And She Pondered These Things in Her Heart: Mary, the First Contemplative
In the many beautiful stories featuring Mary in Scripture—the Annunciation, the Nativity, the finding in the temple, and the Crucifixion, just to name a few—we are not often privy to her interior thoughts and feelings. We can only see the choices Mary makes, the few recorded words that she speaks, and, perhaps most importantly, the places where she is present in the life of Jesus. Although we also know Mary through her apparitions and the richness of our Tradition, sometimes those terse words and phrases can feel like a barrier to intimacy with her. However, in the small glance we get into Mary’s contemplative heart, everything we need to know is contained in one sentence.
That sentence comes just after the shepherds, guided by the advice of the angels, have come to see the Christ child in the manger. Luke 2:19 interrupts the action of this visit with one enigmatic statement, “But Mary kept all these things, pondering them in her heart.” What exactly does that mean? The Greek words tell us so much, filling in a simple line drawing with depth and richness of color.
The word “de,” translated as “but,” is a multifaceted conjunction; sometimes it is used to mark contrast, but it is also frequently translated as “and.” This term suggests a bringing together of action and contemplation in Mary’s life—not a separation of them, but instead an elision of the difference between these two ways of living, these two ways of praying. We are all called to be contemplatives in action, and Mary models this for us beautifully.
The word translated as “kept,” the Greek “syntereo,” is even more illuminative. It is only used three other times in Scripture: to describe Herod’s preservation of the life of John the Baptist before that fateful dance, and twice to describe the pouring of new wine into new wineskins in order to prevent a rupture and the loss of the wine. What Mary is doing here is profound—she is herself becoming a vessel that preserves and protects the Mystery of God, even after she has delivered the Messiah into the world. It’s this preservation of Mystery, this gently holding it within our hearts, that marks a life of contemplation.
Mary Beth Keenan, @mb_keenan.15.
And then we come to the nondescript word “things,” the Greek word “rhema.” Its literal meaning is “an utterance, a word spoken,” but this meaning takes on incredible depth and significance when we look at the other passages where it appears in the gospels. Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God? Rhema. Let it be done to me according to your word? Rhema. The words that are spoken to the shepherds to lead them to the manger? Rhema. These are the “things” which Mary preserves in her heart—the words spoken by God, and the echoes of God’s voice in the words of others. Being a contemplative is about listening, first and foremost, and this is something Mary does exceptionally well.
Finally, we come to the word “ponder,” the Greek “symballo.” Used only six times in Scripture, its meaning extends beyond thinking and considering to conversing, meeting, bringing together. The contemplative life allows space for dialogue with God and within ourselves, as we bring our full personalities and life experiences to the table, like precious shells gathered on a beach, and search them for evidence of the holy. It’s always there.
Mary may not express many words in the Gospels, but her example speaks so profoundly to us about the richness of a life spent in prayer. Will you let her guide you today into contemplation?
Meet Cameron Bellm
Cameron Bellm is the author of A Consoling Embrace: Prayers for a Time of Pandemic. After finishing her PhD in Russian literature, she traded the academic life for the contemplative life, part of which is raising two young sons with her husband in Seattle.
She is a great lover of both Ignatian and Franciscan spiritualities, Catholic social teaching, and strong black coffee. Her deepest joys are reading, writing, and finding new ways to pray. You can find her on Instagram at @krugthethinker.