Here is the full text of Pope Francis’s homily for the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God.
“Mary treasured all these things and pondered them in her heart” (Lk 2:19). In these words, Luke describes the attitude with which Mary took in all that they had experienced in those days. Far from trying to understand or master the situation, Mary is the woman who can treasure, that is to say, protect and guard in her heart, the passage of God in the life of his people. Deep within, she had learned to listen to the heartbeat of her Son, and that in turn taught her, throughout her life, to discover God’s heartbeat in history. She learned how to be a mother, and in that learning process she gave Jesus the beautiful experience of knowing what it is to be a Son. In Mary, the eternal Word not only became flesh, but also learned to recognize the maternal tenderness of God. With Mary, the God-Child learned to listen to the yearnings, the troubles, the joys and the hopes of the people of the promise. With Mary, he discovered himself a Son of God’s faithful people. Continue reading
Back in the day, I loved off-shore sailing. There was something adventurous and old-school about sailing out-of-sight of land with only a sextant, stars, a nautical almanac, a clear night to see the North Star, a navigation chart or two to guide you – and you were good to go. This was before the days of GPS, during the days of LORAN-C; but then it was the rare boat that had such exotic gear. Course, heading, speed, dead reckoning, and you were on your own. 
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