Do you know the word THEOTOKOS? It’s an ancient Eastern title for Our Lady, Mary the Mother of God. It means God Bearer; the one who brings God into the world. Mary is not the ONLY Theotokos. As Christians, we are all called to be God bearers. The name Christian implies something similar; it means one who belongs to Christ, or even “little Christ.” As Catholic Christians, our primary vocation is to love God and to love others, which we do by bearing God to the world.
As God-bearers, we don’t generate or start anything, but we receive God’s graces and love, and then we are called to “incubate” and nurture that love and bring it to maturity. We are to carry Jesus within our very selves and share the Good News with those around us.
God does all the work of creating and saving, but He invites us to engage and participate. He calls us to be disciples, to be his hands and feet, to go out into the world to baptize others, pray, heal, love, worship, serve, and teach. We are being asked to help release the creative power of the Lord! And that power of Jesus is supernatural power! Jesus DELEGATES AUTHORITY to us. We have His authority to unleash hope and healing upon those who need Him. He has commissioned us by our Baptism and Confirmation!
Here at St. John for the last decade we’ve been talking about evangelization, missionary disciples, and recently “Walking with One.” This should not make us anxious or doubtful in any way. We have the greatest gift in the world to share with others: the living God among us! If we gave out $50 bills at Mass, the church would be packed every weekend. We have something SO MUCH GREATER to give to the people of Jackson. Our Dad is the King of the universe, our brother is Jesus, and we have been given the great privilege – by Him – to share Him with our neighbors!
I know some of us think “Talking to people about Jesus is not for me, I’m not a preacher.” The reality is, if you are Baptized, it IS for you. This is one of the marks of being a Christian: to be Theotokos. Realize, we are not on our own. We not only have permission from Jesus, but we also have marching orders, and we have his authority. Authority is permission with the power. Authority is literally the rights of the author. The author is God and He has written us into His story.
But wait, we might say: “If God can do everything, why does He need us?” Well… I’m not sure He NEEDS us, but His heart is so big, He WANTS US to share in His work. I seem to recall when Jesus fed thousands of people from what looked like too little (two fish and five loaves, the little lunch from the little boy!). The miracle happened in the hands of his Apostles. They yielded to His directions, He gave them an opportunity to participate, and in that amazing moment, the Apostles bore the miracle of God. He likewise dignifies us as He did them.
Like Mary and the Apostles, to be Theotokos is to surrender to God’s will. Surrendering to God is NOT being passive; it is the act of yielding to the Spirit. Yielding is like dancing with a dance partner but letting the partner lead. You are still doing the dance. Only following. Yielding is when you are driving the car but accepting someone else’s directions. Yielding is reading the recipe and following the directions while baking. Yielding is being obedient and knowing your place.
Christianity is not a spectator sport. Catholicism has a specific emphasis on our cooperation, our co-labor in response to God.
He is asking for that good work of sharing the Gospel to continue with you. But before we can pour ourselves into others, we have to be filled ourselves. We have to have something in order to give it. Join us once a month for special BEHOLD AND BE HELD Holy Hours where we will focus on surrendering ourselves and then being filled with Him, all before the Blessed Sacrament. Give Shayne or me a shout out if you want to explore where you fit in. Come and see how God wants you to be His Theotokos!