He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them; and his mother kept all these things in her heart. Luke 2:51
Many of the images of Mary through the ages in religious art and devotional writing portray her as if she were on a pedestal. For me, the emphasis on her stainless perfection can obscure her very real humanness. What touches me deeply is not so much the fact that hers was an immaculate heart, but that hers was a heart that reflected, gathered and kept “all these things.” Today’s verse, after searching and finding Jesus, was the second time Luke used the phrase she “kept all these things in her heart.” The first time was in Bethlehem after the shepherds came reporting what the angels had said. She kept close within her times of stunning joy and great anxiety. I feel encouraged by her company as I hold within me poignant moments in my own life, vivid times of joy and fear, moments that are backlit by mystery. I am “heartened” by her great heart.
Patricia Livingston
Originally published July 2, 2011
