FRIENDS and SERVANTS of the WORD
8 December 2024
Second Sunday of Advent
Solemnity of the IMMACULATE CONCEPTION of MARY
WORD of the DAY
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. (Luke 1: 26-38)
How shall I live this Word?
The greeting of the angel invites to joy, sign that the messianic times have come, the time that the promise of God is fulfilled. The angel gives Mary a new name, that of ‘full of grace’: God is always with her. Mary is the object of a special grace from God. Grace is motherhood. The angel’s answer to Mary’s question about how this motherhood would be realized, clarifies the extraordinary nature of the generation: the intervention of the Holy Spirit. Mary is like the ‘Tent of Meeting’: on it comes down the cloud of God’s presence, and guards the ark of the covenant, God’s presence among us. For this the Son will be holy, because His origins are rooted in God Himself. In her answer, Mary calls herself ‘servant of the Lord’, affirming her submission to God and the acceptance of His will. This is the time when we too are called to meet the Lord, who makes himself present in our lives through His Word. He is the one who takes the first step, who comes to us, waiting for our answer. Even if we think that our life is of no importance, that it is irrelevant, for God it matters, even if we are not saints and perfect but sinners. For God, like Mary, we are ‘virgins’. Because for Him the condition of the heart counts. We are precious in His eyes. No one knows us more deeply than God. The word of God surprises us, the grace of God fills us, His love purifies us, His closeness heals us. The Holy Spirit generates in our heart Jesus, who comes to dwell in us. We do not have to worry about how, because everything will be His work. We must only welcome this extraordinary gift, even if we think we are ‘sterile’. Let us surrender ourselves in the hands of God, so that He may transform us into an instrument of His love, bearers of Christ for all those who seek Him. Lord, teach us to abandon ourselves with trust to You, to give ourselves completely to You, like Mary, without waiting for everything to be clear. Grant that we may answer, ‘Here I am’ to that ‘Here I am’ which you first say to us from always and forever. Amen.!
The voice of Pope Francis General Audience 13 November 2024
Mary is one of the means the Holy Spirit uses to bring us to Jesus. This role of Mary is expressed in particular in her “yes, fiat”. With these words, Mary offers herself to God as a blank page on which He can write what He wants. Mary, therefore, is in some way a model for every human being, because she suggests only two words that all, even the simplest, can pronounce on any occasion: “Here I am” and “fiat”. We learn from her to be docile to the inspirations of the Spirit, especially when He suggests that we “get up quickly” and go help someone who needs us, as she did immediately after the angel left”.
This Holy Year can be for all a time of living and personal encounter with the Lord Jesus, door of salvation. With Him, the Church has the mission of proclaiming always, everywhere, and to everyone, ‘what is our hope’.
E-mail: srmterzo@gmail.com Website: www.sanbiagio.org info@sanbiagio.org Blog: livingscripture.wordpress.com -Comment: Sr. Gisella Serra, FMA
