Tracesoffaith

Author, Mary Aloe, first created the Netflix film, Mary. As any wise woman would tell you, spending that much intimate time with Mary changed her. From the Preface of Let It Be Me: Sacred Lessons from Mary Mother of Jesus For Your Daily Life, she writes:

“This collection of one hundred entries was born of my struggle to bring Mary’s story to the screen… The Mary in these pages is ancient and immediate, historical and urgently relevant. He struggles illuminate ours. Her faith makes ours feel possible.”

According to the author, this book of 100 devotionals can be read in one of four ways (although of course any way you choose to read it would be as effective; we are not the boss of your quiet time with the Lord): a single entry over the course of 100 days, by any of the 10 categorical seasons which you think might minister to you, straight through in longer settings, or whoever it opens, asking God to guide your fingers.

As many of you know, I joined the Catholic church a few years back. It’s been a rich journey for me, and Mary has most certainly been an instrumental part of it. That being said, this book is not “Catholic,” but for anyone who feels they might be able to learn a thing or two about life from the mother of Jesus.

Church tradition has given us a spiritual practice called Imaginative Prayer, credited to St. Ignatius of Antioch who lived in the 16th century. This prayer is an invitation to engage Scripture not only with one’s intellect, but with senses, emotions, and imagination.

This is not the way I learned to read or study Scripture. My Bible drill days, which morphed into women’s Bible studies, was the stuff of memorization and commentaries. Not that any of us can keep our imaginations out of the many stories we read in our Bibles, especially the gospels and their words of red.

Aloe used her imagination in writing these 100 reflections. Using historical knowledge of first-century Jewish life, she uses words to paint Mary as a mother with very human emotions. Each devotional has a focal verse, subtitles that read like spiritual reminders, a guided reflection called “Your Turn”, and a closing prayer.

Spend 100 days immersed in the life of Mary, reading Let it Be Me. She is a most trusted companion.