The Gebirah: Our Advocating Queen Mother

The Advocating Queen Mother in the New Covenant

Now that we discussed the role of the Queen Mother in the Old Covenant, let us now turn our attention to the New Covenant and how her role is played out in the kingdom of God. The New Testament scriptures that we will examine are the following: The Birth of Jesus (Luke 1:26-38) and Mary Visit Elizabeth (Luke 1:39-45), The Genealogy of Jesus and the Infancy Narrative (Matthew 1 & 2), The Woman and the Dragon (Revelation 12:1-6), and The Wedding at Cana (John 2:1-12).

In his gospel, St. Luke draws many comparisons between the Davidic kingdom and the Annunciation. Mary's primary role here is the Mother of the Messiah. St. Luke writes with great detail in his gospel when he says how Mary is betrothed to a man "from the house of David." St. Luke wants to show that Jesus is the Davidic heir. When the angel Gabriel comes to Mary, he is coming to his queen. The announcement that he proclaims fulfills the scripture passage of 2 Samuel 7 that was professed to David. Gabriel uses the term "Son of the Most High" when speaking about the child Mary would bear. This term - "Son of the Most High" was often used in the Old Covenant to describe God. Using this title for Jesus shows how he is in a direct filial relationship with God. ¹ It was also a term often used to describe the Davidic king. The angel continues to explain to Mary how her child will sit on "the throne of his father David" (Luke 1:32). This is in direct correlation and fulfills what the prophet (Nathan) says "He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom for ever. I will be his father, and he shall be my son" (2 Samuel 7:13-14). The entire passage clearly shows that the child will be a king and that Mary will be the mother of the king. The theology of the queen mother in the New Testament finds it origin here at the Annunciation. ² Mary's Fiat enables her role, as Co-Redemptrix and that she would be the mother of the future Davidic king. Carol says,

In a very true sense, then, God made the Redemption of the world dependent upon Mary's consent; and she gave it knowingly and willingly. This consent was undoubtedly ratified on Calvary when she stood at the foot of the cross suffering with her Son (Luke 2:35) and indeed for the selfsame purpose, namely the reconciliation of God and man. ³

Now as we look to the next passage from St. Luke's gospel, there is one line that Elizabeth says to Mary that has a great amount of royal importance to it. The title that Elizabeth greets Mary with - "the mother of my Lord" (Luke 1:43). Elizabeth's greeting is prophetic in the sense that Jesus is called Lord and it shows that he will be placed on an equal plane with God. She also realizes that the Mother of her Lord, who is to be the Messiah, is coming to greet her (this is the fulfillment of Araunah greeting David, see 2 Samuel 24:21). The title - "the mother of my Lord" not only is in reference to Jesus as Messiah, but there are some rather important implications for Mary as well. Elizabeth is saying that Mary is the mother of her king. Mary is not just the mother of Jesus, but also the mother of Jesus who is Lord, Messiah and King. ⁴ Simply put, Sri says, "In other words, Elizabeth, in greeting Mary as "the mother of my Lord," refers to her as mother of the Messiah-king." ⁵ Calling her the queen mother makes perfect sense to Luke since he is connecting the royal Old Testament title with Mary.

Pope Pius XII eloquently speaks on both of this Lucan verses when he says,

...the basic principle upon which Mary's royal dignity rests, a principle already evident in the documents handed down by elders long ago and in the sacred liturgy, is without doubt her divine maternity. In the sacred scriptures we read this statement about the Son whom the Virgin will conceive: "He shall be called great, and shall be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father, and he shall be king over the house of David forever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end." And furthermore, Mary is called the "Mother of the Lord". From this it is easily deduced that she too is Queen since she brought forth a Son who, at the very moment that he was conceived, was, by reason of the hypostatic union of the human nature with the Word, even as man, King and Lord of all things. As a result, St. John Damascene could rightly and deservedly write these words: "Truly she has become the Lady ruler of every creature since she is the mother of the Creator". And it can likewise be said that the first one who with heavenly voice announced Mary's royal office was Gabriel the Archangel himself. ⁶

Dr. Mark Miravalle also speaks of Mary's Advocating role as Queen Mother in the Lucan Infancy Narrative,

