May the month of Mothers! Mothers are very present in the Women’s Atrium of Duc In Altum at Magdala. They are remembered in the figures of Salome, Mary of Cleopas, the mother-in-law of Peter, Mary, the Mother of Jesus, and the countless mothers who have traced their names (with their fingers) on the column dedicated to all women of faith.

Heads and eyes turn upwards, above the columns, to marvel at the cupola of the atrium which is truly a work of art. A fragment of the famous Mexican image – Our Lady of Guadalupe – was painstakingly designed and painted by a mother (Maria Jesus Fernandez) to honor the Mother of Jesus.

Mary’s blue mantle decorated with the stars of the sky stretches out across the cupola and literally protects all who stand below it. Mary, the Mother of Jesus, is also the “mother” of all believers, and gently points us in His direction.

Her hands delicately folded in a gesture of prayer remind us that Mary, as any good mother, was always praying for her son. Sacred Scripture tells us that Mary came to look for Jesus on several occasions after he left Nazareth and began his ministry. Did she ever visit Magdala? No one can say for sure, but chances are she did.