RBWords

     There are times when the liturgical calendar just has to ignore Mother Nature if certain feasts are to be celebrated no matter what!  Usually the feast of the Annunciation of the Lord is celebrated on March 25, nine months, of course, before December 25th.  BUT, when March 25 falls, as it did this year, in Holy Week, then the calendar bows in the direction of modern obstetrics and the usual fudging of possible delivery dates, and moves the feast safely out of Holy Week.  So, April 8th was the first good date, and today Jesus is liturgically conceived!  I'm sure Mary and the rest of heaven are amused at our foolishness.  No sooner is Jesus out of the tomb than we put him back in the womb!

     A perennial and transcendent truth that springs from the simple response of Mary once she realizes that Gabriel is expecting an answer is: "Behold I am the handmaid of the Lord,  May it be done to me according to your word."  That simple response in faith would have beautiful and terrible consequences for her life but salvation for the world.  Perhaps our own responses to God's nudges may be more complex and less consequential but we can certainly be inspired by Mary's faith and openness.  I'm sure this year, she won't mind Jesus coming two weeks early this year!  AMEN