Sunday:       Annunciation of the Lord
Date:         March 26, 2001
Year:         C
The readings: [Is. 7:10-4, 8:10; Heb. 10:4-10; Lk. 1:26-38]
The message:  God is with us.
Prepared by:  CATHOLIC DOORS MINISTRY
Total words:  571

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Welcome my brothers and sisters in Christ to today's celebration of the Feast, "The Annunciation of the Lord." Through this special Feast, we are reminded that when "the fullness of time had come," [Gal. 4:4] God sent the angel Gabriel to announce to the Virgin Mary that she would give birth to the Child Jesus. [Lk. 1:26-35]

The heavenly message of the angel Gabriel to Mary revealed to the world that finally, through the promised Messiah, the fullness of God would be dwelling bodily. [Col. 1:19, 2:9] These words echo the prophecy of Isaiah where, in the Old Testament, it is said, "Look, the young woman, is with child and shall bear a son, and shall name him Immanuel." [Is. 7:14]

These words also echo the promise of God the Father to king David that are found in the Second Book of Samuel. "When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your ancestors, I will raise up your Offspring [Gen. 3:15] after you, who shall come forth from your body, and I will establish His Kingdom. He shall build a house for My Name, and I will establish the throne of His Kingdom forever. Your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before Me; your throne shall be established forever." [2 Sam.7:12- 13, 16]

"All this took place to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet: 'Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and they shall name Him Emmanuel,' which means, 'God is with us." [Mt. 1:22-3] Indeed, through the Virgin Mary, the mystery of the incarnation took place and God dwelled among men through the Lord Jesus Christ.

When we reflect upon the Most Holy Name of Emmanuel and its meaning, "God is with us," we are reminded of the Sacred Words of Jesus, "And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age." [Mt. 28:20] Since Jesus has instituted the New Covenant of grace [Mt. 26:28; Mk. 14:24; Lk. 22:20] during the Last Supper, He has never left us. Today, He remains physically present with us in the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist, His Sacred Presence dwelling in the Tabernacles of our Churches throughout the world.

We as Catholics who have the fullness of the grace of God in our Church are very privileged to be able to perceive this truth. While our separated brothers and sisters await the return of Jesus to dwell among them, we do not wait for what we know is already here! Since the glorious Resurrection of the Lord Jesus, in truth, He has remained physically present with us. God is with us!

When the angel Gabriel delivered his message to the Blessed Virgin Mary, could she have imagined that through her humble Fiat, we today would co-share in her joy by being priviledged with the Divine Presence of God on earth? Could she have imagined that every year to the end of the age, her Fiat would be remembered as the turning point in history?

As we contine with the celebration of the Holy Mass, over and above our presence here which speaks for itself, let us verbally thank God for being with us. Let us thank the Blessed Virgin Mary who opened the door to our salvation by her Fiat.

May the love of God always be with you as you continue to grow in the sanctifying grace of the Spirit of Jesus.

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The readings...

[The readings were taken from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible (C) 1989 Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Church of Christ in the United States of America.]

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First Reading...

"The Lord spoke to Ahaz, saying, 'Ask a sign of the Lord your God: let it be deep as Sheol or high as heaven.'

But Ahaz said, 'I will not ask, and I will not put the Lord to the test.'

Then Isaiah said: 'Hear then, O house of David! It is too little for you to weary mortals, that you weary my God also? Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Look, the young woman is with child and shall bear a son, and shall name him Immanuel,' for God is with us." [Is. 7:10-4, 8:10]

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Second Reading...

"It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. Consequently, when Christ came into the world, he said, 'Sacrifices and offerings you have not desired, but a body you have prepared for me; in burnt offerings and sin offerings you have taken no pleasure. Then I said, as it is written to me in the scroll of the book, 'See, God, I have come to do your will, O God.'

When he said, 'You have neither desired nor taken pleasure in sacrifices and offerings and burnt offerings and sin offerings' (these are offered according to the law), then he added, 'See, I have come to do your will.' He abolishes the first in order to establish the second.

And it is by God's will that we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all." [Heb. 10:4-10]

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Gospel Reading...

The angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin's name was Mary.

And he came to her and said, 'Greetings, favoured one! The Lord is with you.' But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be.

The angel said to her, 'Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favour with God. And now, you will conceive and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.'

Mary said to the angel, 'How can this be, since I am a virgin?' The angel said to her, 'The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born of you will be holy; he will be called Son of God. And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren. For nothing will be impossible with God.' Then Mary said, 'Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.'

Then the angel departed from her." [Lk. 1:26-38]

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