In the New Testament, with the establishment of Jesus Christ as the new and eternal King in the universal Kingdom of God (c.f. Lk. 1:32ff.), we also have the establishment of a new Queen Mother and Advocate, who is Mother of the King. The Virgin of Nazareth becomes the new "Great Lady" of all nations contained within the Kingdom of God, an as well becomes the new Advocate for all the peoples within this universal Kingdom. It is for this reason that her cousin Elizabeth greets Mary with the expression, "Mother of my Lord," which was an ancient expression for the Queen Mother in the language of the ancient Semitic courts. ⁷

Now our attention turns to Matthew 1 & 2. Matthew begins his gospel by giving us the genealogy of Jesus Christ, which he traces back to King David. The reason Matthew does this is to show that Jesus is not just some descendent of David, but is the Son of David. Matthew's infancy narrative is grounded in the Davidic Kingdom. Matthew refers to Jesus as the "christos" (in Hebrew, masiah) five times in the first two chapters of his gospel because he wants to prove that the Jesus is the king who has been prophesied by the prophets and that he will rule over the house of David forever. He is "the son of David". ⁸ After tracing his genealogy, Matthew continues to show that both Jesus and David were born in Bethlehem. He also describes the visit by the Magi who are in search of the "newborn king." The gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh are royal in nature (see Song of Solomon 3:6). Matthew also points to the Virginal Birth of Emmanuel in Isaiah and Micah's prophecy regarding Bethlehem.

Within in the Davidic Kingdom structure, Matthew points to three ways that Jesus and his mother are royally related. Matthew first points to the prophecy of Isaiah 7:14. Mary is acknowledged as the parthenos. This speaks of the prophecy from Isaiah and how the child Emmanuel would be born of a virgin - a queen mother. Secondly, Matthew shows numerous times how the newborn king and his mother are always with one another. The passage "the child and his mother" (vs. 11, 13, 14, 20, 21) harkens back to the Davidic kingdom and how the queen mother was introduced with her kingly son. ⁹ And thirdly, Mary plays an important role when the magi come to visit the "king of the Jews" (2:2). Even though Joseph is mentioned many more times than Mary in the Infancy Narrative as a whole, it is she who plays the center role with Jesus. The reason why Mary plays a more important role than Joseph is because she is the Queen Mother to the Messianic King - Jesus Christ.

Let us continue now by understanding the Queen Mother in light of Revelation 12. While critics have interpreted the "woman clothed with the sun" differently - some speak of her as a representation for the People of God in the Old Testament while others see her as the representative of the people of God generally speaking. There is no doubt that the "woman clothed with the sun" is Mary. ¹⁰ The interpretation from a Marian perspective clearly identifies this woman as Mary since Revelation 12 speaks of the woman as a mother of the Messiah. Once this is established and understood, Revelation 12 clearly shows the Queenship of Mary. In Part 1 of Who is the Woman of the Apocalypse?, John Haffert begins by stating,

"A great portent appears in the heavens: "A woman wearing the sun for a mantle, with the moon under her feet, and wearing a crown of twelve stars." (Apoc. 12:1)

The Church applies this passage of the book of the Apocalypse (now generally known as the book of Revelation) to the Mother of Jesus.

What title should we give to her as she appears clothed as it were in atomic power, crowned with stars and about to give birth to the reign of her Divine Son?

If we were to go through all the litanies, all the titles of Our Lady, we would probably be forced to conclude that the one title which best describes the Woman of the Apocalypse might be Queen of the World. . . as opposed to that other "great portent", the fiery red Dragon symbolizing the power which Jesus described as belonging to the Prince of Darkness and Prince of this world.

Therefore it is little wonder that in these times, described by several of our greatest religious leaders and Popes as "apocalyptic", the Church is emphasizing in a very special way the Queenship of Mary. ¹¹

When we look at Revelation 12 we see various points that relate to the royalty ideas that we saw in the scripture passages above. One point of this chapter is that the son of the mother is seen as a king with a universal messianic dominion. Psalm 2 is clearly seen in Revelation 12:5 when the author speaks of a child who will "rule all the nations with a rod of iron." As the dragon is defeated, the son is taken up to sit on a throne and is now bringing with him the kingdom of God. ¹² The woman is described as a queen with magnificent tendencies. Revelation 12:1 states, "And a great sign appeared in heaven, a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars."

