parallels between the love that Christ demonstrates on the Cross and the love that parents, particularly mothers, show to their children. The Cross is all about self-sacrifice, and few other things are more sacrificial than waking up during the middle of the night to change a diaper or nurse a hungry infant. Parenting also involves financial sacrifice and the setting aside of previous hobbies and personal schedules.
Yet, the comparisons run deeper still. Giving birth to a child involves a great deal of agony and pain. Women can labor for hours before delivering the child. Sometimes, they even die in the process. It should not be surprising, therefore, that Jesus Christ underwent immense suffering, and ultimately died, to deliver us from death and bring us to new life.
Giving birth is a messy ordeal. There is broken water. There is blood. There are shouts of pain. And the Crucifixion was messy too. Imagine His anguished cries. Picture the blood seeping from His hands and feet. Behold the water gushing forth from His broken heart and pierced side. We are born again by being baptized in this Font of Life.
This beautiful result is worth all the pain. Yet, new life must continue to be sustained. And herein lies the most incredible mystery of all – a mother can feed her child with her own body. She, and only she, can satisfy her child’s hunger and help him grow to full maturity. Likewise, our Lord gave us the gift of the Eucharist. He feeds us with His very own flesh, and He offers us His body as our bread. He continually nourishes the new life within us, as He alone can do.
So, thanks be to God for His great love, which we see so vividly reflected by parents, especially mothers. Let’s continue to imitate them and lay down our lives out of love for one another.
Merciful Father, draw us ever deeper into communion with you and the Holy Spirit, through your Son, Who is the Spring of Salvation and the Bread of Life. Amen.
