“... Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you ...” Lk 1:28 OUR GOSPEL READING FOR TODAY, MARCH 25, SOLEMNITY OF THE ANNUNCIATION OF THE LORD 2014: LK 1: 26-38 The angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin’s name was Mary. And coming to her, he said, “Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.” But she was greatly troubled at what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus. 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, and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his Kingdom there will be no end.” But Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I have no relations with a man?” 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. 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; for nothing will be impossible for God.” 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. SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT: 1. Without Mary´s participation, how could have Jesus come into the world? I am really curious! How could have the story ended, what could have been the twist in history, what could have been God´s other plan, had Annunciation of our Lord happened differently from what happened actually? WHAT IF MARY SAID NO TO THE INVITATION OF THE LORD? 2. Grace is a gift that God has freely given to all of us. There are many kinds of grace. For example, God gives us the grace of salvation, the grace to believe, and the grace to die to ourselves. GOD GAVE MARY AN “ENABLING GRACE,” which moved her to say, “May it be done to me according to your word” (Luke 1:38). 3. This grace of God acts like the fuel we use to make a car go. IT IS GOD’S POWER AT WORK IN US, BOTH TO CHOOSE AND TO WORK “FOR HIS GOOD PURPOSE” (Philippians 2:13). Now, even with all the grace that God had given her, Mary still needed to take hold of it and apply it to her life—just as a car filled with gas won’t go anywhere unless we turn it on, put it in gear, and begin to drive. 4. The angel assured Mary that nothing is “impossible for God” (Luke 1:37). Our Father can do whatever he wants, whenever and wherever he wants. But for some reason, HE PREFERS TO DO HIS WORK IN AND THROUGH US. So as we celebrate this great day when Mary submitted to God’s will, let’s make the same decision. Let’s make sure we are open to the possibility that God may want to change some of our plans. With Mama Mary as a model, let’s all say, “I am the servant of the Lord. Let it be done to me according to your word.” (TWAU) 5. “Holy Mary, we honor you for the way you gave up your plans and submitted yourself to God completely. Teach us to do the same.” Mass Readings for today: usccb.org/bible/readings/032514.cfm MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE! (... in 9 months!!! )
Posted on: Tue, 25 Mar 2014 09:29:37 +0000