“Mary shows us that there’s an inseparable joy in following Jesus.” Dr. Matthew A. Tsakanikas on the discipleship of Mary.
THE DISCIPLESHIP OF MARY
Dr. Matthew Tsakanikas
Dr. Matthew Tsakanikas is Chair of the Department of Theology, Christendom College, Front Royal, Virginia. His doctorate was from the Pontifical University of the Lateran’s John Paul II Institute for Marriage and the Family, Rome. He has taught for Benedictine College, Saint Meinrad Seminary’s Permanent Diaconate Program, and Saint Paul Seminary School of Divinity.
In this episode, Dr. Matthew A. Tsakanikas talks to us about the discipleship of Mary.
He talks about:
-Mary’s difficult life
-Mary as the new Eve
-Mary as the Ark of the Covenant
-The meaning of the rosary and her apparitions
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THE DISCIPLESHIP OF MARY
I have to say it was hard finding guests to talk about Mary and her discipleship. Whatever side you’re on, let’s not forget that Mary bore Jesus. And that’s something even Dr. Matthew Tsakanikas reminds us that if the ark of the covenant made of stone was holy, how much more the ark that held Jesus in the flesh.
I reached out to Dr. Matthew Tsakanikas through his post on Mary. He’s also written on Orthodoxy, worship, and Saint Augustine. And he was so enthusiastic about talking about the discipleship of Mary. There were nuggets of wisdom that I’d long forgotten about Mary.
One of the things he said that truly touched me was about darkness and light.
“We must cling to Jesus. We have to continue forward into the light which is so bright that it can seem like darkness. Mary is a model of walking in the light.”
He has so much more profound wisdom to share about how it sometimes feels like God has abandoned us and we can pray and ask our Heavenly Father to take this cup away from us. In those times, like Mary and Jesus, we must also finish with “Thy will be done” and not “My will be done!”
He explains why apparitions happen and how Mary asks us to meditate on her life entwined with her son. Through all this he says that the discipleship of Mary was hard. She didn’t have an easy life. Yet, she trusted God and her son took every form of humanness to save us.
Finally, he also mentions why it’s important to train and shape young people in christian fellowship.
If you would like to get in touch with Dr. Mathew Tsakanikas, then you can contact him at the Christendom College. It’s a Catholic liberal arts college offering a time-tested and rigorous education that develops the student’s intellect in a powerful way.
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