Today's Gospel shows us Jesus, sighing in exasperation at the insistence of his contemporaries on having a "sign from heaven" to certify his mission. "No sign will be given," Jesus says.
Of course, when you have the Word, you don't need a sign. To insist on a sign in the presence of the complete Word is simply to reserve to yourself the capacity to determine the validity of the Word. Naturally, no sign is going to convince you to let go of your autonomy if you are predetermined to remain the judge of Truth. No sign can be given that is clearer than the Word.
But when Mary has appeared, she has given signs: the roses at Guadalupe, the spring at Lourdes, the miracle of the sun at Fatima... Mary is not the Word, and so even her motherly presence is not definitive. Mary accepts the request for a sign. Jesus cannot give a greater sign than who he is.
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