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| Storm clouds of March 3, 2012 |
and shall name him Emmanuel,
which means, "God is with us."
Not even the sadness of Lent can darken the joy of the Annunciation. We have to take a day off and consider that nine months from today we will celebrate Christmas. We have to consider the woman who so willingly gave her body, soul, mind and strength to the Lord God and, by her eager willingness, received her savior and ours into God's created universe.
Scripture scholars are quick to point out that Isaiah's original word for "virgin" in the Hebrew indicated a young woman. Isaiah was not speaking of a virgin in its technical sense, meaning a woman innocent of all sexual experience. He may have meant only that, before a year was up, Ahaz would see an heir to his throne. God maintains his ability to surprise.
But the same scholars will tell us Saint Matthew used the Greek translation of Isaiah and deliberately used the word virgin. Like his colleague Luke, he faithfully recorded the oral tradition of that first century Christian Church when he described Mary as a pregnant virgin. As astonishing and wonderful as that may sound, this is our belief.
The doctrine of Virgin Birth underlines the unique relationship of Jesus to our God. There is no one like him; never has been; never will be. Not even in the entire Universe, if there be sentient beings on exoplanets. (I, for one, maintain my disbelief in extra-terrestrial intelligent life until proven otherwise -- which promises to be a very long time!)
Our responsorial psalm also celebrates the wonderful occasion as we echo Mary's heartfelt response:
Here I am Lord, I come to do your will.God will never use anyone in the crude sense of that word, except when He demonstrates his authority over the wicked. They asked for it. But the willing and the eager God will invite to participate in his Saving Deeds. And so Mary is invited to be the Mother of God and she dances with joy. Our contemporaries might hire women's bodies to spawn their children, thus denying their children the right to know their parents; but our God lays out his plan to Mary before asking her consent. Rightfully then do we thank her and her God for her fiat: Let it be done to me according to your word.
Mary's consent is ours as well. She is and speaks for the entire Church. As she brought her God into our world, so do we bring our God to our neighbors, friends and family. As she was filled with holiness, so does our holiness flood from us into the cosmos around us. We have heard God say, "You shall be my people, and I shall see your God." On this solemn feast of the Annunciation, we begin to see just how completely God intends to fulfill those words.
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I love to write. This blog helps me to meditate on the Word of God, and I hope to make some contribution to our contemplations of God's Mighty Works.
Ordinarily, I write these reflections two or three weeks in advance of their publication. I do not intend to comment on current events.
I understand many people prefer gender-neutral references to "God." I don't disagree with them but find that language impersonal, unappealing and tasteless. When I refer to "God" I think of the One whom Jesus called "Abba" and "Father", and I would not attempt to improve on Jesus' language.
You're welcome to add a thought or raise a question.