Luke 1: 26-38
In the sixth month 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, favored 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 favor with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb 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 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.
New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989, by the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. USCCB approved.
Let It Be
I’ve been listening to “Let It Be,” by the Beatles, on repeat lately. There have been many hours of darkness in my life over the last year, and indeed, Mary’s loving and comforting presence has been very near. She has spoken many words of wisdom to me, including (but not only), “Let it be.” And, even as we recognize the Church’s teaching regarding the conception of Mary without sin, I can’t help but wonder if the wisdom of Mary that so many of us have experienced can be traced back to this encounter with Gabriel recounted in the Gospel today.
By all contemporary understandings of life and culture in the time of Mary, we understand that Mary would have been incredibly young at the time of this encounter. Indeed, even as the Gospel indicates, there was much that Mary did not understand about life, about God, and even about what was being asked of her. And yet, through the mysterious explanation of the impending workings of the Holy Spirit in her very real life, through the surprising insight into her cousin’s simultaneous experience of the impossible, and through the resonant and hopeful truth of the power of God to accomplish what seems to be impossible, Mary was able to release her will - her heart - into the freedom of God. May we all have the courage to do the same.
—Laura Gilmartin H. facilitates Urban Plunge immersion retreats through Casa Romero: A Jesuit Renewal Center, serves on the leadership team of the Ignatian Volunteer Corps of Milwaukee, and maintains a private spiritual care practice for monthly spiritual direction as well as the accompaniment of people through The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola. She completed her formation to serve in this capacity through the Seminars in Ignatian Formation with the Midwest Province.lau
Prayer
“Let it be with me according to your word.”
—Mary, the Mother of Wisdom, of Surprise… of the Possible
Pray with the Pope
Pray with the monthly prayer intentions of the pope.