OUR LADY OF HARVEST

Day 5: May 15

The title of the Blessed Mother as Our Lady of Harvest may evoke the memories of the innumerable deities venerated in different cultures of the world under different names and titles from time immemorial. This cult emerged and developed in mostly in agrarian societies. Agriculture, as we know, depends mostly on nature. Famers would pray for the absence of natural calamities as well as for the presence of conducive elements like rain and good weather conditions. Devotions to Our Lady of Harvest also may have roots in the pagan cult but has been Christianized.

The devotion to Our Lady of Harvest, or of the Seeds is found in the Maronite Church. In its ancient text of the divine office, we read: "The dew spread all over the region where John wrote the Book of the Virgin, in which is found: Let the memory of the blessed One be celebrated three times a year: in January, for the seeds, in May, for the ears of wheat, in August, for the grapes which symbolize the sacrament of life: Bless them!" The three Maronite Marian feasts each focus on a specific part of agriculture: seeds, wheat and grapes. The wheat, which grows from the seeds, becomes the main ingredient of bread, and grapes become wine. The same bread and wine which become the body and blood of Christ during the Divine Liturgy, given to Catholics for the “forgiveness of sins and for eternal life.” This creates a deep connection between Mary, the harvest and the Eucharist. Wheat and grapes become the Eucharist, just as how a baby in his mother’s womb grew and became light and life. Mary’s role as Jesus’ mother was to protect and nurture him while in her womb—a role which has now been carried onto the crops that will become the body and blood of her son. Mary is the good earth that nurtures and protects us as our mother, just as she nurtures and protects Christ, something which is not only seen during the Maronite Marian feasts.

At every Maronite Divine Liturgy we pray this hymn for the transfer of the offerings: “Of the Virgin Mary I was born, taking flesh as man. As good earth receives a seed her womb received me, priestly hands now lift me high above the altars.”  The Maronite divine office, morning prayer for the memorial of the Virgin Mary, further adds to this, describing Mary as “the garden who has given the world the fruit of life.” The heavy symbolism of Mary’s womb as the seedbed for Christ intertwines her role in the Incarnation of Christ with the theme of healthy crops and fruitful harvest. Christ, in this instance, is the ultimate harvest, a source of light and life to be praised and adored. From a scientific lens, research has long demonstrated that cells from the baby remain in the mother’s womb for life, even long after childbirth. This forms part of the connection between mothers and their children and further connects Mary to Christ. Acting as a “garden,” or as “good earth,” Mary’s womb would have carried the cells of Christ, the good harvest. In iconography for the feast of Our Lady of the harvest, Mary is often depicted over a field of wheat, protecting the crop as she would’ve protected and nurtured her own son.

Catholics can turn to Mary and, through her intercession, pray for her protection over their crops, whether they are literal fields of wheat or something symbolic, requiring the careful protection and nurturing of a mother.

Let us pray to Mary

Mary,
Ask your only Son to bless our seasons, harvests, and the work of our hands;
may he show his word in our hearts and in our souls.
May he grant this through your intercession,
through the prayers and incense we offer him on this day of your feast;
and we will give thanks to the glorious Trinity,
now and for ever.
Amen.
(From the Maronite Divine Office, Morning prayer for the Memorial of the Virgin Mary)