TKelly Homily Annunciation 240408
To be celebrating the Annunciation of the Lord in the second week after the Resurrection in the month of April is a little disorientating for some of us who are older. We remember the Annunciation as a feast of Mary, the Mother of Jesus. Now we remember the conception of Jesus on this feast. The conception of Jesus was always remembered in the Advent season. As the Liturgical calendar became more historical orientated, we began to celebrate the Annunciation of Jesus birth nine months before the birth of Jesus. So, we are to celebrate the Annunciation of the conception of the man Jesus which in actual fact involves Mary as a most important part of the event. This liturgical year because of the final weeks of the Lenten season including the 25th of March, we are celebrating the Annunciation after Easter.
Restoring the Annunciation as a feast of the Lord does not denigrate the role of Mary in the salvation of humanity. The significance of the feast can be summarized in the opening verse of today’s liturgy, “Behold, I have come to do your will, O God”. That text is based on the verse from Psalm 40 “Here am I, Lord; I come to do your will”. The good news proclaimed and celebrated by the Church this day is the good news of the obedience that will restore all that has been broken as a result of the disobedience standing at the beginning of history.
In theology, it is commonly presented that the willingness of Jesus to enter into the created world was a response to the Father seeking the way to bring humanity back into the scheme of the divine love that wanted to share its fullness with humanity. But disobedience had broken the relation. Jesus responded to the will of the Father with the proclamation, “Here am I, Lord, I come to do your will”.
God the source of all life and the creator of the universe announces to Mary the good news of salvation: his Son will take on our flesh. But the fulfilment of this promise is dependent upon the obedient “yes” of Mary. With her positive response, the Word is conceived in her womb. Because of her yes, the Word dwells among us and we have a mediator whose obedience unto death unites us once for all to the Father of life.
The gospel of Luke gives us a unique vision of Mary the perfect disciple. The common spiritual tradition has often emphasized the acceptance of Mary as a blind obedience. But in the text, Mary’s response is the very human response of a disciple. Mary asks how this shall be. The obedience of Mary is an excellent example of obedience. It is the fruit of dialogue. Mary is called to something greater than she has experienced. True obedience is always this call to something more. A call which must be answered in personal way; true authority is persuasive authority. Mary was persuaded to respond with a yes in order to grow still more as a person. Mary chose to move to the further horizon. Obedience must always have that personal dialogue and always that call to grow beyond one’s limits.
Mary is an example for each of us not to turn from those incomprehensible moments when we are called to move beyond our limited horizons to become that person modelled on Jesus who gave his life that we might have eternal life.