Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord
Isaiah 7: 10-14; 8:10 Heb. 10: 4-10 Lk 1: 26-38
Theme: The coming of the Messiah
Today the church celebrates the solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord. This celebration in a special way reminds us about the origin of our salvation story. This is seen in the response of our mother Mary to the Angel who brought the message of the coming of Jesus Christ. We celebrate today, the ‘yes’ of our mother Mary. She accepted Gods will and was willing to go through with it, not minding the consequences of her yes to the Angel. In faith, she obeyed the will of God for her. The positive disposition and the readiness to accept the will of God for herself is worthy of emulation, by all of us who bear the name Christian. As children of God, we must be courageous like our Mother Mary to always say yes to God. The yes of our mother Mary to the message of the Angel, should strengthen our faith in the fact that God never fails or disappoints all those who trust in him.
Dear friends in Christ, in the 1st reading we see a confused Ahaz, who was not courageous enough like our mother Mary to have faith in God and trust in him. Ahaz was more comfortable to align with the superpower at that time, instead of trusting in God just like our mother Mary did. But in the gospel reading we see something different in the response of our mother Mary to the Angel. She willingly said yes by this assertion, ‘I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be to me according to your will’. This shows that she had absolute trust on the message the Angel brought to her. This is a challenge to you and me as children of God, we must always trust in Gods process; even when it is not completely clear to us, just like in the case of Mary. The response of our Mother Mary is seen again in the 2nd reading, we are encouraged to always do the will of God. Mary has taught us the way, let us follow in her footsteps. As you do this, May almighty God bless you, in the name of the father and of the son and of the holy spirit, Amen. Peace be with you.