LENTEN REFLECTION

Message

The Annunciation of the  Incarnation of God, when God  became flesh and dwelt among us,  at a particular point in our  human history (Lk 1:5), when we  can  see the  face  of the invisible God, is a solemnity of great rejoicing in gratitude to God. God  saved us.

Gospel Reading

26 In the  sixth month the  angel Gabriel was sent by God  to  a town in Galilee called Nazareth, 27 to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the  house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28 And  he  came to  her  and said, “Greetings, favoured one! The  Lord  is with  you.” 29 But  she was much perplexed by  his words and  pondered what sort of  greeting this   might be.  30 The angel said to her, “Do not  be afraid, Mary, for you have found favour with God. 31 And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him  Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the  Son of the  Most High, and the  Lord God will give  to him  the  throne of his ancestor David.  33 He will reign over the  house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no   end.” 34 Mary   said  to   the   angel,  “How  can    this  be,   since  I   am   a virgin?” 35 The angel said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of  the   Most High  will  overshadow you;   therefore the   child   to  be born will  be  holy;   he  will  be  called Son of  God. 36 And  now, your relative Elizabeth in her  old age has also conceived a son, and this  is the  sixth month for  her  who was said to  be  barren. 37 For  nothing will  be  impossible with God.” 38 Then Mary  said, “Here am  I, the  servant of the  Lord;  let it be with  me according to your word.” Then the  angel departed from her.

There are  many things we  can  do  today. Some couples might try  for  a Christmas baby! Mother Church today invites us  to  ponder in utter wonder the  mystery of the Incarnation, that God  became flesh and dwelt among us (Jn 1:14), and to emulate our Lady, Mary,  the Great Mother of God, Mother Most Holy in her  fiat: “38  Then Mary said, ‘Here am I, the servant of the  Lord; let it be with  me  according to your word’” (Lk 1:38).

Mary  is our  totally superb model of  saying YES to God, permanently, irrevocably, humbly and with  total joy.  She had meant to be  a consecrated virgin all her  life, but obeyed God   and changed her   plans. She cooperated with  God, to  participate in working the  salvation of  humankind and all  creation. She became Mother of God; something otherwise unthinkable. When we present ourselves to God, and cooperate with  Him, He works wonders with  us and totally transforms us  and all around us. We should be God’s instruments for the  common good of all creation. And we can wholly consecrate ourselves totally to  our  Lord  Jesus Christ through Mother Mary;  totally, totus tuus. We can  bring Mother Mary vividly  into  our  lives, through devotion to her; for instance regularly saying the  Rosary, to  know and love  our  Lord  Jesus Christ as she did; we can  venerate  her  statues, hyperdulia, but  not worship her, for this  latria is for God  alone; we  can  sing the  Salve  Regina often, particularly at  the  end of Mass; and daily  pray the  Magnificat and Angelus. Grottos in our  communities and homes are vivid ways of living with  Mary, ever present to her;  out  of total love  for her, as our  Mother and the Great Mother of God, Mother Most Holy.

God  became flesh in Mary’s womb; that is where the  incarnation happened: “30  The angel said to her, ‘Do not  be afraid, Mary, for you  have found favour with God. 31 And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him  Jesus.’” (Lk 1:30-31). Jesus was born divine: “35  The  angel said to  her, ‘The  Holy  Spirit will come upon you, and the  power of the  Most High will overshadow you;  therefore the child  to  be  born will  be  holy;  he will  be  called Son of God.’”  (Lk 1:35).  Mary  is the Mother of God;  The Theotokos. Jesus was pre-existent, co-eternal and equal with God the  Father, before He was born and for all time; He is the  visible face  of the  invisible God  (Jn 1:1-4,  10:30,  14:9; Gaudium et Spes 22). So,  Jesus did  not  become divine at His baptism or  at  the  resurrection, nor  was He  created, as some heretics claimed. Jesus is true God  and true Man. Only  as true God  and true man could He work  our salvation. As God, He forgives our sin and redeems us. As man, he assumes our fallen humanity, and recapitulates or re-lives it all and sanctifies it backwards to Adam and forwards to the  end of time, as the  genealogies remind us (Lk 3:23-38;  Mt 1:1-17).  His body becomes the  one permanent, self-offering sacrifice that works our  redemption for once and for all (Heb 10:4-18, Ps 40). We relive this at every Mass; commemorating and making it present;  celebrating it on  earth and in  heaven whenever we  say the Mass. The incarnation is God’s self-less, self-emptying love for His creation. God cares for His creation, and we imitate Him in caring for His creation.