“May it be done to me according to your word.” – Luke 1:38
RECOGNIZE GOD'S VOICE
Mary
was young, innocent and uneducated when she was told she would become
the mother of God, but she was able to comprehend God’s message without
the slightest doubt. She hesitated not because she doubted but because
she was confused. Yet she obeyed and said yes with so much faith.
It’s always a struggle whenever I am faced with a decision to make,
particularly if it will have a huge effect in my life. It’s not because I
do not know what I want but because I tend to overanalyze. I also get
easily distracted listening to the many voices around me suggesting what
I should do. I often ignore the most important voice I should really
listen to, that of the Lord. Sometimes I even go to the extent of asking
God for signs to help me decide. But is decision making supposed to be
this hard? Do we really need to ask for signs?
Mary’s decision making process was simple and uncomplicated because she
knew right away it was a message from God. She recognized and
acknowledged Him. The Lord always speaks to us and, like Mary, we can
easily recognize Him if we live a life of constant prayer and
reflection. Jane Gonzales-Rauch Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord
1ST READING
Why
God chose the way He did to work out our salvation will always remain a
mystery to us. But, if it is good enough for God, then it ought to be
good enough for us. God wants Ahaz to ask for a sign so that He, God,
can strengthen Ahaz’s faith by granting it. The crazy thing is that Ahaz
refuses to ask for a sign and so God tells him that Jerusalem will be
delivered from its siege within the next nine months.
Isaiah 7:10-14; 8:10
10 The Lord spoke to Ahaz, saying: 11 “Ask for a sign from the Lord, your God; let it be deep as the nether world, or high as the sky!” 12 But Ahaz answered, “I will not ask! I will not tempt the Lord!” 13 Then Isaiah said: “Listen, O house of David! Is it not enough for you to weary people, must you also weary my God? 8: 10 Therefore
the Lord himself will give you this sign: the virgin shall be with
child, and bear a son, and shall name him Emmanuel, which means “With us
is God!”
P S A L M
Psalm 40:7-8, 8-9, 10, 11
R: Here I am, Lord; I come to do your will.
6 [7] Sacrifice or oblation you wished not, but ears open to obedience you gave me. 7 [8] Holocaust or sin-offerings you sought not; then said I, “Behold I come.” (R) “In the written scroll it is prescribed for me, 8 [9] to do your will, O my God, is my delight, and your law is within my heart!” (R) 9 [10] I announced your justice in the vast assembly; I did not restrain my lips, as you, O Lord, know. (R) 10 [11] Your
justice I kept not hid within my heart; your faithfulness and your
salvation I have spoken of; I have made no secret of your kindness and
your truth in the vast assembly. (R)
2ND READING
The
greatest sacrifice we can offer to the Lord, apart from the Eucharist,
is obedience to His will. This is precisely what Christ offers on the
cross — not so much His life but His obedience to God. It is Christ’s
obedience that in one sense undoes the disobedience of Adam, namely sin.
Let us always remain obedient to God’s will and so embrace the work of
salvation He has begun within us.
Hebrews 10:4-10
4 Brothers and sisters: It is impossible that the blood of bulls and goats take away sins. 5 For
this reason, when Christ came into the world, he said: “Sacrifice and
offering you did not desire, but a body you prepared for me; 6 in holocausts and sin offerings you took no delight in. 7 Then I said, ‘As is written of me in the scroll, Behold, I come to do your will, O God.’ ” 8 First
he says, “Sacrifices and offerings, holocausts and sin offerings, you
neither desired nor delighted in.” These are offered according to the
law. 9 Then he says, “Behold, I come to do your will.” He takes away the first to establish the second. 10 By this “will,” we have been consecrated through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
GOSPEL
Mary
is a great example of obedience. It is inconceivable to think that she
fully knew the consequences of her obedience to God’s offer to become
the mother of His only Son. Even without full knowledge of what it would
mean, Mary accedes to God’s will. Here is a perfect example of faith
and trust in God. Let us seek to follow it.
Luke 1:26-38
26 The angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, 27 to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin’s name was Mary. 28 And coming to her, he said, “Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.” 29 But she was greatly troubled at what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. 30 Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31 Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father, 33 and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” 34 But Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I have no relations with a man?” 35 And
the angel said to her in reply, “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 called holy, the Son of God. 36 And
behold, Elizabeth, your relative, has also conceived a son in her old
age, and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren; 37 for nothing will be impossible for God.” 38 Mary
said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me
according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her.
REFLECTION
THE COURTEOUS HOUND OF HEAVEN
Religion,
they say, is man’s search for God. But the God of the Bible is
different. Christianity has a radical proposal. The Christian God is the
God who searches for man. He longs for him. His is the initiative. The
biblical God is a God who pursues.
In the words of the English poet Francis Thompson, “God is the Hound of
Heaven” (a hound is a breed of dog with a strong sense of smell,
relentless in its pursuit of subjects). If the image of God as a hound
in pursuit is scandalizing, what is more disconcerting is the courtesy
of God in His pursuit. He is God. He doesn’t need to ask. He can just
demand attendance and presence in His banquet. But no. He invites, He
asks, He proposes. He risks the embarrassment of rejection.
Today is the feast of the Lord’s Annunciation. The Fathers of the
Church have long seen this scene in Luke’s Gospel as God making a
proposal to Mary to become the spouse of the Spirit, and Mary giving her
free yes, her fiat, to that proposal.
I remember being in a plane bound to Davao for a talk. During the
flight, a Korean approached the flight attendant, asked for the
microphone, and proposed marriage to his girlfriend. The guy said to the
girl, “I have something to ask you and you’re free to choose from the
four possible answers. You can say ‘yes,’ ‘of course,’ ‘why not?’ or
‘absolutely’.” So much for freedom, huh? The choices left no room for
the possibility of rejection.
Why did God take the risk of rejection? Because that is the way of
genuine love. If we were created in a way that we cannot say no to God,
then in the same measure, our yes to Him is of no value. God, the
courteous hound of heaven, longs for our free and genuine yes.
May Mary’s yes to God be our own. May that free invitation and gracious
response at the scene of the Annunciation be repeated over and over
again in human history. Mama Mary, pray for us! Fr. Joel Jason
"I say yes to You, Lord. May Your will be done in my life. May I follow Mama Mary’s example of faithful obedience to Your call."
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