To better understand the royalty theme here in Revelation, let us dissect Revelation 12:1 in greater detail. We will examine the images of the - sun, moon, and the twelve stars, the crown, and the moon under her feet. First, the sun, moon, and the twelve stars are images from the Old Testament that represent the royal dominion that the woman holds. The twelve stars on her crown represent the twelve tribes of Israel and in turn point to the twelve apostles and the Church. ¹³ There are a few Old Testament passages that are often related to these images, however the most profound and clear passage is from Genesis 37:9-11. This is the passage where Joseph has a dream that the sun, moon, and stars would someday bow down to him. This dream comes to fruition when Joseph holds an executive position in the court of Pharaoh. "Indeed, John's vision evokes the dream of the patriarch Joseph in the book of Genesis, of "the sun, the moon, and eleven stars...bowing down" to him (37:9). In Joseph's dream, the eleven stars stand for his brothers, his fellow tribal patriarchs." ¹⁴ Furthermore, in Revelation 12:1, Mary is described with these powerful heavenly images. Hahn states,

Yet there's still more to Revelation's woman. For in the most glorious days of the old covenant, the twelve tribes would indeed be united, and would pay obeisance to a female royal figure; and this figure surely foreshadows the woman we meet in the Apocalypse. ¹⁵

Secondly, the crown that the woman is wearing represents her authority, dominion, and triumphant. The crown is not just some empty ornament but is a connection with the kingship of Christ. The crown denotes that the woman has a noble rank in the kingdom of her royal son. Haffert says,

The crown has been for centuries the principle emblem of royal power to such a degree that since the 9^th century a King did not enter into the plentitude of his rights until after he had been crowned. The crown came to symbolize the dignity and the total rights of the King to fidelity and service.

Thus the crowning of Our Lady's image has become, by Popes and bishops and laity, a method of proclaiming the Queenship of Mary and thus showing our consecration to her. ¹⁶

Thirdly, the image of the woman with the moon under her feet also shows majestic imagery. Within the Kingdom of David, this imagery was often seen as being more powerful than ones foes. ¹⁷

The woman in Revelation 12 is clearly seen as the queen mother who gives birth to and reigns with her son - the Davidic Messianic King. She is also the geribah of the Old Testament. As queen mother in the Old Testament and now also in the New Covenant, Mary serves the Church as our advocate to the king - Jesus Christ. Miravalle states,

Mary, Queen and Advocate is the woman clothed with the sun who is also crowned with a crown of twelve stars in Revelation 12:1, referring to her Queenly role in the Kingdom which came forth from the twelve tribes of Israel and which now reigns over the twelve Apostles and all Christ's disciples in the new and universal kingdom. She is subsequently the principal intercessor for all people under the authority of Christ the King, and brings our petitioned needs to the attention of our Redeemer-King. Our Lady's Advocacy is as extensive as the Kingdom of her Son - a universal kingdom and a universal advocacy for God's people through their Queen. ¹⁸

Now that we have examined the role of Mary as queen mother through the New Testament passages that make reference to the Davidic Kingdom, let us now briefly look at the Gospel of John and his theology of the advocating queen mother at the Wedding Feast at Cana (John 2:1-11). Mary at Cana is seen as compassionate and conscientious because she has pity and mercy for the newly married couple when the wine runs out. She gently and lovingly requests Christ to intercede with his divine power. ¹⁹ As she mediated for the intercession of this young married couple, she continues to mediate for mankind today, as John Paul II says in Redemptoris Mater. ²⁰

The Wedding Feast at Cana also displays the efficiency of Mary as the advocating queen. As queen mother, Mary looks to her royal son, Jesus Christ, and brings the needs of the couple to him. Because of the love Jesus has for his mother, he responds in a majestic way and provides a large amount of wine for the wedding feast (120 gallons). ²¹ Through Mary's motherly intercession and mediation in the Gospel of John, Christ performs his first sign. Furthermore, Miravalle states that,

...The new Queen Mother in the Kingdom of Christ the King performs her role as Advocate for the needs of the people of the kingdom by presenting her Kingly son with the needs of the wedding couple at Cana, and thus interceding for the first public miracle of Christ. ²²

It is always through her spiritual motherhood, mediation, and co-redemption that she reconciles mankind with God. ²³ The mission of Our Lady as Mother of God is:

universal mediation - this mediation is clearly seen as Mary's role as Spiritual Mother of the Mystical Body, but only in the sense that his Motherhood had a logical priority in the mind of God. In point of fact, some phases of the Mediation seem to coincide with some phases of the spiritual motherhood. In a sense, therefore, it is correct to say that Mary is our spiritual Mother because she is our Mediatrix, and also that she is our Mediatrix because she is our spiritual Mother. ²⁴