When the Queen serves at table
On the Feast of Our Lady’s Patronage over the Order of Preachers, we reflect on Mary not only as Queen and Mother, but also as the humble servant who lovingly waits at our table. Drawing from the vision of the Cistercian monk James, we want to recognize her powerful presence in our fraternal life and preaching, where she nourishes us with joy and helps us bear the Word to the world.
Gospel: John 19:25-27
The following homily was preached to the student brothers during Compline. You can listen here or read below:
In the Gospel, we heard one of the most moving and painful moments in Scripture: as He is dying, Jesus entrusts His beloved disciple—and through him, all of us—to the care of His mother. It is a moment of grief. But it is also a moment of astonishing tenderness. To be given to Mary is a sign of deep trust. And that, in itself, is for us a cause for joy.
We Dominicans, of course, are particularly fond of Mary. As today’s feast reminds us, our Order is entrusted to her patronage. Not just as an ornament of tradition, but as someone who has walked with us, gently, down the eight centuries of our history.
But what does that look like, this “patronage of Mary”? What does she actually do for us? Well, the answer is both mysterious and strangely ordinary.
There’s a story in the Vitae Fratrum— an early collection from the Dominican origins—about a Cistercian monk named James. He once joined the friars for dinner at the Priory in Pisa. During the meal, he barely touched his food. When the prior asked him why, he replied: “I was too full of joy to eat.” He said he had seen Our Lady herself, quietly serving the friars at table.
Now, if you’re ever invited to Blackfriars for dinner, I can’t guarantee you’ll see the Virgin Mary serving soup! But I do hope that you will experience something of that same joy. Because joy, in the Christian tradition, is not the same as cheerfulness. It’s not optimism or enthusiasm.
Joy is deeper. It’s the quiet awareness that something true and beautiful has taken root in your life—whether you’re laughing with friends, or standing at the foot of someone else’s cross. Mary’s presence brings that kind of joy.
It should not surprise us to think Our Lady, the Queen of Heaven and Earth, serving at table. After all, Mary is the perfect disciple precisely because she is the true servant—like her Son and Lord, who came not to be served but to serve.
Mary is not afraid to step into our common life, even the messy bits. She’s not too grand to serve at our daily table.
The same monk, James, also claimed that he saw Mary during particularly fruitful preaching done by Dominicans. He said that, on those occasions, she stood in front of the preacher, holding a book, as long as he spoke. Now I’m not saying that every sermon is personally edited by the Virgin Mary!
But I do believe she accompanies us as we try to bear the Word of God. Because she once bore the Word made flesh—with that same faith and openness to the Spirit that we are also called to embrace.
And so, we ask her again today to stay with us, to serve at our table, to stand beside us when we preach, when we eat, when we fail, when we begin again. And may we all be amazed at the great fruits we can bear with her by our side.
Image: Sr Paola Diana Gobbo OP, St Dominic sings the Ave Maris Stella in a storm
