Perfect Imitation of Christ

Subject and obedient to Mary for thirty years! He could have come on earth as a full grown man, whispered a prayer for us and ascended into heaven. But then He came to be our Model. He freely chose a mother. He willingly subjected Himself to that mother allowing Himself to develop within her and to depend upon her for all the care that is a necessary part of infancy and childhood.

Some people are shocked to think of God as a child submitting to the authority of parents. What mother could claim to be superior to a Son Who was both God and man? He cannot have a superior. These people forget that no matter what dignity a child possesses he must recognize his parents as his superiors until he reaches the age of legal freedom. By natural law all parents have authority over their children. We must not forget that when we speak of authority exercised over the Divine Child this must be understood of Christ considered in His human nature.

His Act of Submission was the Deference of a Son for Her

Cardinal Wiseman in ”The Fairest Flower of Paradise” explains that this was not the submission of an inferior to his superior. Jesus Christ was superior to all creatures. His act of submission was the deference of a Son for her whom Divine Providence had chosen to provide the temporal needs of His life.

St. Paul says, ”He emptied Himself taking the nature of a slave and being made like unto men.” ”God sent His Son born of a woman”. Christ like any other infant was subject to that woman during the first years of His life because that woman shared, as all mothers do, in the authority of God the Father.

He Emptied Himself Taking the Nature of a Slave

Now we see why Montfort insists, ”He did not disdain to shut Himself up in the womb of the Blessed Virgin as a captive and as a loving slave. He did not will to come into the world at the age of a perfect man, independent of others, but like a poor babe dependent on the care and support of this holy Mother” (T.D. 139).

Some readers of Montfort might begin to raise cries of alarm at this point. They might complain that if Christ was dependent upon His Mother because He was a child, the Marian saint could not conclude that we also must be dependent upon her. We are not infants or children. We are grown adults. Therefore, we have the use of our human reason. It is a poor argument to use when asking us to follow Christ’s example of submission and dependence on Mary.

If Christ’s example ended with His dependence upon Mary in infancy, these people might be right. But His example did not end there. He freely chose to be dependent upon her at Nazareth after He had reached the age of twelve. Jesus continued His example at Nazareth for another eighteen years. ”He is that Infinite Wisdom Who had a boundless desire to glorify God, His Father, and to save men; and yet He found no more perfect means, no shorter way to do it than to submit Himself in all things to the Blessed Virgin, not only during the first eight, ten or fifteen years of His life, like other children, but for thirty years !” (T.D. 139).

St. Luke Summarizes Eighteen Years of Our Lord’s life in Ten Words

St. Luke tells us of this great mystery in his description of the Finding of Our Lord in the Temple. All the details set down show us that He was grown up, strong, of age, and full of wisdom. If the doctors were amazed at His wisdom, what of the ordinary people. Had Jesus begun His divine mission? People must have said what they said later on, ”Never has man spoken as this man” (John v II, 46). St. Luke also emphasizes the free will of Christ. We are told, ”He went down to Nazareth and was subject to them.”

Cardinal Wiseman in his sermon on the Maternity of the Blessed Virgin explains, ”The word ’subject’ means the habit of constant obedience, the observance of every behest; the readiness in every time and every place to do what is bidden at once; it means the disposition of mind, of will and of heart to sacrifice a personal wish to the will of another; to substitute another’s will for our own. St. Luke summarizes eighteen years of Our Lord’s life in ten words. ’He went down to Nazareth and was subject to them.’ ” Wonderful truth! This is What we call the voluntary dependence of Christ.

In our senseless way we sometimes reflect on the hidden life of Christ saying, ”What an empty life. He could have shed such a light on the world for He is the light of the world. By His Wisdom, knowledge and power He could have converted the whole world and made all nations fall down before Him. But during those eighteen years the Son of God was hardening His hands with primitive, rough tools. Why did He do such a things?”

He Gave More Glory to God His Father

St. Louis de Montfort answers, ”He, that is Infinite Wisdom, had a boundless desire to glorify His Father and to save men; and yet He found no more perfect means, no shorter way to do it than to submit Himself in all things to the Blessed Virgin, not only during the first eight, ten or fifteen years of His life, like other children, but for thirty years! He gave more glory to God His Father during all that time of submission to and dependence on our Blessed Lady, than He would have given if He had employed those thirty years in working miracles, in preaching to the whole world and in converting all men – all of which He would have done, could He have thereby contributed more to God’s glory. Oh how highly we glorify God when, after the example of Jesus, we submit ourselves to Mary”!

The clear, plain language of the saints teach us Perfect Imitation of Christ. ”Are we so senseless as to imagine that eve can find a more perfect means of glorifying God than that of submitting ourselves to Mary, after the example of Jesus?.” (T.D. 139).

(To be continued)