My new post is up at dotMagis, Mary Receiving Jesus in Her Arms.
The moment my son, Brady, was first placed into my arms everything changed. As I gazed into his tiny eyes, stroked his peach fuzz hair, and snuggled new life, I knew my life would never be the same. I knew my life would be consumed with loving him, and I knew, as I held him, that I would experience love in a way I had never experienced before. The very act of receiving my son into my arms for the first time changed my life.
Advent prepares us for the birth of Jesus. On Christmas, we celebrate the act of Mary receiving Jesus into her arms for the first time—a moment that exemplifies “the Word became flesh and lived among us” (John 1:14). Can we imagine the gaze between mother and child that day? Mary gazing into Jesus’ tiny eyes, stroking his hair, and snuggling the new life in her arms. Mary feeling the same profound love, tremendous responsibility, and fear that all parents experience. Jesus looking up at her. Jesus crying and needing to be soothed by his mother, the same way all newborns need to be soothed.
Becky Eldredge
Becky is an Ignatian-trained spiritual director, retreat facilitator, and writer. She is the author of the Busy Lives and Restless Souls (March 2017, Loyola Press) and The Inner Chapel (April 2020, Loyola Press). She helps others create space to connect faith and everyday life through facilitating retreats and days of reflection, through writing, and through spiritual direction. With nearly twenty years of ministry experience within the Catholic Church, Becky seeks to help others discover God at work in the every day moments of people’s lives by utilizing St. Ignatius’ Spiritual Exercises and the many gifts that our Catholic faith and Ignatian Spirituality provide.
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