Commentary of the Gospell

Heart of a Mother

In February 2019, two events took place simultaneously in Rome. One was a meeting at the Vatican on the “Protection of Minors in the Church.” The other was a conference, “The Revolution of Tenderness: The Heart of Mary”, organized by three religious congregations who were Marian in their charisms. A touching observation was made at the conference that it was no coincidence that these two events were happening together: The only solution to the evil of child abuse is to have the tender heart of a mother, of the Mother. At the Protection of Minors meeting, journalist Valentina Alazraki observed that a mother’s heart would always bleed for the weakest children and protect them at any cost. The role of the Church, and by extension, of every member of the Church, is to be such a mother to the “weakest children” of the world: the poor, the sick, the needy, the victims. There is no better model to imitate than the Heart of Mother Mary.