Jesus began His most famous teaching—the Sermon on the Mount—with the Beatitudes. The Beatitudes are a series of characteristics and their corresponding promises.
Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the land.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied.
Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the clean of heart, for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.
Blessed are those who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.// Matthew 5:3-10
Catholic tradition has long understood that the Beatitudes describe Jesus Himself and the characteristics to which His disciples ought to aspire.
His preeminent and most perfect disciple is, of course, His own Mother.
Mary and the Beatitudes
When Jesus first preached on the Beatitudes, He could have been speaking about the woman who bore Him. Our Blessed Mother Mary was the human embodiment of the Kingdom of God on earth. She lived a heavenly reality while walking on earth.
She was poor in spirit, meek, merciful, and pure in heart. She mourned, most fully for the suffering and deaths of her husband and Son. She longed for the righteousness toward which her heart was directed. She sowed peace everywhere she went. As for her persecutions? These quiet swords that pierced her heart will only be totally realized by us in Heaven.
Mary was filled with sanctifying grace; she also learned what it meant to be a disciple by living closely to Jesus for many years. Closeness to Christ is what enables His followers to actually live like Him—to become more like Him.
If the Beatitudes show us the way to live as disciples of Jesus, and Mary lived those perfectly, then we are wise to pay attention to her way of life.
Living with Mary
When we want to learn a new skill, we may read a book, watch a YouTube video, or ask someone familiar with the skill to teach us.
But when we want to learn how to be a disciple, we are actually invited to come into Mary’s home, her Immaculate Heart. Here, we learn through both observation and communion. Observation can be passive, but in Mary’s home, it involves being in relationship with her and her Son.
Unlike passive observation, this relationship itself actually changes us. When we live our days alongside Mary, with hearts set solely on God, everything about us changes.
We begin to truly see, to truly be children, to truly be happy, to truly love others with God’s love.
The Virtues of Mary in Our Lives
Because Mary lives the Beatitudes perfectly, her life is fragrant with virtue. Saint Louis de Montfort identified ten principal virtues that Our Lady embodied.
We would like to explore them with you!
We invite you to the first Blessed is She Marian Summit, beginning this Thursday, August 15. For three days, we will hear from each speaker about one of these ten virtues of Mary, what it has meant in her life, and how we can live that virtue well in our own lives.
In this way, we can see more clearly how Mary was so conformed to Christ that her life radiated virtue, radiated beatitude.
Which Marian virtue are you most excited to learn about? We hope you join us!
Olivia Spears lives in Kentucky, where sweet tea and bourbon flow like milk and honey. She holds degrees in Theology and Catechetics from the Franciscan University of Steubenville and works from home while enjoying her children and husband. She curates relevant and inspiring content for Catholic women as Blog Manager. She is the narrator of Set a Fire, And Hay Became Holy, and All She Had as well as a contributing author for Rise Up. Find out more about her here.
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