RBWords

     Gabriel's word is God's word.  That word first proclaims to a very troubled young Jewish woman that she is favored by God in a way that neither she nor anyone else could have predicted or understood!  In the middle of an insignificant hamlet in a small area of the Middle East, controlled militarily by the Roman Empire, God has decided to make this young woman the instrument of promise-keeping!  She will conceive and give birth to the Messiah!  The same God who created the world from nothing can create another human person in his own image and likeness but, more than that, the very representation of God's grace in human nature!  "Therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God."    And just in case Mary was still wondering, Gabriel tells her about her cousin, Elizabeth - pregnant in old age!  "[F]or nothing will be impossible for God."

     The charm of this scene in the Gospel of Luke is very different from the troubled dream of Joseph in the Gospel of Matthew, but both of them affirm that Jesus is conceived by the power of God.  It is this power that is greater than any other power in existence.  This power will confront the Roman empire in the person of Pontius Pilate!  This power is greater than death!  Right now our attention is captured by the story of Jesus' conception and birth with all its challenges: unexpected pregnancy, journey to Elizabeth's home, journey to Bethlehem, birth in an animal shelter, visit from Magi, journey to Egypt, etc..  It all happens within the plan of God's power acting through ordinary human beings.  If God can do this for them, we can be certain God can do great things for us as well.  AMEN