December 8/Second Monday of Advent
Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary
[The angel said to her,] “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.” ~ Luke 1.30
Finding favor with God can mean being asked to follow a path we have not considered, and upon which we have no desire to embark. Whatever future the young Jewish peasant woman had imagined for herself, it surely did not involve giving birth to the Son of God. And yet in one sudden and unexpected moment, Mary’s world was turned upside down and her plans for the future vanished into the very air that was stirred by Gabriel’s wings. For Mary, as for us, being in God’s good graces (the root of the Greek word translated “favored one”) does not always – or ever – imply a life of ease. Rather, it will almost certainly bring difficulties, hardships, griefs, separations. For Mary, an unpredictable path was opening up, in which suffering and pain would have their day, along with comfort and joy. Thus her “yes” became an expression of unfettered trust in God. Like Mary, we are called to entrust our lives to our Lord, even when his “favor” leads us in a direction we didn’t anticipate. This might mean following a spouse to a new city because of a job, taking on the volunteer position that no one else wants, or sacrificing our grand ambitions to walk a humbler path. Handing our lives over to God is not at all easy, especially for those of us who consider ourselves highly capable of managing our own affairs. But in order truly to find favor with God, we must put our fear (or pride) to the side, put our lives in his hands, and put our trust in his grace. As the Jesuit priest Alfred Delp wrote during his imprisonment by the Nazis in World War II, “Only by voluntary unreserved surrender to God can we find our home.”
Lord of life, guide me on the path of your grace, no matter how surprising or unexpected the way may be. Amen.
For today’s readings, click here: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/120825.cfm
To hear the Choir of King’s College, Cambridge, sing the Basque carol “The Angel Gabriel,” click here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pliqObTHxUQ&list=RDpliqObTHxUQ&index=2
