THE ANNUNCIATION OF THE LORD - 2023

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

The Word became flesh,
he lived among us,
and we saw his glory. JN 1:14

ISAIAH 7:10-14,8:10 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

Thank You, my Lord and my God for the greatest of signs, the Sign of the Cross, and that most wondrous sign that God Himself desired to make known when he spoke to Ahaz and prompted him to ask for a sign. When Ahaz refused the Lord God speaking through the lips of Isaiah made known the sign that he prophesied would herald the dawn of the second creation. God would start over with a New Adam and a New Eve and through perfect obedience and humility would untie the knot of our first parents' sin of pride and disobedience. 

Our first parents desired to be like God and so lost paradise but You, O Lord our God, who so loved the world, reversed the taint, the blight, the wound inflicted on the whole human race by starting over. The sign that was to be given is this:

‘Listen now, House of David:
 the maiden is with child
and will soon give birth to a son
whom she will call Immanuel,
a name which means “God-is-with-us.’

God is with us because of the obedience and humility of a young virgin who emptied herself so she could be filled with God. Thank You Mother Mary for your willingness to be the handmaid of the Lord, for your fiat to the will of God, and for giving the world the Son of God and the Son of Man so God could become one of us and thus redeem us. 

HEBREWS 10:4-10 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

The writer of the Letter to the Hebrews makes it clear that although the Law required animal sacrifices their blood was incapable of making atonement for sin. These sacrifices however foreshadowed the one, holy, and perfect Sacrifice that the Son of God and the Son of Man would make of Himself that would indeed wash away the sins of the whole human race and bring redemption to us all.

One like us, but without sin, could alone make atonement for the sins of the world. But all the children of Adam and Eve are born with the taint of original sin and this is why God had to start over by choosing a new Woman without blemish so she could bring forth the sinless Son of God and the Son of Man who then would become the atoning Sacrifice by taking upon Himself the sins of the world, paying the price for our iniquities, and redeeming the whole human race.   

You, my Beloved, said, ‘God, here I am! I am coming to obey your will,’ and so did Mary. She gave You Your Body making it possible for You to offer that same Body as an atoning, once-for-all Sacrifice that has redeemed the world. 

LUKE 1:26-38 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

At the dawn of creation, the Triune God was present and now at the dawn of the New Creation, the Triune God is also present. God starts over after the first man whom He fashioned from the dust of the earth and the first woman He fashioned from the rib taken from the man's side deliberately, wantonly, and foolishly, disobeyed God and irrevocably separated themselves from Him. 

The evangelist St. Luke paints a vivid picture of the mystery of the Annunciation where God and the entire heavens wait with bated breath for the fiat of a young virgin whose home was in the little town of Nazareth. It is God's way to always choose the least, the lowest, and the last, in order to do His most incredible work for then all the glory belongs to Him alone.

The drama of the Annunciation is the most romantic and the greatest love story of all time. and it will continue to stir our hearts and imaginations. Thank you, dearest Mother for saying yes to God's plan to cooperate with Him in giving the world our Savior. Through your most powerful intercession with Your Son obtain for your poor children the grace to submit to the will of God in all the events of our life.