Spiritual Power of Women Explored in Defense of Faith Talk

On November 30, more than 40 members and guests of the Northern Virginia Region attended the monthly Defense of the Faith Meeting in the St. Ambrose Parish Hall for an informative and inspirational presentation by Dr. Robin Maas.

 

Her presentation and the lively discussion that followed provided a deeper understanding of our faith, God’s plan for man’s salvation, and the way in which the original mission of the family--”Be fruitful and multiply”--is mirrored in the maternal mission of Holy Mother Church, the Bride of Christ.

 

Dr. Maas was raised in the faith of her mother as a Christian Scientist, but after studying Scripture and reading works of Catholic mystics, she followed a calling to attend Methodist seminary and was baptized. She entered the seminary not for her personal gain or to pursue ordination but to attain a deeper understanding of faith and fulfill a desire to teach. While obtaining her doctorate in religion and religious education at Catholic University, she joined the Catholic Church in 1987. At the time she was teaching Christian Education at Wesley Theological Seminary where she had obtained her master’s degree in Theological Studies.

 

Her most satisfying vocation came as founder and first director of WAY, the Women’s Apostolate to Youth, a lay organization described as promoting “the spiritual well being of children and youth and to provide spiritual formation and moral support for women who are called to work in a variety of ministries dedicated to this end.” Later she was asked to serve as academic dean and professor of spirituality at the John Paul II Institute for Studies in Marriage and Family in Washington, DC. Through her leadership, WAY foundedAngelus Academy in Springfield, VA, where she still serves on their board of trustees.

 

In her talk to the Northern Virginia Region, Dr. Maas focused on the Catholic themes of the family as the nuclear element of our larger society and of the Church and the roles fathers and mothers play in creating a healthy foundation for the development of faithful youth. She expanded that theme within the context of the Trinity and how God’s salvific plan, with Christ as the new Adam and Mary as the new Eve, is mirrored in the institution of the family and in the spousal role of Christ to the Church.

 

Elaborating on this theme, Dr. Maas explained that throughout salvation history, Scripture has attested to the spousal character of the relationship of God to his people Israel in the Old Testament and that of Christ to his Church in the New Testament. Just as mothers (through their consent) are the most powerful force for creation of new life, nurturing healthy environments, and protecting youth and spiritual growth in families, so too is Holy Mother Church tasked with creating new spiritual life, providing a nurturing environment, protecting the flock from evil, and providing the way for the Holy Spirit to promote spiritual growth, reparation for our sins and the conversion of sinners. But without paternity, there can be no new life. Without the visible presence of the priest as “another Christ” (who identified himself to his disciples as a representative of the “Father,”) the Church is, so to speak “widowed,”-or asked to function as a single parent!  Just as a family needs a father to be “fruitful and multiply,” so does the Church.

 

When we look at how important women have been in Church history in the promotion and defense of the faith we need look no further than the saints, Dr. Maas said, citing the examples of Mother Theresa, St. Teresa of Avila, St. Therese de Lisieux, Sts. Jacinta Marto  and Lucia dos Santos, St. Bernadette or St. Hildegard of Bingen. We are reminded of the great quote of St. Catherine of Siena, “Be who God meant you to be and you will set the world on fire.”

 

But of course we truly need look no further than Our Lady, the Blessed Virgin Mary in her humility. Never an apostle, but, through her Immaculate Conception and her generous obedience to the Angel Gabriel’s invitation to be the Mother of the Messiah, she came to possess a spiritual power greater than that of all the apostles. Has there ever been a more potent advocate for the Church, protector of the flock, or defender of the faith?