The New Adam

Monday of the 9th Week in Ordinary Time
Memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church
Readings may be found here 
 
Are you afraid of God? If we are honest, the reality of God is overwhelming. The Scriptures certainly make it clear that God is awesome and frightening. Old Testament ritual law presumes that entering the presence of God unworthily is deadly – hence the care and reverence surrounding the Holy of Holies. The Absolute, the Infinite, frightens us who are mere mortal creatures. How many of us rest easy with the notion that God sees and knows every dark corner of our hearts?
 
In the passage from Genesis, Adam hides from God because he is naked. He is afraid to appear before God defenseless, revealed. We might say this is irrational given that God Who created Adam already knew him and had provided life and protection. He should not fear and yet he does. 
 
That passage of Adam’s fear is paired with the passage from John 19 describing the death of Jesus on the cross. Jesus is stripped and defenseless and tormented with the worst kind of violence. This New Adam does not fear to be vulnerable and naked before God or us. We see His glory - the courage and beauty of trusting love and total offering for our sake. This glory is reflected in His mother who does not fear to accompany her son in this most painful moment. She offers a model of trust and openness and He entrusts us to her as our mother.
 
They say that crisis lays bare the heart. Maybe this is a moment for all of us to bare our hearts to the Lord – to trust the One