*** Please enjoy this homily originally preached in 2021 in Holy Family Parish in Portola, Ca ***

There's no better way to begin 2021 then by reflecting on the beautiful Solemnity of Mary, The Mother of God. Each year, we as the Church begin with her. Why? How could we not? Jesus himself began his earthly existence with her. If we want to follow Christ, our master, we follow his lead. Mary, who held the baby Jesus in her arms and stared at the tiny little face when he laid in the manger. Thirty-three years later, Mary would hold the battered, bruised, bloody body of the dead Jesus in her arms below the cross. Same face. Same love intensified. She stayed by the side of Jesus when it mattered, when almost everyone else abandoned him. Mary, teach us how to follow your son all the way to the end.