May is the month that we honor The Blessed Virgin Mary. So for my column this week, I’m sharing a reflection about Mary from James Martin, S.J.

Most Catholics are familiar with Marian devotions, especially the Rosary—even if some may misunderstand these practices.

Though Mary without question holds a most special place in the roster of saints, it is important to remember that we don’t worship Mary, and we don’t see her as equal to God. We venerate her under many titles: Mother of God, Our Lady, The Blessed Mother, among others. But worship is reserved for God. When we ask for Mary’s help as a patron (someone who prays for us) we believe that she is praying to God.

Mary’s entire life was in service to God. “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord,” she says to the angel Gabriel (Luke 1:38). And her last words in Scripture point to Jesus when at the Wedding at Cana she says, “Do whatever he tells you” (John 2:3). In all this she is a model of fidelity and prayer.

But the saints are not just our patrons; they are our com-panions. Seeing Mary as our companion means re-membering that the Blessed Mother was once Miriam of Nazareth, a poor woman in an insignificant village. God chose one of the most marginal of people—indigent, young, unmarried, living in an occupied region under Roman rule—to be the mother of Jesus. She knows what it means to live on the edge. Mary dealt with sur-prises in life, knew suffering, and rejoiced over God’s activity.

In a word, Mary was human.

So the next time you take out a rosary say a Marian prayer like the Memorare, remember that it unites us not only with Our Lady enthroned in heaven but also with Miriam of Nazareth.

Have a great week! My continued love and prayers, ~~Fr. Steve