“My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord; my spirit rejoices in God my savior. for he has looked upon his lowly servant. From this day all generations will call me blessed: the Almighty has done great things for me, and holy is his Name. He has mercy on those who fear him in every generation. He has shown the strength of his arm, and has scattered the proud in their conceit. He has cast down the mighty from their thrones and has lifted up the lowly. He has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent away empty. He has come to the help of his servant Israel for he remembered his promise of mercy, the promise he made to our fathers, to Abraham and his children for ever.”
Mary remained with Elizabeth about three months and then returned to her home.
The Gospel of the Lord.
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This is the longest set of words ever spoken by a woman in the New Testament – words spoken by Mary shortly after conceiving Christ in her womb.
What do they reveal about her?
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Mary is often depicted as a young girl – humble, her eyes cast down, a peasant living on the fringe of society.
While there’s truth in that, there is something else about Mary that’s rarely depicted, something we discover in today’s Gospel.
Mary’s prophetic role.
All of the words she speaks are in the past tense. God, “has cast down the mighty from their thrones; he has filled the hungry with good things; the rich he has sent away empty.”
For a moment, Mary sees as God sees, into a new world being ushered in by Jesus – a world of justice, love, and peace.
For this reason, she becomes like figures from the Old Testament, playing the role of prophet.
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Perhaps we could take a moment today to imagine the world Mary envisioned – a world where swords are beaten into plowshares and spears into pruning hooks, not only in distant lands or faraway times, but even now in our own lives.
Then, in some small way, work to achieve it.
Mary, prophetess and Mother of God, pray for us.
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Image credits: (1) Our Lady of the Wayside Catholic Church (2) Conventual Franciscan Friars (3) QuoteFancy
In the sixth month, 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.
The Gospel of the Lord.
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The Advent season reminds us that nothing is impossible for God.
The barren conceives. The virgin is with child. The Word is made flesh and dwells among us.
The challenge is to believe that God can still do the impossible today… for us.
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In yesterday’s Gospel, the angel Gabriel appeared to Zechariah and told him that his wife Elizabeth – although elderly and barren – would bear a child.
Today he appears to Mary with a similar message, “Behold you will conceive in your womb and bear a son… and of his kingdom there will be no end.”
Zechariah responds to the angel with doubt. “How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years.”
Mary, on the other hand responds humbly in faith, “Let it be done unto me according to your word.”
Two stories of the impossible. Two very different responses of faith.
Which of these two biblical characters do I identify with more, Mary or Zechariah?
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Perhaps we all begin our faith journeys like Zechariah – surprised by providence, unsure of God’s power to save. We lean more into doubt than into faith.
But as we mature, we begin developing faith like Mary, who believes that nothing is impossible for God.
May she intercede for all us, that our faith in Jesus would never fail; on the contrary, may it grow stronger by the day.
Mary Immaculate, pray for us.
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Image credits: (1) Annunciation, Fra Angelico (2) Pinterest (3) TheBestFaithEver
In the days of Herod, King of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah of the priestly division of Abijah; his wife was from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. Both were righteous in the eyes of God, observing all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blamelessly. But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren and both were advanced in years.
Once when he was serving as priest in his division’s turn before God, according to the practice of the priestly service, he was chosen by lot to enter the sanctuary of the Lord to burn incense. Then, when the whole assembly of the people was praying outside at the hour of the incense offering, the angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right of the altar of incense. Zechariah was troubled by what he saw, and fear came upon him.
But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, because your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall name him John. And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He will drink neither wine nor strong drink. He will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from his mother’s womb, and he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God. He will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah to turn the hearts of fathers toward children and the disobedient to the understanding of the righteous, to prepare a people fit for the Lord.”
Then Zechariah said to the angel, “How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years.” And the angel said to him in reply, “I am Gabriel, who stand before God. I was sent to speak to you and to announce to you this good news. But now you will be speechless and unable to talk until the day these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled at their proper time.” Meanwhile the people were waiting for Zechariah and were amazed that he stayed so long in the sanctuary. But when he came out, he was unable to speak to them, and they realized that he had seen a vision in the sanctuary. He was gesturing to them but remained mute.
Then, when his days of ministry were completed, he went home.
After this time his wife Elizabeth conceived, and she went into seclusion for five months, saying, “So has the Lord done for me at a time when he has seen fit to take away my disgrace before others.”
The Gospel of the Lord.
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Once a year, a priest was chosen to enter the Holy of Holies, the innermost room of the Temple, where it’s believed God’s presence was dwelling.
This was the closest a human being could physically be to God.
Zechariah was chosen to enter that day, to pray on behalf of an entire nation.
While this was a tremendous honor, the moment was bittersweet. Zechariah was not only placing the needs of his nation before the Lord; he was also interceding for his wife, Elizabeth, who was elderly and barren.
Zechariah and Elizabeth prayed their whole life for a child…and, suddenly, the angel Gabriel appears to him and says, “Your prayer has been granted.”
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The angel Gabriel will deliver a similar message to the Virgin Mary. “Behold, you shall conceive and bear a son.”
Mary responds to the angel in confidence, “Let it be done unto me according to your word.”
But Zechariah, on the other hand, is filled with doubt. “How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years.” Zechariah favors human logic over divine providence.
For this reason, he’s struck mute by the angel. Scholars say that this was an act of mercy, preventing Zechariah from blaspheming against God while in the Holy of Holies.
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How often do we find ourselves in Zechariah’s position? We pray to the Lord, but in our heart of hearts we wonder if anything will really change?
We favor human logic over divine Providence.
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Today’s Gospel – and by extension this Advent season – reminds us to never give up. The elderly and barren conceive. The Virgin is found with child. The Word is made flesh and dwells among us.
God does something beautiful in our own lives.
For nothing is impossible for God.
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Image credits: (1) The God of the Impossible, Busy Blessed Women, WordPress (2) Zechariah in the Temple, Jan Livens (3) Pinterest
