Homily: May 1, 2024: May crowning Mass at Holy Family School

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 "A great sign appeared in the sky, a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars.”

Did you remember hearing this from today’s first reading? This verse really struck me.

The ‘woman clothed with the sun’ mentioned, do you know who this woman is?

Yes, it is referring to Mary, the Mother of Jesus. St. John the Apostle had this vision and he described the mother of the Jesus as ‘clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her heard a crown of twelve stars’.

Who would usually wear a crown?

Yes, a king or a queen. 

It is a symbol of their authority over everyone in the country, a sign of the power vested in them to rule the people and for them to obey their rule.

So, Mother Mary is a queen, who wears a crown of twelve stars.

Why twelve? Do you know what in the Bible are twelve in number?

Yes, there were twelve tribes of Israel and Jesus had twelve apostles.

The twelve tribes of Israel descended from the twelve children of Jacob. God’s plan was to save the world through his chosen people of Israel. But the Israelites failed God many times, they were disobedient to God’s commandments. However, God’s plan does not change, He will still save the world through the chosen people. He sent Jesus, His Son, born from the line of David, thus a descendent of Abraham and Jacob.

And what did Jesus do to accomplish God’s plan?

He chose twelve apostles and continued the work of salvation through them. 

So, Mary having twelve stars on her crown means that she is the queen of the twelve tribes of Israel, representing the Jewish people and she is the queen of the twelve apostles, representing the new believers of Christ. She is the queen of God’s chosen race and the queen of the Church, she is our queen!

Jesus entrusted the world to her motherly care. When we pray the litany of Mary, we praise her with many titles associated with her queenship: Queen of Heaven and Earth, Queen of Peace, Queen of Patriarchs, Queen of Angels, Queen of Prophets, Queen of Apostles, Queen of Martyrs, Queen of the Most Holy Rosary, and so on. 

And do you know what makes us so special? Jesus gave his mother to be our mother before he died on the cross. So we are all the beloved children of Mary. She loves us with her whole heart. She is our Mother Queen.

And today, we will crown Mother Mary after Mass to honor her, to entrust ourselves to her protection, and to thank God for giving us a loving Mother, a powerful Queen. Let us always go to her for her intercessions, for her help and for her protection. 

Mary, Queen of Heaven and Earth, pray for us. Amen.


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