Fourth Sunday of Advent

 

Today’s Gospel reading comes from the first chapter of Luke.  What we commonly call, “The Annunciation.”  (You’ve seen it depicted in my favorite window, which you can see above.)  But rather than the Annunciation, I really think it might be more appropriate to call this event “The Yes of Mary.”  Because it is less an announcement than a question.  A request.  Something that requires a response.

We think of Gabriel as announcing to Mary that she will conceive and bear a son, the One who will redeem the world.  But Mary still has to say “yes.”  That’s the key.  That’s the drama.  That’s where it could go either way.  One of my favorite ideas about Mary and the Annunciation is expressed in a sermon from St. Bernard in the early 1100s. 

The angels and all Creation held their breath, awaiting the “yes” of Mary.

It’s sometimes hard to wrap our minds around, but Mary did not have to say yes.  Mary did not have to say, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.”  And I like to imagine something of an eternity between Gabriel’s announcement to her, and Mary whispering “Let it be.”  She didn’t have to say yes, but thank Mary she did.

And it is the same with us.  We don’t have to say yes to God.  Every day, we have choices.  Some days we make good decisions, and some days not so good.  We can say yes; we can say no.

The angels and all Creation held their breath, awaiting the “yes” of Mary.

May we spend this week practicing saying, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.”  And the angels and all creation hold their breath, awaiting our response.