Say yes

Today, our parish feast day, is about the freedom to say yes. That is what I think of today- the freedom to say yes, and the courage to do so, under what must have felt like impossible circumstances. That is why these are two of my favorite Annunciation images, both Pre-Raphelite, not a particularly favorite style of art for me.

(click on the images to enlarge them)

Shocked. Surprised. Frightened. But still she said… yes.

And that changed everything. Everything.

Monday Musing – The Annunciation

“She shut her eyes and trusted in God who could bring all things to pass, even though common sense were against it; and because she believed, God did to her as he said…. there are here three miracles: that God and man should be joined in this
Child, that a mother should remain a virgin; that Mary should have such faith as to believe that this mystery would be accomplished in her”- Martin Luther on the Annunciation

Mary’s choices… to hear, to listen, to believe, to say yes. What could be more beautiful?

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An Advent Reflection

At my home parish of St. Edward the Confessor, we have a beautiful tradition of offering evening prayer on Tuesdays during Advent and Lent. I was privileged to offer the reflection last night.

It was a true gift to see people from Immaculate Conception present and I am grateful beyond measure! Thank you for your presence!

Typically the reflection is offered based on the Gospel or one of the other readings for that particular day. The spirit moved me to reflect on the Gospel, which was Luke 1:26-38. Typically the reflection gets posted at the Parish Blog of St. Edward, and I am also posting it here.

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Here at St. Edward the Confessor we have a beautiful practice during Advent and Lent – Evening Prayer on Tuesday evenings at 7 PM. While we have thought about doing this outside of the liturgical seasons mentioned, we have not done so. And there is something special about bracketing these times when we are called to a particular kind of attention.

Last night I was privileged to once again offer the reflection and I am reprinting the text of my reflection here. Please note, if you were present, I do read from the script, but I do deviate from it as well. Thus – this may be slightly different than what you heard!

Thank you to everyone who has attended evening prayer so faithfully! Thank you to everyone who has come just once! Thank you everyone – presider, helpers, music ministers and other reflectors, for another beautiful season of prayer.

Are You Ready? A Reflection on the Gospel According to Luke, 1:26-38.

The question is everywhere… I am asked it and although I say that I am not going to ask it, I do… You know, you have said it yourself – I’m pretty sure you have either asked or been asked this at least once this week…

After all, we have this nice long Advent, the one in which that last purple taper gets to burn down a bit, just like the others, thanks to the fourth Sunday being followed by 6 entire days. More time to – get ready. Whatever ready means!

Feast of the Immaculate Conception – A Guest Post by Sean Caron for December 8, 2011

I was driving with a Protestant friend of mine the other day, and he asked me about our parish at Immaculate Conception.

“Oh, the Immaculate Conception, hey?”, he said, ” … that is when the Angel Gabriel came to Mary and she conceived Jesus.”

“No, no,” I said. “The Immaculate Conception refers to the great truth that Our Lady was conceived in her mother St. Anne’s womb without the stain of Original Sin.”

“But, doesn’t St. Paul say in the letter to the Romans that all men have sinned and fall short of the Glory of God?” (Rom 3:23).

“Right!”, I said. “And also, Our Lady herself said, ‘My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.’” (Luke 1:46)

So if these bible quotes are true, and all people fall to sin and Our Blessed Lady herself talks of her Savior, how could it be that Pope Gregory XVI declared infallibly* that Our Lady was immaculately conceived?

This is a serious, serious problem – it tripped up many of the great thinkers of the Church throughout the ages, including St. Bernard of Clairvaux (founder of the Cistercian Order), St. Thomas Aquinas, and St. Bonaventure; Doctors of the Church all.

It fell to Blessed John Duns Scotus, OFM, to puzzle out the answer. According to Duns Scotus, the answer to the riddle is that Our Blessed Mother in fact did need redeeming as per Romans; did need a Savior, as per Luke. But, in her case, the method of redemption was different. Duns Scotus realized that Our Lady was saved prior to her Immaculate Conception.

A story I heard one time might help illustrate this. Picture yourself walking down a jungle path. Ahead of you is a bottomless pit – but it is covered with vines and leaves and is invisible. You take a step – and fall headlong into the pit, screaming “AHHHHHH!” and calling out, “Jesus, save me!”. And Our Lord does that – He reaches out, grabs your arm, and pulls you from the pit and sets you down on firm ground. You have been saved.

Now imagine our Blessed Mother on that same path. Her foot reaches out as she steps over the pit – and Our Lord pulls her back, and keeps her from falling. He has saved her.

Is there any significant way in which the saving act is any different? No! In each case Our Lord performed a saving Act that preserved the person from the depths of the pit. Except in Our Lady’s case she doesn’t fall – she doesn’t get muddy or torn up by her fall as we all do. To stretch the metaphor a little, she doesn’t experience the after-effects of the fall, which tend to lead to more mud, more scratches, more torn white garments for us – what the Church calls concupiscence.

This truth is a Doctrine of the Faith – a Truth that all Catholics are obliged to believe. And I don’t find it hard to believe at all. Could Jesus do something like that? Sure he could! All power under Heaven and Earth has been granted to Him. And, of course, He is not subject to time in the way we are. As God, there is no reason to suppose he could not have been present at His own Mother’s conception. And finally, it just makes sense. What son doesn’t love his mother? And wouldn’t do something special for her, if he could? I know I would. We can be sure, with the sureness of Holy Faith, that Jesus did.

*It’s important to note that while Ineffabilis Deus declared this doctrine officially in 1854, Catholics have been celebrating the Feast of the Immaculate Conception since at least the 5th century, and that this truth has been known since apostolic times. So why do Popes (and Councils) write Catechisms and Professions of Faith and papal encyclicals on things Catholics have always believed? Good Question! and one I’ll write a post on later.