Putting on the mind of Mary

Putting on the Mind of Mary
St Paul invites us to “put on the mind of Christ” (Philippians 2:5), a call that Mary lived. Her thoughts were shaped by listening, pondering, and surrendering to the Word of God. When the angel’s message came, she did not react with fear or pride, but with faith - “Let it be done to me according to your word” (Luke 1:38). Like St. Augustine, who taught that the image of God lives in the human mind, Mary’s mind was attuned to the divine presence. Do we put on the mind of Mary in following Christ? To put on the mind of Mary means to cultivate a contemplative spirit: one that listens deeply, discerns patiently, and seeks wisdom not in control but in trust. In her silence and attentiveness, we find the pattern of Mary’s mind that reflects Christ.

The Body of Mary
Mary’s body became the dwelling place of God’s Word - the mystery of the Incarnation itself. St. Paul reminds us that our bodies are “temples of the Holy Spirit” (1 Corinthians 6:19). St. Thomas Aquinas wrote that holiness involves conformity to Christ not only in mind but in will and action. Mary embodies this unity. At one point Mary and Jesus were one person. Jesus living in Mary’s womb. Like Jesus, Mary’s hands served others, her feet carried her swiftly to Elizabeth, and her body bore both the joy of birth and the sorrow of the cross. To put on the body of Mary means to allow our daily actions - our service, compassion, and endurance - to become instruments of God’s love. Like her, we are called to let our lives be living vessels through which Christ enters the world in our bodies.

The Emotions of Mary
Mary’s emotions were deeply human yet divinely anchored. She felt fear, confusion, joy, and grief, yet she allowed these emotions to be transformed by grace. St. Teresa of Ávila said, “The important thing is not to think much, but to love much.” Love is not just a feeling but a love in action. Mary loved deeply - during the nativity, at Cana, and at the cross. Her heart was not free from suffering. Suffering allowed God’s grace to lead her through it. To put on the emotions of Mary is to embrace life with empathy and solidarity for that which is poor and difficult. Even in our challenges and hardships to find God working in us. Not with self pity, but with conviction, gentelness and acceptance, to allow God into our human experiences. As St. Thérèse of Lisieux taught, holiness often lies in small acts done with great love - a love that Mary shows us how to be.

The Interior Life of Mary
St. Elizabeth of the Trinity longed to live as “a praise of His glory,” a phrase that captures Mary’s hidden life in Nazareth. Mary’s role was not in public miracles but in quiet union with God. She pondered all things in her heart (Luke 2:19), allowing her inner life to be shaped by God’s presence. To put on Mary’s inner disposition means to let our minds, bodies, and emotions become harmonized by inviting God to live in us - to dwell in the rhythm of prayer and presence. Like St. John of the Cross, we are called to detach from pride and fear so that love may reign fully within. Mary teaches us that contemplation and action are not opposites but two movements of one faithful heart.

Living the Marian Way
To put on the mind, body, and emotions of Mary is to follow Christ through Mary’s gaze in our world and context today. To see the world as she did: with faith and courage. As St. Paul’s call to have “the mind of Christ” is realized through humility, Mary’s example shows us how to live it daily - thinking with mercy, acting with justice, and feeling with compassion. In her we find the perfect disciple: fully human, wholly open to God. In each small moment, when we align our thoughts with her faith, our actions with her service, and our emotions with her peace, we too become bearers of Christ to the world. Through Mary, we discover not only how to love her Son, but how to become more like Him - body, mind, and heart transformed by God’s presence as Mary did.

A Poem - To put on the mind of Mary
To put on the mind of Mary
is to listen where the world shouts,
to ponder when others rush ahead,
to cradle God’s word in silence
until it grows into flesh within us.
Her thoughts were a sanctuary -
trust shaping understanding,
faith softening the unknown.
In her quiet consent,
we hear creation breathe again:
“Let it be done.”

To put on the body of Mary
is to let our hands become her hands,
our steps her steady haste toward love.
Her body, a living tabernacle,
carried the Infinite in hiddenness.
Through her touch, the hungry were fed,
the weary comforted, the child cradled.
In her strength beneath the cross,
we learn that holiness is not escape
but the endurance of love
in every act of service.

To put on the emotions of Mary
is to feel with a heart stretched wide -
to rejoice with angels,
to ache beneath a mother’s grief,
to love even when it costs everything.
Her tears were prayers,
her joy, a song of surrender.
She teaches us that compassion
is not weakness but courage,
and peace is not stillness
but a trust that holds through storms.

To enter the interior life of Mary
is to find God in the ordinary pulse -
in the sweep of dust, the kneading of bread,
the whisper of evening prayer.
Her soul was a quiet flame,
fuelled by listening and by love.
There, in her simplicity,
heaven met earth without fanfare.
She reminds us: God does not shout;
He dwells in the heart that makes room.

To live the Marian way
is to see the world through her eyes -
faithful, tender, brave.
To think as she thought,
to act as she served,
to love as she loved.
Then we, too, bear Christ into the world:
not in grandeur, but in grace;
not in power, but in presence.
Through Mary’s gaze,
we discover the face of her Son -
and, slowly, become His reflection.

Journal and reflect on the following

1. The Mind of Mary

2. The Body of Mary

3. The Emotions of Mary

4. The Hidden Life

5. The Way of Service

6. The Interior Heart

7. The Marian Way Today

Pause and Listen to the Song - Be Born in Me (Mary's Song)