On March 25th, the world changes. On this day, we will celebrate a momentous, miraculous event in the life of our beloved patron saint, the Virgin Mary and Theotokos: and this event is the Annunciation, the heralding of the Good News, the day when the long-awaited promise of the Messiah began to materialize in the sweet words of the Archangel Gabriel.

Put yourself, now, in Mary’s position. Imagine what was running through the heart and mind of this young and devout woman. She was very much human, like all of us. She had worries, hopes, aspirations, fears, friends, daily and mundane obligations … she had good days, bad days, days when she felt like she hadn’t a friend in the world, and days when it seemed all was well, like she belonged to the world and to Heaven, close to her Father and at peace with all those in her life.

Again, she was just like us: human to the core, struggling, striving to be closer to God, and dealing with everything you and I deal with, every day. But again, this day was different. It was the day that changed her life.

Imagine being in her position when the Archangel came to her in peace, beauty and wisdom, speaking strange words and painting the picture of human salvation—a salvation in which she was to play a massive role. Imagine her fear, her trembling, and her awe—was this truly a heavenly visit, or was this her mind playing tricks on her? Was she dreaming? It was no dream. And the challenge was clear: to put aside her feelings of unworthiness, to put aside her misgivings and doubts—to yield to the will of God, to offer her heart to her Father in trust, confidence and absolute love. Mary had the courage and faith to do these things, and humanity has been thankful to her ever since.

What about you and me? What would we have done in her position? Perhaps I would have shrugged off the visitation and called it a dream. After all, why would God call on me for a special purpose? Maybe you would have denied the Archangel, and begged him to please ask someone else. If it were last week or today, the denial may have smacked of this kind of jargon: “Well, hey, Mr. Archangel—I’m blown away, really honored. I mean, this is like … completely amazing, and I don’t want you to, like, take this the wrong way, but I’m really about myself right now. Yeah, I really need to work on me right now and figure out what I’m all about … what I really want … what I really need….”

What you really need? What we really need? What we all really need is Him. We need the Lord in our lives—we need the sweet presence of the Christ. And to receive Him, we have to start acting like Him: we have to start giving. We have to be about something bigger than ourselves. We have to take a more noble approach to life. We have to prepare ourselves for the day when God asks something of us. Mary rose to the occasion, despite her personal concerns. Again, what about you and me? Would we have risen to the occasion; or would we have denied this holy charge with that all-too familiar jargon, a jargon of gross self-absorption and spiritual inertia, no matter how prettily packaged or inoffensively spoken?

As Great and Holy Lent approaches, in the coming days and weeks, think about Mary. Think about this overwhelmed, scared and faithful young woman. Think about what she did—think about what she did for you, for me, for your children and your grandchildren and everyone you know and will never know. Think about what she did, and then stop, look to your Father who is in Heaven, pray about what you can do, and give yourself to Him, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind—now and always. Amen.

With prayers for a blessed and transforming Lent,

Fr. Alex

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