Mary, Mother of God
Today the Church celebrates the solemnity of Mary, Mother of God! It’s so fitting that a week after we celebrate the birth of Christ our King we then celebrate our Queen Mother, who gave Him to us. Just as certain Old Testament figures foreshadowed Jesus, so too for Mary:
• Mary’s role is foreshadowed in the Old Testament in the office of the “Gebirah” – the Great Lady
• The Gebirah was the mother of the king (never the wife), and she was in charge of dynastic succession (a massively powerful position!)
• She was also the principle intercessor for the people of Israel to the king
• As mother of the king, the power of her role extended over the whole kingdom her son occupied
• The wives bowed before the king, but king Solomon bowed before his mother! (See 1 King 2:19)
We also see Elizabeth acknowledge Mary’s role in the New Testament when she calls Mary “the mother of my Lord.” This doesn’t strike our ears as anything special, but in the ancient Jewish world this was the specific title of the Gebirah! So Elizabeth was acknowledging that since Mary was pregnant with the King of kings, Mary therefore was the new Gebirah – the Queen. These powerful titles all reinforce Mary’s most fundamental and honored title of Mother of God!
Mary, the Mother of God and the new Gebirah, is the principle intercessor between us (the people of God’s kingdom) and our King. On account of the Lord’s dominion, her power extends over His whole kingdom – that is, over each one of us! And if that isn’t enough, Jesus explicitly gave Mary to us as our mother from the Cross (See Jn 19:27). So today we celebrate Mary not only as “Mother of God”, but as our mother as well! Let us turn to her in confidence and in love, knowing that Mary, the perfect mother, will lead us ever deeper into the love of her Son.
P.S.: A small apologetical note: since Jesus honors and loves His Mother, we too are called to do so. In fact, this is why it is impossible to love or honor Mary “too much.” Because no matter how much we do so, it will never match how much Jesus loves and honors her!
Christian Living | admin | 
January 1, 2012 7:57 pm
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By Rich Maffeo, January 2, 2012 @ 1:31 pm
Very informative post. What is the Biblical reference for Gebirah?
By admin, January 2, 2012 @ 11:19 pm
It’s generally translated as Queen Mother in Catholic translations. A few references include:
1 Kings 15:13: “He also removed Maacah his mother from being queen mother [gebirah], because she had made a horrid image as an Asherah”
2 Kings 10:13: “Jehu met the relatives of Ahaziah king of Judah and said, “Who are you?” And they answered, “We are the relatives of Ahaziah; and we have come down to greet the sons of the king and the sons of the queen mother [gebirah].”
2 Chronicles 15:16: “He also removed Maacah, the mother of King Asa, from the position of queen mother [gebirah]…”
Jeremiah 13:18: “Say to the king and the queen mother [gebirah], “Take a lowly seat, For your beautiful crown Has come down from your head.”
There are many other references for it in the OT as well, but hopefully these are enough to satisfy your inquiry! God bless!