Word to the Wise
Monday, March 31, 2008 - The Annunciation of the Lord
[Isaiah 7:10-14;8:10; Hebrews 10:4-10; Luke 1:26-38]"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......"
The early first full moon of Spring resulted in the one of the earliest possible Easters which meant that important feast days like St. Patrick and St. Joseph were held early and the Annunciation of the Lord would be celebrated later (but not by much since March 25 is precisely nine months before December 25, but first pregnancies are somewhat unpredictable, or so my Mom friends tell me!) The week's difference takes nothing from the power of the event, even if it generally passes like most other weekdays in the liturgical calendar. I hope that my beloved congregation will take the opportunity to give this feast a deeper look. There are plenty of artistic renderings to help. My own Dominican brother, Fra Angelico, produced one of the best. There are multiple avenues of access. One may ponder what the angel says. One may ponder how Mary responds. One may focus on the immediate result - the conception/incarnation of Jesus! One may contemplate the eventual interpretation of the event, as shown in the passage from the Letter to the Hebrews. Any mother can empathize with the moment that a woman realizes, "Oh! I'm pregnant!" Broad and profound scriptural interpretations might take a back seat to that statement! Liturgists and theologians will remind us that this feast is first and foremost about the Incarnation, not about Mary. But, if Luke presents her simultaneously as a prophetic figure (Old Testament) and model disciple, we not only have a pregnancy that is more than routine (if ever that word can used of such an experience for any woman!), we also have an extraordinary woman! She unites the Old Testament hopes with the New Testament fulfillment of those hopes. Scripture scholars point out that the call of Mary is very similar to the call of many of the great prophets such as Moses, Isaiah and Jeremiah! The Gospel of Luke consistently presents as the criteria for a true disciple of Jesus a person who hears the Word of God and keeps it and proclaims it. Mary qualifies on all counts. Any pregnancy is a call to bring forth new life in "the fullness of time." No matter whether we ponder this feast on the human level of pregnancy alone or on the tremendous meaning this particular pregnancy had for the world, it is a gift from God. In this season, the empty tomb and this full womb bring us full circle in the mystery of the Incarnation. I, for one, am grateful to the extraordinary woman/prophetess who helped with the saving gift! AMEN
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