Notes on Our Lady While Sick in Bed

Which ones? The standard mantilla-and-long-dress modesty standards of, say, Italy? A woman from the 1950s United States who realized she forgot her pillbox hat and wore her husband’s fedora or a folded bulletin on her head for the liturgy? Catholic Inuit women who have always worn trousers, even in the 1950s? And what do you mean by “at least the 1950s?” Would you be more pleased if she went back further in time? What about in the first century AD when everyone wore robes without underpants, and men and women were baptized in the nude?

Must be open to either a certain kind of Traditional Latin Mass (I can explain later) or Eastern Divine Liturgy. Love of the truth and open to the idea of conspiracy and deception of the Masses. 

Well, which is it? Do you love the truth or are you open to conspiracy and deception of the Masses? Or did you mean “masses,” lowercase, lots of people, and not trying to pull one over on the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass?

Speaking of which, it’s not called a “traditional Latin Mass.” I’ve written about this before. It’s called the Tridentine Mass or the Tridentine Liturgy or the Extraordinary Form of the Latin Rite. I could even handle it if you called it The Missal of Saint Pius the Fifth (although you’re supposed to be using the revision issued under John XXIII).  Since every liturgy, be it Ordinary or Extraordinary form Latin Rite Liturgy, the Divine Liturgy of Saint John Chrysosotom or the Divine Liturgy of Saint Basil or whatever other valid liturgy, is a liturgy that arises from a certain tradition, you’re expressing nothing. It’s tautology, like saying “tuna fish” and “morning sunrise.”
And while we’re on the subject, the Divine Liturgy is not a form of larping for conspiracy theorist Latin Catholics – in fact lots of people who use that liturgy aren’t even in communion with Rome. It’s worship, not a fancy new method to signal that you’re better than people who like the Novus Ordo. Come to it as worship. Come with attention and reverence. Come because you like the aesthetics (it is sublimely beautiful), or because it helps you concentrate better on the prayers than the Latin liturgy does, or because you want to see what it’s like. But for mercy’s sake, don’t come because it’s “traditional” in a way that other liturgies aren’t.  Nothing good can come of that.

I am both dreading and curious about the parenthetical “I can explain later.”

Someone who sees the good in me, trusts my spiritual leadership and loves me for it. I tend to be attracted to ladies who have at least investigated religious life.

I am not available to play The Sound of Music with you, young man. No way Josie. It isn’t Marian.

I quickly tired of the Catholic dating website discussion and went back to Tetris.

Maybe there’s a way that we can all be Marian– not as the conspiracy theorist suitor on the dating website thinks of Mary, perhaps, but by the grace of God we can all be Marian.

The most compelling thing to me, about Our Lady, is the way she exemplified perfect love in any situation. And she found herself in a lot of situations. Tradition tells us that she grew up in the temple, did her duty there and was perfectly loving, in the temple. Then she left and was perfectly loving, as the wife of Joseph. She loved perfectly, as a temporarily homeless person forced to give birth in a cave in overcrowded Bethlehem. Then they fled for their lives, fugitives and refugees headed for the border under cover of darkness, and Our Lady loved perfectly as a fugitive and a refugee. She loved perfectly as a disciple, a bereaved mother and the mother of the risen Christ. She does so now as the Queen of Heaven.

It seems to me, the way to be Marian is not to take on the dramatic persona of a deified June Cleaver– which is fortunate, because most of us can’t do that. I sure can’t, not when I’m sick in bed all the time.

I think that the true way to be Marian is to love perfectly, wherever life takes you. Strive to love perfectly as a mother, and you will be Marian. Strive to love perfectly as a friend, and you will be Marian. Make perfect love your goal as you work, in whatever capacity you work, and you will be Marian in your work. Love perfectly whether it’s your vocation to make pecan rolls, instruct in the making of pecan rolls or watch annoying videos about pecan rolls. Love, even if you’re stuck bed playing Tetris a week out of every month. I don’t think you’ll look like a traditionalist conspiracy theorist’s idea of the Blessed Mother, but you will be Marian.

That’s my insight for the day.

Now I’m just going to go back to watching recipes online. Actually I’ve already started.

(image via Pixabay)