The Annunciation to Mary is also our Annunciation – Lk 1:26-38
The Annunciation to Mary is also our annunciation. God communicates to Mary a great mystery, the greatest Gift He can give - His Son. But it also announces Him to us and through us to others.
In Luke's narrative, God's sensitivity and respect for man is striking. When the Angel Gabriel announced the good news to Mary, God fell silent. Theologians multiply their hypotheses, what would had happened if Mary had refused God. He would probably have found another way to save man. But he did not have to, because he had created Mary earlier. He prepared her, formed her, did not allow any sin nor the smallest evil, to touch her. Certain masterpieces are made only by God. Mary is the greatest masterpiece; she is full of grace. She is designated by God Himself to become a living temple of His presence in the world.
Mary, however, is free, like all of us. Therefore, God is waiting for her answer. While the angel is silent and waits for an answer, Mary, the prudent Virgin, ponders the doubts that arise. Immaculate means free from sin, but not free from questions, doubts, hesitations, temptations, or suffering. Mary is a human being like us and must go her way with the help of her own faith. There will also be many questions in her life. She will search for light in the dark, learn to read God's everyday events and signs. Her "yes" in Nazareth is herconsent to the unknown.
Mary completely trusted God, entrusted immeasurably to His word, His Providence. She agreed to the mystery and all the consequences of her decision. Here I am the handmaid of the Lord. Let it be done to me according to your word. These words, which mean perfect obedience, are the entrustment of life to God's will. They are also a prayer of completely entrusting oneself and offering oneself to God.
The most important thing in a relationship with God is trust. If we say yes, explanations, knowledge and cognition will follow. You know the way only when you walk it. We know God when we trust Him and enter into the mysteries that He leads Himself. Moreover, every trust is proven by testing. The choice of God, the choice of Jesus, is not a one-off event. Rather, it is a dynamic fact that must be constantly renewed. None of us know exactly what is behind offering ourselves to God, behind the promises of baptism, the vow of marriage, the choice of the priesthood, or other promises. Our "yes" to Jesus, to a woman, to a man, to a friend to some difficult task, must be confirmed day after day, throughout our lives.
Mary received the Savior on behalf of all of us. But at the same time, each of us can accept or reject Him. It is the same with all God's gifts. Let us see it on the example of health and illness, because both are a vessel in which God wants to give us his gifts. Yet each of us, both in health and in illness, can open or close ourselves to the gifts that God wants to give us in connection with our specific situation.
On the other hand, Mary's virginity, her total devotion to God, it is a sign that Christ may truly enter our lives and embrace it, we must be at least a little like Mary in reaching out to God who wants to save us.
Do I experience God's power, God's protection, in my life? What is more important to me: getting to know God or trusting Him? How do I feel about giving myself completely to God? What role does Mary play in my spiritual life? What am I learning from her?
Until Tomorrow
fr. george