Slices of life, both written and photographed.

Sunday, September 22, 2024

White Flowers to Honor Mary

The placing of bouquets of white flowers on the altar of a church in western Massachusetts carries over to nearby statues.

A lovely bouquet of white flowers stands at the feet of a white statue of the Blessed Mother with her treasure, baby Jesus, in her arms.

The white against white looks so pristine and beautiful.

The message of this Sunday's gospel seems to be to set aside earthly idols, like money and self-promotion, and concentrate on serving God.

That sounds like a good and noble idea but it isn't always an easy one for everyone to follow.

We live in a rather materialistic society, often steeped in instant gratification and a "give me, give me, give me" mentality.

Huge numbers of young people in our society appear to have ditched organized religion entirely and even refrain from going to any kind of church.

Each person must seek his/her own journey to the Lord and all judgement of others must die in its tracks.

On a personal note, the greatest, most precious gift my own humble late parents gave is the gift of faith.  

It sustains through the darkest, deepest valleys of life and lifts up and lights the soul during the good times. 

Today, seeing the bouquet of white flowers in front of the statue of Mary brings happiness to my heart, filling it to the brim with gratitude for the gift of faith.

WHAT IS YOUR OPINION OF ORGANIZED RELIGION? WOULD YOU BE COMFORTABLE SHARING YOUR OPINION?

3 comments:

Red Rose Alley said...

Oh, that statue of Mary and the white flowers is beautiful. As you know, I'm Catholic, and we love Mary so. Your parents did give you a wonderful gift of faith, and when we have that, we have a special gift, indeed. Lovely words on this Sunday afternoon, Susan. I thank you for this gentle reminder.

~Sheri

Shug said...

Beautiful and your words are Beautifully spoken. A great message written here. Thank you for sharing Susan.

diane stetson said...

Our parents and grandparents gifted us with faith and I'm grateful to them for it. Without faith I do not know how anyone on earth survives. Soon we will be bringing flowers to the altar for the souls who've gone before us. Each of us will carry a white carnation. I look forward to it.

Related Posts with Thumbnails