BEADS OF JOY 12-08-12
“Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception”
©2012 James Dacey, Jr. OFS
“Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception”
©2012 James Dacey, Jr. OFS
My Friends:
This is today’s gospel Luke 1:26-38 (Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary). Today is a most blessed day to celebrate. I just had to post the actual words of the gospel; they are too beautiful, let us take the time to read them again:
“In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary. And he came to her and said, "Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you!" But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and considered in her mind what sort of greeting this might be. And the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name 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 father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; and of his kingdom there will be no end." And Mary said to the angel, "How shall this be, since I have no husband?" And 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 will be called holy, the Son of God. And behold, your kinswoman Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. For with God nothing will be impossible.” And Mary said, "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word." And the angel departed from her.”
Today's celebration is focused on the purity of our Blessed Mother. She is indeed full of grace because of her trust in God's word. How seriously do we believe in God's word, His promises, and what grace He will bestow upon us in our life? Do we seriously live a life so simple and so pure, that we would instantly say, "Yes" if we were asked to do something that God asked of us that might possibly look like a bad choice, from the angle we might see it; or do we fully and completely trust that God alone knows what's best for us? Would our trust outweigh our doubt and personal fears? It's something to think about. Full and complete trust goes without questioning of the authority making those choices for us. In this case like Mary, fully trusting in God’s Will for her.
Those are important questions that need to be considered. The challenge we should all take on in our lives; should be to live a life before our Lord that emulates His mother's, she is a great example of obedience. She didn’t know when she was speaking to the Angel Gabriel in that conversation what was truly to come of all of this; and what he was saying about the soon to be miracle birth were beyond any human understanding. Yet regardless of the lack of all the details, her love and devotion and deepest trust in God surpassed any doubt that would turn her away from God's request of anything He wanted for her to do, for Him. We must embrace Mary as our Mother and join with her as she leads us to our Lord. She always brings us to Him, right from the start she has, all the way to today. Thank you Mother.
“Jesus, I Trust in You.”
Your Brother in Christ Jesus
and His Most Precious Mother Mary,
Jimmy (The Rosary Man) Dacey Jr OFS
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