Our Lady of Exile

The Feast day of Our Lady of Exile is celebrated on February 4. Reader Gail Cooper contributed this reflection.

Gail Cooper

The patronal plaque Our Lady of Exile at the abbey of Mt St Benedict is an icon of spiritual love. In it is the Holy Family fleeing the wrath of Herod and transcending all odds to reach safety in Egypt. They were driven by a passionate flame that turned out to be pivotal to our Christian salvation.

This plaque was erected by Dom Mayeul De Caigny, founder of the abbey, which eventually became a place of refuge. As did the Holy Family, he similarly transcended the odds of his era by journeying to foreign lands to follow his passion.

To fulfil his calling, he fled religious persecution from Brazil and settled in Trinidad, giving birth to Caribbean Benedictine Monasticism in 1912. The abbey was named in honour of Our Blessed Mother with the title of ‘Our Lady of Exile’.

“What ignites us with [such] Sacred Passion…and could fan [such a] dormant flame in some of us?” In the homily by Abbot John Pereira OSB on the 22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time, he qualifies this as, “passion… which [is] woven into the very fabric of our bones…that which like fire can transcend, transfigure and transform us to do God`s will.”

Mary and Joseph were persons of deep faith and their passion to do God’s will drove them to undertake the onerous journey to Egypt with the little resources they had. They were prepared to deny themselves so that their Child could be safe.  Self-fulfilment for them was simply doing God’s will.

Mary and Joseph’s mission

“…Do not be afraid Mary, for you have found favour with God.  And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus” (Lk 1:26–38).

The Virgin Mary responded with blind commitment to birthing life through her total abandonment of the known, for the unknown. Transfigured by her faith, she became “the handmaid of the Lord”. Mary is female courage in her selflessness which brought fulfilment for others.

Mary’s undertaking of her treacherous journey to Egypt was fueled by her conviction and self-restraint.

Likewise, Our Lady of Exile’s transition reminds that life on Earth is but a journey, a short stay here, but that our true home is in Heaven.

Joseph played just as an important role in the flight and nurturing of Infant Jesus. Symbolically, Joseph in his preparedness for Jesus’ birth and earthly life calling can be paralleled to oil in a lamp that lit the way (Matt 25:1–30, The Parable of the Bridesmaids). He acted on the directive of the Lord.

Joseph, in his humility and simplicity, took Mary as his wife, offering her refuge. Despite not understanding her Immaculate Conception, he still protected her on her journey, and provided a nurturing environment for Infant Jesus.

Joseph assumed the persona of belief.  He demonstrated a blind acceptance of faith in his call to family by shepherding Mary, who had now been transformed into ‘The Bride of the Lord’.

The Infant Child, who grew under the watchful eyes of loving parents, continued to reveal God to them. When at 12, He strayed from Mary and Joseph, His response was “Why did you seek me? Did you not know that I must be about my Father`s business?” (Lk 2:49).

Jesus’ mission

“If anyone wants to be a follower of mine, let him renounce himself and take up his cross and follow me. For anyone who wants to save his life will lose it; but anyone who loses his life for my sake will find it.” (Matt 16:24–28)

Abbot Pereira drew upon Matthew`s words in his attempt to determine how Jesus’ self-fulfilment was achieved through His taking up His own cross. Inherent in the action is the deeper spiritual calling of ‘self denial’.

This death-in-life/life-in-death paradox qualifies how Jesus chose to live out His faith through mission. His mission was to prove that faith truly is belief—belief without seeing. He chose to execute that belief by denying Himself life for us. Always finding refuge “in His Father`s business”, He acted through love and forgiveness.

In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus showed courage and fearlessness despite knowing that the guards would arrive to take Him to His execution. He could have saved Himself, but didn`t.

According to Abbot Pereira, “He would have felt that fire within that would have allowed Him to go to His passion and death.” His unwavering faith resulted in `a selflessness; a self denial for other’.

Consider Judas. Judas is the desire for self-fulfilment through selfishness, using plain denial.  Jesus tried to counsel Judas, but the “[self- destructive] raging flame within” of betrayal could not be quelled by friendship or trust.

Jesus offered Judas empathy, that which is not just an understanding of the perpetrator`s weakness, but knowledge that it is unchangeable. Judas’ pursuits were purely based on self-fulfilment through gluttony and avarice. Judas is the persona of male egoism, heightened by self-image in earthly rewards.

In contrast, Jesus assumed the form of the cross upon which He was placed which is the symbol of immeasurable suffering.  That flame of empathy He held within ignited in His single utterance, “Forgive them Father, they know not what they do.”  In the spirit of forgiveness Jesus truly turned the other cheek in His selfless act of self-denial. Transfigured, Jesus allowed Himself to be crucified. He was lauded as “The King of The Jews;” but, ironically, He impersonated male courage unconvoluted by earthly rewards.

The Passion of Christ is therefore the ultimate staging of Sacred Passion. In Jesus` atoning death on the Cross He showcased ‘passionate love’ for His people, for whom He died.

The Holy Family exemplified spiritual love, through faith. “Seduced by God” (Jer 20:7-9) and keeping the fire burning within, each member took up His cross of suffering and sacrifice.

In Ordinary Time, the Benedictine monks sing the ‘Salve Regina’ (The Hail Holy Queen) daily in Latin, as is the monastic tradition. The scene portrayed in the patronal plaque resonates in all of us because we are “poor banished children of Eve,” on a journey like Our Lady of Exile.